DM_Wannabe
First Post
I'm struggling with (what I think should be) a very basic concept.
On p.10 of the PHB, the "INTELLIGENCE TABLE II:ABILITY FOR MAGIC-USERS" identifies the third column as "Minimum Number of Spells/Level".
I understand the concept of maximum # of spells per level. Based on the intelligence score of the MU, the character has a finite number of spells that can "fit" into their repertoire.
But the minimum # of spells/level perplexes me. Especially when I read page 39 of the DMG that says first level MUs should start out with 4 spells in their spell book. What of the MU with an intelligence of 16, and according to the table in the PHB has a minimum # of spells/level of 7.
In my mind, there should be no table that assigns a minimum number of spells because the minimum # would always be zero, no matter what the intelligence of the MU. The reason I say zero, is that there may exist some extenuating circumstances that limit the # of spells a MU knows.
What if the MU's teacher feels the student is not yet ready to handle the mental rigors of casting, therefore withholds the information from the MU?
What if the MU is simply lazy and doesn't study enough to know 7 spells?
What if the teacher died before he could teach 7 spells?
Obviously, I'm obsessing over minutia, but I want to understand the concept that Gary was trying to convey with this table.
Any thoughts?
On p.10 of the PHB, the "INTELLIGENCE TABLE II:ABILITY FOR MAGIC-USERS" identifies the third column as "Minimum Number of Spells/Level".
I understand the concept of maximum # of spells per level. Based on the intelligence score of the MU, the character has a finite number of spells that can "fit" into their repertoire.
But the minimum # of spells/level perplexes me. Especially when I read page 39 of the DMG that says first level MUs should start out with 4 spells in their spell book. What of the MU with an intelligence of 16, and according to the table in the PHB has a minimum # of spells/level of 7.
In my mind, there should be no table that assigns a minimum number of spells because the minimum # would always be zero, no matter what the intelligence of the MU. The reason I say zero, is that there may exist some extenuating circumstances that limit the # of spells a MU knows.
What if the MU's teacher feels the student is not yet ready to handle the mental rigors of casting, therefore withholds the information from the MU?
What if the MU is simply lazy and doesn't study enough to know 7 spells?
What if the teacher died before he could teach 7 spells?
Obviously, I'm obsessing over minutia, but I want to understand the concept that Gary was trying to convey with this table.
Any thoughts?