First Look at the Complete Divine

[Madriver]

I shudder to ask this but is Miasma back and if so, how has it changed?

It is back and changed to a 6th lvl spell and the duration is 3 rounds/lvl instead of 5...otherwise it is the same and still raises some doubts in my mind. :\

Also, Natures Favor is back in, +1 luck bonus to attack and damage per 2 levels without a cap it seems. It is cast on an animal, so it would work on the druid while shape changed. Duration is 1min/lvl, so it's not too bad... Cast this and natures avatar at 20th lvl and the druid is a force to reckon with, +20 to attack and damage, haste, and 20d8 temporary HP's.

 

[Kyamsil]

Any changes to the Bear's Heart spell?

Back in 3.0 it was too good. Still feels like too good at 1 level less than Mass Bear's Endurance, specially for druids who get this at level 4 and so 2 levels less than Mass Bear's Endurance.

The drawbacks and short duration are rarely an issue for this beefer spell if combats will be around a minute or less in duration (as they usually are imc)

 

[Westwind]

Sorry about the spikes snafu a few pages back, not sure how I missed that. Wishful thinking maybe.

In terms of practical application, I think that Domain Spontaneity (Knowledge) is actually better than some of the Divine Metamagic (Persistant Spell). Sure, you'll get some pretty sweet boosts along the way, but any DM who plays more than 2 or 3 sessions is going to up the number of undead or other applications of positive energy. On the other hand, buring excess turning attempts at the end of the day to cast a bunch of divinations sounds like a really solid tactic to me.

Anyone notice what Tharisdun's favored weapon is?

I hadn't noticed this before, but it says "check toee" so I guess if you're going to use Tharisdun, you need to pick up that adventure. Not crazy about the policy of incomplete material presented in a product, but it's not a major deal to me in this case.

And there's the problem. I can't just say "Core plus splatbooks are legal" any more. I have to vet each and every feat, each and every spell, each and every prestige class etc once again. Because the guy writing the book, who's supposed to have done all that for me, didn't.

Just about every splatbook generates this criticism, and in many ways it's a fair one. However, I imagine it would be almost impossible for writers to create a product whose power-level fits perfectly in any campaign. In the above-mentioned City of the Spider Queen adventure, I played an over-powered Cleric with some insane tricks I would never allow in a campaign I was running, but it worked since the power of our opposition (and really, their numbers and our environment) evened out whatever advantages we had. There are things in CD I won't allow or might have to adjust before I allow them, but it's still a useful resource (imho) since it gives me a lot of stuff I will use and ideas to develop more material on my own.

 

[Nightfall]

CD doesn't worry me since the Scarred Lands already covers a good bit o stuff that I feel does pretty well on its own.

 

[Speaks]

Any changes to the Bear's Heart spell?

Back in 3.0 it was too good. Still feels like too good at 1 level less than Mass Bear's Endurance, specially for druids who get this at level 4 and so 2 levels less than Mass Bear's Endurance.

The drawbacks and short duration are rarely an issue for this beefer spell if combats will be around a minute or less in duration (as they usually are imc)

Bears heart did not make it into the CD. Rats one of our party favorites.

Speaks

 

[Hjorimir]

Also, Natures Favor is back in, +1 luck bonus to attack and damage per 2 levels without a cap it seems. It is cast on an animal, so it would work on the druid while shape changed. Duration is 1min/lvl, so it's not too bad... Cast this and natures avatar at 20th lvl and the druid is a force to reckon with, +20 to attack and damage, haste, and 20d8 temporary HP's.

I will have to look it up but I was under the impression that when a druid wild shapes that his type didn't actually change. So he wouldn't be subject to spells like Nature's Favor.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

Just about every splatbook generates this criticism, and in many ways it's a fair one. However, I imagine it would be almost impossible for writers to create a product whose power-level fits perfectly in any campaign.

No, but they could select a power level that's the same as in the core books.

It's not the combos that annoy me so much as every splatbook seems to contain one or several things that should obviously not have been printed.

Something giving a 1d6 unnamed bonus to save DCs shouldn't have been printed.

Miasma should have been changed.

The frenzied berserker should not have been re-made - they didn't actually fix it.

WotC does playtest, followed by development. They should add a second playtest to their products post development so someone can check on the added work.

I will have to look it up but I was under the impression that when a druid wild shapes that his type didn't actually change. So he wouldn't be subject to spells like Nature's Favor.

No, the new wild shape rules are somewhat broken and include type-changing, with Animal Growth cheese and all that. That's not even including awaken cheese. I don't know why they didn't use something closer to the Masters of the Wild text.

 

[MeepoTheMighty]

CD doesn't worry me since the Scarred Lands already covers a good bit o stuff that I feel does pretty well on its own.

I think you and dialgo should get together and work on an OD&D(1974) conversion of Scarred Lands. Then you could combine your powers and become the best threadspammer ever.

 

[MrFilthyIke]

I think you and dialgo should get together and work on an OD&D(1974) conversion of Scarred Lands. Then you could combine your powers and become the best threadspammer ever.

But...wouldn't that be the last sign of the the apocalypse?

 

[Nightfall]

It would be a sign that's for sure. (Besides no way dialgo and I could ever agree on anything.)