Mastery of Elements screwed up in ELH?

[LordAO]

In the stats for the Epic Forgotten Realms characters, it says that Archmage ability, mastery of elements, enables the caster to prepare a spell of one element as a different element. This is far different from how it worked in the Forgotten Realms book: "The Archmage can alter a spell when cast so that it utilizes a different element from the one it normally does."

The ELH version is drastically weaker than the original, so weakened that it makes the ability entirely pointless. Does anyone know what the deal is? Or is this just another fluke in the ELH?

 

[Telor]

That ability was not errated or corrected in the FRCS.

When in doubt always go with the original book it was printed in, unless of course it was officially changed.

You're correct; the ELH lists it as the same benefit as the Substitute Element feat in Tome and Blood. That feat is entirely weaker than the Mastery of Elements ability since you must choose ONE element that can be used to substitute. ie Substitue Element (fire) allows you to prepare a firebolt instead of a lightningbolt. Mastery of Elements allows you to use any element on the fly, so wizards don't have to create new forms of spells in their books and sorcerers can have full range of elements without having to use a full-round action to cast a lightning/cold/acid/sonic ball instead of fireball.

My Archmage sorcerer will be using this ability soon enough

-Telor

 

[Cloudgatherer]

I posted a thread about this same topic last week (dunno where it went though). I'd say go with the FRCS info, consider the ELH to have made a mistake.