Alternate Spell Components...

[Draugin]

Material Components - even costly components - are not a meaningful balancing factor.

If you don't like using them - just drop them from the game entirely. They are there to promote a certain genre of wizard who fiddles with stuff - and to provide inane comic relief through puns.

If you want to have a "serious" game - the material components should be dropped entirely. Otherwise every time someone casts Tongues it can seriously disrupt the mood.

-Frank

I agree, "fixed" material components, as in D&D, are ridiculous. And it's more ridiculous that a wizard needs them. I see that odd material components can fit the concept of an adept, or maybe some sorcerers (who rely on totems or weird stuff).
At least, they should clearly put a caveat which says "a spellcaster can choose the aspect of his material components or foci", and maybe suggest a couple or three into the spell components descriptions (rather than putting only one meaningless component).

Your article on costly materials is interesting but I disagree.
A clever DM can circumvent the scenery you depict. For example, not letting simply buying material components - since you don't buy your holy avenger neither, I hope.
But I'm not leaving everything to DM's whims.
For example, a generic solution I could suggest is to create a parallel "money system" that spellcasters can use to obtain material components/foci or even crafting magic items.
Maybe Orichalcum pieces, or something similar. And orichalcum is so rare and precious or instable that no one trades it for gold - you can only find it adventuring. So you can be backupped by the king with whatever nonmagical item you want, but money won't help you casting spell or creating magic items.

Just an idea, it has to be refined a lot.

 

[tensen]

Costs of specific material components always comes into the equation when they are so specific...

such as 100 gp pearls...
Where do they have to be worth 100 gp?
If I bought my pearls near a coastal area... do they have to be worth 100 gp there? Or would it be 100 gp worth in the area the wizard came from?

If I'm really far inlaid... or in a really sandy area... Am I going to be spending an outrageous sum to get the item I need to cast the spell?
"Pearl? You want a pearl? I heard there was this sage on the top of the farthest mountain that might have found a pearl once... he might be willing to part with it if you brought him the head of the prince of the empire."


Or is there a generic 100 gp pearl out there, an exact size that is necessary for the spell?

 

[Crothian]

For some very interestingf spell compontnes I suggest looking itno Philip Reed's 101 Arcane Spell Components, and 101 Divine Spell Components. They are not puns, and actually have a great deal of flavor as well as use.

 

[FrankTrollman]

Or is there a generic 100 gp pearl out there, an exact size that is necessary for the spell?

The answer is: you're overthinking it. Which is really too bad, because so far we haven't really put much thought into it at all.

The concept is that you mark off 100 gp and if the DM agrees that you can have a pearl: the spell gets cast. But the 100 gp isn't particularly a balancing factor - it's just a notation allowing the DM to put a limit on how many times the spell can be cast.

The pearls might as well be called "foo noodles" or "gakanak". They are simply an excuse for a DM to give limited ammunition to a spell.

The concept is:

1> Some spells have no Material Components, and can be cast at any time.

2> Some spells have Material Components with no listed cost, and can be cast at any time the character has not been captured, or otherwise relieved of her component pouch.

3> Some spells have a material component with a fixed cost - and these spells can only be used a limited number of total times as specified by the DM's whim.

If, as the DM, you have no particular idea on how many total maximum times you ever want the players to be able to cast Identify - then there's no reason to bother with the distinction between costly and non-costly material components.

Non-costly material components are already no different game mechanically from the Cleric's Divine Focus - so if you want to have an Arcane Focus, that will work just as well.

-Frank

 

[tensen]

The answer is: you're overthinking it. Which is really too bad, because so far we haven't really put much thought into it at all.

The concept is that you mark off 100 gp and if the DM agrees that you can have a pearl: the spell gets cast. But the 100 gp isn't particularly a balancing factor - it's just a notation allowing the DM to put a limit on how many times the spell can be cast.

Not overthinking it if the particular DM doesn't make pearls available. Or wants to consider a balanced economy for their world.

 

[FrankTrollman]

Or wants to consider a balanced economy for their world.

Unfortunately, that is considered over thinking it from the standpoint of the material component rules. They simply do not mesh with a balanced economy. Having one pretty much precludes the other.

You know which one I prefer having in my games.

-Frank