Readying and preparing spells

[Heretic Apostate]

I was browsing through my copy today, and I noticed that the spellcasters of the A.U. seem to be a mix of sorceror and wizard.

They have the spell lists (versatility) of the wizard, but can only "ready" a set number to spontaneously cast, similar to the sorceror.

Am I reading that right?

If so, how do the spellcasters compare with the different base classes from the PHB?

(This could go a long way to my attempt at low-power/low-magic, semi-realistic gaming...)

 

[Varianor Abroad]

They have the spell lists (versatility) of the wizard, but can only "ready" a set number to spontaneously cast, similar to the sorceror.

Am I reading that right?

If so, how do the spellcasters compare with the different base classes from the PHB?

(This could go a long way to my attempt at low-power/low-magic, semi-realistic gaming...)

Yes, you're reading that right. (They can change their readied spells in the course of an adventure, but it takes some time.) It's a cross between both in some respects. In others, it's a whole new breed of caster.

I just started playing a magister. You get some old D&D spells, some new AU spells and very nice versatility. No spellbook! Hooray! Though I do have that staff to watch out for. As you advance in power, there's less of the really powerful D&D spells (Wish, Haste, Harm, etc) available on the lists, but a good selection of some new, flavorful spells.

So at low levels, especially with a spell template, AU spellcasters are slightly more potent. But, since all spellcasters can heal, you run out of slots a bit quicker. At high levels, I think that they will be less powerful than a wiz or sorc but I have no first-hand experience yet. The other spellcasting classes are weaker in terms of raw spellcasting, but get their own special abilities, or fulfill fantasy archetypes (like the mageblade.) It's really nice not to be limited to a set of known spells. I've played D&D bards. I'd rather play an AU wind witch if I had a choice.)

Having played low-magic games for 20 years, I can say that AU is less rampant on the power scale than D&D, but it still keeps the clean, simple d20 mechanics that I really like.