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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Neonchameleon" data-source="post: 5518211" data-attributes="member: 87792">And to continue the analogy, only a few people can use technology.  The rest are restricted not to guns, but to bayonets and sharp steel. (Re: The colour spray example, remember that Colour Spray is an AoE spell).  No downtime in 3e.  Right.  Because that's one place where casters power ahead of everyone else.  Of course.  But this is just Nova-handling.  It doesn't get to the heart of the problem.  And this misses the problem as well.  Novas are a self-correcting issue with any sort of pressure.  It isn't the nova spellcasting that breaks the game - it's the Batman Wizards.  It's the ones who cast one or two spells like Glitterdust selected for their target's weaknesses then let the fighters handle the mop-up. It's the 9th level wizard who instead of novaing neutralises the Drow with one well-placed application of Evard's Black Tentacles the casters are very unlikely to escape and the soldiers need to get lucky for.  Followed by Glitterdust on the poor soldiers to keep them blind as well for 9 rounds just in case.  At that point the enemy fighters can't see (and may well be grappled as well) and the casters can't cast because they are grappled.  Two spells, neither of the highest level and what was meant to be a really tough fight has just been made laughably easy (at which point the wizard's buddies start cutting throats).  And why those two spells against drow?  Because they ignore spell resistance so the Drow's special defence against magic isn't going to work. Two spells for a 9th level caster and the fight's become a joke.  Wearing him out of spells is going to take work because he's an actually smart spellcaster (well, his character sheet does have an Int in the 20s). Sufficient to handle a nova-er.  Possibly.  But utterly insufficient to handle a Batman.  The Batman owns the fight with just one or two spells (especially at high levels) meaning he can easily outlast the Barbarian.  Or the fighter unless you're handing out healing like water (or just allowing the cleric to make Wands of Cure Light Wounds).  You list four specific constraints, and your conclusion is that you need to play the game in a very specific way in order for the balance problems to show up.  Based on the constraints you yourself are imposing you have this backwards.  You need to play the game in a very specific way in order for the balance problems not to show up.  Because the 15 minute workday isn't the only problem.</blockquote>

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