Unearthed Arcana Unearthed Arcana: Starter Spells; Plus UA Returning To Monthly & Sage Advice Returning

Chaos Bolt is the first Sorcerer-only spell. Interesting.

What I've read so far looks really good. I like the idea of Ceremony quite a bit, but some of the effects (Investiture!) might be a little overpowered.

 

[Bishop_]

Robert J. Schwalb is credited as a writer in the original 5e Player's Handbook. Maybe they've brought him back to help write "Midway."

I know. This is why I asked about his influence. If we can glimpse something new or this fact is just credits for a previous work. Maybe all those "villainous" material from past UAs are under influence of the Shadow of the Demon Lord & Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of Nine Hells author?

 

[Desh-Rae-Halra]

I know people are digging debating the merits of the spells, but something completely different bothers me.
The head of the figure in the art looks way out of proportion to the rest of the body....it's like she has a big 'ol Water-Head.
It creeps me out.

Oh, and the "Banner" for this article focuses on her ...

 

[pukunui]

[MENTION=81852]Desh-Rae-Halra[/MENTION]: That's the monk from the PHB (see page 76).

 

[Brodie]

Having read everything Shadow of the Demon Lord related, these spells all have a very similar feel to them. It might be the way they're worded, given that Schwalb wrote this particular UA. That's not a bad thing, though. In fact, my group currently has a 5E game (run by someone else) and a Demon Lord game (run by me) and the group likes both games.

 

[machineelf]

Not sure if I like Healing Elixir for wizards. I love adding more new spells, but when you give additional abilities to classes that mimic abilities other classes have, you begin to muddy the distinction between various classes to some degree. And I think those distinctions are important and need to be upheld. They are what makes a wizard feel different than a druid, different than a Bard, and so on.

The material component is alchemist supplies, but can't that be ignored with a casting focus?

Ceremony is a fantastic spell.

Puppet is cool, but might be overpowered for a 1st-level spell. Imagine a 3rd level wizard casting it on CR 15 creature, which rolls a 1 on the save and is forced to run off a 200' cliff.

 

[machineelf]

I like the idea of healing elixer just for the material component of alchemy supplies.

Doesn't a casting focus make them unnecessary, or am I missing something? I would like the spell better if the alchemy supplies were required even with a casting focus.

 

[cbwjm]

Doesn't a casting focus make them unnecessary, or am I missing something? I would like the spell better if the alchemy supplies were required even with a casting focus.

I don't think so. A casting focus only removes the need for material components with no cost. Not sure on how much it is but alchemy supplies do have a gold cost so it would be a required component of the spell.

 

[machineelf]

I don't think so. A casting focus only removes the need for material components with no cost. Not sure on how much it is but alchemy supplies do have a gold cost so it would be a required component of the spell.

Oh? I thought the cost rule only applied if the cost was listed next to the required component in the spell stat.

 

[cbwjm]

Oh? I thought the cost rule only applied if the cost was listed next to the required component in the spell stat.

Generally it is. I wondered when I read this ua if they didn't include it next to it because the cost is listed in the equipment chapter.

 

[machineelf]

To be fair, by the time Wizards can spam this infinitely A) 2d4+2 is very little healing and more importantly B) Most groups could just as easily buy a metric ton of 50 gold potions that have the same effect.

Be prepared for your 2nd- and 3rd-level players to constantly be saying, "Oh, last night before the long rest I used all my spell slots to cast elixirs, and now I hand them out to my party members."

Also, your second point is valid, except in campaigns where healing potions (and/or gold) are hard to come by.

Please, WOTC, ditch healing elixir for wizards. (And I love wizards, I'm trying to protect their distinctive flavor.) Let healing spells be the domain of clerics, paladins, druids, and bards.