D&D 5E 5e "Anyspell," Would You Allow the Enclosed Spell?

[jaelis]

He's saying that if everyone makes the same choice, then the act of choosing is meaningless, not that the option chosen is meaningless.

 

[Inanity]

He's saying that if everyone makes the same choice, then the act of choosing is meaningless, not that the option chosen is meaningless.

Yeah I understood that (although I did use examples that indicated I was talking about the meaning of the words and not the impact on the players psychology, or the meaning of the act itself; but just because everyone does something does ot mean it is meaningless to THEM... it just doesnt.. I am assuming any non-adhoc interpretation of "meaningful:" would not yield the result X is meanigful (if?) only if X is not chosen by all...

 

[Inanity]

NOTE: About above disucssion, I was concerned with the principle and not trying to justify inclusion of anyspell based off of the weight of that principle (i.e. I am independently curious about the truth of such principles. And the criticisms about anyspell (aside from the "any person criticism" i guess) was well taken... and thanks for the quick and thoughtful responses!

 

[Harzel]

Would you allow this spell into your game?

No, and I can't imagine any variation that I would allow either. It is absurdly OP and it eliminates the whole spell selection process, which is a staple of the game.

 

[jmartkdr2]

Yeah I understood that (although I did use examples that indicated I was talking about the meaning of the words and not the impact on the players psychology, or the meaning of the act itself; but just because everyone does something does ot mean it is meaningless to THEM... it just doesnt.. I am assuming any non-adhoc interpretation of "meaningful:" would not yield the result X is meanigful (if?) only if X is not chosen by all...

I think you're trying to isolate the term 'meaningful' from the phrase 'meaningful choice', which loses the original, uh, meaning.

 

[Inanity]

No, and I can't imagine any variation that I would allow either. It is absurdly OP and it eliminates the whole spell selection process, which is a staple of the game.

This WAS a spell in 3.5e... but well taken, although spell selection is still relevant; you still need your current highest level spells and also you only get 1 reaction in a ROUND (it may still be advantageous to NOT cast this spell andcastt either a level 1 spell normally or else a level 2 spell other than anyspell...

 

[Inanity]

I think you're trying to isolate the term 'meaningful' from the phrase 'meaningful choice', which loses the original, uh, meaning.

go on...

 

[jaelis]

This WAS a spell in 3.5e... but well taken, although spell selection is still relevant; you still need your current highest level spells and also you only get 1 reaction in a ROUND (it may still be advantageous to NOT cast this spell andcastt either a level 1 spell normally or else a level 2 spell other than anyspell...

I did find the 3e version and it was a whole lot weaker. 15 minutes to cast and then it just let you prepare a single spell from off your spell list. So not an on-the-fly "cast whatever I want" but "at the cost of a higher level slot, I have an expanded spell list today."

Transmutation
Level: Spell 3,
Components: V, S, M, AF, DF, XP,
Casting Time: 15 minutes
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous

Although there is no visible effect from this spellcasting, you channel divine power through your mind, shaping and transforming this energy into the potential to cast one arcane spell.

Anyspell allows you to read and prepare any arcane spell of up to 2nd level. You must have an arcane magical writing (a scroll or spellbook) on hand to cast anyspell. During the spell's 15-minute casting time, you can scan the spells available and choose one to read and prepare.

Once you choose and prepare an arcane spell, you retain it in your mind. The prepared spell occupies your 3rd-level domain spell slot. If you read the spell from a spellbook, the book is unharmed, but reading a spell from a scroll erases the spell from the scroll.

When you cast the arcane spell, it works just as though cast by a wizard of your cleric level except that your Wisdom score sets the save DC (if applicable). You must have a Wisdom of at least 10 + the arcane spell's level to prepare and cast it. Your holy symbol substitutes for any noncostly material component. If the spell has a costly material component (one to which a gold piece value is assigned), you must provide it. If the spell has another focus, you must provide the focus. If the spell has an XP component, you must pay the experience point cost.

 

[Harzel]

but just because everyone does something does ot mean it is meaningless to THEM...

True, but irrelevant. The comments being made are from a game design perspective, not a player perspective. And from a game design perspective, if there is one option that every player takes, then that is clear evidence that that option is so desirable that it is, effectively, not an option. I'm sorry, but not only is this glaringly obvious, but it's an observation that has been made numerous times about numerous features in numerous games. It's not as if the commenters in this thread just came up with it.

 

[Harzel]

This WAS a spell in 3.5e... but well taken, although spell selection is still relevant; you still need your current highest level spells and also you only get 1 reaction in a ROUND (it may still be advantageous to NOT cast this spell andcastt either a level 1 spell normally or else a level 2 spell other than anyspell...

Ah, I see. Yes, you are correct; I somewhat overstated the case.