How to Handle Epic Spells?

[Trunamer]

I'm about to run a 30th level one-shot, because my players want to experience virtual demigod-hood. Thing is, epic spells are terribad* so I'm considering simply throwing a few extra spell levels/slots at anyone who makes an epic caster. This isn't an effort to balance epic level play; I just can't be bothered to supervise epic spell creation.

*Even more terribad than the epic rules generally are, that is.

Opinions?

[Immabozo]

you mean for meta magic enhancements? Or are you designing spells yourself?

[Phelix-Mu]

Epic spells, created using the Epic Spellcasting feat, are pretty unbalancing, especially for a one-shot. Basically, given the nigh infinite resources of epic-level casters, they can create a spell that does whatever they want, then mitigate the DC down with burn damage, xp burn, ritual casting with their minions, etc.

If you do allow it, stick to published epic spells, and don't allow further spellcraft DC mitigation. Otherwise you are literally opening a Pandora's box, since they could have spent arbitrary amounts of time generating epic spells before the one-shot mission even begins.

Epic characters are quite sickeningly powerful enough without epic spells, and epic casters even more so. Have you read the Automatic (metamagic x), Multispell, Improved Spell Capacity, Improved Metamagic? These and more just make casters into monsters at higher levels. Epic Spellcasting is kind of gratuitous.

EDIT: Ah, reread the OP. So I wouldn't give epic casters anything in replacement, since you are only removing one feat that isn't vital anyway. Epic casters have a much more powerful set of feats than other classes in the first place, so they don't need compensatory goodies just because you took away Epic Spellcasting.

[Urpriest]

EDIT: Ah, reread the OP. So I wouldn't give epic casters anything in replacement, since you are only removing one feat that isn't vital anyway. Epic casters have a much more powerful set of feats than other classes in the first place, so they don't need compensatory goodies just because you took away Epic Spellcasting.

This. Epic Spellcasting is just one path for a character to take, and while it's absurdly powerful, the other paths are hardly useless. Ban Epic Spellcasting and the casters will still have fun.

[Glimbur]

Agreed. Improved Spell Capacity, Improved Metamagic, Automatic Quicken (or still or silence I suppose)... there are good epic feats for casters even without Epic Spellcasting. Some normal feats are still worth taking in Epic too.

[Carth]

I agree with banning the epic spellcasting feat. If you want, you could make it so that people could heighten spells to 10th level or higher, and anything heightened to 10th or higher is then considered an epic spell, so it could ignore AMFs and otherwise behave like an epic spell.

[Trunamer]

Or are you designing spells yourself?
With all the other prep I'm doing? Heck no!