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Ars Magica I think I own 3E. It's a pretty good magic system, attached to a reasonable RPG. Unlike some of the posters below, I don't think it's the best magic system ever. My favorites are MAGE and 5th age.

Interesting... in our high-level party (8-22), the Sorcerer was the primary buffer (Mass Haste/ Imp. Invis/Fly), not the Cleric; she was secondary (Greater Magic Weapon, Protection from Elements, Magic Vestment, and Spell Resistance). The Cleric primarily used Harm and Mass Heal at high levels...

I agree. It is 10% assuming no crit resistance, and that a natural 19 hits. 5% in the case that a nat 19 misses (but a nat 20 hits).

I've been part of a campaign where it was used for levels 8-16. The spiked chain was pretty good, particuarly with feats that can take advantage of its reach and Enlarge (preferably permenant). That PC did not, however, dominate the game, and the player eventually switched out for a character...

I'm not following your math. Assuming that your entire threat range hits, increasing it by 1 at x2 is a 5% increase in damage. Increasing it by 2 is a 10% increase in damage. In the case in point (20/x2 vs 20/x3), The better multiplier is a 5% increase in damage. Making both keen or taking imp...

Quiver Your "happy" version describes what sounds like a neat basis for a minor artifact, not a minor varient of a Handy Haversack. I'd talk to your DM. Were I DMing, I'd say "no". Assuming that your PC had a way of having such an item specially made for him/her, I would be happy to remove one...

Major spellcaster If you like offensive magic, the big thing about caster level is not spells/day. It is the ability to keep up with opponent's SR, which will be common at high levels. Note that there is a feat in a couple sources (Complete Arcane is one) which will allow you to keep your...

Sketical I don't think that +5/+5 is insignificant for a PC who has the magic items of a LV 3 PC. That's roughly like saying that a +2 weapon, a +4 belt of giant Strength, and a bonus feat (Weapon Focus) is insignificant (This gives essentially the same bonuses to hit and damage as the +5/+5...

Wg7 I tried running it twice, with very different results. In the older group, it fell rather flat. In the younger group (average age around 13), they thought it was moderately good. Mind you, a lot of the gaming jokes went over their heads, but they liked it more than the more serious stuff I...

The Shadow knows... #1 Amen. Of course, every group I've played in treats them as optional (even in 3.0/3.5), particuarly for minor combats. #2 Actually, these were in 3.0, as well, but they were in the MM, not the PH. Again, I agree with you - weapon sizing should be an optional rule, largely...

Preference = homebrew? Let's see.. in the most recent game I ran, I used exactly none of my suggestions above. I used quite a few other rules, including ones from AU, UA, Chaositech and Cry Havoc! I will conceed that I've written something for #1 (magic system where the balance is in...

spell simplification I agree with your point on spells; In my opinion the majority of "waste" (i.e. rules I'll never use) in the PHB are spells that I'll never use (nor will any creatures, nor other party members). And, yes, I've both DMed and played major spellcasters. I like your type of...

Malhovic Is it just me, or does much of this thread read a bit like an ad for Malhovic Press :) But, yes, I agree that one should have some very good game designers. At least one of them should have very good math skills - mathematical modeling (while not a substitutie for play testing) can...

Major changes I'd like Let's start with the changes I'd advise against: 1) Removing HP (or its equivalent). 2) Removing Levels. Now, for what I'd like: 1) Re-vamp the magic system. I think that this should be a primary target for 4e; even 3.5 has only mild tweaks from 1st ed AD&D. Whether it...

Challenges I ran a party up to LV 22 (3E). Yes; around LV 20, a bunch of 9th level barbarians should be mincemeat regardless of the number (there's a reason the XP chart dosen't give XP for creatures that low); I'm surprised that the dragon caused them significant problems - the average...

I think that if you're planning on taking any of the higher-level energey spells (such as Energy Missile), I wouldn't bother with Energy Ray. My overarching comment is that there are a lot of great effects (and some horibly weak effects) in the LV 1 list. You may want to consider using a...

Good effects Control Flames: I'm surprised no one has mentioned this before. Sure, at low levels, it doesn't do much damage/creature/round, but over the lifetime of the spell and the number of potential creatures, the damage isn't too bad. For raw cost-effectiveness, it's probably the highest...

Yes. I've played with no healers, only minor healers (Paladins/Bards), and even a game where everyone was a cleric. It does change the game, but clerics (or Greenbond, if you prefer Arcana Evolved) aren't essential. Finally, I think that a Druid is a fine replacement for a cleric; the...