<snip>That equates to in SPR <snip>
You're comparing Apples and Porcupines.
I was unwilling to apply SPR to divine spells because there is no analogous feat that converts divine slots into damage-dealing attacks. I'm even less willing to use SPR to psionics. Psionics has different mechanics and math behind it than Vancian spells of any kind.
Yet you say that the 15 1st level spells (SPR=30d6) that a UM has, are equivalent to 1 9th level spell
You're still not quite getting it. I didn't design this at all-
WotC did.
SPR is just a designation for taking the Feat Draconic Breath (or Infernal Howl) to its logical extreme- converting all of a PC's spell slots into direct damage via one of these feats.
There is
no doubt in my mind that 9 1st level spells are
not equal to a 9th level spell. Spells vary greatly in quality
within a level, and over the span of 9 levels, there is great variation in spell quality.
But you can't compare
spells in a quantitative fashion because they have too many variables and too few commonalities that can be statistically compared.
For instance, its easy to calculate the utility of a damage spell- finding its average and max damages are simply a matter of math.
But then there is that pesky SR...which some spells completely ignore. How do you factor that into a mathematical equation? What is the value we assign to that?
What about a Buff spell? How do you mathematically compare one buff to another- amount of bonus? Duration? ? Ditto Illusion spells? How do you mathematically compare them to each other? Or the effectiveness of either/both to the aforementioned damage spells?
SPR, OTOH, simply looks at slots.
Another error is in the fact that the SPR considers the damage increase per level is linear, whereas the increase in actual spell power, is not.
1) Its not an error, its a description of the output of a specific game mechanic.
2) Increase of spell power isn't just non-linear, its also
not consistent. Ask any power gamer, there are 1st level spells that ought to be 2nd level, and 5th level spells that should be 4th level (or lower)...and this can be said of any level of spells in the game.
SPR at least has the benefit of consistency.
Furthermore, stating that certain spells are rather weak (or strong) for their level, says absolutely nothing about the ability of the characters: they are the ones selecting which spells to cast. The wise character will surely choose the strongest spells available for any given situation? Thus the whole question of owerpowered/undewrpowered spells is rendered mute: You need access to a spell level to cast the "overpowered" spells of that level.
The wise character may not have the best- indeed
any- spell for a given situation. Even though Specialization is a (statistically proven) good deal for a Wizard, it also means that such a PC will have gaps. A Necromancer might not have Sleep- almost universally recognized as a top-tier 1st level spell- despite its quality. Ditto an Abjurer who might lack Magic Missile. In certain situations, their "strongest spell" might be the thrown dagger or a pair of hastily moving feet.
In addition, each spellcasting class presents its own spell-management issues.
The Wizard preps his spells- if he guesses wrong at the beginning of the day, he may find himself contributing very little. When we went through RttToEE, the guy playing the Wizard- and he
is a Wizard power gamer (80% Wizards for the 20 years I've gamed with him)- guessed wrong a few times and had some days when his offensive spell selection had huge chunks of useless in them due to foes immunities.
On the flipside, spontaneous casters generally have a few spells from which to choose, but they cast them as many times as they care to. This means that if they choose wrong when they
level, they may be surprisingly ineffective for several thousand XP worth of gaming. This can be exacerbated by the campaign itself. A Sorcerer loading up on Necro spells might be dead weight if a campaign shifts to an Undead-heavy foe demographic, which is why such classes usually have some kind of retraining mechanic to alleviate this possibility. It doesn't remove it completely, however- typically, it takes 2+ levels to change a single such "mistake."
And that doesn't even take into account things like PCs that are optimized to fit a certain character conception rather than statistical, mechanical perfection, player experience and human fallibility or simple changes in the availability of spells within a campaign.
Player preferences & perversity also factor in- in 30 years in D&D, I've never played a spellcaster with Magic Missile or Sleep- I think they're overpowered for their level, a bit munchkinny. However, a couple of levels from now, my current PC will be taking Magic Missile. Why the change? The PC in question is a Sorc/Ftr in a
very limited ruleset (Core + the first 4 Completes only, PHB base classes only except Favored Soul, no PrCls), and is running around in Scale Mail & Shield and toting a Maul. Except for his spells without somatic components, he's risking ASF 40% of the time until he banks enough $$$ to get some mithril armor (assuming its even available). That ASF (and the PC concept) greatly diminishes my disdain for the spell in the context of this particular PC.
His supernatural 2d6/Spell Level 60' line electrical Dragon breath weapon, however, will probably see
much more use.
