Should I allow the Spell Compendium in my campaign?

[Lonely Tylenol]

I am going to swim against the thread stream here, and say let SC in, and do not worry about the power level. If you were playing true Core only, that might be a problem, but given the power level already found in Forgotten Realms material, it will just not matter.

That said, I agree with Steel Wind that you should consider using some SC spells for your NPCs as well. That way, if a particular spell is more powerful than the norm, it will be self-balancing as the players have to deal with it just as the GM does. (Sound Lance, I am looking at you, you lovely overpowered thing.)

Another thing to keep in mind is that many of the spells in the SC are FR spells. Some of these have been updated with modifications, and those that have errata have been corrected. It might be worth using the SC just to have the latest versions of these spells, all in one place, so you don't have to go looking through the various FR books to prepare your spellcasting.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I'd say "spells are allowed on a case-by-case basis, so run them by me, first."

I tend to run wide open campaigns, including 3rd party stuff, like FFW's Book of All Spells.

I apply that type of rule to everything that isn't in the Core 3, IOW, I'd say "Everything is allowed on a case-by-case basis, so run them by me, first."

In the case of spells or feats, I ask the player how they intend to use it, in addition to my own examination.

So far, not too many unpleasant surprises.

 

[frankthedm]

I'm on the very conservative end of the spectrum and have PCs research any spell from the compendium to bring it into the game. I stay mostly core, so my approach might be far too limiting for your players.

Very good idea.

 

[RichGreen]

Hi,

We're using it in the games I'm running and I've had no problems so far. Then again, the players I have aren't really min-maxers and haven't been through the book looking for the most powerful spells. Things like assay resistance, panacea and revivify have had the most use so far.

Cheers


Richard

 

[Onyx]

My solution

While this suggestion may not fit everyone's game like a glove, I've found it working quite well in my home brewed game as well as actually adding to the flavor of the game.

In order to gain access to a non-phb spell, any spell caster (even divine spell-casters, explained later) have to undergo the dmg spell research rules to determine if the spell is even viable. This allows dm's fiat to be enforced with an ingame mechanism for control. However, I go a step further: once they have discovered the spell is viable, they must then construct the spell. I use the Spellcraft skill as a Craft check and arrange the cost for the spell at spell-level squared x 100 (1x1x100 [100] for 1st level, 9x9x100 [8100] for 9th level). Unlike a standard craft check, the final cost is calculated in gold pieces per week rather than silver.

What this does is create an air of mystery where unique spells are concerned. Fighting a BBEG who casts Fireball isn't nearly as cool as fighting one whos signature spell is Orb of Force. All of the sudden the spells each player has crafted become a status symbol, as well as a potentially sought after commodity. It works both ways too. IMC we had a group who had purchased a sailing ship hire a ships wizard because he had developed a spell called 'Locate City' which could help them find ports along the way.

This also applys for divine spell casters who have to consult religious texts, meditate with rare incense, etc in order to assure their spell request isn't outside of acceptable parameters. The downside is that divine casters without the scribe scroll feat really don't have any way of treating their new spell as a trade item, where as a wizard (for example) could do quite well for himself if he had a spell in demand.