How exactly Spell Compendium should interact with older books?

[ShurikVch]

I mean - if we will just mechanically repace <older X> with <Spell Compendium X>, then it will poke holes in older materials:
Darkbolt in Spell Compendium is a 5th-level spell for Darkness domain; older books have it as a 2nd-level spell - including Vile Darkness domain
Drown and Mass Drown in Spell Compendium is a 6th- and 9th- levels Druid spells; older Faerûn books have Watery Death domain, which have same spells at the same levels
Spell Compendium doesn't even mentioned Dread Necromancer class; thus, spells such as Vile Death, Plague of Undead, and the whole Summon Undead line are all falling out of Dread Necromancer spell list

[Flickerdart]

The particular class list is always the primary source for who can cast a spell. So Dread Necromancers can cast all the spells they could always cast, and people with the Vile Darkness domain get early access to Darkbolt. In addition to users of the Watery Death domain, SpC grants (Mass) Drown to druids. Since WotC splat material is really bad at referencing anything except core content, this all makes sense.

[Psyren]

Spell Compendium doesn't even mentioned Dread Necromancer class; thus, spells such as Vile Death, Plague of Undead, and the whole Summon Undead line are all falling out of Dread Necromancer spell list

The issue here is with your reading: in short, not mentioning something is not more specific than mentioning something.

[ShurikVch]

The issue here is with your reading: in short, not mentioning something is not more specific than mentioning something.My reading? :smallconfused:
It's in the "Level:" line!
LEVEL
The next line of a spell description gives the spell's level, a number between 0 and 9 that defines the spell's relative power. This number is preceded by an abbreviation for the class whose members can cast the spell. The Level entry also indicates whether a spell is a domain spell and, if so, what its domain and its level as a domain spell are. A spell's level affects the DC for any save allowed against the effect.
For example, the Level entry for hold person is "Brd 2, Clr 2, Sor/Wiz 3." That means it is a 2nd-level spell for bards, a 2nd-level spell for clerics, and a 3rd-level spell for sorcerers and wizards. The level entry for magic vestment is "Clr 3, Strength 3, War 3." That means it is a 3rd-level spell for clerics, the 3rd-level Strength domain spell, and the 3rd-level War domain spell.According to Spell Compendium,
Level: Cleric 9, sorcerer/wizard 9
Level: Cleric 9, sorcerer/wizard 9
Level: Blackguard 1, cleric 1, sorcerer/wizard 1

[Fizban]

people with the Vile Darkness domain get early access to Darkbolt. .
There were two different Darkbolt spells printed for two different Darkness domains. Spell Compendium re-printed the higher level one from FRCS's Darkness domain, while Lords of Madness has the lower level one from BoVD's Darkness domain, renamed to the Vile Darkness domain.

Nothing is missing from the Dread Necromancer's spell list. It knows the spells that it knows, and can use Advanced Learning to pick up some of the rest.

[Psyren]

My reading? :smallconfused:
It's in the "Level:" line!According to Spell Compendium,

"These classes can cast it" does not mean "no other classes are ever able to." Heroes of Horror 131-133 specifically allows them to and SpC does not contradict this.



Level: Cleric 9, dread necromancer 7, sorcerer/wizard 9


Level: Cleric 9, dread necromancer 9, sorcerer/wizard 9


Level: Blackguard 1, cleric 1, dread necromancer 1, sorcerer/wizard 1

In fact, by your logic things like Advanced Learning would also not work, because the "Level" line doesn't list the name of the class with the advanced learning ability. The reason your logic is incorrect is because specific trumps general.

[ShurikVch]

The reason your logic is incorrect is because specific trumps general.Please, excuse me, but I just don't see - in what way exactly "dread necromancer 1" is more specific than "cleric 1"?

[Deophaun]

So... does that mean lion's charge is still a second level Sor/Wiz spell?

In fact, I think it's fair to say that, based on the following, the SpC does nothing to harm the Dread Necro's list:

Spell Compendium deals exclusively with spells used by the classes and prestige classes introduced in the Player’s Handbook and Dungeon Master’s Guide, but even if you’re playing a different spellcasting class, you can still use this book. The advice below should help you decide how to adopt spells for your character. If the spellcasting class or prestige class you’re playing isn’t mentioned here, find a similar class and follow its advice. Also, many new classes and prestige classes reference the spell lists of existing classes. If your spellcaster uses the spell list of a character class mentioned in Chapter 2, your character gains access to all the spells presented for that class
So, it's telling you not to expect "Warmage 5" or "Beguiler 3" anywhere there, because those aren't classes in the PHB or the DMG.

[Psyren]

Please, excuse me, but I just don't see - in what way exactly "dread necromancer 1" is more specific than "cleric 1"?

It is more specific for "what spells are on the dread necromancer spell list?" In other words, Spell Compendium has no power to remove any spells from the dread necro list, because the primary source for their list is Heroes of Horror, and nothing in Spell Compendium more specifically says "this spell is no longer on the dread necro list." Make sense?