Changes have been made to both Ray of Frost and Lance of Faith, which is now Sacred Flame.
Ray of Frost.
* it's now an attack spell, a magical attack (and no longer something saved against)
* range is halved to 50' from 100'.
Sacred Flame.
* is mechanically identical to Lance of Faith, except for range.
* range is halved to 25' from 50'.
* flavour text goes crazy cancels the concept of a laser cleric.
Thoughts:
1. The change of Ray of Frost to an attack spell is right (as has been discussed on these boards).
2. I'd prefer it to be a ranged attack than a magical attack (using dexterity), so that the choice for a wizard (or sorcerer) to be a ray specialist; not for every wizard to be equally capable. Using a second stat encourages some system specialization, some balance and design choice.
3. Sacred Flame is still passive (a spell defended against rather than an attack).
4. Flames descending from above?! what's up with this? Where do they begin? What's wrong with the notion of a laser cleric?
5. The reduced range is not a big penalty for the Lightbringer cleric, at least: Disciple of the Sun lets a cleric cast Sacred Flame as a reaction against melee attacks. Still: as a reaction, the unarmoured cleric drops flames on her opponent's head.
6. The only "benefit" I see is that it removes one of the two uses of the holy symbol. (That was just in the flavour text, too, but it was at least there. Now there's no reason to have a holy symbol as a cleric until you are casting a seventh-level spell (Destruction). But it's still there in every equipment package.
7. Why are these spells not parallel? Why is the Wizard's cantrip so much better than the Cleric's? Why do the designers want to keep clerics passive?
* The change to Ray of Frost is a step forward: it's better now, and the 50' range is reasonable.
* The change to Lance of Faith (into Sacred Flame) is actively regressive, entrenching the problems with the spell previously, and cutting the range significantly.
* I really think both spells should be parallel, ranged attack spells (50'?)
Ray of Frost.
* it's now an attack spell, a magical attack (and no longer something saved against)
* range is halved to 50' from 100'.
Sacred Flame.
* is mechanically identical to Lance of Faith, except for range.
* range is halved to 25' from 50'.
* flavour text goes crazy cancels the concept of a laser cleric.
Thoughts:
1. The change of Ray of Frost to an attack spell is right (as has been discussed on these boards).
2. I'd prefer it to be a ranged attack than a magical attack (using dexterity), so that the choice for a wizard (or sorcerer) to be a ray specialist; not for every wizard to be equally capable. Using a second stat encourages some system specialization, some balance and design choice.
3. Sacred Flame is still passive (a spell defended against rather than an attack).
4. Flames descending from above?! what's up with this? Where do they begin? What's wrong with the notion of a laser cleric?
5. The reduced range is not a big penalty for the Lightbringer cleric, at least: Disciple of the Sun lets a cleric cast Sacred Flame as a reaction against melee attacks. Still: as a reaction, the unarmoured cleric drops flames on her opponent's head.
6. The only "benefit" I see is that it removes one of the two uses of the holy symbol. (That was just in the flavour text, too, but it was at least there. Now there's no reason to have a holy symbol as a cleric until you are casting a seventh-level spell (Destruction). But it's still there in every equipment package.
7. Why are these spells not parallel? Why is the Wizard's cantrip so much better than the Cleric's? Why do the designers want to keep clerics passive?
* The change to Ray of Frost is a step forward: it's better now, and the 50' range is reasonable.
* The change to Lance of Faith (into Sacred Flame) is actively regressive, entrenching the problems with the spell previously, and cutting the range significantly.
* I really think both spells should be parallel, ranged attack spells (50'?)
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