D&D 5E How do you deal with expensive material components in your campaigns?

[Lakesidefantasy]

Yes, it does!

In some games, the 25,000 gp is hard to come by as well. In others it is chump change.

In some games, diamonds are easy to buy. In others, getting diamonds is a quest. In others, one empire holds a near monopoly on diamonds, and they are horded by the ruling class to allow for resurrection.

It's nice because different tables like different things. Depending on what you like your table can just ignore them outright, make them so ubiquitous that they simply represent a number on paper , or you can search for and collect them as you go adventuring.

 

[delericho]

It's nice because different tables like different things. Depending on what you like your table can just ignore them outright, make them so ubiquitous that they simply represent a number on paper , or you can search for and collect them as you go adventuring.

Probably a good idea if the DM sets expectations ahead of time, though - especially for casters who only ever learn a very small number of spells.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

At the risk of a derail, here's (roughly) what I would do with components, given a clean slate to work from:

1. Rebalance all spells to remove the need for expensive components. That may mean some spells need moved up a level.
2. All spells now require Verbal, Somatic, and Material components. The Material component can be anything thematically appropriate, either to the spell or to the caster - they're not specified in the book. Players are encouraged, but not required, to provide some description of how they cast the spell, in the same way that casters of martial characters are encouraged but not required to describe how they make their attacks.
3. A character using a spell focus can skip using any one of the three components. Most Wizards therefore cast spells with a flick of their wand and a magic word.
4. A character can also remove any one of the three components by using an action to "pre-cast" part of the spell. This can be combined with the focus, as above.
5. A character can also remove all components by using a slot one level higher, but gains no other benefits of doing so.
6. I would then introduce four types of "expensive" material components: Lore, Special Materials, Reagents, and Residuum. These cannot be purchased - they must either be created in downtime or found while adventuring. (I'll get to why there are four different ones later...)
7. Casters can optionally use an expensive component when casting a spell (the value consumed depends on the spell level). This allows the spell to be cast as if using a slot one level higher, to a maximum of the highest level slot the caster could normally use. (So a 7th level Wizard could use it to boost a fireball, but not an ice storm. Only one boost is allowed in this manner, and it is always added last.
8. But those same four types of components are also used to craft magic items, and Wizards use Lore to learn new spells. (Which is why there are different types, so different items can require different costs. Lore, as the name implies, is secret knowledge. Special Materials are things like meteorite iron, religious icons, or whatever. Reagents are similar but much more organic - unicorn horn, dragon's tears, mistletoe, etc. And Residuum is raw, unprocessed magic.)
9. Under this model, a captured spellbook provides a source of Lore that can be repurposed for any use, rather than a textbook allowing you to learn the specific spells therein. (Under this model, a spell is effectively a cheat code for reality, but they're encrypted for the specific caster. So you can't learn a spell directly, you have to learn the techniques to allow you to derive your own cheat code.)

There's more, but that's enough, and the whole thing would need some more fleshing out anyway. So I'll stop there.

This looks neat as long as removing components doesn't give you the same effects as subtle spell metamagic. So, sure, you can remove the need to vocalize but you're still shaking your staff or dancing in a circle. Basically, everyone knows you are casting a spell. I suppose the cost of removing ALL componenets might make it worth the ability to cast a spell subtly. I'm just thinking of how it could be abused.

I like #9 with the exception that it never gives a spellcaster a chance to try spells they normally wouldn't use. Sometimes, if you find a book with an unusual spell, you might study it just to try it. If I had the choice to turn any spellbook into my own recipe book, I'd just take the spells I had on my wish list. And you might find that many wizards end up taking the same spells...

 

[NotAYakk]

When people say components, they are usually talking about M.

 

[Lakesidefantasy]

Probably a good idea if the DM sets expectations ahead of time, though - especially for casters who only ever learn a very small number of spells.

You're talking about the spell's they get from progressing in their class, right? Rather than the spell's they get from spell's books and schools they've collected and copied. Ever table is different.

And I'd rather not put more stuff on the Dungeon Master's shoulders. No, I'm referring to whole tables and the way they play the game together.

 

[delericho]

You're talking about the spell's they get from progressing in their class, right? Rather than the spell's they get from spell's books and schools they've collected and copied. Ever table is different.

I was thinking more of Bards, Sorcerers and the like.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

You're talking about the spell's they get from progressing in their class, right? Rather than the spell's they get from spell's books and schools they've collected and copied. Ever table is different.

And I'd rather not put more stuff on the Dungeon Master's shoulders. No, I'm referring to whole tables and the way they play the game together.

It's already on the DM's shoulders. They are the gatekeepers to treasure and, therefore, a player's ability to have their characters cast spells with costly material components.

 

[der_kluge]

I'm just going to add here that OD&D had no components for spells. Not just (M) - no components at all. That's right, those old grognards playing OD&D raised the dead and resurrected people with complete impunity and it cost them absolutely nothing.

My book gives suggestions for how to replace the M components for spells. Short version: Most of them can either be handwaved away easily, or in some cases, requiring a better version of an arcane focus is a decent substitute.

Some spells have costs because they create permanent things. Illusory script, arcane lock, etc. Just limit the # of times those can be done based on the level of the casters. And then you're mostly golden.

The material components are there primarily to prevent abuse, or to balance out some overly powerful spell that would otherwise be completely broken (I'm looking at you, Heroes' Feast)

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

IMO, those expensive material components are mostly in there for a reason: to keep those spells from being fired off willy nilly. Look at how expensive identify is until you're higher level. Figuring out what the cool dagger you found at level 2 does is a big deal for low level adventurers, while it's just busy work for higher level ones.

So I'm fine with most of them being a small to medium pain in the butt to get access to, in general campaigns.

In campaigns like Descent to Avernus, where the designers may have forgotten about this issue, I'd look at the spells with important components and seed in a certain number of them into treasure caches or have enemy spellcasters have them. (Diamonds, handily, are something lots of people want, for a variety or reasons.)

But in some cases, not having access to quality of life spells like secret chest are just part of being in a tough survival game in an extreme environment. If the player characters get access to a safe haven, though, more of this stuff should be available at that point, both as a reward and a way to differentiate where they are now versus what the rest of the campaign is like.

 

[Lakesidefantasy]

It's already on the DM's shoulders. They are the gatekeepers to treasure and, therefore, a player's ability to have their characters cast spells with costly material components.

True, but I think it depends less on the Dungeon Master and more on the idiosyncratic culture of the Table of gamers. In my experience, Tables develop a culture of gameplay (an unspoken set of house rules, to say it another way) together, without really thinking about it.