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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lanefan" data-source="post: 5572937" data-attributes="member: 29398">Re: sorceror-like casters in 1e<img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":P" title="Stick out tongue    :P"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":P" />robably not, but let me explain the background I'm coming from.For years and years we've used a spell point system rather than full Vancian memorization.  Works great until about 5th level whereupon the wheels start to come off; by 9th level the wheels are over in Farmer Giles' field somewhere and the casters rule the world.  Clerics were fully "wild-card" - if it's on your list and you have the points you can cast it.  Arcane types had to memorize their highest two levels worth of spells and were wild-card below that, just had to assign a number of spell points as wild card.  Spell points were randomly rolled much like hit points, I liked this.I wanted to achieve several ends all at once:1. - have low-level arcane types cast spells other than the usual three or four1a. - keep it that 1st-level casters get more spells than 1e RAW allows2. - dial back the power of high-level casters of all types from what I was used to3. - completely do away with pre-memorization (it annoys me to no end)4. - keep some variability and-or randomness (I don't want every caster of a given level to have the same number of slots available) but dial it back5. - keep it relatively simple.So, I went back to slots...but made them spontaneous.  If it's on your list or in your spellbook and you have a slot of that level available you can cast it, period.  You get a fixed amount of new slots each level, but to keep some randomness (and this is a bit complex, ignore if you like) I put in a roll at each level* (say, d3 or d4) with a small bonus for high relevant stat; you add your roll to the total of previous levels and if it reaches or goes over a certain number (in my case, 5) you knock off that same amount (5) and give yourself one extra slot in whichever level you like that already has at least one slot provided no level ever has more slots than any lower level.3 years and about 5 levels in I'd say goals 1, 1a, 3 and 4 have been achieved.  Goal 2 requires some future tweaking - Clerics are still able to do too much now and the jury's out on how this system will work for all casters at higher levels.  Goal 5 has been achieved in play but trying to explain how the random bonus roll system works at level-up has been a headache - it's simple to me but some of my players just don't get it.* - one very pleasant side effect is that this gives me a nice easy way to cut back the power of multi-classed casters: only single-class characters get the bonus rolls.Lan-"this experiment continues every time I run a session"-efan</blockquote>

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