Subvocalizing spells

[Eltern]

I'm trying to insert a bit of flavor into a spell-caster, and the idea of a wizard who says magic words, throws around material components, and waves his hands in funny ways. In the Planar Handbook there is a feat that allows a spell-caster to use nonmagical sounding words to cast spells, like everyday speech. It specifically states that spells cast in this way still don't work in a zone of silence, and that the feat is most effective for beings that cannot speak with "normal" mouths, like aboleths or whatnot.

Could I use this feat to justify the wizard not saying any words at all? I would like the caster to just point his finger at a PC and bad stuff happen. I'm rationalizing that the caster is "subvocalizing" the necessary words, pronouncing them in his throat, which is why silence is still a bad thing for him.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Lord Pendragon]

Could I use this feat to justify the wizard not saying any words at all? I would like the caster to just point his finger at a PC and bad stuff happen. I'm rationalizing that the caster is "subvocalizing" the necessary words, pronouncing them in his throat, which is why silence is still a bad thing for him.

RAW, I don't believe so. You still need to make sounds.

Personally, I wouldn't allow it. There's already a feat for casting without verbal components: Silent Spell.

 

[Eltern]

Personally, I wouldn't allow it. There's already a feat for casting without verbal components: Silent Spell.

I thought this, too, but there are game-mechanics effects from silent spell, which is why it has a cost to use. This, however, is purely flavorful, and so has no cost other than a feat.

That's my logic, anyway.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

I thought this, too, but there are game-mechanics effects from silent spell, which is why it has a cost to use. This, however, is purely flavorful, and so has no cost other than a feat.

That's my logic, anyway.

But it isn't purely flavorful. It allows your spellcaster to cast spells with a greatly increased stealth factor. If the spell has no somatic or material components, nobody will even know you're casting a spell. That, in fact, is why one of my players chose Silent Spell in my current campaign. Not to cast in an area of Silence, but to cast Verbal spells undetected.

You're getting that same advantage, and you should be required to pay the +1 spell level price.