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[Let's Read] Spheres of Power & Might for 5e
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<blockquote data-quote="Libertad" data-source="post: 8365158" data-attributes="member: 6750502"><p style="text-align: center"><strong>Chapter 4: Spheres, Part 2</strong></p><p></p><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/wYHnNcS.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>The <a href="http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/destruction" target="_blank"><strong>Destruction Sphere</strong></a> is a broad overview of the myriad kinds of damage-dealing magic. The basic sphere ability is a Destructive Blast, which is akin to those damaging cantrip spells in default 5th Edition but can be Augmented to deal a lot more damage based on level. The two major talent types are (blast shape), which determines the damage type of the Destructive Blast as well as a “rider effect” which is a secondary condition imposed on a target, and (blast shape) which determines how your Destructive Blast manifests, such as a ray, sphere, line, or cone.</p><p></p><p>Destruction is a pretty unique sphere in that it’s built to grant you lots of bonus talents if you go for a jack-of-all-trades caster type: upon gaining access to this sphere you select one (blast type) and (blast shape) talent each of the caster’s choice, and for every other sphere you gain access to you gain a bonus (blast type) talent in line with that sphere’s themes. Additionally, blast types related to the Nature or Weather spheres have 0 Spell Point Augmentations called Draw on Nature where the caster manipulates existing terrain and weather to form the Destructive Blast. This means that the spell is considered nonmagical for the purposes of bypassing magic-related resistances and immunities.</p><p></p><p>There’s a lot of (blast type) talents, and they all have interesting rider effects, some of which can be Augmented for greater and longer-lasting effects. For example, the Degrading talent (Enhancement sphere) treats future attacks vs the damaged target that turn to be treated as magical (and temporarily lose any HP regeneration abilities if Augmented), while Teleporting (Warp sphere) can forcefully teleport the target 5 feet in a direction of the caster’s choice (20 feet if Augmented) provided that they end up on a non-damaging solid surface capable of supporting their weight. The (blast shape) talents are fewer but also diverse, ranging from the typical single-target Ray (multi-target different creatures if Augmented), the counterattack Retribution activated as a reaction, and the concentration-buff Blade which places the damage type and rider effect (but not damage die) onto a nonmagical weapon or natural attack. Advanced Talents include things such as Cloud which turns the Destructive Blast into a long-lasting obscuring cloud, or Disintegrate which deals additional damage equal to the spherecaster’s level and reduces KO’d targets to fine dust.</p><p></p><p><strong>Combos:</strong> Talents which can control and restrain enemy movement such as Confining, Ice, and Teleporting are good options for battlefield control. Applying energy types onto physical weapons via Blade is a good means of getting around energy resistances and immunities for the physical attackers in one’s party. Some (blast type) talents impose disadvantage on saves vs magical sphere effects of other Spheres, an ideal set-up for a follow-up spell attack. The Aura or Retribution (blast shape) talent plus the Bramble, Ice, or Restraining (blast type) talents are a good means of shutting down enemy movement that passes near the caster or who attacks them respectively. The Explosive Orb (blast shape) talent is intentionally designed to intersect with the Alchemy and Trap spheres from Spheres of Might, and the Equipment sphere’s Sling Combatant can work with it as well.</p><p></p><p><strong>Existing Comparisons:</strong> Damaging spells such as Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Cone of Cold, and Chain Lightning come to mind when thinking of Destruction. What makes the Destruction sphere different is that barring Disintegrate and the unaugmented Scorching talents, virtually none of the options simply deal straight damage. The basic Destructive Blast is on par with cantrips from the official sourcebooks, although the Blaster Adept talent can allow the spherecaster to apply their Key Ability Modifier to the damage which can give a better average result. The Augmented version increases the damage to 1d8 + 1d8 per 2 levels of the spherecaster, allowing for a maximum 11d8 window.</p><p></p><p><a href="https://anydice.com/program/23a20" target="_blank">I decided to look at some popular damaging spells and input the maximum possible value for their damage dice based on 9th level spell slots if applicable.</a> Fireball, Lightning Bolt, and Melf’s Acid Arrow all have roughly similar average damage values of 45 to 50 in comparison to Destructive Blast, although Cone of Cold inches out a slightly higher result due to a maximum 12d8. Ice Storm, Flame Strike, and Sunburst all have lower averages given either a lack of higher spell slot options or having a lower ceiling of average damage. The two major damaging spells that win out over the Destruction sphere are Disintegrate and Meteor Swarm, although those have some very hefty spell slots so they can’t be used more than once per long rest in most gaming groups.</p><p></p><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/7BOp06L.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>The <a href="http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/divination" target="_blank"><strong>Divination Sphere</strong></a> is all about knowing the unknowable and enhancing one’s senses. Its talents are split between (divine), which allows the caster to detect certain creatures, objects, and phenomena based upon the appropriate talent, and (sense) which enhances the caster’s perception and senses in some meaningful way. The caster gains one (divine) and one (sense) talent each of their choice upon first gaining this sphere, and much like Destruction a bonus (divine) talent is granted for every other sphere that the caster knows.</p><p></p><p>Divining normally takes 10 minutes and can persist as Concentration for an equally long time, but can be Augmented to be cast as an action. This process can be sped up via the Fast Divinations talent, which reduces the unaugmented time down to 1 minute and also allows the caster to “swap out” different (divine) talents without ending the duration and requiring a new casting. Sense is much faster to cast and longer-lasting. There’s a special type of Augmentation known as Recall Lore for (divine) talents which allow detection of certain creature types. If the caster succeeds on an appropriate Intelligence skill check they learn what type of creature the divined subject is, and there’s an (other) talent known as Invasive Divinations which can grant knowledge of their immunities, resistances, and vulnerabilities via this successful check.</p><p></p><p>The (divine) talents include various kinds of detection, from certain monster types, performing psychometry on objects to discern their history, extraplanar portals and influence, a creature’s thoughts, sustained injuries, diseases, and similar afflictions, Augury which more or less works as the original spell, and Foresight which is similar to the Guidance cantrip and Bless spell but can be granted as a reaction to an ally (but only once per casting unless the talent is taken multiple times). The (sense) talents are broader and include things such as Blindsight, being able to understand spoken and written languages, advantage on initiative checks and don’t grant enemies advantage on attacks when caught unaware, +5 on passive Perception checks vs traps and hazards, and the ability to see invisible and ethereal creatures normally via a successful Perception check made with advantage. Advanced Talents include options such as scrying and true seeing (functions similar to the original spells), x-ray vision, and the ability to find any one object or creature regardless of distance or planar boundaries.</p><p></p><p><strong>Combos:</strong> The Blindfolded Oracle, Scent, and Tremorsense (sense) talents can be a good combination when used in conjunction with Dark and Illusion spheres to allow the buffed ally to ignore the magic’s visual obscurations. Sniper’s Eye is a great option for ranged combatants, while spells which can disintegrate and make holes in substances that block divinations can be a good means of extending one’s (divine) talents beyond such defenses. Discern Individual explicitly calls out the Scout sphere in Spheres of Might, while a caster possessing that sphere and the Detect Information talent of the Divination sphere can reroll a failed Scout check if using the Investigation skill.</p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>Existing Comparisons:</strong> More than the other spheres covered so far, there’s a lot of talents which map very closely onto existing spells. The Divination sphere’s Divine ability is slightly better than the low-level Detect X spells in that it has a 120 foot range unaugmented rather than 30 feet, but a longer default casting time. Additionally, sphere equivalents to things such as Scrying and True Seeing do not have expensive material components required to cast. Although the original True Seeing isn’t a Concentration spell, while the original Scrying is a bit worse in that the Spheres version doesn’t require secondhand knowledge of the target (+10 save modifier but requires something like a likeness or possession) and can scry on other planes of existence (+5 save modifier). But what the original Scrying has as its advantage is that the Spheres version cannot be used again on a target who succeeded on the save for 24 hours.</p><p></p><p>Generally speaking, the advantage of Divination Sphere talents is that such effects can be cast more often and generally cheaper than in the Vancian system, albeit typically with a longer casting time unless Augmented.</p><p></p><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/8c9VDqD.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>The <a href="http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/enhancement" target="_blank"><strong>Enhancement Sphere</strong></a> is all about buffing and debuffing. Talents are split into (degrade) and (enhance) tags, which should be self-explanatory. A lot of talents also allow for both options when taken. Talents range from animating objects as commanded minions, bestowing intelligence on a tree or object, degrading weapon attacks to roll the minimum value on damage dice and rendering them incapable of critical hits, granting a weapon/armor/clothes a magical bonus of +1 to +3 dependent on level, granting disadvantage/advantage on STR/DEX/CON or INT/WIS/CHA ability checks, or causing a creature to become blind, deaf, or lose access to a special sense type. Advanced Talents include such options as Augmenting buffs and debuffs to a 30 foot AoE that lasts for 1 week and Reversing Gravity within an area.</p><p></p><p><strong>Combos:</strong> As this entire sphere weakens and strengthens various abilities, the potential combinations are endless. But for just a few ideas, Enhance Poison goes well with (poison) talents from the Alchemy sphere in Spheres of Might, while Mental/Physical Enhancement goes well with characters whose features involve opposed ability checks such as grapplers.</p><p></p><p><strong>Existing Comparisons:</strong> Enhance Ability is the most obvious comparison for Mental & Physical Enhancement talents, as is Elemental Weapon for the Energy Weapon talent, Longstrider for the Speed Control talent, and Blindness/Deafness for the Steal Ability talent. Some of the more iconic buffs such as Bless, Enlarge/Reduce, and Haste are technically covered by other spheres in this chapter. Barring Blindness/Deafness, the core spells have longer durations but have ranges of touch. Additionally, Elemental Weapon has a higher ceiling on bonus damage and also grants a bonus to attack rolls, while Energy Weapon has a simple 1d6 but also grants necrotic and radiant as additional damage types. Enhance Ability is more limited in that it applies advantage to one type of ability check rather than Sphere’s 3, but in the case of the physical options grant one additional minor benefit and can also multi-target via higher level slots. Enhance/Degrade abilities can also be multi-target, but requires the Mass talent from the Universal sphere. Longstrider can multi-target but only has a maximum +10 speed, while Speed Control can be up to +25 feet at 17th level.</p><p></p><p>Generally speaking, Enhancement sphere talents typically have dual-purpose debuff/buff options barring the imposed Variants and 30 foot range, but have a shorter duration and are single-target unless Augmented with Universal sphere talents. Granted, higher-level slots are technically Augmentations so this last part is neither a point in favor or against either system.</p><p></p><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/CwQ6Ev3.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>The <a href="http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/fate" target="_blank"><strong>Fate Sphere</strong></a> is strange in that it while it has a specific divine/cosmic theme, the talents proper range the gamut of options and tend to be more suitable for certain party arrangements and character roles than being either broadly useful or more focused. There are three different talent tags: (consecration) infuses a small radius with magic centered on a target and moves with them that can enhance, harm, and ward off creatures in various ways; (motif) talents are named after Tarot cards which can represent some cosmic entity in the setting, granting a persistent buff onto a target and a greater yet shorter-duration buff when the motif is dismissed; and (word) talents are instantaneous abilities the caster creates by drawing upon cosmic words of power.</p><p></p><p>The (consecration) talents include options such as allowing affected targets to deal 1d4 extra radiant damage, imposing a random negative condition on creatures of opposed alignment, granting advantage on Wisdom and death saving throws, a one-time 1d4 bonus to an attack or saving throw per person within the aura, and magical silence that also grants resistance to thunder damage (immunity if Augmented). The (motif) talents include options such as being able to assess the Challenge Rating of a target they can see and a dismissal that grants +2 to attack rolls and AC vs such scanned enemies, the ability to spend a temporary inspiration point and a dismissal to add their Proficiency bonus to a d20 roll (doesn’t stack with similar double-proficiency granting abilities), and can’t be surprised or give advantage to enemies the target can’t see and the dismissal causes adjacent invisible enemies to become visible. The (word) talents include abilities which can grant advantage on the next d20 roll, exorcise a possessed creature, can magically open or close a portal, lock, or the eyes and mouths of a creature, and forcing a creature to roll a Charisma save whenever they’d damage a creature/object or else damage themselves instead. Advanced Talents include the ability to restore a target’s original alignment if changed by external forces, cause (word) talents which are curses to become permanent until dispelled, and the ability to allow allies within 30 feet of a target affected by a (motif) talent to benefit from that motif.</p><p></p><p><strong>Combos:</strong> Serendipity’s d4 bonus can stack with Divination’s Foresight and Mind’s inspiration for some pretty hefty bonuses. The Empress and the Fool motif talents applied on the same target can turn the latter’s disadvantage on saving throws into advantage and a +5 bonus to boot, with Enhancement’s Staunch Resistance granting proficiency in an unproficient saving throw. Previously-explained battlefield control options in Destruction (and the Creation sphere’s Restrictive Creation and Fate’s Bondage talent) combined with (consecration) talents can force enemies to remain within the AoE and suffer penalties. The Lovers (motif) talent combined with abilities that can create/summon multiple allies is a great way to boost saving throws quickly. The Soothe (word) talent and an Augmented Purity (Consecration) talent are designed to aid abilities which can heal.</p><p></p><p><strong>Existing Comparisons:</strong> A few of the Fate sphere talents correspond to the alignment-based and “holy” spells in default 5th Edition, although a large amount don’t have any immediate corresponding spells. There’s quite a number of talents that allow advantage on a variety of rolls or play around with dice results such as Bless (word) and the World (motif) talents. The Hallow talent is the same as the core spell’s fiend/fey/etc repellant albeit shorter in duration and casting time. The Reveal Alignment talent may seem similar to Detect Good & Evil, but one thing it doesn’t have is that it reveals the alignment of all creatures within the area of consecration, extraplanar or no, something which cannot be done in basic 5th Edition. The Silence talent is the same as the core spell save that thunder damage isn’t negated, merely halved, unless the spell is Augmented. The Mark (word) talent is close to Hex and Hunter’s Mark in that it grants the caster bonus damage vs the affected target, and two sample abilities are even called out as functioning as such spells for the purposes of other features.</p><p></p><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/Zo7Ewmj.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>The <a href="http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/illusion" target="_blank"><strong>Illusion Sphere</strong></a> is another broad sphere, focusing on the creation of false realities. Like any such school of magic in D&D, it has a semi-lengthy discussion on cases in regards to using illusion for cover, at what point people can reasonably disbelieve illusions, and non-deception uses for the sphere. The two basic sphere abilities include Figment which creates an illusory vision within a 10 to 50 foot cube depending on level and Augmentation, and Glamer which is a personal illusion applied to a creature or object. Talents are divided between (glamer) which affects the latter, (sensory) which expands non-visual senses and removes or alters an illusion’s magical aura, and (other) which covers everything else. There are a mere two (sensory) talents which cover the non-visual senses and altering magic auras, and possession of either of them grants new Augmentation options to other Illusion talents. The (glamer) talents include creating decoy copies, creating an illusionary disguise, and one which covers a lot of abilities: blurring oneself to impose disadvantage and obscurement vs incoming attacks, invisibility, advantage on auditory-based Stealth checks, and evading special sense types. (other) talents are a diverse bunch such as creating multiple independent illusions within the figment cube, taking control of an existing illusion, creating illusionary obstructions that can remove the sense of hearing/touch/smell/etc to impose various debuffs on targets within, and the ability to choose a limited number of targets to automatically disbelieve your illusions. The Advanced Talents include granting an illusion intelligence to interact with the environment, making illusions permanent until dispelled, and changing psychic damage dealt via offensive illusion options to deal other damage types.</p><p></p><p>Finally, there is an optional variant list of (figment) talents which impose specific hard-coded rules as opposed to open-ended magical abilities common to illusion magic. This is intended to save gaming groups headaches from unclear interpretations. The 4 figment talents can grant disadvantage on enemy attacks, cause targets within the area to be heavily obscured, turn the ground into difficult terrain, and impose disadvantage on Perception checks.</p><p></p><p><strong>Combos:</strong> One’s imagination is the limit in regards to compatibility with other talents, spells, and class features. Selective Illusions plus the creation of visual illusions allows attackers to attack from behind cover and surprise targets, while Veiled Illusions with an altered magical aura combined with an illusory monster can be a good way to get enemy casters to cast and prepare for the wrong types of attacks and spells.</p><p></p><p><strong>Existing Comparisons:</strong> Blur, Disguise Self, Invisibility, Mirror Image, and the various “create illusion” spells are the most direct inspirations for this sphere. The Illusionary Disguise talent is functionally identical to Disguise Self save that it’s concentration and lasts a shorter duration. However as it requires a Spell Point to cast even unaugmented it loses out by default, although the Greater Illusions talent can grant it tactile components which Disguise Self cannot do. The Obscure talent’s ability to impose invisibility is like the spell of the same name, save that the default Obscure is 60 foot range instead of touch and has a shorter duration. However, gaining the equivalent of Greater Invisibility is easier to do at lower levels given it costs a mere 2 Spell Points to Augment it to not end if the target attacks someone. And unlike Greater Invisibility it has a far longer default duration.</p><p></p><p>As for the various image/illusion creating abilities, the default Figment is pretty similar to Silent Image, with the various talents applied to it simulating higher-level spells. The total dimensions in cubic feet are similar (Programmed Illusion, the highest-level one, being 30 cubic feet) although the Illusion sphere can reach a greater maximum result especially if combined with the Universal sphere’s Widen metasphere talent. There’s even an Advanced Talent, Mirage, which can easily replicate the Mirage Arcana spell, and Permanent Illusion and Intelligent Illusions can do similar things for Simulacrum and Programmed Illusion (albeit Simulacrum is semi-real). As for Mirror Image, the Decoy talent functions identically save that it creates 1 duplicate by default but can create 3 more via Augmentation, 1 better than the core spell. As for Blur, the Obscure talent ends if the target casts a spell or sphere ability or attacks which is a point in Blur’s favor. But a point in Obscure’s favor is that one can Augment it to apply to enemies with non-visual special senses such as Blindsight.</p><p></p><p><strong>Thoughts So Far:</strong> These spheres continue the tradition of granting moderately-useful at-will abilities with more talents and Augmentations to replicate the more powerful kinds of Vancian casting. I do like how Destruction does interesting things beyond just straight damage and is generous with bonus talents; as the caster can only really fire off one Destructive Blast a round, it is kind of a waste to have a bunch of different talents that merely alter the attack when so many other sphere talents grant more versatility and have longer-lasting durations. Divination is also good, although I find it a bit curious how more than a few talents directly copy existing spells with a few differences. Enhancement is a very strong sphere in that its various talents are useful for just about any character concept. Fate is one I’m having trouble judging, as so many of its talents are so different from each other that it’s hard to come up with an all-encompassing opinion. I do like the concept of the (motif) talents, with the Tarot names being but suggestions for the titles of significant cosmic figures in one’s personal setting. Illusion is much like the school of magic from the core rules in being very powerful based on player creativity, although I did appreciate the variant talents for groups intimidated by this.</p><p></p><p><strong>Join us next time as we stat up Megaman and cover the next 5 spheres!</strong></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Libertad, post: 8365158, member: 6750502"] [center][b]Chapter 4: Spheres, Part 2[/b][/center] [img]https://i.imgur.com/wYHnNcS.png[/img] The [url=http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/destruction][b]Destruction Sphere[/b][/url] is a broad overview of the myriad kinds of damage-dealing magic. The basic sphere ability is a Destructive Blast, which is akin to those damaging cantrip spells in default 5th Edition but can be Augmented to deal a lot more damage based on level. The two major talent types are (blast shape), which determines the damage type of the Destructive Blast as well as a “rider effect” which is a secondary condition imposed on a target, and (blast shape) which determines how your Destructive Blast manifests, such as a ray, sphere, line, or cone. Destruction is a pretty unique sphere in that it’s built to grant you lots of bonus talents if you go for a jack-of-all-trades caster type: upon gaining access to this sphere you select one (blast type) and (blast shape) talent each of the caster’s choice, and for every other sphere you gain access to you gain a bonus (blast type) talent in line with that sphere’s themes. Additionally, blast types related to the Nature or Weather spheres have 0 Spell Point Augmentations called Draw on Nature where the caster manipulates existing terrain and weather to form the Destructive Blast. This means that the spell is considered nonmagical for the purposes of bypassing magic-related resistances and immunities. There’s a lot of (blast type) talents, and they all have interesting rider effects, some of which can be Augmented for greater and longer-lasting effects. For example, the Degrading talent (Enhancement sphere) treats future attacks vs the damaged target that turn to be treated as magical (and temporarily lose any HP regeneration abilities if Augmented), while Teleporting (Warp sphere) can forcefully teleport the target 5 feet in a direction of the caster’s choice (20 feet if Augmented) provided that they end up on a non-damaging solid surface capable of supporting their weight. The (blast shape) talents are fewer but also diverse, ranging from the typical single-target Ray (multi-target different creatures if Augmented), the counterattack Retribution activated as a reaction, and the concentration-buff Blade which places the damage type and rider effect (but not damage die) onto a nonmagical weapon or natural attack. Advanced Talents include things such as Cloud which turns the Destructive Blast into a long-lasting obscuring cloud, or Disintegrate which deals additional damage equal to the spherecaster’s level and reduces KO’d targets to fine dust. [b]Combos:[/b] Talents which can control and restrain enemy movement such as Confining, Ice, and Teleporting are good options for battlefield control. Applying energy types onto physical weapons via Blade is a good means of getting around energy resistances and immunities for the physical attackers in one’s party. Some (blast type) talents impose disadvantage on saves vs magical sphere effects of other Spheres, an ideal set-up for a follow-up spell attack. The Aura or Retribution (blast shape) talent plus the Bramble, Ice, or Restraining (blast type) talents are a good means of shutting down enemy movement that passes near the caster or who attacks them respectively. The Explosive Orb (blast shape) talent is intentionally designed to intersect with the Alchemy and Trap spheres from Spheres of Might, and the Equipment sphere’s Sling Combatant can work with it as well. [b]Existing Comparisons:[/b] Damaging spells such as Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Cone of Cold, and Chain Lightning come to mind when thinking of Destruction. What makes the Destruction sphere different is that barring Disintegrate and the unaugmented Scorching talents, virtually none of the options simply deal straight damage. The basic Destructive Blast is on par with cantrips from the official sourcebooks, although the Blaster Adept talent can allow the spherecaster to apply their Key Ability Modifier to the damage which can give a better average result. The Augmented version increases the damage to 1d8 + 1d8 per 2 levels of the spherecaster, allowing for a maximum 11d8 window. [url=https://anydice.com/program/23a20]I decided to look at some popular damaging spells and input the maximum possible value for their damage dice based on 9th level spell slots if applicable.[/url] Fireball, Lightning Bolt, and Melf’s Acid Arrow all have roughly similar average damage values of 45 to 50 in comparison to Destructive Blast, although Cone of Cold inches out a slightly higher result due to a maximum 12d8. Ice Storm, Flame Strike, and Sunburst all have lower averages given either a lack of higher spell slot options or having a lower ceiling of average damage. The two major damaging spells that win out over the Destruction sphere are Disintegrate and Meteor Swarm, although those have some very hefty spell slots so they can’t be used more than once per long rest in most gaming groups. [img]https://i.imgur.com/7BOp06L.png[/img] The [url=http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/divination][b]Divination Sphere[/b][/url] is all about knowing the unknowable and enhancing one’s senses. Its talents are split between (divine), which allows the caster to detect certain creatures, objects, and phenomena based upon the appropriate talent, and (sense) which enhances the caster’s perception and senses in some meaningful way. The caster gains one (divine) and one (sense) talent each of their choice upon first gaining this sphere, and much like Destruction a bonus (divine) talent is granted for every other sphere that the caster knows. Divining normally takes 10 minutes and can persist as Concentration for an equally long time, but can be Augmented to be cast as an action. This process can be sped up via the Fast Divinations talent, which reduces the unaugmented time down to 1 minute and also allows the caster to “swap out” different (divine) talents without ending the duration and requiring a new casting. Sense is much faster to cast and longer-lasting. There’s a special type of Augmentation known as Recall Lore for (divine) talents which allow detection of certain creature types. If the caster succeeds on an appropriate Intelligence skill check they learn what type of creature the divined subject is, and there’s an (other) talent known as Invasive Divinations which can grant knowledge of their immunities, resistances, and vulnerabilities via this successful check. The (divine) talents include various kinds of detection, from certain monster types, performing psychometry on objects to discern their history, extraplanar portals and influence, a creature’s thoughts, sustained injuries, diseases, and similar afflictions, Augury which more or less works as the original spell, and Foresight which is similar to the Guidance cantrip and Bless spell but can be granted as a reaction to an ally (but only once per casting unless the talent is taken multiple times). The (sense) talents are broader and include things such as Blindsight, being able to understand spoken and written languages, advantage on initiative checks and don’t grant enemies advantage on attacks when caught unaware, +5 on passive Perception checks vs traps and hazards, and the ability to see invisible and ethereal creatures normally via a successful Perception check made with advantage. Advanced Talents include options such as scrying and true seeing (functions similar to the original spells), x-ray vision, and the ability to find any one object or creature regardless of distance or planar boundaries. [b]Combos:[/b] The Blindfolded Oracle, Scent, and Tremorsense (sense) talents can be a good combination when used in conjunction with Dark and Illusion spheres to allow the buffed ally to ignore the magic’s visual obscurations. Sniper’s Eye is a great option for ranged combatants, while spells which can disintegrate and make holes in substances that block divinations can be a good means of extending one’s (divine) talents beyond such defenses. Discern Individual explicitly calls out the Scout sphere in Spheres of Might, while a caster possessing that sphere and the Detect Information talent of the Divination sphere can reroll a failed Scout check if using the Investigation skill. [b]Existing Comparisons:[/b] More than the other spheres covered so far, there’s a lot of talents which map very closely onto existing spells. The Divination sphere’s Divine ability is slightly better than the low-level Detect X spells in that it has a 120 foot range unaugmented rather than 30 feet, but a longer default casting time. Additionally, sphere equivalents to things such as Scrying and True Seeing do not have expensive material components required to cast. Although the original True Seeing isn’t a Concentration spell, while the original Scrying is a bit worse in that the Spheres version doesn’t require secondhand knowledge of the target (+10 save modifier but requires something like a likeness or possession) and can scry on other planes of existence (+5 save modifier). But what the original Scrying has as its advantage is that the Spheres version cannot be used again on a target who succeeded on the save for 24 hours. Generally speaking, the advantage of Divination Sphere talents is that such effects can be cast more often and generally cheaper than in the Vancian system, albeit typically with a longer casting time unless Augmented. [img]https://i.imgur.com/8c9VDqD.png[/img] The [url=http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/enhancement][b]Enhancement Sphere[/b][/url] is all about buffing and debuffing. Talents are split into (degrade) and (enhance) tags, which should be self-explanatory. A lot of talents also allow for both options when taken. Talents range from animating objects as commanded minions, bestowing intelligence on a tree or object, degrading weapon attacks to roll the minimum value on damage dice and rendering them incapable of critical hits, granting a weapon/armor/clothes a magical bonus of +1 to +3 dependent on level, granting disadvantage/advantage on STR/DEX/CON or INT/WIS/CHA ability checks, or causing a creature to become blind, deaf, or lose access to a special sense type. Advanced Talents include such options as Augmenting buffs and debuffs to a 30 foot AoE that lasts for 1 week and Reversing Gravity within an area. [b]Combos:[/b] As this entire sphere weakens and strengthens various abilities, the potential combinations are endless. But for just a few ideas, Enhance Poison goes well with (poison) talents from the Alchemy sphere in Spheres of Might, while Mental/Physical Enhancement goes well with characters whose features involve opposed ability checks such as grapplers. [b]Existing Comparisons:[/b] Enhance Ability is the most obvious comparison for Mental & Physical Enhancement talents, as is Elemental Weapon for the Energy Weapon talent, Longstrider for the Speed Control talent, and Blindness/Deafness for the Steal Ability talent. Some of the more iconic buffs such as Bless, Enlarge/Reduce, and Haste are technically covered by other spheres in this chapter. Barring Blindness/Deafness, the core spells have longer durations but have ranges of touch. Additionally, Elemental Weapon has a higher ceiling on bonus damage and also grants a bonus to attack rolls, while Energy Weapon has a simple 1d6 but also grants necrotic and radiant as additional damage types. Enhance Ability is more limited in that it applies advantage to one type of ability check rather than Sphere’s 3, but in the case of the physical options grant one additional minor benefit and can also multi-target via higher level slots. Enhance/Degrade abilities can also be multi-target, but requires the Mass talent from the Universal sphere. Longstrider can multi-target but only has a maximum +10 speed, while Speed Control can be up to +25 feet at 17th level. Generally speaking, Enhancement sphere talents typically have dual-purpose debuff/buff options barring the imposed Variants and 30 foot range, but have a shorter duration and are single-target unless Augmented with Universal sphere talents. Granted, higher-level slots are technically Augmentations so this last part is neither a point in favor or against either system. [img]https://i.imgur.com/CwQ6Ev3.png[/img] The [url=http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/fate][b]Fate Sphere[/b][/url] is strange in that it while it has a specific divine/cosmic theme, the talents proper range the gamut of options and tend to be more suitable for certain party arrangements and character roles than being either broadly useful or more focused. There are three different talent tags: (consecration) infuses a small radius with magic centered on a target and moves with them that can enhance, harm, and ward off creatures in various ways; (motif) talents are named after Tarot cards which can represent some cosmic entity in the setting, granting a persistent buff onto a target and a greater yet shorter-duration buff when the motif is dismissed; and (word) talents are instantaneous abilities the caster creates by drawing upon cosmic words of power. The (consecration) talents include options such as allowing affected targets to deal 1d4 extra radiant damage, imposing a random negative condition on creatures of opposed alignment, granting advantage on Wisdom and death saving throws, a one-time 1d4 bonus to an attack or saving throw per person within the aura, and magical silence that also grants resistance to thunder damage (immunity if Augmented). The (motif) talents include options such as being able to assess the Challenge Rating of a target they can see and a dismissal that grants +2 to attack rolls and AC vs such scanned enemies, the ability to spend a temporary inspiration point and a dismissal to add their Proficiency bonus to a d20 roll (doesn’t stack with similar double-proficiency granting abilities), and can’t be surprised or give advantage to enemies the target can’t see and the dismissal causes adjacent invisible enemies to become visible. The (word) talents include abilities which can grant advantage on the next d20 roll, exorcise a possessed creature, can magically open or close a portal, lock, or the eyes and mouths of a creature, and forcing a creature to roll a Charisma save whenever they’d damage a creature/object or else damage themselves instead. Advanced Talents include the ability to restore a target’s original alignment if changed by external forces, cause (word) talents which are curses to become permanent until dispelled, and the ability to allow allies within 30 feet of a target affected by a (motif) talent to benefit from that motif. [b]Combos:[/b] Serendipity’s d4 bonus can stack with Divination’s Foresight and Mind’s inspiration for some pretty hefty bonuses. The Empress and the Fool motif talents applied on the same target can turn the latter’s disadvantage on saving throws into advantage and a +5 bonus to boot, with Enhancement’s Staunch Resistance granting proficiency in an unproficient saving throw. Previously-explained battlefield control options in Destruction (and the Creation sphere’s Restrictive Creation and Fate’s Bondage talent) combined with (consecration) talents can force enemies to remain within the AoE and suffer penalties. The Lovers (motif) talent combined with abilities that can create/summon multiple allies is a great way to boost saving throws quickly. The Soothe (word) talent and an Augmented Purity (Consecration) talent are designed to aid abilities which can heal. [b]Existing Comparisons:[/b] A few of the Fate sphere talents correspond to the alignment-based and “holy” spells in default 5th Edition, although a large amount don’t have any immediate corresponding spells. There’s quite a number of talents that allow advantage on a variety of rolls or play around with dice results such as Bless (word) and the World (motif) talents. The Hallow talent is the same as the core spell’s fiend/fey/etc repellant albeit shorter in duration and casting time. The Reveal Alignment talent may seem similar to Detect Good & Evil, but one thing it doesn’t have is that it reveals the alignment of all creatures within the area of consecration, extraplanar or no, something which cannot be done in basic 5th Edition. The Silence talent is the same as the core spell save that thunder damage isn’t negated, merely halved, unless the spell is Augmented. The Mark (word) talent is close to Hex and Hunter’s Mark in that it grants the caster bonus damage vs the affected target, and two sample abilities are even called out as functioning as such spells for the purposes of other features. [img]https://i.imgur.com/Zo7Ewmj.png[/img] The [url=http://spheres5e.wikidot.com/illusion][b]Illusion Sphere[/b][/url] is another broad sphere, focusing on the creation of false realities. Like any such school of magic in D&D, it has a semi-lengthy discussion on cases in regards to using illusion for cover, at what point people can reasonably disbelieve illusions, and non-deception uses for the sphere. The two basic sphere abilities include Figment which creates an illusory vision within a 10 to 50 foot cube depending on level and Augmentation, and Glamer which is a personal illusion applied to a creature or object. Talents are divided between (glamer) which affects the latter, (sensory) which expands non-visual senses and removes or alters an illusion’s magical aura, and (other) which covers everything else. There are a mere two (sensory) talents which cover the non-visual senses and altering magic auras, and possession of either of them grants new Augmentation options to other Illusion talents. The (glamer) talents include creating decoy copies, creating an illusionary disguise, and one which covers a lot of abilities: blurring oneself to impose disadvantage and obscurement vs incoming attacks, invisibility, advantage on auditory-based Stealth checks, and evading special sense types. (other) talents are a diverse bunch such as creating multiple independent illusions within the figment cube, taking control of an existing illusion, creating illusionary obstructions that can remove the sense of hearing/touch/smell/etc to impose various debuffs on targets within, and the ability to choose a limited number of targets to automatically disbelieve your illusions. The Advanced Talents include granting an illusion intelligence to interact with the environment, making illusions permanent until dispelled, and changing psychic damage dealt via offensive illusion options to deal other damage types. Finally, there is an optional variant list of (figment) talents which impose specific hard-coded rules as opposed to open-ended magical abilities common to illusion magic. This is intended to save gaming groups headaches from unclear interpretations. The 4 figment talents can grant disadvantage on enemy attacks, cause targets within the area to be heavily obscured, turn the ground into difficult terrain, and impose disadvantage on Perception checks. [b]Combos:[/b] One’s imagination is the limit in regards to compatibility with other talents, spells, and class features. Selective Illusions plus the creation of visual illusions allows attackers to attack from behind cover and surprise targets, while Veiled Illusions with an altered magical aura combined with an illusory monster can be a good way to get enemy casters to cast and prepare for the wrong types of attacks and spells. [b]Existing Comparisons:[/b] Blur, Disguise Self, Invisibility, Mirror Image, and the various “create illusion” spells are the most direct inspirations for this sphere. The Illusionary Disguise talent is functionally identical to Disguise Self save that it’s concentration and lasts a shorter duration. However as it requires a Spell Point to cast even unaugmented it loses out by default, although the Greater Illusions talent can grant it tactile components which Disguise Self cannot do. The Obscure talent’s ability to impose invisibility is like the spell of the same name, save that the default Obscure is 60 foot range instead of touch and has a shorter duration. However, gaining the equivalent of Greater Invisibility is easier to do at lower levels given it costs a mere 2 Spell Points to Augment it to not end if the target attacks someone. And unlike Greater Invisibility it has a far longer default duration. As for the various image/illusion creating abilities, the default Figment is pretty similar to Silent Image, with the various talents applied to it simulating higher-level spells. The total dimensions in cubic feet are similar (Programmed Illusion, the highest-level one, being 30 cubic feet) although the Illusion sphere can reach a greater maximum result especially if combined with the Universal sphere’s Widen metasphere talent. There’s even an Advanced Talent, Mirage, which can easily replicate the Mirage Arcana spell, and Permanent Illusion and Intelligent Illusions can do similar things for Simulacrum and Programmed Illusion (albeit Simulacrum is semi-real). As for Mirror Image, the Decoy talent functions identically save that it creates 1 duplicate by default but can create 3 more via Augmentation, 1 better than the core spell. As for Blur, the Obscure talent ends if the target casts a spell or sphere ability or attacks which is a point in Blur’s favor. But a point in Obscure’s favor is that one can Augment it to apply to enemies with non-visual special senses such as Blindsight. [b]Thoughts So Far:[/b] These spheres continue the tradition of granting moderately-useful at-will abilities with more talents and Augmentations to replicate the more powerful kinds of Vancian casting. I do like how Destruction does interesting things beyond just straight damage and is generous with bonus talents; as the caster can only really fire off one Destructive Blast a round, it is kind of a waste to have a bunch of different talents that merely alter the attack when so many other sphere talents grant more versatility and have longer-lasting durations. Divination is also good, although I find it a bit curious how more than a few talents directly copy existing spells with a few differences. Enhancement is a very strong sphere in that its various talents are useful for just about any character concept. Fate is one I’m having trouble judging, as so many of its talents are so different from each other that it’s hard to come up with an all-encompassing opinion. I do like the concept of the (motif) talents, with the Tarot names being but suggestions for the titles of significant cosmic figures in one’s personal setting. Illusion is much like the school of magic from the core rules in being very powerful based on player creativity, although I did appreciate the variant talents for groups intimidated by this. [b]Join us next time as we stat up Megaman and cover the next 5 spheres![/b] [/QUOTE]
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[Let's Read] Spheres of Power & Might for 5e
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