TheCosmicKid
Hero
I am hardly the first to notice that fireball is a pretty good spell. In fact, in my experience it tends to crowd out all the other 3rd-level options, even for characters who aren't big on evocation. I don't want to nerf it into the ground: it's iconic, and tossing a room-filling explosion should have a sudden and dramatic effect (I'm looking at you, 4E). But explosions are also fickle. So here's a simple change that sprang to mind this morning:
Increase the radius of the fireball by 5 feet for each 6 you roll on its damage dice. Decrease the radius of the fireball by 5 feet for each 1 you roll on its damage dice (to a minimum of 5 feet).
So it's still a big, painful kaboom. It's still absolutely the right tool for the job in some circumstances. But because the radius is unpredictable, the caster can't place it with surgical precision and use it in every circumstance -- not without the risk of frying an ally, anyway.
Thoughts?
Increase the radius of the fireball by 5 feet for each 6 you roll on its damage dice. Decrease the radius of the fireball by 5 feet for each 1 you roll on its damage dice (to a minimum of 5 feet).
So it's still a big, painful kaboom. It's still absolutely the right tool for the job in some circumstances. But because the radius is unpredictable, the caster can't place it with surgical precision and use it in every circumstance -- not without the risk of frying an ally, anyway.
Thoughts?