Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is LIVE! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
Monte Cook's Design Thoughts On Spellcasters
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="RangerWickett" data-source="post: 3051652" data-attributes="member: 63"><p>I mentioned it earlier in the thread, actually.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I'm not requiring skill checks for this system, for several reasons that came up during the long-term playtest <em>after</em> I published the book. For one thing, it sucks to both make skill checks and give your targets saves to resist you. If I <em>could</em>, I'd rewrite the core rules for 4e so that things like Fort, Ref, and Will were static numbers that you'd have to beat when you make a spellcasting check, but that's beyond the scope of a small book.</p><p></p><p>Also, it was too easy for fighters to jump into spellcasting without really giving anything up. You pick one spell type you want to be good at, and oh no, you aren't that good at climbing. You can just fly. It was overpowered because all you needed to cast were skill ranks and one feat. In the new system, you have a measurable resource for spellcasting -- mana -- which isn't easy to get if you don't focus on magic.</p><p></p><p>However, with the revisions I'm making, you still spend skill points to represent how good you are at a given magic type. The way it's like Monte's idea is that you can cast 'average' spells several times per encounter, then once you get a chance to rest your ability to use those replenishes. However, you can only cast spells that have long-lasting effects a few times per day before you wear yourself out. </p><p></p><p>Also, mages have the option of permanently giving up mana to gain enduring abilities. It's a new type of resource management. Do you want cool abilities that always work but can't be changed, or do you want versatility?</p><p></p><p>I'm going to balance it so that spellcasters won't normally be able to beat fighters at the damage-dealing realm, encouraging mages to use wits to win instead of lots of d6s.</p><p></p><p>If you want, send me an email at <a href="mailto:RangerWickett@hotmail.com">RangerWickett@hotmail.com</a>, and I can send you the rough draft.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="RangerWickett, post: 3051652, member: 63"] I mentioned it earlier in the thread, actually. I'm not requiring skill checks for this system, for several reasons that came up during the long-term playtest [i]after[/i] I published the book. For one thing, it sucks to both make skill checks and give your targets saves to resist you. If I [i]could[/i], I'd rewrite the core rules for 4e so that things like Fort, Ref, and Will were static numbers that you'd have to beat when you make a spellcasting check, but that's beyond the scope of a small book. Also, it was too easy for fighters to jump into spellcasting without really giving anything up. You pick one spell type you want to be good at, and oh no, you aren't that good at climbing. You can just fly. It was overpowered because all you needed to cast were skill ranks and one feat. In the new system, you have a measurable resource for spellcasting -- mana -- which isn't easy to get if you don't focus on magic. However, with the revisions I'm making, you still spend skill points to represent how good you are at a given magic type. The way it's like Monte's idea is that you can cast 'average' spells several times per encounter, then once you get a chance to rest your ability to use those replenishes. However, you can only cast spells that have long-lasting effects a few times per day before you wear yourself out. Also, mages have the option of permanently giving up mana to gain enduring abilities. It's a new type of resource management. Do you want cool abilities that always work but can't be changed, or do you want versatility? I'm going to balance it so that spellcasters won't normally be able to beat fighters at the damage-dealing realm, encouraging mages to use wits to win instead of lots of d6s. If you want, send me an email at [email]RangerWickett@hotmail.com[/email], and I can send you the rough draft. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
Monte Cook's Design Thoughts On Spellcasters
Top