Spell Penetration is kinda bla

[Vraister]

I think the feat Spell Penetration is kinda boring and not really powerful.
What do you guys think about changing it to:
+1 Caster Level for all purposes except spells per day.

It wouldn't be as strong against opponents with SR, but it would have a small benefit on almost any spell. Maybe with another prerequisit: Caster Level 9

Vraister

 

[Thanee]

I once had the idea to change Spellcasting Prodigy like that: +1 Caster Level.

Spell Penetration is just meant to penetrate spell resistance, thus it wouldn't make any sense that way.

Besides, Caster Level never grants Spells per Day.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Li Shenron]

Boring? Probably yes.
Powerful? Probably not.

But it is a useful feat in general. If you want to make it more effective, I think you could just change it to +3 or +4 bonus. I don't think this would make it much more popular than what it already is however.

 

[kmdietri]

Personally I think it's worth it's weight in gold...

Never leave the material plane without it....

 

[Henry]

This is an example of a feat you really don't appreciate until 9th level or so. When you start running into things with SR's in the 20's, you need every little 10% increment you can get! A mage who cannot affect his enemies with spells is a useless mage, and the Conjuration school doesn't ALWAYS get the job done. You certainly aren't going to be affecting such an opponent with a measly wand or scroll, and staffs are quite expensive, so for its money, spell penetration is an "unsexy" feat that gets the job done at high levels - especially when paired with GREATER spell penetration.

 

[Vraister]

Something else:
Do you think its a good feat for a 15lvl 3.0 druid who is the main caster of the group. BTW the campaign finish will probably in Acharon and we are fighting demons and devils quit often.

Vraister

 

[Piratecat]

We've found spell penetration to be quite powerful as is. I can't tell you the number of times that this feat has made the difference between success and failure in high-lvl spells getting through. It doesn't really become necessary until the PCs are in 13+ lvl play, but once they are it's invaluable.

Vraister, I think it's a great feat for the character you name in a planar campaign. It won't help animal companions, but it'll make a huge difference on flame strikes and other attack spells. It isn't sexy, but it is effective. Another good feat in that campaign is energy substitution, to make your flame strikes into more effective energy forms against fiends.

 

[Vraister]

Energy Substitution Cold or Acid would be another good feat choice for me but first I need another metamagic feat. I like Knockback from CA or the obvious Empower.

I think I have to decide which way to go: SP and GSP or Energy Substitution.

Tough call.

Vraister

 

[Nail]

Actually, what you really need is Complete Arcane.

Check out the Assay Resistance (p.98) spell. And check out the casting time: "swift action".

Demons beware!

 

[Ogrork the Mighty]

When the wizard in our group selected both Spell Penetration feats I advised him it probably wasn't worth it. Boy was I wrong!

SP and ISP have proven to be extremely useful in penetrating SR, especially now at higher levels when SR is more commonplace.

It seems like you're giving up a lot, but it can save your character's life. IMO, it's worth it.