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Thread: Reserve Feat balance?
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2007-07-24, 01:04 AM (ISO 8601)
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Reserve Feat balance?
The reserve feats in the Complete Mage seem a bit strong to me.
There is one (cant remember its name) that gives you the ability to throw small fireballs (5ft area, 30ft range, 1d6 fire dmg/lvl of the highest fire spell you can cast, Reflex for half dmg) as much as you want as long as you have at least a 2nd lvl fire spell which you can cast that day.
Are these Reserve feats to powerfull, or is it just me?
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2007-07-24, 01:10 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
It's just you, definitely. There are untold illions of superior feats you could choose; in the words of the esteemed Admiral, it's a trap.
Last edited by Inyssius Tor; 2007-07-24 at 01:11 AM.
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2007-07-24, 01:12 AM (ISO 8601)
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2007-07-24, 01:12 AM (ISO 8601)
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2007-07-24, 01:19 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
The key concept to latch on to in this case is that sustained casting ability is rarely meaningful when it comes at a cost of immediate threat elimination.
When compared to the caster's actual spells, the reserve feats are rather pitiful, you can probably agree there. Now realize that to continue using the feat, the wizard has to always hold spells back.
But when the feces hits the fan, the wizard is almost always better off using spells that take out the enemies as quickly as possible, reducing the chances of a mage-destroying series of attacks. With a competent player, spells more than two or three levels lower than the maximum the wizard can cast will never be used on actual threats, they'll be saved for mooks because the saving throws are so low that it would be a waste of a round, the most precious resource of all.
Now, if you happen to run campaigns where the wizard knows they won't get a chance to rest at reasonable intervals, reserve feats might get expended instead of actual spells in the smaller encounters where they do some slight good, but later on if the mage still has high level spells and is saving them despite imminent threats, they're going to have a much tougher time than a regular wizard, because they are giving their opponent that many more chances to hurt them."It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg."
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2007-07-24, 01:34 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
Ok, I see your points. But say for a lvl 3 to 5 Wiz, would it be helpful there?
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2007-07-24, 01:58 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
Reserve feats are useful at any level IMO, but generally pretty weak. 3-5 is probably where they're strongest, but probably not overpowered then, and their efficacy rapidly drops off after that.
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2007-07-24, 01:59 AM (ISO 8601)
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2007-07-24, 02:04 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
The only real reason I'd take one would be for the flavor. Having light bolts arc from your fingers or your eyes because of the sheer power of the arcane spells within you is pretty cool.
But they're still not particularly useful. Especially the damage-dealing ones, for all the same reasons why fireball isn't a useful spell.I am a poor man, some say I’m half crazy,
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2007-07-24, 02:21 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
I feel the best way to look at them is to ask "is a warlock's unaugmented eldritch blast overpowered?". Because all the damage dealing reserve feats are noticeably weaker than that.
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2007-07-24, 03:32 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
It is very useful for levels 1-6 in a leveling up campaign particularly if you take the Precocious Apprentice Feat at level 1 with a Fire based spell to fuel it or playing a UA/D20 SRD Fire Domain Mage Variant.
Taking a Flaw or Two to take Precocious Apprentice and the Fiery Burst Reserve Feat is pretty viable at low levels for most games and campaigns.
Plus it is more fun playing Batman if you can do some useful magical blasting.Last edited by CASTLEMIKE; 2007-07-24 at 03:41 AM.
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2007-07-24, 03:33 AM (ISO 8601)
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2007-07-24, 08:45 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
There are a couple of reserve feats in the newer supplements that are pretty potent. But for the most point, the community is spot on. Casting spells are almost always more powerful then more limited all day spell-like abilities, which is why reserve feats are balanced and why Warlocks generally suck.
If you want to get more out of reserve feats (or Warlocks), then its important for the DM to run a lot of encounters per game day. As you run more encounters, spells become proportionately less powerful, and all day abilities become more powerful.
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2007-07-24, 12:45 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
I have to agree, and I actually USE a reserve feat.
I have a Wizard5/Mage of the Arcane Order 9/Archmage 3 right now who has the "dimensional jaunt" reserve feat. I took it because my party is in a large campaign involving a lot of Githyanki, and I got tired of being grappled with Telekinesis on a regular basis and not being able to do anything about it.
In general, it's only become useful in game a few times. I probably would have been better off taking an Item Creation feat (I've got most of the Metamagic feats I want already). Still, I'm glad I took it. Less for the game impact than that it's really cool being able to bamf from place to place like Nightcrawler.
I have a friend who is rather fond of the acid reserve feat, largely because the game he was using it in was City of the Spider Queen. I've never run the module myself, but I'm given to undesrtand that he liked it because of the numerous-encounters-in-a-short-amount-of-time nature of the adventure. For myself, I just pack a wand of Lesser Orb of Acid (9th level) for when I get into a jam and actually need to deal a bit of damage.Last edited by Wereling; 2007-07-24 at 12:46 PM.
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2007-07-24, 01:20 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
I think they're more useful for Sorcerers, since if I'm reading it right, a single spell slot of your highest level allows you to use all your reserve feats, as long as you don't expend your last slot. Although, they're still pretty weak, but during an arcane caster's first few levels, when he's still carting around a crossbow, the damage ones serve a bit of purpose. After that, it's nice being able to fling blasts of energy at someone obnoxious, without blowing a spell slot, but it largely boils down to just being something cool towards the end.
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2007-07-24, 01:25 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
IIRC it gives you 1d6/level of the highest fire spell you still have prepared. So you can go around casting 2d6 fire damage as long as you have a level 2 fire spell, or 3d6 as long as you have a level 3 fire spell, or whatever.
It's a useful feat if you want to be a blaster caster and want to be able to contribute damage to "lesser" encounters that aren't actually worth blowing spell slots on. But being a blaster caster is generally weaker than being a save-or-suck / battlefield control caster.
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2007-07-24, 01:30 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
Yes they will be helpful there, they will stop being helpful around lvl 7 no matter what you do (with the exception of some reserve feats such as minor shapeshift)
Lvl 1 Illuminan with 2 flaws
Precocious Apprentice
Improved Sigil Krau
Fiery Blast
3d6 fire damage in a 5 ft blast is far more than a lvl 1 fighter can do.
Dimensional Jaunt is good for it works not in battle too. Summon elemental is decent one.Stupendous Man drawn by Linklele
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2007-07-24, 04:15 PM (ISO 8601)
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2007-07-24, 04:18 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
The free hit points polymorph style one is OK as well, because, hey, free hit points.
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2007-07-24, 04:22 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
The polymorph feat, under the right circumstances, gives you fast healing 8. It's only temporary hit points, but can still be very useful.
As for the illumian doing more than a "1st level fighter can" with his 3d6 fiery burst:
18 Str and a greatsword- 2d6+6.
And that's without Flaw cheese.Last edited by ArmorArmadillo; 2007-07-24 at 04:23 PM.
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Originally Posted by ExHunterEmerald
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2007-07-24, 04:26 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
Note the area of effect, and the lack of AC to hit.
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2007-07-24, 04:34 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
A Reserve Feat or two is useful and fun to take when you first make your low level Wizard. After a few levels, just spend the 50 gold and two weeks downtime or so that it takes to retrain that feat into something more useful at higher levels. Note that Reserve Feats, as well as the character redesign rules for exchanging one feat for another, are both in Complete Mage.
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2007-07-24, 04:35 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
Only if you also have the feat Heighten Spell. Casting a spell from a higher level spell slot does not actually change the spell's level.
For example, if your sorcerer's only known fire spell is fireball and does not have Heighten Spell, he or she will be unable to use any reserve feat requiring a 4th or higher level fire spell because fireball is a 3rd level spell, no matter what slot is used to cast it. However, if the sorcerer has Heighten Spell, he or she can actually cast fireball as a 4th or higher level spell and, therefore, meets the requirements of the reserve feat.The Future just ain’t what it used to be.
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2007-07-24, 04:41 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
I do, but your claim was higher damage, not easier damage to do. Throw in Power attack and Cleave and the fighter does even more damage and has his own form of "area of effect." And still all without using Flaw cheese, Illumian special abilities, or other ways to get at first level a feat you're not supposed to have until later.
I'm not suggesting the fighter is better or anything, but for once it's nice to see a minmaxed wizard be humbled by a very simple fighter build.Gnoll Paladin with Zanbatou Avatar by Oregano.
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Originally Posted by ExHunterEmerald
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2007-07-24, 04:44 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Reserve Feat balance?
That's not a min-maxed wizard. That's a min-maxed wizard for damage. Wherever that quote of mine went, I can reiterate it. Sleep. Color spray. Coup-de-grace.
Also, in this case, range. And hitting 5ft radius is up to 9 targets, not 2.
Also, flaws not = min-max, in all instances. This is like building a melee fighter around unarmed strikes, and getting them superior unarmed strike and snap kick. They still suck, but they're good at what they do.