D&D (2024) Memorize Spell is one of the most obnoxious abilities I've ever seen, despite being perfectly on-theme (Packet 7)

[Ruin Explorer]

So Wizard got a new ability in the UA and it's an absolute doozy:

Memorize Spell

Studying your spellbook for 1 minute, you can expend mental and magical effort to memorize a spell. Choose one spell of level 1 or higher from your spellbook that you don’t have prepared. You now have that spell prepared until you use this feature to prepare a different spell.

You might be thinking, well what's so bad about that? It just lets me prepare for a combat I know is coming and get the right spell for it. Oh no my friend, that the weakest and least-objectionable use-case for this ability.

The real use-case is to access EVERY SINGLE utility spell in your spellbook, never prepare any of them ever again!

Teleport. That can stay in the book. Rock to Mud. Can stay in the book. Passwall? Stay in the book. Fly? Probably stays in the book. Knock/Arcane Lock? Stay in the book. Pass Without Trace. Stays in the book. Rope Trick, Tiny Hut? Stay in the book.

I could go on and on. This ability is essentially "No longer prepare any spell that you aren't going to need to pull out mid combat".

What's really sad is, it's totally on-brand and thematically appropriate for Wizards, but it's grotesquely overpowered, and pushes the most obnoxious thing about Wizards - their giant array of overpowered no-roll utility spells - to absolutely The Next Level, to just true obnoxiousness, real "Why did anyone else even bother having abilities" stuff. It's not free unlike Rituals, at least, but being able to do this? It really is a distinct escalation of the worst thing about Wizards.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Huh. So makes Wizards actually playable without all of that awful prep casting, but more obnoxiously overpowered.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Huh. So makes Wizards actually playable without all of that awful prep casting, but more obnoxiously overpowered.

Yup exactly. It's some real monkey's paw curls stuff.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Whether this ability exists or not, the bigger issue, IMO, is all the spells that mirror other abilities. All of them need to have Knock-level disadvantages ("Now all of China knows you're here") or be scrapped entirely.

With those spells gone or altered, this ability wouldn't be much of an issue.

That said, I think the odds that WotC is going to do major needed surgery on the spell list is slim to none.

 

[OB1]

I've been using a homebrew version of this rule for years, removing the long rest requirement for changing spells (but keeping the number of minutes per spell level). Think they should add the minutes per level restriction onto this, and I like that you only have 1 spot to switch out.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I've been using a homebrew version of this rule for years, removing the long rest requirement for changing spells (but keeping the number of minutes per spell level). Think they should add the minutes per level restriction onto this, and I like that you only have 1 spot to switch out.

That trivializes utility spells almost as badly as this. There's little difference between 1 minutes at most and 9 minutes at most, and 3-5 minutes in most cases. If you don't have particularly tactically-minded casters, that's fine, but anyone smart will just never, ever, ever, memorize a utility spell again (or any healing or restoration spell that isn't Healing Word or Heal, basically).

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Whether this ability exists or not, the bigger issue, IMO, is all the spells that mirror other abilities. All of them need to have Knock-level disadvantages ("Now all of China knows you're here") or be scrapped entirely.

100% and the game would be vastly better with such a redesign, but WotC's currently lily-livered crew don't have the brass balls you'd need to push that sort of design change through. You could do so many cool things with it too.

 

[aco175]

100% and the game would be vastly better with such a redesign, but WotC's currently lily-livered crew don't have the brass balls you'd need to push that sort of design change through. You could do so many cool things with it too.

Thanks for reminding me to get my truck hitch back on.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Thanks for reminding me to get my truck hitch back on.

Don't tell me you have real brass truck nuts? That'd be a flex.

 

[Emberashh]

It is fascinating that they decided to put a cast time of 1 minute on it. Nobody is going to use this in battle and a minute means nothing outside of one.