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The good, bad, and ugly of the Wish spell
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<blockquote data-quote="MarkB" data-source="post: 6682866" data-attributes="member: 40176"><p>Compared to some previous editions, the 5e version of <em>Wish</em> is a doddle to adjudicate. It has a set of very specific things it can definitely be used to perform, and while it's possible to push beyond those limits, the physical cost of doing so is very high, especially for a spellcaster.</p><p></p><p>Personally, while twisting Wishes can be fun, my own attitude to such things is to remember Wheaton's Law and not set out to screw the party over.</p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If the effect the player asks for is not <em>significantly</em> more powerful than those listed in the spell description, and isn't something that'll snap your carefully-crafted campaign like a dry reed, just let it work pretty much exactly as asked for. If it's less powerful than one of the listed effects, don't even impose the spell-damage and strength penalty.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If the player just uses normal conversational language to describe what he wants, don't try to trip him up on technicalities. Only stoop to that level if they try to get seriously lawyery about it.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If they ask for something they know is well beyond the normal scope of a <em>Wish</em>, have it fail in some spectacularly humorous fashion, as embarrassingly as possible, but not in a way that massively disadvantages the party. Leave them humiliated and battered, but still in a position to pick up where they left off.</li> </ul><p></p><p>Not really what you're asking for, I know, but I've never encountered any really epic examples of <em>Wish</em> misuse - the only ones I remember were from a DM who liked having the party pick up wish-granting items without realising it, in which case whatever desire they next verbalised (i.e. "I'd really like a sandwich about now") would be fulfilled in the most literal fashion and they'd know they'd just lost the most powerful spell in the game. It felt cheap and punitive rather than clever and inventive.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="MarkB, post: 6682866, member: 40176"] Compared to some previous editions, the 5e version of [i]Wish[/i] is a doddle to adjudicate. It has a set of very specific things it can definitely be used to perform, and while it's possible to push beyond those limits, the physical cost of doing so is very high, especially for a spellcaster. Personally, while twisting Wishes can be fun, my own attitude to such things is to remember Wheaton's Law and not set out to screw the party over. [list]If the effect the player asks for is not [i]significantly[/i] more powerful than those listed in the spell description, and isn't something that'll snap your carefully-crafted campaign like a dry reed, just let it work pretty much exactly as asked for. If it's less powerful than one of the listed effects, don't even impose the spell-damage and strength penalty. [*]If the player just uses normal conversational language to describe what he wants, don't try to trip him up on technicalities. Only stoop to that level if they try to get seriously lawyery about it. [*]If they ask for something they know is well beyond the normal scope of a [i]Wish[/i], have it fail in some spectacularly humorous fashion, as embarrassingly as possible, but not in a way that massively disadvantages the party. Leave them humiliated and battered, but still in a position to pick up where they left off.[/list] Not really what you're asking for, I know, but I've never encountered any really epic examples of [i]Wish[/i] misuse - the only ones I remember were from a DM who liked having the party pick up wish-granting items without realising it, in which case whatever desire they next verbalised (i.e. "I'd really like a sandwich about now") would be fulfilled in the most literal fashion and they'd know they'd just lost the most powerful spell in the game. It felt cheap and punitive rather than clever and inventive. [/QUOTE]
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