Low magic variants 5e

[Richard369]

Hey all,

Ground through a ton of threads and couldn't find anything concrete. I'm still a newbie here, so that's probably it.

Just looking for resources to dial back the super power feeling of classes and the game in general, like the non-magic paladin and ranger classes once seen for 3.5 I believe.

One thread mentioned a LotR resource but I can't find that either.

Thanks in advance,

Richard

[Grod_The_Giant]

"Low magic" and "low power" seem to be somewhat different things. Low power can be achieved with a variant on 3D&D 3.5's "epic six" rules-- basically, you advance normally until you hit a level (6, 8, 12, whatever) which you judge to be the peak of your preferred power, and afterwards you get ASIs instead of full levels. Low magic is a little trickier, since it cuts out lots of potential class options. I came up with a system here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?543153-5e-Low-Magic-Overhaul-%28Two-new-classes-and-one-new-subclasses-included!%29), which includes a list of things that should be totally removed, a list of things which are okay if you don't mind a little mysticism, and a few new class/subclass options. (A Warlord that eats the Bard, Paladin, and a bit of the Cleric, a Scholar that eats most of the arcane spellcasters, and a shapeshifting Ranger subclass)

[Anonymouswizard]

The LotR version is Adventures in Middle Earth, and it's relatively good. It is however focused on Middle Earth, and might not be suitable if you want to run something else (or at least very expensive if buying it only for the classes).

I'm currently working on a 5e hack that'll dial the magic right down. No magic-using classes (spells are essentially bought as Feats and used 1/SR), no assumed magic items (but masterwork ones give a +1 bonus to rolls), but slightly more complex combat and a basic social conflict system. It's still in the very early days, the combat addons are being built and classes are being outlined, but I'll be sharing it once it hits a more 'alpha' state.

[opaopajr]

WotC put up a Magic the Gathering > DnD 5e crossover for the MtG plane Kaladesh. In that plane magic users are all but extinct, especially due to the prosecution ruling by the Consulate, and the massive proliferation of aether artifacts which obviates their need. Check it out, look for Plane Shift - Kaladesh. :smallamused:

I do find AiME to be an excellent use of SRD and great low magic as well.

As for myself, it helps to have an idea of what sort of low level you are looking for. Do you have a source fiction in mind?

I reserve my houserule to dampen at-will cantrips, because I am not interested in their presumed effects upon each of my settings. So I sometimes turn it on to allow only as many cantrip casting total equal to your casting stat value (not mod) per Long Rest. e.g. An INT 11 Wizard has 11 cantrip slots (of any mix) to cast before needing a Long Rest. How it relates to other Advantages is yours to decide on a setting case-by-case basis.

But that's just an example. It'd be easier to suss out your desired baseline through an example of fiction and work towards that.

Also remember, deleting classes (and archetypes) from character generation options is always a quick and easy way to achieve this low magic effect.:smallsmile:

[JackPhoenix]

There's also this homebrew (https://img.fireden.net/tg/image/1501/28/1501288762259.pdf), partially based on AIME. I'd love to find where it is from originally, or who made it, but no such luck so far.

[Richard369]

Thank you guys for all of the help.

Personally in terms of a fiction archetype I'm looking for something like LotR. Low magic, with abilities substituted for spells on hybrid classes like Ranger and Paladin.

UA had some great examples of alternative paladin and ranger class abilities with no spell casting and I was just wondering if 5e had yet to come out with such.

[Grod_The_Giant]

There was a spell-less Ranger UA early on. Nothing on a spell-less Paladin, though, probably because that's just a Fighter with high Cha.

[Psikerlord]

Here is a no magic 5e ranger, and no magic 5e bard, which might be of interest:

http://dndhackersguild.weebly.com/blog/spell-less-ranger-for-dnd-5e-and-primeval-thule
http://dndhackersguild.weebly.com/blog/spell-less-bard-for-dnd-5e-and-primeval-thule

And a warlord for good measure!
http://dndhackersguild.weebly.com/blog/warlord-for-dnd-5e-and-primeval-thule