D&D 5E A simple houserule for martial/caster balance.

[FrogReaver]

Simply cap spells known to 4th level or less (maybe 5th level or less). Casters can keep the slots.

Thoughts?

Possibly create magical items that allow casters access to higher level spells for atunement and sufficient class level.

 

[TwoSix]

I'm down. Doesn't really impact the game until Tier 3, when is most of the problems start to reveal themselves, and easy enough to scale up casters as needed with targeted magical items.

 

[Fanaelialae]

I think that would do a lot to narrow the disparity between martials and casters. That said, I think it could be a hard sell.

 

[Dausuul]

What are the specific spells that you feel contribute to martial/caster imbalance? What are some examples of this issue manifesting at the table?

(To be clear, I'm not trying to pooh-pooh the idea that the imbalance exists. My group hasn't generally encountered it, but it makes sense that a class with a vastly larger toolkit will find many more ways to exploit it. But I'm wondering how much of the problem is from the high-level spells that you're targeting, and how much is from having more slots to use on mid-level utility and control.)

 

[Vaalingrade]

Still much rather build martials up than tear casters down.

Also remove wizards from the game.

Not ban. Remove so there's no niche protection or design bias around them ever again.

 

[Undrave]

Still much rather build martials up than tear casters down.

Also remove wizards from the game.

Not ban. Remove so there's no niche protection or design bias around them ever again.

The Wizard is problematic as a class. Way too flexible, too powerful, and WOTC seems to bend over backward to please its die hard fan who want it to be the most powerful class. It casts a negative shadow over the entire game.

 

[James Gasik]

That's because any time you attempt to limit the powers of the Wizard, people complain that "the Wizard doesn't feel magical". Often some of the same people who demand that the Fighter be "ordinary dude in extraordinary situation" insist that "Wizards be all powerful reality warpers able to cast every spell ever printed". It doesn't matter how many spells you make, someone will be like "but where's Snilloc's Cream Pie?".

 

[Rogerd1]

There is a rule in Aetaltis that does away with slots, and grants power points. However, each caster level has certain spell levels they can caste safely, and after that you take damage. I would have to find the rule in question though.

As to Martials, they need access to powers like from Runequest, or Gurps Martial Arts.

 

[James Gasik]

It would be nice to give the non magical characters the ability to cleave through stone walls, rip apart plate armor with their bare hands, run up castle walls, and leap a hundred feet in the air to smack a passing dragon, but believe you me, there are many players who would gnash their teeth and stomp their feet at the idea of their "everyman Fighter" being turned into a "cartoon character".

Never no mind the fact that legendary heroes in real world myths do this sort of thing all the time. No swimming up a waterfall or making whole armies run in feat of you for you, Mr. Fighter man! Now get over there and pretend to be a threat to that 50' long magical fire lizard while I cast a trivial spell to do everything you cant!

Fighter: it's a fair cop.

 

[Minigiant]

If I recall. The issues with the warrior/expert/spellcaster "balance" was never the high level spells themselves. It was few low level magic became ineffective and inefficient to deal with major obstacles and meaningful combat so they are retooled to be all used for low level utility and outshine nonspellcasting solutions regularly.