D&D (2024) Power Source Spell Lists

[Gorck]

What are your thoughts on the Bard and Artificer being limited to the Arcane List in One D&D, and losing access to healing and restorative spells?

 

[Sir Brennen]

What are your thoughts on the Bard and Artificer being limited to the Arcane List in One D&D, and losing access to healing and restorative spells?

Per the video, sounds like each class will have some spells in addition to those on their "primary" list. Now, I thought that might mean just spells unique to each class, like only Warlocks would have Eldritch Blast, but it could also mean adding a few spells from a different primary list.

So ,they may still give a couple healing spells to those classes in addition to the core Arcane List.

 

[TwoSix]

Typically, a class has about three lists from various sources, but only uses one source to spellcast. For example, a Cleric can access four thematic lists − Divine, Elemental Fire, Primal Healing, and Necromantic − but only uses the Divine source to cast any spell.

Can you clarify the difference between a class having access to a list and "spellcasting" from a list? It seems consequential, but I don't understand the mechanical difference you're driving at.

 

[Yaarel]

Can you clarify the difference between a class having access to a list and "spellcasting" from a list? It seems consequential, but I don't understand the mechanical difference you're driving at.

This distinction assumes that the power source matters mechanically.

For example, a mechanical benefit of using the psionic power source to cast the spells of various themes is, the psionicist never uses material components, including neither a spell focus such as a wand or holy symbol nor a costly component.

Hypothetically, arcanists, divinists, primalists, and elementalists also each have some mechanical benefit.

In any case, the spells of the caster gain the respective "tag", whether an arcane spell or a divine spell. So other features of the game might interact with the spell in some way because of its tag.

 

[Yaarel]

Per the video, sounds like each class will have some spells in addition to those on their "primary" list. Now, I thought that might mean just spells unique to each class, like only Warlocks would have Eldritch Blast, but it could also mean adding a few spells from a different primary list.

So ,they may still give a couple healing spells to those classes in addition to the core Arcane List.

Yeah, I got that impression too. Presumably, Eldritch Blast is no longer a spell, but is instead a Warlock class feature.

Generally, I would rather a class avoid gatekeeping certain spells. Let the spell remain as a general spell. But I think it is ok if the Warlock has features to augment the Eldritch Blast. Similarly, a Fire Wizard might augment the Fireball spell.

 

[Yaarel]

What are your thoughts on the Bard and Artificer being limited to the Arcane List in One D&D, and losing access to healing and restorative spells?

The Bard spell list is perfect the way it is. But choosing themes within these themes is fine.

The Bard lacks force spells, so actually is never Arcane. The Bard spell list includes:
• Divine
• Elemental Air (Thunder only)
• Primal Animal
• Primal Healing
• Primal Plant
• Psionic Telepathy
• Psionic Illusion

 

[TwoSix]

Probably once we get to this level of division (13 overall families in 6 superfamilies), I think I'd rather go towards something like the bespoke spell traditions that Shadow of the Demon Lord uses.

 

[Yaarel]

Probably once we get to this level of division (13 overall families in 6 superfamilies), I think I'd rather go towards something like the bespoke spell traditions that Shadow of the Demon Lord uses.

The thirteen themes are solid. These are the themes that D&D itself is made out of.

One can debate a certain spell here or there, about which theme it "mostly" belongs to. One can even finetune a theme. But the end result wont look much different from these thirteen.



By contrast, the power sources are arbitrary. One can easily reassign which theme belongs to which power source. For example, if there are only two power sources, Arcane and Divine, I would split them as follows:

Arcane: Arcane (Force), Air, Earth, Fire, Prism, Water, and Illusion
Divine: Divine, Necromantic, Animal, Healing, Plant, and Telepathy

Organizing the themes is a matter of taste.

The thirteen themes themselves are robust.



I need to refresh my memory how the Shadow game engine spell works.

 

[TwoSix]

Organizing the themes is a matter of taste.

The thirteen themes themselves are robust.

I could probably quibble a little at the edges, but yea, overall, it's a pretty solid reorg.

 

[Yaarel]

I could probably quibble a little at the edges, but yea, overall, it's a pretty solid reorg.

By the way, please "quibble".