D&D 5E 5e has everything it needs for Dark Sun

[TheSword]

I’d prefer to see defiling represented by free upcasting. The mechanic for more powerful magic is there already.

As for needing a separate psion...

A sorcerer subclass with the ‘psionics are different’ rules and a dozen new spells pretty much covers it. I’ve not seen much in the any of the psionic handbooks that wasn’t replicating something a wizard did. Certainly not enough to justify a whole new class.

 

[Steampunkette]

I’d prefer to see defiling represented by free upcasting. The mechanic for more powerful magic is there already.

As for needing a separate psion...

A sorcerer subclass with the ‘psionics are different’ rules and a dozen new spells pretty much covers it. I’ve not seen much in the any of the psionic handbooks that wasn’t replicating something a wizard did. Certainly not enough to justify a whole new class.

I mean...

Upcasting is a thing? But it doesn't improve most spells to the same degree. And there are many spells it doesn't improve at -all-.

Why would any Defiler, for example, Upcast "Detect Evil and Good" or "Hideous Laughter" or "Grease"? Even really powerful and useful spells like "Haste" don't always have upcast options. Those that do are almost always just "Moar Damage" magic.

D&D 5e Scaling Spells, 1st-3rd

One of my favorite mechanics in D&D 5e is the scaling spells. No need to have a bunch of copies that just do the same thing, only at a higher spell level, when you can just have a lower level o…

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D&D 5e Scaling Spells, 4th-8th

Continued from last week, here are the rest of the spells cast at higher level. As with the previous set, arguments about my choices are welcome in the comments. Level 4 Spells Arcane Eye: When you…

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1st level spells that don't have an upcast option: 18
2nd level spells that don't have an upcast option: 32
3rd level spells that don't have an upcast option: 25
4th level spells that don't have an upcast option: 20
5th level spells that don't have an upcast option: 20
6th level spells that don't have an upcast option: 19
7th level spells that don't have an upcast option: 17
8th level spells that don't have an upcast option: 15
9th level spells that don't have an upcast option: All of 'em, obviously. >.>

Now if you could cast that spell and have a 50% chance of not expending the spell slot used for it... that's a different creature. Especially for those 9th level spell slots.

 

[Yaarel]

I am concerned about making defiling strictly better mechanically. I prefer that both defiling and preserving have costs and benefits, and are (roughly) balanced with each other mechanically.

That said.

The flavor of defilement has something to do with high amounts of arcane energy.

Perhaps there is a two-step process. Such as. First, one spends a bonus action to destroy the Water element within the nearby plants. The more plants that are nearby, the more energy is released by their destruction, thus the higher the slot that can be fueled by this energy. Second, one spends the action to cast a spell with this virtual slot.

Once the plants are destroyed, the defilement cant be used again until relocating to living plants elsewhere.

There is no defilement in a desert because all the plants are already gone.

Effectively, the defiler gains an extra spell slot, perhaps once per long rest, or however it works.

 

[Rikka66]

I am totally fine with defiling being better, but the expectation being PCs are preserver and the societal treatment for non-sorcerer king protected defilers is at best total exile, most often death.

 

[Maxperson]

I am concerned about making defiling strictly better mechanically. I prefer that both defiling and preserving have costs and benefits, and are (roughly) balanced with each other mechanically.

That said.

The flavor of defilement has something to do with high amounts of arcane energy.

Perhaps there is a two-step process. Such as. First, one spends a bonus action to destroy the Water element within the nearby plants. The more plants that are nearby, the more energy is released by their destruction, thus the higher the slot that can be fueled by this energy. Second, one spends the action to cast a spell with this virtual slot.

Once the plants are destroyed, the defilement cant be used again until relocating to living plants elsewhere.

There is no defilement in a desert because all the plants are already gone.

Effectively, the defiler gains an extra spell slot, perhaps once per long rest, or however it works.

In 2e defiling worked just fine in the desert and even the silt sea. The defiling area just was larger due to fewer plants. Deserts are not absent of all plants. You were also allowed to cast a spell in an area of defilement. If you did, the area just became larger since the magic had to go further to find the life energy it needed.

 

[Weiley31]

Has anyone tried creating a 5e custom race for a size-Large Half Giant?

A size medium Goliath just does not satisfy for me.

I feel like a modified version of the Rune Knight's level 3 ability, Giant's Might, to turn you huge/large along with the damage increase would probably be the best way of doing it. Complete with the increase in reach. Except it being a passive feature.

I mean Eberron's Bugbear has a 10 foot reach built in, not like making your character large would be a big deal issue aside from spacing of rooms. You can even flip the Halfling's small hiding work the same way but reverseish.

 

[Yaarel]

In 2e defiling worked just fine in the desert and even the silt sea. The defiling area just was larger due to fewer plants. Deserts are not absent of all plants. You were also allowed to cast a spell in an area of defilement. If you did, the area just became larger since the magic had to go further to find the life energy it needed.

Even if that is how canon originally worked, it seems less vivid − the consequences being unseen − and less tactical.

If I recall correctly, there is (flavor?) text that mentions huge "swaths" of the planet where defiling cannot be done because it is destroyed.

If the players can see the plants being destroyed, the defilement becomes more visceral and seems more outrageous, and narratively more fun?

In the nearby plants scenario, a natural desert with some living vegetation, would yield some energy when destroyed, but perhaps only enough to fuel a slot 1. In a dense jungle, might fuel a slot 5. And perhaps slots 6 to 9 destroy both plants and creatures together.

 

[Steampunkette]

I am concerned about making defiling strictly better mechanically. I prefer that both defiling and preserving have costs and benefits, and are (roughly) balanced with each other mechanically.

That said.

The flavor of defilement has something to do with high amounts of arcane energy.

Perhaps there is a two-step process. Such as. First, one spends a bonus action to destroy the Water element within the nearby plants. The more plants that are nearby, the more energy is released by their destruction, thus the higher the slot that can be fueled by this energy. Second, one spends the action to cast a spell with this virtual slot.

Once the plants are destroyed, the defilement cant be used again until relocating to living plants elsewhere.

There is no defilement in a desert because all the plants are already gone.

Effectively, the defiler gains an extra spell slot, perhaps once per long rest, or however it works.

The point of making Defiling flatly, strictly, more powerful is to make it -tempting-. Defiling involves committing a blatantly evil and destructive act that harms the world itself. Making it and Preserving equal, or as near to equal as possible, means there's very little reason to bother doing something horrible for the extra power involved. It needs to be clearly "Better" but at a terrible price.

And, of course, you can always Preserve most of the time and then pay that terrible price when you -need- to Defile to accomplish some specific goal, giving the act narrative weight in the moment.

Also @Maxperson is 100% correct. You can defile in deserts, just not dead-zones. Which is, I think, more what you're thinking of. As life and stuff returns to Dead Zones, usually thanks to Druids and the Veiled Alliance, people can re-dead them all over again!

I am totally fine with defiling being better, but the expectation being PCs are preserver and the societal treatment for non-sorcerer king protected defilers is at best total exile, most often death.

Oh, absolutely.

I tried not to spend too much time writing setting-specific lore stuff in the document, but absolutely. As a social and narrative consequence of Defiling: People will hunt you down and kill you.

 

[TwoSix]

I am concerned about making defiling strictly better mechanically. I prefer that both defiling and preserving have costs and benefits, and are (roughly) balanced with each other mechanically.

Defiling should be better than preserving, full stop. That's why there's the temptation to do it.

Defiling should be the default for arcane casting, and not defiling should take either an at-cast time penalty or require investment of character resources (a preserving subclass or a feat).

 

[Yaarel]

@TwoSix, @Steampunkette

I realize defiling needs to be "tempting".

But trading mechanical benefits for narrative punishments has been causing D&D to become broken, since the days of 1e.