Overall, I think the issue you're having is you want the D&D magic system to have a higher degree of internal consistency than it has. D&D magic wasn't designed with a blueprint from the start...it's more like a huge house that was built one room at a time, often by different builders, often with little regard for how one room looks compared to the rooms next to it.
3E / 3.5 does take some significant steps towards creating a common framework for magic...standardized range types, duration types, etc. But, they didn't tear down the system and rebuild it from scratch, which is why you still have the crazy-quilt nature of the thing.
To be fair, you could argue that it is a nice representation of a system of magic in which various wizards and clerics, working independently, came up with the various spells.
Quasqueton said:
Is creating a new spell an act as simple as just "researching" it? If so, why aren't there spells for every little imaginable situation? If not, what does it take to create a new spell?
In theory, there could be. But, remember, researching a 1st level spell costs 1000gp. How many wizards are willing to spend their money on a spell that'd "perfectly fit" a situation, when there's already a spell that comes close.
Quasqueton said:
Why is there no iceball, lightningball, sonicball, or acidball spell? (Like fireball.)
The RL reason is because many of the spells (esp. the "legacy" spells from prior editions) were written as one-off, ad-hoc spells. No one sat down and said, "there should be a third-level attack spell for each of the five energy types." For that matter, they weren't treated as five "comparable" energy types until 3E.
That said...
- 3E / 3.5 starts to move towards this, with the "comparable" Lesser Orb / Orb spells (one for each energy type)
- With the Energy Substitution metamagic feat (which does not increase the level of the spell in question), you could have an Iceball, Lightningball, Sonicball, or Acidball.
Quasqueton said:
Why isn't there a 1st-level "no-save, just die" spell?
There is one. Magic Missile...if your HPs aren't very high. No save, no attack roll.
With the exception of Magic Missile, most attack spells either (a) require an attack roll, or (b) allow a saving throw. Those that don't tend to be higher-level spells, and usually affect a limited number of HPs worth of creature (e.g., Power Word Kill).
Quasqueton said:
Why are some spells only divine, or only arcane, while some are both?
Arbitrary decisions on the part of the game designers that some spells are the province of one or the other.
Some of these make sense (i.e., healing is a divine spell...though there's an exception in that bards can heal, and it's an arcane spell for them). Some don't (i.e., why can't a wizard cast Blade Barrier?)
Again, a big part of the reason is the nature of the "legacy" spells...Blade Barrier was always a cleric spell, so it still is.
Quasqueton said:
Why are some spells different levels depending on being divine or arcane?
In theory, maybe because the designers decided that a particular effect would be more "natural" or "easier" for a particular class. More likely, an arbitrary decision, based on relative power level for the spell in question on that class's spell list.
Quasqueton said:
Why is the list of summonable monsters not mirror images (celestial X and fiendish X)?
Probably purely arbitrary.
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