D&D 5E How much space (pages) does a spell use up in a Wizard's spellbook in 5th edition?

[ccs]

I like to do it this way;
●The spells gained by leveling up take 1 page per spell lv.
This represents pages of research, formula, equations, etc. As well as random notes and info gleaned during adventuring.
I always imagine my grandma's cookbook....
●Spells gained from scrolls though simply take up 1 page no matter thier lv.
Why? Because nobody copies down all the misc research details again & again & again if they don't have to.

 

[Prism]

For some reason we go 3 pages for a 1-3 level spell, 6 pages for 4-6 and 9 pages for 7-9. I have no idea if we just made that up sometime in the distant past or if it actually comes from an edition

 

[delericho]

Huh, you're right. It doesn't say. I'd say, choose from one of the following:

• A spellbook is large enough to hold all of your spells forever
• A spell takes one page
• A spell takes one page per level

Personally, I'd go with either the first or the last. I either don't want to worry about it at all, or I want it to be a real consideration.

This.

By the time your spell book has 100 pages of spells in it, it is in and of itself a magic item. It thousands of gold worth of magical ink in it and hundreds of years of spell research and arcane runes inscribed in it. If it can't float, turn its own pages, add pages in and repair coffee stains, I would be very disappointed. I think it would be a point of pride among wizards to have a stupidly large spellbook that looks like it weighs a tonne.

And this, too. A Wizard's spellbook is probably the single most important thing that he owns in all the world(s). So each should probably be a very unique reflection of that unique wizard's tastes, layered with all sorts of enchantments, and basically be a powerful item in its own right.

Indeed, worth noting that some of the earliest Forgotten Realms material comes from Ed Greenwood's "Pages from the Mages" columns in Dragon magazine, which detailed unique spellbooks (and the spells therein). It's funny how little attention D&D has paid to customising spellbooks, comparitively speaking.

 

[Li Shenron]

Meh, spellbook pages tracking is possibly one of the most boring elements of traditional vancian Wizards... I'd rather keep track of components/ingredients doses than spellbook pages!

I don't remember if I ever kept track of pages, but I think it's good if 5e doesn't specify how many pages are needed per spell... this way I would probably always choose the "all your spells are belong to one spellbook" option.

 

[Ranes]

Meh, spellbook pages tracking is possibly one of the most boring elements of traditional vancian Wizards...

What a shame. For me, it's one of those details that doesn't need constant attention but which supports my suspension of disbelief and evokes the eldritch nature of the game world. I enjoy having wizard PCs plan for those occasional days and nights of studious scribing by the light of a burning rat.

It's probably not a bad thing 5e hasn't formalised this though, given its less than stellar magic item creation rules.

 

[Minigiant]

I like to do it this way;
●The spells gained by leveling up take 1 page per spell lv.
This represents pages of research, formula, equations, etc. As well as random notes and info gleaned during adventuring.
I always imagine my grandma's cookbook....
●Spells gained from scrolls though simply take up 1 page no matter thier lv.
Why? Because nobody copies down all the misc research details again & again & again if they don't have to.

I do it this way except when you copy from another wizard, you spend 1 page on notes, formulas, and translations per wizard.

You can't get Zabir's Ice Storm without his Theory of Icyfication.

Dont forget table of contents, glossaries, and assorted lists!!

 

[Li Shenron]

What a shame. For me, it's one of those details that doesn't need constant attention but which supports my suspension of disbelief and evokes the eldritch nature of the game world. I enjoy having wizard PCs plan for those occasional days and nights of studious scribing by the light of a burning rat.

It's probably not a bad thing 5e hasn't formalised this though, given its less than stellar magic item creation rules.

Whatever works for you

Instead, I have always wanted to try a game where I would need to collect (and keep track of how much) bat guano for my fireballs...

The reason why I am not so much into spellbook tracking is that because spellbooks are usually strictly required for the Wizard to prepare spells (although at least recently, they are only needed to change your selection of spells -> without your spellbook, you can still regain slots and cast yesterday's spells).

So typically, enforcing the spellbooks rules (how many pages you need implies how many spellbooks you need to have and carry around) meant to forcing the player to deal with the possibility of not having your spellbook(s), e.g. having it lost/stolen/destroyed, and that meant a huge penalty (similar to having a Cleric's god stop granting spells for a reason). So you see my concern... games where spellbooks size & number matters typically give me the feeling that the DM may be plotting to take it away

 

[Prism]

So typically, enforcing the spellbooks rules (how many pages you need implies how many spellbooks you need to have and carry around) meant to forcing the player to deal with the possibility of not having your spellbook(s), e.g. having it lost/stolen/destroyed, and that meant a huge penalty (similar to having a Cleric's god stop granting spells for a reason). So you see my concern... games where spellbooks size & number matters typically give me the feeling that the DM may be plotting to take it away

Yup, many years ago our wizard was messing with the manual of the planes and managed to teleport himself naked to the center of Chult. Fun to see him try and survive for nearly 4 months with only the spells he had in his head. And in those days you could only cast each spell once before it was lost. 5e is on easy mode as you don't lose your spells without a book, just the ability to change them

 

[RealAlHazred]

Absolutely, but that's the gigantic tome they leave at home in the castle; and it'll probably do for 1000 pages rather than 100. The little 100-pager is the travelling spellbook, small enough to fit in a backpack and light enough to not be a burden to carry around all the time.

This is what I think of when I think "traveling spellbook":

Indeed, worth noting that some of the earliest Forgotten Realms material comes from Ed Greenwood's "Pages from the Mages" columns in Dragon magazine, which detailed unique spellbooks (and the spells therein). It's funny how little attention D&D has paid to customising spellbooks, comparitively speaking.

Those are among my favorite articles ever. I even like a lot of the more flavorful articles from the "Spellcraft" column all throughout the 2E/3E/3.5E era, like the Fire Eye Scrolls (2E, Dragon #123) or Volume Veneficus (3E, Dragon #331). And who can forget the Demonomicon of Iggwilv (1E/2E, The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth; 3E/3.5E, Dragon #336; 4E, Demonomicon and Heroes of the Elemental Chaos)?

 

[Athinar]

5.0 was not designed to that deep, KISS
I have a spell book and it has spells in it.