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Message: <blockquote data-quote="MNblockhead" data-source="post: 7501406" data-attributes="member: 6796661">IRL "magic" rituals are full of stuff like this. I like magic to have these weird associations. Most adventurers can sew. It is assumed they mend and make simple items as they travel.  It would not be difficult to stitch together a small cloak. It needn't be perfect. And, yes, I do love the idea of a wizard trying to trade or steal a pixie's cloak. It is a fun role-playing opportunity. Good creative thinking! Hopefully your mentor is high enough level to provide one to you. But maybe you have to go get a newt for him to petrify for you. See, this is why I LOVE making components matter. My D&D games need more newt hunts!Note - I am not doing away with spell focus. Just that you have to have studied with the component before you can cast the spell with the focus. I assume that the wizards academy or higher-level caster you are learning from will have this available. Or go to jewelers and pay to let them study with a diamond for a nominal fee.  If you want a backup diamond while travelling, in case you loe your focus, well, you need to find a way to get one.  Again, not an issue for me. 1. No oaks in your area? I smell a plot hook. 2. Someone else may have some and sell it to you or your mentor may let you borrow to study with it and then you use your focus to cast thereafter.3. Upthread there was a recommendation to allow players to propose alternative components and make a skill check with an alchemist set to see if they can figure out how to cast the spell with the substitute. I'm all for that!  So then, yes, try with the bark from other trees. 4. My players use DnD Beyond, so no copying from one sheet to another. I trust them to manage their own inventories. If I wanted to, I suppose I could review their DnD Beyond sheets, but if I felt the need to do that, I wouldn't be playing with them. You do research. You make a nature check. You do trial and error. Banishment is an annoying, broken spell without this limitation. Even with a focus, I would say, you need to bring to mind something distasteful to the creature that you have actually physically held in the past. Which is great for role-playing. If give the wizard an incentive to play around with every disgusting thing he comes across so he can properly envision it when casting the spell. Hey, that's their choice. But if you want to have banishment, you better start getting up close and personal with a lot of gross stuff. Sure, most will rely on there focus...until they have it stolen or destroyed. I'm not going to cry from them. They can still cast spells without material components and they could have stocked up on some back up material components. A fighter that gets disarmed doesn't have as many backup options. ABSOLUTELY!  Why is everyone making the enemies so damn polite. Disarm the fighters! Steal/destroy/cast away the wizards pouches and wands.  Make the party think more tactically. Have backups to your backup. Take measures to make it difficult to steal your components and focus. Depends on the players. I don't think it would go over well at AL night at my local FLGS. But for my home game, we find combat far more interesting. You also need to keep an eye out for ambushes and pickpockets. Maybe the "simple" goblin encounter turns out not to be a simple beat down when one of them grabs your staff and runs off with it. Now you have chase him into the goblins' lair, where you are over numbered. You have to find your staff while avoiding getting mobbed in the tunnels. Or, the party determines it isn't worth the risk, the wizard relies on the components she has, until she can get to a place where she can buy or make a new staff. I'm not saying that each and every component has to be a side quest. In fact, obtaining many components will be a downtime activity. But it gives additional tactical considerations that add to more interesting combats. It balances out some spells like banishment. And it does give a wealth of plot hooks and role-playing opportunities.But, if the players don't want to deal with it, then, like encumbrance, it can be handwaved. But many people enjoy the resource management aspect.</blockquote>

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