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10 months ago ::
Aug 30, 2012 - 10:46PM
#11
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Date Joined:
Jun 22, 2012
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i remember a while ago they mentioned allowing auto escalation on spells used in higher slots.
And that begs the question: Why can't spells scale down? Why should Fireball always be a level-3 spell, when 1d6 10' radius "fireball" as a 1st-level spell is neither unreasonable nor game-breaking.
I respond with this question. Why can't a crossbow bolt be fired with only 1 pound of pressure? because a minimum amount is required to be effective
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10 months ago ::
Aug 30, 2012 - 10:49PM
#12
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Date Joined:
May 18, 2002
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I respond with this question. Why can't a crossbow bolt be fired with only 1 pound of pressure?
It can. It's just not going to hurt anything much tougher than a strawberry.
mmmm.... strawberries.
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10 months ago ::
Aug 30, 2012 - 11:07PM
#13
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Date Joined:
Jun 22, 2012
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I respond with this question. Why can't a crossbow bolt be fired with only 1 pound of pressure?
It can. It's just not going to hurt anything much tougher than a strawberry.
mmmm.... strawberries.
with only 1 pound of pressure, that bolt wont even fly
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10 months ago ::
Aug 31, 2012 - 12:17AM
#14
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Date Joined:
May 18, 2002
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A ballistic arc is just a variant on falling.
At any rate, to get a scalable spell system, a better approach would be to disassemble the geometry and figure out exactly how things scale. From there, pretty much anything can be put together, apart from narrative spells (hello there, Wish) which really don't have many quantifiable parts to scale.
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10 months ago ::
Aug 31, 2012 - 7:54AM
#15
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Date Joined:
Jan 10, 2012
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The answer basically in DDN to why spells don't scale is willpower points, in previous editions spells autoscaled as you leveled (get 1d6 per level of fireball, an extra magic missile every other level etc.) but when you add the sorceror to the mix, it's frankly reciculous that your first level that costs 1 willpower does more than a 2nd level spell that costs twice as muchh that you haven't scaled.
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10 months ago ::
Aug 31, 2012 - 7:58AM
#16
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Date Joined:
Jun 22, 2012
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The answer basically in DDN to why spells don't scale is willpower points, in previous editions spells autoscaled as you leveled (get 1d6 per level of fireball, an extra magic missile every other level etc.) but when you add the sorceror to the mix, it's frankly reciculous that your first level that costs 1 willpower does more than a 2nd level spell that costs twice as muchh that you haven't scaled.
... i dont think you are quite getting the point here.
you cast a 1st level spell in a second level slot, or pay 2 WP instead of 1 WP.
And the increase would not make it more powerful than a spell of the appropriate level
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10 months ago ::
Aug 31, 2012 - 12:39PM
#17
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Date Joined:
Jul 31, 2007
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I don't like the idea of retrograding spells, because there are too many that are hard to quantify easily in that regards. I do want to see some form of metamagic progression used for utility. Some sort of rules for casters that lets them upgrade the spell's area/damage/range/save DC/to hit roll, etc. Let them raise one aspect of it for a spell level.
E.G. If you cast a fireball as a 4th level spell, then it gains 2d6 extra damage. (I see 2d6 as reasonable due to standard progression in past and baseline it is set at now.)
This is what I understood their intent to be anyway. If they require some kinds of feats for that, then that's fine, but they should offer something like that. I'm sure that they will at some point.
If you were allowed to 'delevel' spells, I would say you still can't do it until you are at the spell level to cast the full version first.
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10 months ago ::
Aug 31, 2012 - 12:46PM
#18
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I respond with this question. Why can't a crossbow bolt be fired with only 1 pound of pressure?
It can. It's just not going to hurt anything much tougher than a strawberry.
mmmm.... strawberries.
+1 for strawberries imo.
My two copper.
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10 months ago ::
Aug 31, 2012 - 12:54PM
#19
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On a more serious note, retrograded spells sound like a good idea when you consider damage spells, sure. But think about things like Baleful Polymorph, 6th level Wizard/Sorc spell in 3.5. How do you retrograde that? Lower the DC sure, but it still remains as powerful a spell as it was. If you mess with what the spell can do, then it's real easy to make it useless. It's easy to adjust things with set dice. But a lot of Enchantments and Transmutation effects would be EXTREMELY difficult/confusing to retrograde.
My two copper.
My two copper.
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10 months ago ::
Aug 31, 2012 - 2:34PM
#20
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Date Joined:
Apr 23, 2011
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After hearing some thoughts on this, here's some refined points to this.
- Ala Backgrounds, a small benefit can offset the "packaging" of spells' lessened powergamability.
- Using feats, 4E and 3E both kinda enforced this powergame-wise (ew, less flavor), rather than this system, which enforces it flavor/efficiency wise. You'd game your stats to get the feat that added damage to Fire and Radiant damage, and when you leveled up you'd have to take Fire/Radiant spells or the feat was a waste.
- Ala Backgrounds (instead of skills) and Specialties (instead of feats), this can be the norm to speed up chargen and DM-approval. Then, if you DO want modularity, DMs and Players still have the option to go backward. Don't like Backgrounds? Fine, choose 3 skills. Don't like Specialties? Fine, they work like feats with prerequisites. Don't like Spell Trees? Fine, choose spells modularly. But packages are there as a starting chargen technique, and if you DON'T like modularity you can tear it into smaller chunks, which you will probably be doing with specialties and backgrounds at the same time.
- Just to clarify, I'm not suggesting turning Burning Hands/Flaming Sphere/ Fireball into one scaling superspell that grows with the character. There's mechanical changes in these that make them a lot more unique than just extra D6's. I'm saying you choose 'em in a packaged fashion, so making characters is less time-consuming. As an example of this, go make a 17th level Wizard in 3E, or a 17th level anything in 4E. Because there's so much crap to choose from, it takes forever. Back when I was playing 3E, if I had to make a character for an inexperienced player, I'd automatically shoehorn them into Barbarian or Rogue. DEFINITELY not a spellcaster, and the feat-bloated fighter also sucked. Sure, I mightt book an evening to make a wizard I was gonna play, but not someone else. Spell packages mean this would not suck nearly as bad.
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