Anyone have any house rules for a wizard casting a spell from his spell book?

[cybernetic]

I was just wondering if anyone has any house rules for Wizards casting a spell directly from a spell book without memorizing it.....The way I see it a wizard should only have to memorize spells for adventuring...and it makes since that say a wizard could cast out of a book (though it'd prolly take longer0 which would allow them to use magic for creations, echantments and non adventuring means and not have to wait a day to be able to do it (if he doesn't have it memorized)....

I just wanted to know if someone has rules...if not i'll make some..I just didn't want to be reinventing the wheel..

 

[BluWolf]

This is probably 2E but if I remember correctly casting from a spell book is like casting from a scroll.

Sure you can do it.

Once.

 

[Furn_Darkside]

Hmm- I had not considered rules for that before.

I consider the spellbook more then a formula book, but a scientific journal of sorts- with notes and such on spells, anecdotes, and possibly even diagrams in the margins.

The process of memorization is committing all of that into the mind.

Scrolls on the other hand- are pieces of paper with the spell precast in them.

I suppose I might allow a casting from a spellbook.

I would do one of the following:

Double the casting time and a small chance of losing that spell in the book- if done outside a comfortable and safe situation.

or

The spell is cast the same way, but uses up 2 slots instead of the normal one.

I would not want to make it an easy or safe practice- since I would not want it to become common place.

FD

 

[DarkSoldier]

3E wizards no longer "memorize" spells; they "prepare" them. I prefer to think of spell preparation as "casting in advance."

Wizards cast almost the entire spell when they prepare it; the V/S/M/F components complete the spell and release it.

IMO, casting a spell straight from the book without preparation requires the components, the book, 1 standard action per spell level, and a Concentration check (DC 10 + spell level).

What do you think of that?

 

[Tewligan]

IMO, casting a spell straight from the book without preparation requires the components, the book, 1 standard action per spell level, and a Concentration check (DC 10 + spell level).

I'd probably make it one minute or more per spell level instead of an action. Also, I might rule that the wizard can't have any prepared spells ready - he has to go into it fresh-minded. This way, the wizard can use all the spells at his disposal when he's crafting something in the safety of his lab, but can't weasel around having to memorize his spells when in the thick of combat.

 

[cybernetic]

Casting a spell straight from the book without preparation requires the components, the book, 1 Minute per spell level, and a Concentration check (DC 10 + spell level).

(combo of DarkSoldier & Tewligan's ideas)

soudnz good to me?

 

[Staffan]

I can't believe no-one has pointed this out yet. A spellcaster in 3e can leave spell slots unfilled when he does his daily spell preparation. Later during the day he can prepare spells to fill those slots - it takes an amount of time proportional to the number of slots he's filling, with a minimum of 15 minutes. After that, the spell can be cast as normal. A wizard in a "civilized" setting would probably keep a few slots unfilled to cope with unexpected things, and probably prepare a few emergency spells for use when he doesn't have time to sit down for 15 minutes.

 

[Caliban]

If you want to allow a wizard to cast spells from his spellbook ( erasing the spell as with a scroll), then you would also need to institute an XP charge as well.

Otherwise at higher levels it worth the gold to cast it out of your extra spellbook (which only cost you 1/2 the normal amount to copy the spell into) instead of creating scroll.

 

[Thain]

Grimore Casting

This is an interesting idea, and in fact one you often see in the Fantasy genre. Examples of wizards casting directly from there spellbook range from some versions of the 'King Arthur' myth to Dragonlance novels to Mickey Mouse ('The Sorceror's Apprentice').

In my own campaign, which I'm in the process of creating, I'm going to allow it as a feat, which I have named 'Grimore Casting'.
Basically it looks liek this:

GRIMORE CASTING [metamagic]
Insert nice fluff here.

Prereq's: are the ability to prepare arcane spells from a spellbook, Int 13+, and 4+ ranks in Spellcraft.

Benefit: You may cast a spell directly from a spellbook, without having prepared the spell in advance. To do so, the following conditiosn must be met; you must succeed at a Spellcraft check (DC 15 + 5/level of the spell) and the spell's casting time is three times that as normal. Additionially, any Concentration checks made during the casting of the spell are made at a -4 penalty.

Special: Everytime a spell is cast drirectly from a spellbook, via this feat, there is a culimative chance (10%+ 5%/level of the spell) that it will vanish rerevokably from the spellbook, consumed as if it were a scroll.


IMPROVED GRIMORE CASTING [metamagic]
Insert similar fluff here.

Prereq's: are the ability to prepare arcane spells from a spellbook, Int 13+, and 9+ ranks in Spellcraft, and Grimore Casting [`natch].

Benefit: You may cast a spell directly from a spellbook, without having prepared the spell in advance. To do so, the following conditiosn must be met; you must succeed at a Spellcraft check (DC 15 + 5/level of the spell) and the spell's casting time is TWICE normal. You DO NOT suffer any Concentration check penalities from this feat.

Special: Everytime a spell is cast drirectly from a spellbook, via this feat, there is a culimative chance (10%+ 5%/level of the spell) that it will vanish rerevokably from the spellbook, consumed as if it were a scroll.


Well, what does everyone think?

 

[da chicken]

I was just wondering if anyone has any house rules for Wizards casting a spell directly from a spell book without memorizing it.....The way I see it a wizard should only have to memorize spells for adventuring...and it makes since that say a wizard could cast out of a book (though it'd prolly take longer0 which would allow them to use magic for creations, echantments and non adventuring means and not have to wait a day to be able to do it (if he doesn't have it memorized)....

I just wanted to know if someone has rules...if not i'll make some..I just didn't want to be reinventing the wheel..

It generally isn't a good idea, especially now that the rules support leaving slots open.

In 2E (1E?), the spell you cast out of the book is automatically erased, and there is a flat 50% chance for the spell before it and the spell after it to also be erased (50% rolled spearately for each spell).

For 3E, I'd do that and require a Spellcraft DC of 15 + spell level. Even on a failure, the spell(s) should be erased.