Pre-Planning for a future campaign

[NerdHut]

So I currently have a campaign going, and while I'm enjoying it, I think I'd prefer to do lower-magic capaigns in the future. This is mostly because I dislike the default power difference between full casters and non casters.

Don't try to tell me this is a bad idea, because that's matter of opinion, which you can't convince me to change. What I want are tweaks you've seen implemented and liked that nerfed magic without taking all the fun out of the casters.



One of the things I've had in mind are reducing the rate casters get their spells. A reduced rate I've condsidered is 3/5 the speed (still needs tweaked). So a level 5 sorcerer would know as many spells and have as many per day as a default level 3 sorcerer would, but his caster level would still be 5. That also means that a 20th level would know and cast-per-day as a 12th level, but would still have a caster level of 20.
The idea is that the highest-level spells are gone, but 5th and 6th level spells are still powerful.

I'd probably reduce gold/treasure levels a bit too. Less powerful casters means less powerful magical items. I know I'd also need to tweak the CR of many creatures.

How about making it socially undesirable to be a caster? Not so much that it's illegal, but enough that casting willy-nilly around town will leave a wizard without many friends.

I fully expect that whenever I start this campaign it may be modified as we go, but I'd like to hear suggestions from people that have enjoyed lower-magic campaigns before.

[Aspiration]

One simple nerf: spell component pouches don't exist. Magic isn't commonplace, so logically, no one's going to be handing you a handy-dandy prepackaged set of eyeballs, miniature bells, and bat guano. Go track that stuff down on your own, plan your spellcasting accordingly, or invest in Eschew Materials. This also means if your players DO decide to go the route of scavenging for material components, it gives you a way to make some random encounters a lot more relevant, and make some usually not very lootable monsters a little more rewarding to murderize.

There's also the idea that high-level magic probably has some weird side-effects off-screen. Magical contamination, weakening the barrier of life and death, all that kind of thing. Figure out these side effects, and gradually introduce them. You get a plot element, your players get interesting repercussions for chilling in their personal demiplane too much.

And yeah, if the locals have even a suspicion when you walk into town that you could be going around casting enchantments on them - who wouldn't be unfriendly over that?

[prufock]

One of the things I've had in mind are reducing the rate casters get their spells. A reduced rate I've condsidered is 3/5 the speed (still needs tweaked). So a level 5 sorcerer would know as many spells and have as many per day as a default level 3 sorcerer would, but his caster level would still be 5. That also means that a 20th level would know and cast-per-day as a 12th level, but would still have a caster level of 20.
The idea is that the highest-level spells are gone, but 5th and 6th level spells are still powerful.
I would just flat-out replace the spells per level progression and spells known with the same progression as the bard. Apply spells known limitations to all classes, so druid, cleric, etc have a smaller list. Or you could use the adept spell list for unbounded-list casters (druids, clerics, wizards) so they are more versatile but less powerful (only up to 5th level spells). This should drop them all down to approximately tier 3.

If you do this, though, you should give them some class features, possibly drawn from ACF lists (http://www.minmaxboards.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=88chqa1dvulfv6jcff3aavujc2&topic=8732.0), but without the associated losses. For example, sorcerer could be a stalwart battle sorcerer (d8+2 hp per level, martial weapon proficiency, light armor, and weapon focus (maybe at a later level) who gets Metamagic Specialist (could be spread out over 20 levels, ie apply metamagic rapidly a number of times per day = 1/2 your level), and could have one of the alternative familiars, and so on.


I'd probably reduce gold/treasure levels a bit too. Less powerful casters means less powerful magical items. I know I'd also need to tweak the CR of many creatures.
Yea, wealth makes up a part of your character's power too. I don't think I would drop it too much, but since you're eliminating higher-level spells, you could just make it so that any item that requires 7-9th level spells simply don't exist.


How about making it socially undesirable to be a caster? Not so much that it's illegal, but enough that casting willy-nilly around town will leave a wizard without many friends.
This can be a setting detail, but it doesn't change anything mechanically, it just makes spellcasters annoying to play.


One simple nerf: spell component pouches don't exist. Magic isn't commonplace, so logically, no one's going to be handing you a handy-dandy prepackaged set of eyeballs, miniature bells, and bat guano. Go track that stuff down on your own, plan your spellcasting accordingly, or invest in Eschew Materials.
I would advise against this for three reasons: 1 - this makes spellcasters really annoying to play, 2- it applies a feat tax, because they will all take Eschew Materials, and 3 - it doesn't decrease their overall power.