Blink is one of those Dungeons & Dragons spells that seems simple right up until you start combining it with other magic. One of the spell's biggest advantages is that, unlike many powerful defensive spells, Blink does not require Concentration. That means a spellcaster can disappear into the Ethereal Plane while still maintaining another spell at the same time.
That opens up a lot of interesting combinations. What happens if you're concentrating on Haste and Blink into the Ethereal Plane? Does Hex fall off? Do your Spirit Guardians stay behind? And what happens to that crackling arc of Witch Bolt when you suddenly stop existing on the same plane as your target?
The short answer is that Blink does not break Concentration, which is a big part of what makes the spell so useful. However, moving to the Ethereal Plane can still interfere with, temporarily shut down, or even end another spell depending on exactly what that spell requires.
So while Blink is unusually friendly to concentration-based builds, that does not mean every concentration spell works seamlessly with it. The details of the other spell still matter.
This article uses the revised 2024 Dungeons & Dragons rules, often referred to as D&D 5.5e.
How Does the Blink Spell Work in D&D 5e?
Blink is a 3rd-level spell with a duration of 1 minute, and importantly, Blink does not require Concentration.
At the end of each of your turns while Blink is active, you roll a d6. On a 4, 5, or 6, you disappear from your current plane and enter the Ethereal Plane. You remain there until the start of your next turn, when you return to the plane you left.
So a successful Blink usually happens after you've already taken your actions for the round. You disappear during much of everyone else's turn, then return just before your next turn begins.
While you're on the Ethereal Plane because of Blink, you can affect and be affected only by creatures on that plane. That planar separation is where many unusual spell interactions begin.
Does Blink Break Concentration in D&D 5e?
No. Blink does not automatically break Concentration.
Changing planes is not, by itself, something that causes Concentration to end. Blink also doesn't require Concentration, so you can have Blink active while concentrating on another spell.
The important question isn't simply whether you're still concentrating. It's whether the spell you're concentrating on has another requirement that Blink causes you to violate.
Some spells require a target to remain within range. Some have effects centered on the caster. Others place an ongoing effect on a creature or location and don't particularly care where the caster goes afterward.
That's why Witch Bolt, Haste, and Spirit Guardians all behave differently when Blink sends you to the Ethereal Plane.
Does Blink End Witch Bolt in D&D 5e?
Yes. If Blink sends you to the Ethereal Plane while your Witch Bolt target remains behind, Witch Bolt ends.
Witch Bolt is unusual because its range matters after the spell has already been cast. The spell ends if its target is ever outside the spell's range or gains Total Cover from you.
That makes its range a continuing requirement rather than merely a requirement for choosing the original target.
When Blink sends you into the Ethereal Plane, you aren't simply moving farther away. You've moved to another plane of existence, and Blink specifically limits your ability to affect creatures that remain on your original plane.
Nothing in Witch Bolt allows its magical tether to stretch between those planes.
Example: What Happens If You Cast Witch Bolt While Blink Is Active?
Your Wizard has Blink active and casts Witch Bolt on an ogre 30 feet away.
The attack hits and deals its initial Lightning damage. At the end of your turn, you roll a 5 for Blink and disappear into the Ethereal Plane.
Witch Bolt ends.
When Blink returns you at the start of your next turn, the lightning tether doesn't reconnect. The spell has already ended, so you would need to cast Witch Bolt again.
Is Witch Bolt Good to Use with Blink?
Generally, no.
The revised Witch Bolt is much more useful than its older 2014 counterpart, but Blink gives you a 50 percent chance at the end of each turn to jump to another plane and break its continuing tether.
If you're hoping to keep Witch Bolt running for several rounds, Blink makes that plan significantly less reliable.
Does Blink End Haste in D&D 5e?
No. Blink does not end Haste.
This demonstrates an important difference between a spell's casting range and an ongoing range requirement.
When you cast Haste, you choose a creature you can see within range. After that, Haste doesn't say the target must remain within that range.
If you cast Haste on your Fighter and then Blink into the Ethereal Plane, you continue concentrating and the Fighter remains Hasted.
A spell's original range does not automatically become a leash once the spell has been cast. If remaining within range matters, the spell normally says so.
Does Blink End Hold Person or Hold Monster?
No. Blink does not normally end Hold Person or Hold Monster.
These spells require you to choose a valid target when you cast them, but they don't say the spell ends if you later move beyond the original casting range or lose sight of that creature.
If you Blink away while concentrating on Hold Person, for example, the target remains affected and continues making its saving throws as described by the spell.
This follows the same principle as Haste: the spell had requirements for selecting its target, but those requirements don't automatically continue for the entire duration.
Does Blink End Hex or Hunter's Mark?
No. Both Hex and Hunter's Mark can normally remain active while you Blink.
Neither spell requires its target to remain within the original casting range for the mark or curse to continue.
Blink's timing also works particularly well here. You disappear at the end of your turn and return at the start of your next one, so you're usually back on the Material Plane before you need to make another attack against the target.
In fact, Blink can sometimes help protect your Concentration on these spells by making you unavailable to many attacks during the rest of the round.
What Happens to Spirit Guardians When You Blink?
Spirit Guardians doesn't end when you Blink, but its Emanation goes with you.
The revised Spirit Guardians creates a 15-foot Emanation originating from the caster. An Emanation moves with the creature or object that is its origin.
In this case, you are the origin.
When Blink sends you into the Ethereal Plane, you don't leave your Spirit Guardians floating behind on the Material Plane. The Emanation moves with you.
That means creatures standing around the location where you disappeared aren't still inside your Spirit Guardians while you're gone. When you return at the start of your next turn, the Emanation returns with you.
This makes Blink a mixed combination with Spirit Guardians. It can protect you from attacks that might threaten your Concentration, but it also removes your damaging area from your original plane for part of the round.
What Happens to Conjure Minor Elementals When You Blink?
Conjure Minor Elementals follows the same basic rule as Spirit Guardians because its effect is also an Emanation originating from you.
The spell doesn't necessarily end when you Blink, but its area travels into the Ethereal Plane with you instead of remaining behind.
This distinction matters whenever a spell's area is attached to the caster rather than placed at a fixed point on the battlefield.
Does Heat Metal Keep Working If You Blink?
Heat Metal can remain active when you Blink.
However, Heat Metal shows us another kind of spell interaction. Rather than saying the entire spell ends when its target leaves a particular range, the spell can place requirements on using certain later parts of the spell.
That's different from Witch Bolt.
With Witch Bolt, failing the continuing requirement ends the spell. With Heat Metal, the spell itself can remain active even if circumstances temporarily prevent you from using one of its later effects.
Blink usually makes this fairly easy because you return at the start of your turn, before you would normally use your Bonus Action.
The important distinction is whether failing a requirement ends the spell or merely prevents you from using one particular feature of it.
What Happens to Dominate Person When You Blink?
Dominate Person provides another variation.
Your Concentration can continue while you Blink, but parts of the spell's telepathic connection specifically care about whether you and the Charmed creature are on the same plane of existence.
If Blink sends you to the Ethereal Plane while the dominated creature remains behind, that particular functionality can become unavailable while you're separated.
When you return to the same plane, you can use the spell normally again, assuming nothing else has ended it.
This is a useful reminder that a spell doesn't always have to be completely "working" or completely "ended." Sometimes only one part of it is interrupted.
Do Stationary Concentration Spells End When You Blink?
Usually, no.
Consider a spell such as Spike Growth. It creates an area at a location you chose when you cast it. That area isn't centered on you, and the spell doesn't say it disappears because you later move beyond its original casting range.
If Blink sends you to the Ethereal Plane, you can continue concentrating on Spike Growth while the hazardous area remains where you created it.
This is fundamentally different from an Emanation like Spirit Guardians. One is attached to the caster. The other was placed on the battlefield and stays there.
DM Ruling Shortcut
The Blink Spell Test
When Blink creates a strange spell interaction, don't start by asking whether the caster is still concentrating. Start by asking what the other spell needs in order to keep working.
Ask: What does this specific spell say must remain true?
If the spell says the target must stay in range: Blink may end it.
If the spell has an ongoing ability with its own requirements: that ability may temporarily stop working.
If the spell is an Emanation centered on you: the effect goes with you.
If the spell placed an effect on a creature or location: it usually keeps going unless the spell says otherwise.
Is Blink Good for Protecting Concentration Spells?
It can be.
Blink doesn't improve your Constitution saving throws. Instead, it can prevent some of those saving throws from happening in the first place.
When your Blink roll succeeds, you're on the Ethereal Plane during much of the time enemies would normally be attacking you. If they can't damage you, they can't force Concentration saving throws with that damage.
Then you return at the start of your next turn, act normally, and potentially disappear again at the end of that turn.
The tradeoff is that Blink only works on a 4, 5, or 6, and some spells interact poorly with planar movement. Witch Bolt can end outright, while caster-centered effects like Spirit Guardians leave the Material Plane along with you.
Which Concentration Spells Work with Blink?
Here's the quick version:
- Witch Bolt: Poor combination. Blinking to another plane causes its continuing tether to fail and the spell ends.
- Haste: Keeps working. It has no continuing range requirement.
- Hold Person / Hold Monster: Keeps working. The target remains affected and continues making its saves.
- Hex: Keeps working. The curse remains active.
- Hunter's Mark: Keeps working. The mark remains active.
- Spirit Guardians: Concentration continues, but the Emanation travels with you.
- Conjure Minor Elementals: Its Emanation also travels with you.
- Heat Metal: The spell can remain active, although individual later effects can have their own requirements.
- Dominate Person: Concentration can continue, but planar separation can temporarily interfere with parts of the spell.
- Stationary concentration areas: Usually remain where you created them unless the spell specifically says otherwise.
What Is the Rule for Blink and Concentration Spells?
Blink does not end Concentration just because you enter the Ethereal Plane.
From there, read the other spell.
Does it have a continuing range requirement like Witch Bolt? Does it create an Emanation that moves with you like Spirit Guardians? Does it place an effect on someone else like Haste? Does one particular feature require you and the target to remain on the same plane?
Those details determine what happens.
So when your Wizard suddenly vanishes in the middle of a complicated magical combination, the best question isn't simply, "Am I still concentrating?"
It's "What does this particular spell need in order to keep working?"
That will solve most of the strange interactions Blink can create.