Kinematics
Hero
In a previous thread, I've been recording my thoughts on attempts to balance spell creation. Well, I've accumulated enough that I now have a "system". The question is, how good is it?
I've written up the details of my conclusions in a Word doc (though it doesn't include all the spreadsheet work I used to reach those conclusions). The first half of it is the system, and the last half of it is using the system to examine existing spells, and a page of a few homebrewed spells created using the system limits.
The system is limited in the types of spells it can evaluate, so there's plenty I'm not even attempting. It mostly focuses on damage and debuffs, but even then is a bit rough around the edges.
So I'd like to ask anyone interested to check it out, and let me know what seems to work and what doesn't. Is it a good set of evaluation rules? Can I expect created spells to be balanced? Is it useful for analyzing existing spells that need fixing?
One of the big problems in 5E is that there are a number of spells that completely outclass their competitors (Fireball being the classic example), making it an exercise in frustration to build a character around a theme (eg: ice spells, pestilence, etc) when it feels like the spells don't even perform on par with your current level, much less the overtuned region of Fireball and the like. Would you be happy swapping out your 'ideal' spells for alternatives if they were readjusted in this system? Or does it look like the spells would become overpowered?
I've written up the details of my conclusions in a Word doc (though it doesn't include all the spreadsheet work I used to reach those conclusions). The first half of it is the system, and the last half of it is using the system to examine existing spells, and a page of a few homebrewed spells created using the system limits.
The system is limited in the types of spells it can evaluate, so there's plenty I'm not even attempting. It mostly focuses on damage and debuffs, but even then is a bit rough around the edges.
So I'd like to ask anyone interested to check it out, and let me know what seems to work and what doesn't. Is it a good set of evaluation rules? Can I expect created spells to be balanced? Is it useful for analyzing existing spells that need fixing?
One of the big problems in 5E is that there are a number of spells that completely outclass their competitors (Fireball being the classic example), making it an exercise in frustration to build a character around a theme (eg: ice spells, pestilence, etc) when it feels like the spells don't even perform on par with your current level, much less the overtuned region of Fireball and the like. Would you be happy swapping out your 'ideal' spells for alternatives if they were readjusted in this system? Or does it look like the spells would become overpowered?