Mordenkainen's Disjunction: Should it be changed?

[Celtavian]

I had forgotten about Mordenkainen's Disjunction until it was recently brought to my attention that some DM's still use this spell on their players and some players still use it on NPC's. I have always hated this spell as a DM and a player.

Mordenkainen's Disjunction is probably the only spell I actually felt bad using on my players. I still remember the first time I used it. No one really knew what it was, and once it took affect, they were never going to forget it. My players looked at me like I had just kicked a puppy. They were not happy.

I used it a second time on them, and I felt like I was in one of those Pace Picante commercials and I didn't have any Pace Picante on hand. "Get a rope" said my players. They were pissed off.

Let's face it. Once you are hit by a Mordenkainen's Disjunction, you are bound to lose a few magic items as well as be at such a disadvantage that only DM kindness is going to save you. If you use it on NPC's, it pretty much ruins tough encounters by reducing buffed up NPC's into cannon fodder for the party who cast the spell.

I really feel Mordenkainen's Disjunction is a poorly designed spell that should be changed. I am wondering how the players and DM's here feel about this awful spell.

 

[Janos Audron]

I like the auto dispel effects of the spell. At high level it can sometimes be pretty hard to dispel spells at a NPC (feats like Tenacious Magic, or things that raise your caster level).

I think the destroy items part is always bad for the players. Either the DM uses it on you, and you lose some items, or you use it on an NPC and you get less loot.

In that light, I think the destroy items option is there for the players to make a choise. Either make a encounter easier, but get less loot, or go through a tough encounter and get more loot.

 

[Sir Osis of Liver]

I got no problem with the spell, although i have to admit that my DM is prone to handing out lots of items after you reach a cetain level. Probably too many. Then again it is a 9th level spell and should be very powerful. Besides the game is far from dependant on magic items. I think players tend to become spoiled when it comes to that. Whipe out thier stoke pile every now and then and make them work for thier XP.

 

[Valiantheart]

I voted that it should depend on how the spell is targeted like Dispel Magic. I have no problem with the spell disrupting spell effects and buffs, but the ability to wipe out everyones magical items within the radius is way to strong. I would like it to destroying the magical items of a character only if they are specifically targeted.

 

[Adlon]

I like the spell the way it is. It should be rarely used in a game, and a PC aquiring this spell should have a tough time of researching/learning it. IT DOES take an 18th lvl character to cast it.

I truly see this as no different from save or die spells, save or die poisons, and the like.

Energy drain too is a derogatory subject to most players. Especially, when 2 levels are on the table per attack. I guarantee, if you successfully drain 2 levels from a player, his/her facial expression/comments would be no different than if his items were disjoined.

 

[Sir Osis of Liver]

I'd rather be disjunctified then Drained myself. Nothing in the game bugs me more then level drain, nothing!

 

[jonesy]

I like the spell the way it is. It should be rarely used in a game, and a PC aquiring this spell should have a tough time of researching/learning it. IT DOES take an 18th lvl character to cast it.

Ditto. It's perfect the way it is.

 

[Enceladus]

I used it a second time on them, and I felt like I was in one of those Pace Picante commercials and I didn't have any Pace Picante on hand. "Get a rope" said my players. They were pissed off.

Just keep using it. It will get easier.

 

[Celtavian]

re

Energy drain too is a derogatory subject to most players. Especially, when 2 levels are on the table per attack. I guarantee, if you successfully drain 2 levels from a player, his/her facial expression/comments would be no different than if his items were disjoined.

Normally I would agree with you. In the previous editions, energy drain made players very unhappy. There was no save and the immediate effect was a loss of level.

In 3rd edition, energy drain is not as bad. There is plenty of time to obtain a restoration and the save to recover your level is not so bad. Energy Drain and Enervation can be a bitch, but a Restoration spell is easy to acquire and there is still a save to recover before true level loss occurs. Recovering lost magic items is another matter entirely.

If Mord's Disjunction is cast even once per three adventures, it is too often. A 30 foot radius burst usually affects everyone in the party, and given the number of magic items, that is alot of rolling. The loss of a key magic item such as a wizard's Staff of Power or a warrior's armor will really slant the battle right from the outset.

I have had really bad experiences with Mord's Disjunction. Not just the player's anger, but the encounter was entirely downhill from the point of its casting. It is really difficult to make a challenging or survivable encounter once it is cast. At least that is my experience with the spell.

 

[Tom Cashel]

Don't worry...

In 3.5 all PCs will be encased in a transparent rubbery material that repels all hostile spells, spell-like abilities, attacks, supernatural and extraordinary abilities, and environmental hazards. This protection is conferred upon the PC's items as well. Nothing bad will ever happen to your precious PC again.