D&D 3E/3.5 [3.5]Divine spellcasters no longer able to prepare at a later time?

[Vanye]

On p 178, under Spell Selection and Preparation for the wizard, it says:

"When preparing spells for the day, a wizard can leave some of these spell slots open. Later during theat day, she can repeat the preparatin process as often as she likes, time and circumstances permitting, During these extra sessions of preparation, the wizard can fill these unused spell slots. "

Then on p180, under Spell Selection and Preparation, it states:

"A divine spellcaster does not ahve to prepare all his spells at one. However, the character's mid is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell."

Now, my PH3.0 isn't available to check, and I can't ever find this section in the srd, so I don't know if this is a change in the language or not, but it seems pretty cut and dried here that divine spellcasters either fill all their slots or they can't fill any they didn't get a chance to fill earlier. If they only choose to fill half their available slots (maybe because they're pressed for time), they can't fill the rest until the following day....

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

3.0 was essentially the same. The cleric didn't have to prepare all his slots; but he could only regain spells at his specified preparation time -- so unprepared slots were wasted.

Effectively, no change.

 

[Caliban]

No, that's not what it means at all.

The divine caster can only "refresh" his slots in the morning, but once the slot is refreshed he can fill it with spell at a later time, exactly the way a wizard can.

They are just trying to make sure you don't think the divine caster can fill any empty slot by praying for 15 minutes. If you cast a spell, that spell slot is empty, but is not "refreshed" and can't be filled with a new spell until after it has been "refreshed" the next day.

In this context, a "refreshed" spell slot means "empty and capable of being filled with a spell".

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Ah, I hadn't ever had it interpreted that way, but now that you point it out, I see it.

Useful, then, that.

 

[Dr. Zoom]

The 3.0 FAQ also clarifies that divine spellcasters may leave fresh slots open and fill them later just as the wizard can.

 

[Saeviomagy]

Personally I think letting the divine casters fill slots at a later time is just too damn good. While the wizard makes some sort of sacrifice for breadth (either by missing out on higher level spells, or by spending considerable amounts of money), the divine caster gets every single spell he can cast for free. A divine caster with unfilled slots will almost always have an appropriate spell for a situation. That not only devalues the wizard, it also cuts into the skill-using classes as well.

 

[Pielorinho]

From experience, this is a dangerous choice to make. We recently went into a battle that I didn't think would be especially tough, so I left several slots empty as a divine caster.

My lack of spells in those slots in the next half-hour, as we faced 3-4 unexpected battles (including two battles that were extraordinarily nasty) all one right after the other, almost proved our undoing.

It's definitely a sacrifice for a divine caster to leave slots empty.

Daniel

 

[bret]

Curious question, but could you spontaniously cast from an open spell slot as a divine caster?

I'm really not sure.

 

[Grazzt]

Curious question, but could you spontaniously cast from an open spell slot as a divine caster?

I'm really not sure.

Nope. Page 32 in the 3.5 PHB says "The cleric can 'lose' any prepared spell..."

So, since an open slot is not a prepared spell, he can't do it. The slot has to be filled.

 

[dcollins]

I originally resisted this idea when it was first pointed out to me. However, I now see it as fairly nifty from a storyline-pacing viewpoint. My last cleric would usually leave a few slots open in case he needed a remove curse, neutralize poison, break enchantment, speak with dead, divination, etc., throughout the day -- allowed the story to keep moving without a "camp for the night so I can get the needed spell tomorrow" interruption in flow.