D&D 5E D&D 5E and Spell Schools

[RHGreen]

Yep to schools, but with some other conditions.

We need to get rid of the Divination, Abjuration and Evocation schools. These should be absorbed into the other schools.

Fire - Protection from fire, Fire Wall, Fire Shield, Fire ball, Flame Divination, etc.
Necromancy - Protection fom undead, Darkness, Entropy Shield, Necrotic Leech blast, Divine Entrails, etc.

Having a rubbish school based just on divination or shields is boring. Evocation just means it is fairly default for most people (obviously not all)

Oh, and can we please put Identify and Dispel Magic in the Universal school.

And also not have opposition schools. Just make school specialization a default. You choose a school and you cast spells better from that school and get some school perks. I hate opposition schools.

 

[Ratskinner]

I've been thinking about this a bit recently, and I think spell schools shouldn't be in the Basic game. Probably there should be a Core module which introduces them, but they really don't have any use/impact in the Basic game. Especially since specialty wizards will likely be Core-but-not-Basic. In a module, you would just define a school and its list of spells.

One big advantage of this would be the ability to redefine magic by campaign. One campaign might have the traditional D&D schools. The might see Necromancer, Illusionists, and Evokers. Another might have a different feel and feature Pyromancers, Petromancers, and others. Dark Sun could get its own...etc. etc.

Personally, I want the Basic game to be as simple and fast as possible. Which means I'd like the spells to be as simple as possible. Adding another line to each spell doesn't seem to add much to the game, IME.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Schools don't detract from play (they are easily ignored if you want) and open up additional ways to play. Keep 'em.

 

[Incenjucar]

Why just spells? Sort everything.

 

[variant]

I think schools should be something modularized. They are ultimately pointless unless you play in a specific type of campaign.

I like the idea above that said there should be keywords for spells and among them are the typical schools. That way the "schools" still exist for players that want to play in a campaign where spells can be sorted like some kind of science or want to play a typical specialist wizard, but don't eclipse campaigns with elementalists and other types of specialist wizards.

Also, I never understood why divine spells had schools either.

 

[Lord Mhoram]

I don't mind spell schools and such, but I generally don't pay attention to them.

I think the first non-generalist wizard I have every played is the next one (have him built - although using the alternate specialists from Pathfinder - he's a fire mage).

As long a character can be a universalist, then I am okay with whatever schools the spells get slotted into.

 

[Mengu]

Voted a, but what I want is a little different.

I wish spells could be given a half dozen categories, to accommodate for the campaign setting.

If your campaign setting builds magic around the elements, then you want an elemental designation for each spell, fire, air, earth, etc, even combinations where appropriate. If your setting magic is built around mind, body, and matter, those would be the classifications you would look for. If your setting uses schools of magic in the traditional Greyhawk sense, then Abjuration, Conjuration, Divination, etc. are the schools you would want to see.

I would love to see some common systems of magic make their way into flavoring the spell system, but that is unlikely. Most people don't seem to want a generic spell system, they want Greyhawk/Forgotten Realms flavor for their magic. And most likely, that is what we will get.

 

[Lanefan]

Not a big fan of arcane spell schools except for two; and those should have thier own separate classes anyway: Illusion and Necromancy.

Not a fan of divine spell schools at all.

Lanefan

 

[Tony Vargas]

Spells should have Schools.

Prayers should have Domains or Spheres. Different deities should grant access to different Domains/Spheres.

Exploits should have Styles.

Evocations should have Elements. Spirits would be associated with one or more element.


Breaking up huge power lists with keywords like that would be helpful. It gives characters an intuitive way to specialize. It gives the DM a way of clearly defining aspects of Deities, Primal Spirits, Martial Arts, and Arcane Colleges. Put that together and PCs are more closely tied to the world.

 

[Leatherhead]

What about the sorcerer? He takes an unscientific, intuitive approach to arcane magic.

The barbarian takes an unscientific, intuitive approach to combat. That doesn't mean his axe won't be called an axe.