D&D General D&D, magic, and the mundane medieval

[pemerton]

Which makes a campaign really, REALLLY weird when we meet more than the one wizard that's in our group. If wizards are that limited (and note, I still have no idea why we're focused on wizards since clerics and druids would have just as huge of an impact on a setting) then how on earth have we met three of them by the time we're tenth level?

You can't have it both ways. You can't have "wizards and casters are so super duper rare that no one would see one" and "wizards and casters are so common that we bump into several every single adventure".

Not necessarily. Philosophers are pretty rare, but in my life I've met dozens, and have more than one as a friend.

Supervillains are pretty rare, but Superman and the X-Men meet heaps and heaps of them.

What I do think tend to run your way is that a lot of D&D material treats magic-users and clerics as essentially ordinary parts of the social fabric: in Gygax's rules, for instance, all large groups of NPCs tend to have at least a couple hanging out with them, they are indentured into city guards and watches, etc. That part of his game isn't REH-ish at all. 4e D&D seems to me to have a similar vibe. I don't know 5e stuff well enough to comment on it.

 

[pemerton]

We can't assume things not written. By RAW it is as I stated.

If the DM wants to house rule it to be that way, of course he can.

Deciding that a NPC can use a spell is not house-ruling. It's literally the way that 5e GMs build NPCs!

 

[Maxperson]

Deciding that a NPC can use a spell is not house-ruling. It's literally the way that 5e GMs build NPCs!

Feats. We are talking about them having feats now.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Feats. We are talking about them having feats now.

Again, feats are just special abilities. GMs can give those to any NOC they want, and that's not a house rule.

 

[Maxperson]

Again, feats are just special abilities. GMs can give those to any NOC they want, and that's not a house rule.

In 5e the DM can give them special abilities, and even the same abilities as feats have. They won't be feats, though. To have feats, the DM needs to invoke two options or engage a house rule.

 

[pemerton]

Feats. We are talking about them having feats now.

Feats only came up as a pathway towards spell-casting; and you asserted (post 261) that spellcasting is not available to the "general public" because feats are not used in NPC building.

Which is a total non-sequitur. Feats aren't a thing in the fiction. And they're not even a factor in resolution. They're just a build component used in building PCs. NPCs are built using different components, including GM decision-making, which can trivially result in a NPC who is part of the "general public" being able to cast a spell if that is what the GM decides.

 

[Maxperson]

Feats only came up as a pathway towards spell-casting; and you asserted (post 261) that spellcasting is not available to the "general public" because feats are not used in NPC building.

And because of the default state of spellcasters as rare that the DMG lays out for the game.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Does it say somewhere that NPCs can't get feats, or is this an assumption?

Only if you are willing to take pedantic lawyering as your answer. To answer the underlying question, no, there is no rule that an NPC can't have the features contained within a feat, and in fact many NPCs do have such features, as well as race and class features.

In fact, low CR spellcasters aren't even that uncommon. There is an evil mage in Phandelver that is CR 1. The apprentice wizard is CR 1/4. the Thayan Apprentice is CR 2, as is the Cult Fanatic.

NPCs are built using different components, including GM decision-making, which can trivially result in a NPC who is part of the "general public" being able to cast a spell if that is what the GM decides.

And the game is full of NPCs with all the effects of several spells, as well as class features. How many weapon using NPCs have the benefits of Defensive Duelist, or have Sneak Attack, etc?

 

[pemerton]

How many weapon using NPCs have the benefits of Defensive Duelist, or have Sneak Attack, etc?

I'm not 100% sure of the answer to this rhetorical question, but I'm guessing "some" or even "many"?

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I'm not 100% sure of the answer to this rhetorical question, but I'm guessing "some" or even "many"?

The specific number is immaterial, but yea, it’s “many”.