So why can ANYONE use rituals?

[Cheesepie]

Technically, you can pick up the Ritual Caster feat at first level and have to already have to have Arcana or Religion trained. So Human Fighter 1:

Feat: Skill Training: Arcana, Ritual Caster

1st level Human Fighter can now learn and use first level Rituals.

What's wrong with this? Not only does this fighter miss out on feats that help him in combat, but I personally think you could make a pretty cool character concept out of a fighter who dabbles in magic.

 

[Mal Malenkirk]

From what I gather, everyone can use rituals. Apart from being very disappointing, why is this?

That's... open minded.

Not everyone can use rituals, only those trained in magic.

People who are trained in the Arcana (or Religion) skill and have the Ritual caster feat are trained in magic.

 

[hong]

Fighter who can cast floating disc --> ftrN/wiz1 in 3E parlance

Noone listens to meeeee

 

[Henry]

As I said in another thread, Angel, Wesley, and Giles from the BtVs television series are examples of people who can cast rituals, but are not spellcasters per se; There are probably other examples of "ritual casters" in novels or movies that I'm blanking on, but there is precedent in other avenues of fantasy.

 

[Lizard]

... or the designer's realized that it's bad design to place the lion's share of effective problem-solving abilities in the hands of only a few classes. Note: the 'if you want to meaningfully participate in the game, play a spellcaster' argument is inherently unhelpful.

Then you need to explain why everyone put up with it from 1974-2008, when there were many competing games that offered more equal representation.

 

[hong]

Then you need to explain why everyone put up with it from 1974-2008, when there were many competing games that offered more equal representation.

They didn't. They went off to play WoW. It's time to reclaim that space.

 

[Rechan]

What's wrong with this? Not only does this fighter miss out on feats that help him in combat, but I personally think you could make a pretty cool character concept out of a fighter who tabbles in magic.

Aye. Back when I played Exalted (yeah, I went there) I played the Fighter equivalent. However, I had taken Occult as trained skill (it was cheaper to advance in it than a non-trained skill). The character concept was a warrior-mystic.

I didn't know any spells (You need a high occult score and dedicate the equivalent of a feat per spell you know). But my high Occult score let me 1) Summon and negotiate with spirits, 2) Knowing and successfully executing mundane methods of dealing with the supernatural (laying down lines of salt to ward from undead), and 3) General arcane knowledge.

 

[Lizard]

I'm glad my 4E hasn't started talking. You know, it's "seid" not "ist".

Not according to my Captain America Junior Patriot Guide To Spies and Saboteurs, (c) 1941, it isn't!

 

[Cheesepie]

Of course, why the hell would you take Skill Training (Arcana) and not the Wizard multiclass feat?!

 

[Henry]

Then you need to explain why everyone put up with it from 1974-2008, when there were many competing games that offered more equal representation.

Network externalities?

I don't mind it myself, because the idea of a Fighter who knows just enough ritual casting to "know a bit of magic" but who doesn't know it well enough to use it in combat is a neat idea to me.