Shouldn't most Rituals be free?

[IceFractal]

The vast majority of rituals could be free. In fact, in some cases, the fact that they aren't free makes them nigh-useless:

Knock - This does not open the door automatically. It allows you to make an Arcana check at +5 instead of a Thievery check. The problem is that anyone with Thievery could have taken 20 in 1/5 the time. So unless your Arcana skill is more than 5 points higher than anyone else's Thievery skill, the ritual is useless. But more importantly, in 10 minutes, it's possible to smash through even an adamantine vault door - without spending any gold or healing surges.

Create Food and Water - For one thing, this costs a lot more than just buying rations. And more importantly, if you remembered to bring rare herbs for the ritual, why didn't you remember to bring food? This doesn't help you if you lost all your supplies, for instance. Make it cost a healing surge instead, if you feel the need.

 

[toxicspirit]

I don't know. I've only read through the section once, but it seems to me that scrolls are kind of handy. Expensive, but handy none-the-less.

 

[IceFractal]

Scrolls still take half the normal time to cast though, and there's not usually a difference between 5 and 10 minutes - they're both too long in combat or such, and quick enough when unthreatened.

 

[AllisterH]

1. There's no restriction on casting rituals from scrolls. My impression was that a 1st level character can follow a 20th level ritual and get the results he wants.

2. It would help the discussion if we could list the rituals people think should be free.

 

[drachasor]

1. There's no restriction on casting rituals from scrolls. My impression was that a 1st level character can follow a 20th level ritual and get the results he wants.

2. It would help the discussion if we could list the rituals people think should be free.

Here's the partial list I made on the WotC forums:

Animal Messenger
Arcane Lock
Comprehend Language
Cure Disease
Detect Object
Detect Secret Doors
Disenchant Magical Item
Drawmij's Instant Summons
Endure Elements
Eye of Alarm
Ritual Repose
Hallucinatory Item
Knock
Leomund's Secret Chest
Magic Circle
Magic Mouth
Passwall
Phantom Steed
Raise Dead* (Needs some sort of restriction though to explain why it isn't used whenever anyone in the world dies).
Remove Affliction
Secret Page
...well, I guess I could go on (seems like I am listing almost every Ritual in the book).

 

[Stogoe]

The vast majority of rituals could be free. In fact, in some cases, the fact that they aren't free makes them nigh-useless:

Knock - This does not open the door automatically. It allows you to make an Arcana check at +5 instead of a Thievery check.

That's the point. Magic does not trump Skill, because otherwise the game sucks for non-magic-users.

FYI, that's a bad thing.

 

[Nebulous]

I'm considering adding some rituals into a wizard's daily spell slot, or as a bonus slot. He can cast it ahead of time and have it ready as a standard action.

I also might restrict rituals to just magic-using classes or multi-class.

 

[Stalker0]

I don't mind that rituals have costs, though for some their cost is way too high for what they do.

Scrying is an easy example. The scrying ritual lasts for....rounds. What am I going to see in a few rounds that makes it worth paying all that money?

 

[Xris Robin]

That's the point. Magic does not trump Skill, because otherwise the game sucks for non-magic-users.

FYI, that's a bad thing.

The problem is this isn't a case of people wanting Wizards to be able to do everything. This is wanting everything Wizards do to be useful.

Why do I HAVE a Knock ritual, if there is never a reason to use it? If it exists, it should ALWAYS be useful somehow.

 

[LostSoul]

Knock - This does not open the door automatically. It allows you to make an Arcana check at +5 instead of a Thievery check. The problem is that anyone with Thievery could have taken 20 in 1/5 the time.

There's no Take 20 in the game.