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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Felix" data-source="post: 3237306" data-attributes="member: 3929">Quite right. I should have specified that when two combatants are fighting and one of them dies, if that one had Ray of Enfeeblement cast upon him, the spell is over. If the survivor has Bull's Strength cast upon him, the spell continues to be effective.This is only an advantage in Bull's Strength's favor when you consider that generally speaking PCs survive fights and NPC opponents don't.If it were applied to an equal match and either combatant surviving would continue to attack, then this advantage would disappear. As it is, I think it is worthy to mention the distinction between PCs and NPCs.Ironically, this point reverses itself considering whose point of view you're taking. For PCs, who generally survive, Bull's Strength is the better spell. For NPCs, who have to deal with the PCs cutting down multiple opponents, Ray of Enfeeblement is better.When "Overpowered" is mentioned regarding a game mechanic, it is usually so because it is too powerful for the PCs; the only argument for this spell being "Overpowered" at low levels is that it gives the NPCs a slight advantage relative to Bull's Strength. Again, at 3rd level, Bull's Strength is the superior spell for PCs.To what purpose? If the spell is powerful as levels increase, but not at low levels, then you hardly change a thing by shifting it from 1st to 2nd level; all you do is remove the spell from the two levels where the spell is the least effective.Rather, I should say that almost all you do is get rid of the levels at which the spell is not overpowered, but you also increase the spell level for metamagiced castings. So an [Empowered] Ray of Enfeeblement would be 4th level instead of 3rd. That still won't make much of a difference in how powerful the spell is at higher levels, and 4th level spells are generally as abundant as 3rd at the high levels you don't want this spell to be useful at.If you want to power-down the spell, then change the effect. 1d4+1/2 levels instead of 1d6. 1d6+1/3 levels. Something like that. I don't think it's necessary, but that will be much more effective at reigning in the "overpoweredness" of the spell than making it a 2nd level spell.</blockquote>

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