Unearthed Arcana Unearthed Arcana: Cleric, Druid, Wizard Options

In another new Unearthed Arcana (these things are coming out fast right now!) the cleric receives a new Divine Domain option: the Twilight Domain; the druid gains a new Druid Circle option: the Circle of Wildfire; and the wizard gains a new Arcane Tradition feature: Onomancy, the magic of true names.

 

[MarkB]

Yeah It should be renamed Circle of the Phoenix.

That certainly works with the capstone ability.

 

[lkj]

Yeah, it seems that way. To me, a Wildfire Spirit should be barely contained and just dangerous to be around. I was fully expecting it to have something like a constant Fire aura that damaged nearby creatures and set objects on fire. Maybe portray the flipside by having its flames instill the soil and ash left behind with a mild Plant Growth effect that would make whatever next grew there stronger and more abundant.

EDIT: Sorry, I feel like I just made @lkj twitch with that description.

Oh, your description there is totally fine. Fires get rid of duff and make bare mineral soil available. And ash does make certain nutrients more available. So your idea is just fine. Now, fires also make openings in the canopy that allow more light to reach the ground, which is a big part of the effect. And some species need the heat to let go of their seeds . . .

But I'm the last person who wants a full ecology text in an ability description.

I actually think your flavor is better than theirs by a fair bit. But if it really is just a placeholder for whatever they are really planning, then the fluff is mostly incidental anyway.

AD

 

[Grantypants]

I might be alone in this, but I'd really like to see the Onomancer's naming powers interact in some way with the verbal components of spells. Maybe Resonants work better when there's a verbal component, or don't work as well when there isn't one? The rules around components mostly don't matter, but I'd like to see a subclass where the components do become relevant to some extent.

 

[cbwjm]

These subclasses aren't bloat, 17 pages of names, now that is bloat.

That's also been the part of Xanathar's that I've used the most. Coming up with names for NPCs is always difficult, I like being able to flick through the list to find something.

 

[Charlaquin]

I never made the claim that players don't have internet connections.

I will make the claim that the vast majority of people new to D&D want and desire a list of names that are appropriate to the setting and are more willing to trust the publisher than random websites.

I think the bolded bit is especially important. Sure, I can find tons of free name lists and name generators on the internet with no difficulty, but most of the names they give me are not going to be good fits for characters in whatever setting I’m playing in. They’re usually randomly generated, and usually kind of suck.

 

[5ekyu]

That's also been the part of Xanathar's that I've used the most. Coming up with names for NPCs is always difficult, I like being able to flick through the list to find something.

I like the name lists. XGTE has been well worth its price IMO.

That said I want them to drop the forest fire thing for the burn druid, just double down on elemental druid. I like when sub-classes zero in on one facet of the main class and expand it. I realize elemental shape is a moon feature but I like the idea of using your wildshape to call on those forces.

In fact, I think it would be interesting to allow wldshape uses to cast those sub-class fire spells instead of the other sngle.

 

[Laurefindel]

honestly, I'm just happy to see druids that don't care about being tree huggers. One that sets them on fire is... refreshing.

 

[Xenonnonex]

That's also been the part of Xanathar's that I've used the most. Coming up with names for NPCs is always difficult, I like being able to flick through the list to find something.

I think the bolded bit is especially important. Sure, I can find tons of free name lists and name generators on the internet with no difficulty, but most of the names they give me are not going to be good fits for characters in whatever setting I’m playing in. They’re usually randomly generated, and usually kind of suck.

I have also the found the context appropriate names helpful in XGtE. Sometimes you get really shite games online.

 

[Laurefindel]

* oups post. To be deleted *

 

[Mistwell]

True Name spell list needs to include a lot more party-friendly spells and less enemy focused one. There is tension in your allies giving you their true names, and tension in using that true name outloud when foes are near, and that needs to be played up more by adding some really beneficial buffs to the list.