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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7519099" data-attributes="member: 20323">Uff, that was a hard read. But I got your gist.If it's creative spell combos that you're looking to include, there are certainly ways you can do that (e.g. casting any fire spell onto a grease spell) without needing to undermine the Concentration mechanic to do it. I'm not saying Concentration is perfect (in fact, I think the ways it can be disrupted need reexamination). However, it's core mechanic works well in fulfilling four functions:1. Preventing "Broken" Spellcasting. Concentration prevents a host of undesirable situations that were present in past editions. One example of an undesirable situation would be a spellcaster creating a wall of force or Otiluke's resilient sphere around himself when surrounded then dropping a cloudkill. While such a scenario might make the spellcaster drool, it really isn't fun for anyone else at the table. Other PCs are either seeking shelter in the force field or finding ways to survive within the poison gas. There's really a limited set of options to deal with this scenario, mostly involving specific spells like gust of wind, dispel magic, and disintegrate. And a villain using this strategy against the PCs would most certainly be a drag for the players, especially a group that didn't have the right spells to break this "turtling" combination.Another example would be casting banishment or maze on a monster and then delayed blast fireball or glyph of warding or some other "trap" spell in the space they will eventually return to.Another example would be hold person and any ongoing damage area of effect spell. And so on.2. Unified Mechanic for Past Edition Language. Many folks don't realize this, but 3e and especially AD&D were rife with language in spell descriptions like "by concentrating on this spell" or "with continued concentration", etc. Concentration reinforces what was restricted to narrative description and often disregarded in past editions.3. Limits the Spellcaster's Turn Length. Everyone who has played D&D across a couple editions has experienced a spellcaster's turn take agonizingly long as they manage multiple ongoing spells. Concentration (and the cantrip/bonus action spell restriction) helps reduce that effect greatly, making a spellcaster player's turn not take much longer than any other player's.4. Limits Swiss-Army-Knife-Wizard Overshadowing Other PCs. It's easy to imagine a mage casting expeditious retreat (Dash as a bonus action) on himself *and* fog cloud around the trolls, and all of a sudden then the spellcaster is out-roguing the rogue while *simultaneously* performing his function as a mage.While D&D historically lets mages momentarily step on the toes of other classes (e.g. arcane lock, knock), at least 5e provides some limits on that with Concentration.</blockquote>

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