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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Amphytrion" data-source="post: 9770213" data-attributes="member: 7046181">I am a constant DM (not a player, so not particularly cheering for the wizard), but I agree with [USER=6716779]@Zardnaar[/USER]'s general point.One problem is that the class doesn't have a flavorful core mechanic (say, the way sorcerers have metamagic). Some players look at it and find it empty when compared to similar spellcasters. If they had allowed a version of the altering of spells (which was in a UA somewhere), that might have attracted those bored by the basic class design.Another problem is the power differential in combat, which is a 5.24 aggravation to the issue. Warlocks, sorcerers and bards all got significant buffs, and the wizard got none. I believe the logic is that the the 5.24 wizard would "make up" for his new comparative combat weakness with utility spells. I think that was a very bad idea, due to a few reasons:(1) Exploration is an important part of the game, but one exploration encounter usually lasts far less than a combat encounter. Even if my table has more exploration encounters than combat encounters, in real world time, the longest encounters are combat encounters. Players like to feel useful for combat, because if they are outclassed by peers, it really drags on.(2) The design of exploration spells doesn't really engage with the pillar as much as it bypasses it entirely. In the fiction, the spell may have been of great help, but to the player, that doesn't register as an experience as rewarding as meaningfully contributing to combat. The player doesn't feel that the exploration spells "compensate" anything.For example, an elaborate trap closes the doors of the room while water pours in! If the wizard didn't prepare water breathing, that is a dramatic exploration encounter we would typically resolve via rounds and checks. If the wizard has water breathing prepared, that spell is certainly very useful, but now the encounter is over, and it barely registered with the players. At the end of the night, no one remembers, no one talks about it, and the player doesn't feel good about the experience.This holds true even in games in which combat is the least important pillar by far and doesn't occur every session, simply because when it does occur, it is really unpleasant for the player to fall behind the group in terms of combat efficiency.</blockquote>

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