D&D 5E (2024) D&D Background and Origin Feat Article

[Nijay]

Something that feels off to me is a human taking Magic Initiate x2, and starting with as much or more magic than a spellcasting class.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I don't know, this is something that I see all the time in homebrew materials I use. It just doesn't register to me as a problem, because a three line discussion with my player will likely have them eagerly RPing this and giving me the in-world justification on how they were able to pull it off.

I get it bothers you, I just can't think of any other way or direction to try and help you with this.

Use a mechanic that doesn't require twisting NPC behavior to suit the player's needs?

 

[Azzy]

Something that feels off to me is a human taking Magic Initiate x2, and starting with as much or more magic than a spellcasting class.

I mean, if you want to use your resources to do that, my opinion is knock yourself out. And since spellcasters can benefit from it, too, I don't really see the issue with it.

 

[Parmandur]

Something that feels off to me is a human taking Magic Initiate x2, and starting with as much or more magic than a spellcasting class.

Right, but a Human Fighter might prefer having Tough and Savage Attacker.

 

[Nijay]

To me, the characters' whole life led up to the moment they become an adventurer. It is a bit weird that a wizard/cleric/sorcerer turns out with little more than someone who was just born with it, or that what is functionally the bulk of lvl 1 spellcasting features is a footnote of stuff a character learned along the way. Instead of a whole lifetime of study to be a wizard, or being born a rare sorcerer, magic is just laying around like a pint in a tavern waiting to be quaffed.

I don't think casters get an equal benefit from taking Magic Initiate as martials because they already had access to non-physical ranged damage and utility options via spells.

We know some spells were changed to improve their action economy - I think some spells (or portions of spells) are bonus actions instead of actions, and concentration was dropped for some - in general, spells were buffed, and buffed in a way that works well with martials.

There's also nothing going the other way. No fighter initiate feat that gives a choice of weapon mastery and/or fighting style. So a martial can add magic but a caster can't add fighting? And forget about wearing armor - that's not possible to learn, unlike multiple paths of magic.

 

[Remathilis]

Something that feels off to me is a human taking Magic Initiate x2, and starting with as much or more magic than a spellcasting class.

Four cantrips and two first level spells? You spent two feats to cast like a level 1 sorcerer.

 

[Vaalingrade]

It is a bit weird that a wizard/cleric/sorcerer turns out with little more than someone who was just born with it

That's like... exactly what a sorcerer is. Or was until this most recent reimagining is the magical equivalent of the kid who grew up next to the toxic waste dump.

 

[Chaosmancer]

Use a mechanic that doesn't require twisting NPC behavior to suit the player's needs?

You are completely free to not take the feat or ban it at your table

 

[Kobold Stew]

Something that feels off to me is a human taking Magic Initiate x2, and starting with as much or more magic than a spellcasting class.

a Human Rogue that can cast Find Familiar, Bless, Light, Guidance, Mending and True Strike* would be a blast to play.

*I'm thinking of the playtest version, so he can strike with a casting stat and not need a high-DEX.

 

[Chaosmancer]

To me, the characters' whole life led up to the moment they become an adventurer. It is a bit weird that a wizard/cleric/sorcerer turns out with little more than someone who was just born with it, or that what is functionally the bulk of lvl 1 spellcasting features is a footnote of stuff a character learned along the way. Instead of a whole lifetime of study to be a wizard, or being born a rare sorcerer, magic is just laying around like a pint in a tavern waiting to be quaffed.

I think this comes from misunderstanding the human features. Skilled allows you to take tools, crafter gives you tools. The rules of the PHB in 2014 make it fairly clear that proficiency in tools makes you a trained professional. IE a Blacksmith only requires proficiency in Blacksmith's tools to be considered a professional blacksmith.

A human can start with SEVEN tools. That means that they are a professional Alchemist, Cartographer, Glassblower, Blacksmith, Stone Mason, Woodworker and Weaver.

Yes, this gets weird when you consider things like Lucky or Tough that don't necessarily take a lot of effort to "learn", but if you are comparing effort, learning as much magic as a 1st level caster is the equivalent to learning Six other professions. That's not quite "just laying around like a pint in a tavern waiting to be quaffed."

I don't think casters get an equal benefit from taking Magic Initiate as martials because they already had access to non-physical ranged damage and utility options via spells.

Depends on the spells. Getting int based Shillelagh, Cure Wounds and Thorn Whip might be REALLY good for a wizard, while getting Wis based Shield, Fire Bolt and Blade Ward on a Cleric might be incredibly good too. It depends on the specific goals of the character.

We know some spells were changed to improve their action economy - I think some spells (or portions of spells) are bonus actions instead of actions, and concentration was dropped for some - in general, spells were buffed, and buffed in a way that works well with martials.

There's also nothing going the other way. No fighter initiate feat that gives a choice of weapon mastery and/or fighting style. So a martial can add magic but a caster can't add fighting? And forget about wearing armor - that's not possible to learn, unlike multiple paths of magic.

I'm pretty much okay with Wizards and Sorcerers struggling to get armor or martial weapons. It isn't hard to multi-class to get them, and Druid, Cleric, Bard and Warlock all have paths to improve their martial capabilities within the class itself.