Mustrum_Ridcully
Legend
I never did this, because Evocation was teh awesome. Explosions everwhere! What's not to like.
And thus, another inherent problem with lack of balance - sometimes the coolest looking option is the weakest in play. Maybe some think of this as a kind of balance "Hey, you're weak, but at least you luck cool being so". But in this case, I really want more min/maxing in the game design - cool stuff should be effective. With a balanced system, I can get that (and I can still keep "uncool" stuff, and of course, since ultimately, "coolness" is in the eye of the beholder, everyone wins. Just because I find stuff like charm person or dominate monster lame and almost cheating doesn't mean you agree, and if it's balanced, selecting charm person or not selecting charm person are equally viable choices, so we can both play what we find cool without needing to worry whether we're harming our party or not.)
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I think a "reasonably" balanced Next Wizard should probably have a spell progression like this (assuming that the maximum spell level will be level 7, not 9, I keep remembering something said to that effect)
Level 1: 3 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells
Level 2: 4 Cantrips, 3 1st level spells
Level 3: 4 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spell
Level 4: 4 Cantrips, 3 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spell
Level 5: 5 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 2 2nd level spells
Level 6: 5 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spell, 1 3rd level spells
Level 7: 5 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 2 2nd level spells, 1 3rd level spells
Level 8: 6 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spells, 2 3rd level spells
Level 9: 6 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spell, 1 3rd level spell, 1 4th level spell
Level 10: 6 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spell, 2 3rd level spell, 1 4th level spell
Level 11: 7 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spell, 1 3rd level spell, 2 4th level spell
Level 12: 7 Cantrips, 2 1st level spells, 1 2nd level spell, 1 3rd level spell, 1 4th level spell, 1 5th level spell
and so on, basically at no point do you have more than 2 spell slots per spell level.
Level Mod 3 = 0: Gain new spell level
Level Mod 3 = 1: Gain new spell on second highest level
Level Mod 3 = 2: Gain one cantrip, lose one spell of second highest level to gain spell of highest level
Dials:
- Bonus spells by Intelligence Score. For example, one bonus slot for each spell level up to your Intelligence Modifier
- You can prepare spells in already expended slots, requiring 30 minutes per spell level. You can only do this for spell slot not exceeding your Intelligence Modifier.
You may still have Rituals, of course. And a lot of Cantrips you can use at-will, so you neer really run out of magic things to do - it will just not be quite as convenient or versatile as in 3E. But you can still get the ultra-powerful earth-shattering spells that you expect from a Wizard that no "mundane" Fighter can achieve - but they will remain a rare thing to be seen.
The designers indicated that some spells can be prepared at higher levels for higher benefits. That could allow some low level Utility spells to be cast with more effectiveness at high levels. (Maybe Invisibility as 2nd level spell is like normal Invisibility, as 4th level Improved Invisibility, and at 5th Mass Invisibility, and at 7th Mass Improved Invisibility. And of course, at 7th level, it may rival Earth Quake, Disintegrate or Dominate Monster).
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