D&D 5E Scrolls in 5e; loving this!

[Snoring Rock]

I suppose this is my on-going saga of discovery in 5^thedition D&D. My group just started acampaign using the system. We are comingover from Castles and Crusades. I haveplayed AD&D, 3.x, Pathfinder and C&C. C&C is a great system that feels old-school but lacks a little love by its creators. The books are chockfull of every typo, spelling error, rules contradictions and/or errata possible.
Anyway, that is not the reason for this post. I am quite pleased with the simplicity built into the rules for 5^th edition. Let’s take the missing ”read magic” spell as an example of down-sizing he rules. I saw that right away butfigured I would understand why later as we played. The party found a scroll in a treasure I had placed in the dungeon. It was wizard spell. There are no wizards in the party, just a cleric and warlock for casters. When it came time to use the scroll, all of the heads at the table popped down to read the PHB to see if a warlock could cast a spell off of a scroll writtenby a wizard.
It actually took us a while to figure it out. We had such a strong assumption engrained in us from past systems that we were sure there had to be a check or feat or some other mojo. It is too simple. Anyone who can read can attempt to read and cast the spell. It requires an intelligence check with a base 10 DC. Since only casers are more proficient with those checks, it appears thatit is a bit of a risk for non-casters to try. At low level, even casters can goof it up.
So each caster class has its own way of obtaining andcasting, but anyone can use a scroll. Gone are the days of keeping track of who wrote the scroll and if you havea treasure with specific type of spell, and it becoming useless to the party if they do not have the specific type of caster.
I like this system so far, of course the party just made I tto 2^nd level. More to come…

 

[Baumi]

That's what I thought too, but thats sadly wrong.

Everone can use Scolls ... except Spell-Scrolls, which have to be on your class-spell list (Page 200).

So everyone could use a "Scroll of Protection", but Scroll with the Spell Cure Wounds could only be cast by Characters with Cure Wounds on their Spell list (Cleric, Bard, .. but not Wizards).

One advantage with Spell Scroll is that the spell can be higher than what you usually could cast, but that would need an Spellcast-Ability Check.

I personaly like the rule that everyone can use any Scoll, which makes Scrolls as Treasure or Plot-Device much more appealing, but that wouldn't be RAW.

 

[MarkB]

We had a similar experience to the OP, but with a Wand of Magic Missiles. The party's fighter ended up keeping it, but the player got a nervous look on his face whenever he used it, as though someone was going to suddenly turn up and revoke his Fighter licence for unsanctioned spellcasting.

 

[Azurewraith]

We had a similar experience to the OP, but with a Wand of Magic Missiles. The party's fighter ended up keeping it, but the player got a nervous look on his face whenever he used it, as though someone was going to suddenly turn up and revoke his Fighter licence for unsanctioned spellcasting.

As a martial purist i would of totally had him branded an outcast lol

 

[ExploderWizard]

We had a similar experience to the OP, but with a Wand of Magic Missiles. The party's fighter ended up keeping it, but the player got a nervous look on his face whenever he used it, as though someone was going to suddenly turn up and revoke his Fighter licence for unsanctioned spellcasting.

In 1E AD&D the fighter still could have used it but would have had to roll to hit with the missiles.

 

[Pickles III]

We had a similar experience to the OP, but with a Wand of Magic Missiles. The party's fighter ended up keeping it, but the player got a nervous look on his face whenever he used it, as though someone was going to suddenly turn up and revoke his Fighter licence for unsanctioned spellcasting.

Wand of Magic missles was any class in 2e. That's a nod to history not a revolutionary new feature.

 

[Snoring Rock]

That's what I thought too, but thats sadly wrong.

Everone can use Scolls ... except Spell-Scrolls, which have to be on your class-spell list (Page 200).

So everyone could use a "Scroll of Protection", but Scroll with the Spell Cure Wounds could only be cast by Characters with Cure Wounds on their Spell list (Cleric, Bard, .. but not Wizards).

One advantage with Spell Scroll is that the spell can be higher than what you usually could cast, but that would need an Spellcast-Ability Check.

I personaly like the rule that everyone can use any Scoll, which makes Scrolls as Treasure or Plot-Device much more appealing, but that wouldn't be RAW.

Ok I am officially confused. What is a spell-scroll? I missed that completely. Scrolls are scrolls and spell scrolls are different? Help me out here?

 

[Wolf118]

A spell scroll contains a cantrip or 1st through 9th level spell inscribed upon it. "A spell scroll bears the words of a single spell, written in a mystical cipher." (p 200, DMG).

Further:

"If the spell is on your class's spell list you can use an action to read the scroll and cast its spell without having to provide any of the spell's components. Otherwise, the scroll is unintelligible. If the spell is on your class's spell list but of a higher level than you can normally cast, you must make an ability check using your spellcasting ability to determine whether you cast it successfully. The DC equals 10 + spell's level. On a failed check, the spell disappears from the scroll with no other effect.

Once the spell is cast, the words on the scroll fade, and the scroll itself crumbles to dust."

 

[Snoring Rock]

A spell scroll contains a cantrip or 1st through 9th level spell inscribed upon it. "A spell scroll bears the words of a single spell, written in a mystical cipher." (p 200, DMG).

Further:

"If the spell is on your class's spell list you can use an action to read the scroll and cast its spell without having to provide any of the spell's components. Otherwise, the scroll is unintelligible. If the spell is on your class's spell list but of a higher level than you can normally cast, you must make an ability check using your spellcasting ability to determine whether you cast it successfully. The DC equals 10 + spell's level. On a failed check, the spell disappears from the scroll with no other effect.

Once the spell is cast, the words on the scroll fade, and the scroll itself crumbles to dust."

Forgive me, I do not have the books in front of me. I read somewhere about anyone being able to read a scroll and there was nothing about the spell needed to be in your spell list. This is becoming confusing to me. In one place I read that anyone who can read can do it, but this on page 200 states something different.

 

[Snoring Rock]

Help me out.

How does scrolls work in 5e? It is clear that I go it wrong.