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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Darth Shoju" data-source="post: 910774" data-attributes="member: 11397">spellcastersI dunno, to me spellcasters have always seemed to be pretty powerful. In the campaign I used to run, the party wizard typically did the most damage in a combat. If given a long combat, the fighter-types could do more damage total (thanks many hits of moderate damage), but the wizard would most often end the fight quickly with a few high-damage spells. While the wizard generally couldn't do it all himself, his "big boom" spells weakened the opponents to the point where they were quickly finished off by the fighters with their less damaging attacks. The wizard's favorite tactics were Haste first round, followed by improved invisibility (in the same round...cast as his partial action from the haste), then fly. He typically kept a few damage spells memorized as Sonic so fewer creatures were resistant to them. Combined with Horrid Wilting and Disintigrate, he was a terrifying force. He also liked to keep a Quickened True strike, so he could use it to deliver Vampiric touch (through his familiar or a Spectral Hand). Frankly, a Hasted, Invisible Flying wizard with a quickened spell or two is just a damage machine. Now, I did have ways of taking him down (hehe Balors are fun), and he did get himself in trouble once or twice (rolling a 1 on his True Striked Vampiric Touch standing right in front of a Divine Mighted evil cleric for one), but overall he was the designated butt-kicker.I've never seen a fighter match that kind of output in a combat. Where a fighter really shines is in the low levels, but after that the spellcasters take over. At high levels, the only way the fighter can come through is in long combats (where the wizard has blown his big spells) or if the party is fighting particularily magic-resistant opponents (like constructs). Not only that, but even setting aside the damage spells, wizards can do powerful things. This same wizard in question made excellent use of scrying and teleport...wait until your opponent is asleep, teleport in while invisible and go to town. Or even just the ability to scy a location and scout ahead is incredibly useful.From a warrior's POV (I play a barbarian fighter in another campaign), I can't tell you how annoying it is to be Held, Dominated, or subject to Fear. These things take a character right out of a fight, which is rarely too much fun. And trying to combat an invisible flying mage is no piece of cake either. True, fighters can counter these things (potions of see-invisibility, boots of flying, higher wisdom scores, etc.) but such compensations can only go so far (one Mordenkainen's disjunction later and your items are toast) and tend to weaken your damage output or defensive capability. Ultimately, I don't think Wizards are extremely over powered, but they definately out-distance fighters at higher level. They can do massive damage and are always useful outside of combat. From what I've seen of 3.5e (which isn't definitive yet of course), the wizards are being scaled-down without being nerfed, and I think utlimately things will be more balanced between the spellcasters and tanks.Of course, this just my opinion based off what info is availble. We'll have to see what the situation is like after 3.5 is released.</blockquote>

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