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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercule" data-source="post: 6969905" data-attributes="member: 5100">I assume you didn't play 1E or earlier. Starting Wizards got one 1st level spell per day and no cantrips (at least not recognizable as such). Slots were prepared individually, so, you had to guess which of your spells to put in that slot before you even knew what sort of adventure you were going on. I hated Wizards, not because of the limited resources, but because of the "guess wrong" factor. When I did play a wizard, the spells were almost secondary, at low level. The wizard player's job/perk was to be able to use almost all his meta-knowledge and to help the less experienced players -- wizards were just "smarter". Wizard players also tended to be the ones who liked to solve the copious riddles and puzzles that were present in early modules. Also, secondary effects -- like haste aging the recipient every time -- tended to minimize the spell spamming for the coolest spells.The game was well equipped (more or less) for a certain play style, where the playing pieces often reflected more of the player. Both gaming and the fantasy genre have evolved to where people want smart fighters and rogues and they have some expectation of wizards throwing magic at everything, rather than being "wise ones". 4E was one attempt at modernizing that part of the game. Unfortunately, the slots are one of the "sacred cows" that make it D&D. There's only so far you can push the mechanic before it doesn't fit. I sometimes wonder if 3E and 5E are both somewhere in the "sour spot" of being just enough resources to imply that they can be used in every combat but not enough that to make it reality. Removing "name level" at 10th-ish only compounds the issue.In other words, the game is mechanically constructed such that there aren't supposed to be enough caster resources to handle a sprawling dungeon. The secret is that you aren't supposed to use a non-cantrip spell every round. Really, even at higher levels, many combats should only see one or two spells thrown. Many others will see only cantrips. Only boss and lieutenant battles should see significant depletion of resources. Otherwise, it's a slow attrition and the Fighter should probably run low on hit points, first.All that said, I'm sure you can find a way to let casters cast all the time, but I think it'd be difficult. At-will cantrips are the middle ground and should not be dismissed.</blockquote>

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