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What is REALLY wrong with the Wizard? (+)
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<blockquote data-quote="James Gasik" data-source="post: 8869218" data-attributes="member: 6877472"><p>The problem with scaling the challenges up is that you then have to make sure all classes have the ability to deal with these upscaled challenges. Because the game doesn't assume you have a member of any particular class, you have to ask yourself how a Barbarian navigates a time chasm. A Rogue? A Warlock?</p><p></p><p>Because each class has different tools to work with. For a very very long time now, D&D has been built to lean on the spellcasting classes. "If challenge X, then spell Y".</p><p></p><p>But if you read the player's handbook, nowhere are the players told "uh, hey bud, you better have a Cleric or a Wizard", nor "at level C, you better have spell D". And of all the magic classes only a few have the ability to change out their spell roster from day to day to deal with ever changing challenges- and a lot of people resent the Wizard for having this ability (just in this thread, there are many posts about cracking down on the Wizard's ability to acquire more spells).</p><p></p><p>Because this is the flipside of the issue, the reason the Wizard is problematic is because the game has been designed with challenges that, by default, require magic to solve. I've encountered many DM's who say that spellcasters are rare in their setting, and that finding an NPC spellcaster would be difficult (though amusingly, all intelligent monsters know what a spell is). But when a character gets cursed or turned to stone, they either have to go out of their way to create workarounds, or provide a spellcasting NPC, or hand the player a new character sheet.</p><p></p><p>When I play a Wizard, I spend a lot of my time and effort acquiring spells to handle different situations, not because I'm trying to become overpowered, but because I know, when a situation comes up that the rest of the party can't handle, they're going to look to me for answers. And way more often than not, those answers exist, and they are on my spell list.</p><p></p><p>Rather than build the game around everyone having equal access to these answers, it's designers have continued to lean on spells. Now granted, in 3e and 4e, acquiring scrolls, consumables, and other magic items to supply these spells was a thing.</p><p></p><p>But not in 5e. With magic items becoming "optional", and even (Keoghtom's) Restorative Ointment being Uncommon, players have to rely on spells (or DM fiat) more than ever before.</p><p></p><p>So unless you run very different games for an all-mundane party than a fully-magic party, and tailor the challenges based on their composition, you will inevitably find one group running into a problem the other wouldn't have.</p><p></p><p>So the problem with Wizards (and by extension, any class that can learn spells of all levels and change them around from day to day), is that the game is built to eventually require them by default, but it never says that is the case.</p><p></p><p>The DM is never instructed "oh by the way, when you have casters of level T, they can now solve type U challenges". You have to learn that the hard way, by either studying the spell lists in detail, or being very surprised at the table.</p><p></p><p>And sometimes other players are ok with the Cleric or the Wizard being the "answer man" to solve all their woes. But at other times, they can feel resentful, and rightfully so.</p><p></p><p>At 11th level, a Fighter gets another attack per round. At 11th level, a Cleric or Druid can give the entire party immunity to poison and the frightened condition, advantage on all Wisdom saves, and increase their maximum hit point total by 2d10, all for 24 hours, on top of curing them of all poisons and diseases. </p><p></p><p>Maybe you feel those benefits are equal to one another, after all, the Fighter can make a lot more attacks over the course of the adventuring day. Myself? I'm not so sure.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="James Gasik, post: 8869218, member: 6877472"] The problem with scaling the challenges up is that you then have to make sure all classes have the ability to deal with these upscaled challenges. Because the game doesn't assume you have a member of any particular class, you have to ask yourself how a Barbarian navigates a time chasm. A Rogue? A Warlock? Because each class has different tools to work with. For a very very long time now, D&D has been built to lean on the spellcasting classes. "If challenge X, then spell Y". But if you read the player's handbook, nowhere are the players told "uh, hey bud, you better have a Cleric or a Wizard", nor "at level C, you better have spell D". And of all the magic classes only a few have the ability to change out their spell roster from day to day to deal with ever changing challenges- and a lot of people resent the Wizard for having this ability (just in this thread, there are many posts about cracking down on the Wizard's ability to acquire more spells). Because this is the flipside of the issue, the reason the Wizard is problematic is because the game has been designed with challenges that, by default, require magic to solve. I've encountered many DM's who say that spellcasters are rare in their setting, and that finding an NPC spellcaster would be difficult (though amusingly, all intelligent monsters know what a spell is). But when a character gets cursed or turned to stone, they either have to go out of their way to create workarounds, or provide a spellcasting NPC, or hand the player a new character sheet. When I play a Wizard, I spend a lot of my time and effort acquiring spells to handle different situations, not because I'm trying to become overpowered, but because I know, when a situation comes up that the rest of the party can't handle, they're going to look to me for answers. And way more often than not, those answers exist, and they are on my spell list. Rather than build the game around everyone having equal access to these answers, it's designers have continued to lean on spells. Now granted, in 3e and 4e, acquiring scrolls, consumables, and other magic items to supply these spells was a thing. But not in 5e. With magic items becoming "optional", and even (Keoghtom's) Restorative Ointment being Uncommon, players have to rely on spells (or DM fiat) more than ever before. So unless you run very different games for an all-mundane party than a fully-magic party, and tailor the challenges based on their composition, you will inevitably find one group running into a problem the other wouldn't have. So the problem with Wizards (and by extension, any class that can learn spells of all levels and change them around from day to day), is that the game is built to eventually require them by default, but it never says that is the case. The DM is never instructed "oh by the way, when you have casters of level T, they can now solve type U challenges". You have to learn that the hard way, by either studying the spell lists in detail, or being very surprised at the table. And sometimes other players are ok with the Cleric or the Wizard being the "answer man" to solve all their woes. But at other times, they can feel resentful, and rightfully so. At 11th level, a Fighter gets another attack per round. At 11th level, a Cleric or Druid can give the entire party immunity to poison and the frightened condition, advantage on all Wisdom saves, and increase their maximum hit point total by 2d10, all for 24 hours, on top of curing them of all poisons and diseases. Maybe you feel those benefits are equal to one another, after all, the Fighter can make a lot more attacks over the course of the adventuring day. Myself? I'm not so sure. [/QUOTE]
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