Excerpt - Rituals

[I'm A Banana]

Interesting to see some Bard-only rituals in there. This means two correlated things:

#1: Yay! Yay for increased diversity in character ability for noncombat challenges! Rituals are perhaps one of the best existing places to elaborate on this idea.

#2: Hmm... Hmm, I wonder if this becomes a trend, if eventually we'll see rituals that are class-exclusive that perhaps shouldn't be. The Bard ones seem pretty blatant (Bards are for music magic! If you want to do music magic play a bard! Your rogue can't do music magic!), but animal magic isn't exclusive to druids (who are "animal mages"), so I wonder how that gels....

...mostly because part of me still really wants to play a bard/paladin multiclass with a "music of the heavenly host" angle.

 

[Scribble]

Interesting to see some Bard-only rituals in there. This means two correlated things:

#1: Yay! Yay for increased diversity in character ability for noncombat challenges! Rituals are perhaps one of the best existing places to elaborate on this idea.

#2: Hmm... Hmm, I wonder if this becomes a trend, if eventually we'll see rituals that are class-exclusive that perhaps shouldn't be. The Bard ones seem pretty blatant (Bards are for music magic! If you want to do music magic play a bard! Your rogue can't do music magic!), but animal magic isn't exclusive to druids (who are "animal mages"), so I wonder how that gels....

...mostly because part of me still really wants to play a bard/paladin multiclass with a "music of the heavenly host" angle.

Well... who knows how that will play out?

Maybe bardic Rituals is another feat like ritual magic that bards get free?

 

[Plane Sailing]

It seems strange and wrong to have some rituals called out as "Bards only", after the opening up of rituals that they did in 4e. I like that the 4e wizard can cast "Raise Dead" (or even the 4e Fighter can cast "Raise Dead" if he has the requisite ritual caster feat and trained skill).

Bard-only rituals? Bah! Barred!

 

[Plane Sailing]

Also, pyrotechnics as a ritual? It was the best low level offensive spell my 3e Sorcerer had throughout low levels (the first 2nd level spell taken, and the one most regularly used).

 

[jensun]

Also, pyrotechnics as a ritual? It was the best low level offensive spell my 3e Sorcerer had throughout low levels (the first 2nd level spell taken, and the one most regularly used).

You took pyrotechnics over Glitterdust, Web or even the subpar (but still probably better) Scorching Burst?

Pyrotechnics!

The "make some smoke spell"?

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

~ We don't allow FIFY here. Thanks ~

 

[Plane Sailing]

I'm starting to think it might have been better to have separate ritual feats for the different skills - e.g. Arcane Ritual Caster, Divine Ritual Caster, Nature Ritual Caster - so the Ranger who wants to learn nature magic rituals doesn't find himself able to do any old arcane ritual too.

Cheers

 

[jensun]

I'm starting to think it might have been better to have separate ritual feats for the different skills - e.g. Arcane Ritual Caster, Divine Ritual Caster, Nature Ritual Caster - so the Ranger who wants to learn nature magic rituals doesn't find himself able to do any old arcane ritual too.

Cheers

Rather than requiring different feats I would be inclined to say that you had to be trained in the skill the ritual is based on, whether it requires a roll or not, before you could use it.

It keeps things down to one feat and prevents overspill unless the player decides to go in that direction.

 

[Plane Sailing]

You took pyrotechnics over Glitterdust, Web or even the subpar (but still probably better) Scorching Burst?

Pyrotechnics!

The "make some smoke spell"?

Absolutely!

Otherwise known as the "choose to target Fort with blinding smoke which will obscure vision even if they don't save, OR choose to target Will with a HUGE (120ft!) radius blinding effect spell"

At 4th level used it to bring a mounted charge by 20 nomads into a confused collapsing pile of blind nomads and horses. The rogues loved the way I set things up for them time and time again.

 

[Plane Sailing]

Rather than requiring different feats I would be inclined to say that you had to be trained in the skill the ritual is based on, whether it requires a roll or not, before you could use it.

It keeps things down to one feat and prevents overspill unless the player decides to go in that direction.

Yes, I guess that is OK - it would be a shame to reduce the flexibility of the rare few who would want to be multi-ritual casters (I'm playing a Wizard(Cleric) multiclass at the moment, and I'm looking forward to casting the various religious rituals along with the arcane ones)