Kioran
2008-04-01, 06:31 AM
There is one question I have been asking myself, both in regards to my own d20-rewrite and the Pathfinder system, as well as "4th Ed" - obviously, some spells can be very problematic if they can be cast at will (Heal, Fabricate etc.), at least at some levels, while others (burning hands, Mage hand etc.) are obviously a lot less problematic. If one strives to reduce Item dependency, it is actually quite logical to make some magic effects available to normal characters, either as SLAs or at will. That has also already been done, in a limited fashion, via Reserve Feats or the warlock.
But what are the hallmarks of a spell effect that is either harmless, or critical as an at-will ability? Power, of course, t-will abilities need to be qeaker than the limited ressources, but there are some spells which have primary or secondary qualities which make them more or less suited.
This is, to me, the absolute no-go quality which disqualify any spell for something like a reserve feat or at-will SLA:
- permanent duration or effect. This includes healing, but most notably spells like shape stone or fabricate.
These are effects that make for a definite worse candidate:
- long duration non-personal buffs. These can be spammed to the point of being perma-active, even in large groups. Problematic.
- special obstacle-circumvention spells like fly, invisibility, knock - or Glibness (a ridiculous spell for other reasons as well). These remove an entire dimension of hazards and obstacles for the party and alter the dynamics of encounters significantly. Such things, if attainable should be more than just a minor investment for the character in question. In the same vein, itīs okay for the Warlock to have these effects, since he is forced to take many levels in a moderately weak class to gain only a handful of invocations - that is, if he is burning Feats as well. Overland flight, on the other hand, is an abomination and should be at least a higher spell lvl.
- huge area effects. Too much impact on the surroundings. not necessesarily unbalancing in a fight, but harmful for both campaign cohesion and verisimilitude. Large-scale slaughter/turning the tide via mass-blessing should cost at least a spell slot.
These kinds of spells are, to me, good candidates for being spammable:
- Weaponlike spells. Be it Eldritch blast, shocking grasp or maybe even burning hands - itīs just another way of doing damages. Should odviously be balanced against normal weapons and their damage output, but is, as such, not problematic.
- Personal buffs. Like the warlock Invocations "The dark oneīs own luck" or "spiderwalk" etc. - or like Incarnum for that matter. These become perma-buffs which replace magic items and are, unless hideously overpowered, no problem. A very good option to reduce item dependency, by the way.
- anything that can, with some effort or investment(Skill ranks, class Features or Feats), easily be copied by mundane means.
Thatīs my opinion at least. But did I miss anything? Overlook anything critical?
But what are the hallmarks of a spell effect that is either harmless, or critical as an at-will ability? Power, of course, t-will abilities need to be qeaker than the limited ressources, but there are some spells which have primary or secondary qualities which make them more or less suited.
This is, to me, the absolute no-go quality which disqualify any spell for something like a reserve feat or at-will SLA:
- permanent duration or effect. This includes healing, but most notably spells like shape stone or fabricate.
These are effects that make for a definite worse candidate:
- long duration non-personal buffs. These can be spammed to the point of being perma-active, even in large groups. Problematic.
- special obstacle-circumvention spells like fly, invisibility, knock - or Glibness (a ridiculous spell for other reasons as well). These remove an entire dimension of hazards and obstacles for the party and alter the dynamics of encounters significantly. Such things, if attainable should be more than just a minor investment for the character in question. In the same vein, itīs okay for the Warlock to have these effects, since he is forced to take many levels in a moderately weak class to gain only a handful of invocations - that is, if he is burning Feats as well. Overland flight, on the other hand, is an abomination and should be at least a higher spell lvl.
- huge area effects. Too much impact on the surroundings. not necessesarily unbalancing in a fight, but harmful for both campaign cohesion and verisimilitude. Large-scale slaughter/turning the tide via mass-blessing should cost at least a spell slot.
These kinds of spells are, to me, good candidates for being spammable:
- Weaponlike spells. Be it Eldritch blast, shocking grasp or maybe even burning hands - itīs just another way of doing damages. Should odviously be balanced against normal weapons and their damage output, but is, as such, not problematic.
- Personal buffs. Like the warlock Invocations "The dark oneīs own luck" or "spiderwalk" etc. - or like Incarnum for that matter. These become perma-buffs which replace magic items and are, unless hideously overpowered, no problem. A very good option to reduce item dependency, by the way.
- anything that can, with some effort or investment(Skill ranks, class Features or Feats), easily be copied by mundane means.
Thatīs my opinion at least. But did I miss anything? Overlook anything critical?