Cityscape Question

[BluesEclipse]

The City Magic feat from Cityscape... by RAW, can this be used when casting a spell outside a city? Obviously, you wouldn't get the benefit from it, but if you wanted, say, to use it for metamagic reduction tricks, would it be allowed to apply it?

[TroubleBrewing]

Check the second to last paragraph of the description. It specifically calls it out in two separate wordings as only being useful within a city.

As for the second, that is SNEAKY. "A spell modified with this feat uses a spell slot of the spell's normal level".

I don't think a DM in the world would let the "But it says 'of it's normal level'! It doesn't matter that I also Twinimaxempowered it, I used City Magic!" argument stand.

[Amnestic]

"This feat is useless to spellcasters who cast their spells in a nonurban environment as defined above."

I wouldn't let you use it for metamagic reduction shenanigans. If I did allow you to apply it, I'd note that since half the damage is "city" damage and you're not in a city, then your spell would only deal half damage since there is no city to fulfill the other half.

[BluesEclipse]

"This feat is useless to spellcasters who cast their spells in a nonurban environment as defined above."

I wouldn't let you use it for metamagic reduction shenanigans. If I did allow you to apply it, I'd note that since half the damage is "city" damage and you're not in a city, then your spell would only deal half damage since there is no city to fulfill the other half.

How does this work for prepared casters, then? Assume a prepared caster with Arcane Thesis applies this feat, and then adds other metamagic feats to create a spell with an effective spell level of 9 when preparing the spell. If, for whatever reason, the caster is no longer in the city when they try to cast this, what happens?

It says that the feat is useless, meaning that the benefit of the feat doesn't apply. Meaning you have a spell with a metamagic feat applied that has no effect. Arcane Thesis would then reduce the spell level. The relevant part here isn't whether the City Magic feat has an effect, but that it's applied to the spell at all, I'd think.

[Luckmann]

I'd say that you simply can't cast that spell, as it has been specifically prepared to be cast within the City.

Now, I really have no knowledge of the topic overall, just reading into what has been said, but it makes sense, no?

[Retech]

I think it would be nicer to allow the spell to be cast, unmodified by the metamagic.

At least it's not a complete screw over.

[dextercorvia]

I think it would be nicer to allow the spell to be cast, unmodified by the metamagic.

At least it's not a complete screw over.

That is what the OP is asking. You can't change the level of the spell after it is prepared, so if he prepped an empowered city fireball in a 3rd level slot with Arcane Thesis, then the question is what happens when he casts it outside a city. I believe the answer is that he gets an empowered fireball.