D&D 5E Again the Banishment spell ruined my game !

[BigVanVader]

How about you just think about it. What do you think would be distasteful to those targets?

Better yet, how about you just look at characters, and ask what would be distasteful to that specific character?

 

[DMZ2112]

Keepeth on thine pants.

a) Cleric / Paladin

Depending on the magic level of your campaign, a sanctified holy symbol belonging to a god of diametrically opposed alignment might suffice.

b) City Guard

This one's easy. A bloody, cleaved-in guard's helmet.

c) powerful Mage

I would make the players dig for this one. A powerful mage won't be turned off by much that isn't intensely personal.

d) Orc / Goblin

Depending on how mythical your setting is, though, maybe famous elven and dwarven weapons respectively? It worked in The Hobbit.

e) Troll

Fire.

f) Mayor of a city

If it's important to the story that he's the mayor, then it's important to the story that the item be something specific and personal.

g) King / Queen

Again, some personal horror.

h) Elite Soldier

Way too broad. See City Guard, maybe.

i) Merchant

See Mayor.

j) Bard

A shattered expensive musical instrument.

l) Thief / Assassin

[The name of] an item the thief failed to steal; a person the assassin failed to kill.

m) Village People

Rod Stewart.

n) Warrior / Gladiator / Barbarian / Veteran

[The name of] an enemy that the target could not defeat, maybe?

o) Extra planar creature

Come on, what?

t) Vampire

Garlic. You're not even trying anymore; I quit.

 

[steeldragons]

Tell me some examples according to the enemies down ... "(an item distasteful to the target)"

PLEASE !!!!!!!!

Dude, I'm workin' on it. Needed some lunch. Are you playing right now?

Let's see...where was I? I hadn't realized that 5e's Banishment was usable on all sorts of "normal folks". Don't know if I like that...thoughts for some other thread....anywho...

a) Cleric / Paladin: Good Aligned: See Celestials, in my previous post. Evil Aligned: See Fiends, in my previous post. Neutral Aligned: Mandrake root.
b) City Guard: Wing of Bat.
c) powerful Mage: Dung from a white bull.
d) Orc / Goblin: See Humanoids, in my previous post.
e) Troll: See Humanoids, in my previous post.
f) Mayor of a city: a mirror.
g) King / Queen: a dirty handkerchief.
h) Elite Soldier: @BigVanVader 's bag of Troll genitalia should do nicely.
i) Merchant: a ruined/slagged coin [gold is best, but any destroyed coin will do]
j) Bard: a tuning fork.
l) Thief / Assassin: a puppy/dog tail and Catseye stone.
m) Village People: @BigVanVader 's bag of Troll genitalia should do nicely. Or any humanoid genitalia, really.
n) Warrior / Gladiator / Barbarian / Veteran: incanting in one's loudest whisper, "Boo."
o) Extra planar creature: See Celestials, Fiends, Elementals, or Fey, as appropriate, in my previous post.
p) Titan / Empyrean / God: A titan can probably be run off with a rat's tail, or whole dead rat. A God!? I don't think I would let it work on an actual God.
q) Demon Lord: See Fiends: Demon, in my previous post.
r) Ranger / Druid: cold iron.
s) Tarrasque: I would not permit this spell to function against the tarrasque. It is a creature/embodiment of utter destruction. I don't think anything is "distasteful" to it. Try a butterfly or blooming flower. Something "pretty"? I don't think it'll work.
t) Vampire: See Undead, in my previous post.
u) Drow / duergar: Those are two very different critters. Drow: 1 day-blooming flower and 1 night-blooming flower. Duerger: A clump of horse hair.
v) Noble: a dirty handkerchief.
x) Rakshasa: Oh good, an easy one! A Crossbow Bolt.
z) Tiefling: See Fiends (demon or devil, as appropriate), in my previous post.

 

[SilverfireSage]

Dude, I'm workin' on it. Needed some lunch. Are you playing right now?

The urgency inherent in these posts by maritimo80 sometimes makes me wonder if he's playing under duress by the worst Rules Nazis in the world...

 

[Mistwell]

"You can't play for the next two hours but don't leave because you're not dead..." well, I hope you have a Ms. Pac Man machine in your basement.

It takes you 2 hours to play out 1 minute in the game? Anyway, the material component is...immaterial. Any focus allows you to skip it. I think it's fun, for flavor reasons, to come up with some ideas for those who do use material components, and I liked Steeldragons list. But, it's really not necessary. If people have a problem with this spell, the solution is not likely to come through the material component aspect.

 

[Frusticolus]

This sounds like exactly the sort of thing that was written into the rules to encourage some story.

If I were you, in the future I would think about the personality of the villain. Then come up with what would be something traumatic enough to warrant the banish spell, and work the acquisition of that item into the adventure. If the players want to use the spell that's giving you problems, make them work for it.

 

[DMZ2112]

It takes you 2 hours to play out 1 minute in the game?

It can.

Actually, funny story, one of my players is 9 years old and at one point in this particular fight he despaired that one of his spells he had cast before the fight had long since run its course, only to be corrected by the rest of the group that the last two hours of play time had only really covered about 20 seconds of in-game events. He gave me this horrified thousand-yard stare as he realized they were right. Teaching is fun.

Anyway, the material component is...immaterial. Any focus allows you to skip it. I think it's fun, for flavor reasons, to come up with some ideas for those who do use material components, and I liked Steeldragons list. But, it's really not necessary. If people have a problem with this spell, the solution is not likely to come through the material component aspect.

Ths issue is not with the spell's effect being overpowered. It's just a little better than your average 4th-level spell, and I think that is reflected in the slightly more thought-provoked component requirements. Allowing a PC to circumvent them by using a free spell component for another spell is just self-defeating.

 

[Mistwell]

Allowing a PC to circumvent them by using a free spell component for another spell is just self-defeating.

I feel like we're not communicating here. Are you suggesting the Focus rules be house-ruled out, or are you just not aware of them, or advocating a house-rule that they not be allowed for this particular spell, or what?

From the PHB "Casting some spells requires particular objects, specified in parentheses in the component entry. A character can use a component pouch or a spellcasting focus in place of the components specified for a spell."

And then the equipment describes various Focus items such as Arcane focus items (orbs, wands, crystal, staff, etc.), Druidic Focus (sprig of mistletoe or holly, a wand or scepter, totem, etc.), and a Holy Symbol (amulet, symbol engraved or inlaid as an emblem on a shield, a tiny box holding a fragment of a sacred relic, etc.). Except for the Holy Symbol on a shield, you have to hold the Focus in a free hand, which is a cost (though you can often swap things in and out of the hand pretty easily).

So what are you suggesting concerning the Focus rules in the game?

 

[Bohemond D'Arlac]

In the case at hand (the Banishment of an evil cleric) as a sadistic DM I would just have him come back with some fiendish allies appropriate to his deity for a climactic showdown. Of course I would make sure that the reinforcements provide the PCs with surplus treasure and XPs to make the unexpected challenge worth their while...that is, if they survive

 

[DMZ2112]

So what are you suggesting concerning the Focus rules in the game?

No, no, I hear you. There is an additional rule for foci, though: that component pouches and foci only replace spell components without a cost. In this instance I choose to interpret the "cost" of the material component in question as being figuring out what your target finds "distasteful" and bringing it to the fight.

I realize that's a very broad reading of the focus rules but for me the wording of the Banishment material component is clear that the component is intended to be different every time. It's not something you can stockpile in a component pouch, and by extension I don't feel like the focus rules should apply.

Put another way, I don't think Banishment was written with the focus rules in mind and I don't think the focus rules were written with Banishment in mind. It's an unusual circumstance, and I'm just not comfortable with writing it off by saying, "No price in GP, no problem solving required." I see spell components as a roleplaying opportunity. They're there to give casters inspiration for describing their actions. I'm not saying anyone needs to go mining for bat guano; I just doubt the focus rules were intended to brush aside roleplaying hooks.