Sacred Cow Death Watch: Do you use material components?

[Shade]

It seems like more than every other post in the What Rules Don't You Use? thread has mentioned material components. How do you use (or not use) material components?

 

[2WS-Steve]

Technically, I don't have a "free eschew components" rule -- but since I never bother with them unless they're pricey it amounts to about the same thing.

 

[GVDammerung]

Technically, I don't have a "free eschew components" rule -- but since I never bother with them unless they're pricey it amounts to about the same thing.

Don't use 'em. Ever. It's like keeping track of small change. And the wizard fumbling around in his pockets for some curio strikes me as hugely silly and not the least heroic.

I do use rituals (Spellbound (from Twin Crowns?)) and they do require components. But they are elaborate ceremonies conducted in ceremonial chambers. Not in some dungeon with a owl bear on your butt, while you are searching for a sprig of rosemary or thyme.

YMMV

 

[Ilium]

I use inexpensive material components as special effects. So I don't enforce them on players, but the NPCs always use them because it makes my descriptions of their spellcasting more interesting.

The party's NPC wizard loves to cast Spider Climb on people: "Here, eat this. Don't worry about it, just eat it."

 

[an_idol_mind]

No material components for me. For that matter, no verbal or somatic components, either. I do use verbal and somatic components in flavor text, describing how the PC casts a given spell, but I don't pay much attention to the spell's description. I generally assume that all spells require concentration, speech, and some sort of gesture. Failure to have all three of those usually results in failure of the spell (barring successful Concentration checks when appropriate).

When I got Spells and Magic for 2nd edition, I tried running a game where spell components had to be kept track of. It was too big a headache for me, so now I don't bother using them at all. Spells that require an expensive or rare component are generally not used in my game, anyway, since I've removed stuff like Resurrection from the spell lists.

 

[el-remmen]

Not only do we use Material Components - I have banned the Eschew Components feat.

Chee-Zee!

 

[BiggusGeekus]

Yes, in the sense that they have to have a pouch of all the materials and pay for the ones that cost money.

No, in the sense that I check for it. Player's honor.

 

[ThirdWizard]

If a spell has a non-expensive material component, then the caster has to have a material components pouch. So... as RAW.

 

[Psion]

I abstract away cheap components, which is essentially "as written", thus I fail to see what the hubbub is. Cheap components only come into play if a spellcaster is stripped of their components for some reason, which is occasionally an interesting complication.

 

[Roadkill101]

I not only don't use material components, I've never used them (or made pc spell casters use them, rather) for any edition of the D&D game. The only real exception to this would be for the crafting of magical items, where a a Long Sword +1, +2 vs. Orcs, would require bits of orc flesh and blood during the enchantment process.