Thunderdog
2023-05-15, 07:34 AM
Hi guys! As you can read from the title, I tried to revise the subclass Circle of Spores, it's my favourite subclass in 5e but is in dire need of tweaking due to the conflicting action economy of its features and its niche within the role of the Druid class. Here I tried to maintain the main theme and limitations of the original subclass for balance, but making it so that the features do not conflict with one another and expanding upon the role of mid-line AoE caster that the subclass seems to rely upon.
I would very much appreciate a feedback regarding balance, flavour and so on, thanks in advance
This is the list of changes:
2nd level
-Circle spells: unchanged
-Halo of spores: improved range from 10 to 15 feet
-Symbiotic entity: kept the cost of an action and that the feature is dismissed when you lose all the THP.
The d6 necrotic damage is now caused by all melee attacks, not just weapon attacks.
In order to offset the cost and the risk of losing all the THP immediately at low levels, whenever you use the reaction Halo of Spores (does not work with Spreading Spores later) you regen your THP of the Symbiotic Entity of a number equal to the damage inflicted, up to the maximum of the 4 THP per Druid level. Here is the change I am most unsure about: it sure seems very powerful and unique, but it's based on Halo of Spores, which is a save or suck ability which requires a Con saving throw, so enemies will succeed more often than not, deals very little chip damage and scales poorly. On the other hand I feel it is the right incentive for the player to stay near the front line without the fear of wasting turns and abilities. It does not cancel the risk, but gives a greater reward on using it.
6th level
-Fungal infestation: increased range from 10 to 15 feet, used as normal, but can be activated without reaction cost if a creature is killed using Halo of Spores, the zombies keep 1 hp but they can use their action to either attack, grapple or use your base version of Halo of Spores (not powered up by Symbiotic entity) using your spell DC, they are also rendered immune to necrotic damage for the purpose of not being killed by your own features later on
The aim of these changes is to give a bit more versatility and uniqueness to your minion without powering them up. I figured they should contribute to your role of crowd control, so they can either inflict chip damage (Halo of Spores at a limited range, melee attack) or keep the enemy pinned in the area of your choosing (grapple).
10th level
-Spreading Spores: increased the area of the cube from 10 to 15 feet
If you kill someone with the damage of the cube, you can use your reaction to use fungal infestation even if the target is outside the range of 15 feet of fungal infestation
14th level
-Fungal Body: unchanged
I would very much appreciate a feedback regarding balance, flavour and so on, thanks in advance
This is the list of changes:
2nd level
-Circle spells: unchanged
-Halo of spores: improved range from 10 to 15 feet
-Symbiotic entity: kept the cost of an action and that the feature is dismissed when you lose all the THP.
The d6 necrotic damage is now caused by all melee attacks, not just weapon attacks.
In order to offset the cost and the risk of losing all the THP immediately at low levels, whenever you use the reaction Halo of Spores (does not work with Spreading Spores later) you regen your THP of the Symbiotic Entity of a number equal to the damage inflicted, up to the maximum of the 4 THP per Druid level. Here is the change I am most unsure about: it sure seems very powerful and unique, but it's based on Halo of Spores, which is a save or suck ability which requires a Con saving throw, so enemies will succeed more often than not, deals very little chip damage and scales poorly. On the other hand I feel it is the right incentive for the player to stay near the front line without the fear of wasting turns and abilities. It does not cancel the risk, but gives a greater reward on using it.
6th level
-Fungal infestation: increased range from 10 to 15 feet, used as normal, but can be activated without reaction cost if a creature is killed using Halo of Spores, the zombies keep 1 hp but they can use their action to either attack, grapple or use your base version of Halo of Spores (not powered up by Symbiotic entity) using your spell DC, they are also rendered immune to necrotic damage for the purpose of not being killed by your own features later on
The aim of these changes is to give a bit more versatility and uniqueness to your minion without powering them up. I figured they should contribute to your role of crowd control, so they can either inflict chip damage (Halo of Spores at a limited range, melee attack) or keep the enemy pinned in the area of your choosing (grapple).
10th level
-Spreading Spores: increased the area of the cube from 10 to 15 feet
If you kill someone with the damage of the cube, you can use your reaction to use fungal infestation even if the target is outside the range of 15 feet of fungal infestation
14th level
-Fungal Body: unchanged