What level should Magic Missile be?

[pbd]

6 and counting.....

7...

 

[Quidam]

This reassures me a great deal

Thanks to everyone for registering their opinions- especially to those keeping count of the option I should have but didn't include. I'm Mistwell's DM and have long felt MM to be overpowered and felt somewhat frustrated about the lack of novelty it introduced to the game. Seeing that the overwhelming majority of you consider it to be balanced at the level it is, I don't feel quite so tempted to nerf or ban it.

Quite happy to be disabused of my notions. I'd much rather be accurate than right.

 

[Michael Silverbane]

I am of the opinion that MM is one of the more powerful (but not too powerful) first level spells. That said, I don't think that it is necessary for all spells of the same level to be perfectly equal. Some spells are just plain better than others...

Later
silver

 

[Crothian]

Even Wotc says it is not "perfectly reasonable". IIRC the DMG even states that Magic Missile is supposed to be the the best 1st level spell for dealing damage.

Where does it say that?

I also think it's perfectly fine for a first level spell.

 

[Herremann the Wise]

I believe it's at the upper end of 1st level spells. Most high level casters (9th or greater for the purpose of this spell) would take this spell as one of their regular repertoire. In fact, aside from Ray of Enfeeblement, I don't really see too many other 1st level spells in it's league when considered from this perspective.

No Save
Auto Hit (as long as creature can be targetted)
Force damage: cannot be protected against (unlike fire/electrical/cold/acid and sonic effects) and can hit creatures that normally cannot be hit.
Medium range: caster is normally out of standard movement range of the target
__________

Offers spell resistance
Must target creature - not object
Is not overly effective at the lowest levels (1 missile dealing 2-5 damage)
Maximum regular damage: 25hp

I think the spell has earned its place and does not really need to be changed or ammended. Perhaps the only thing I can think of for those that think it too powerful is to change its range from medium to short. However, in doing so, I think you completely nullify its utility in a variety of instances.
I don't think many people would be looking to make it more powerful, thus why I think it is near the top of the 1st level tree and not in the middle.

Best Regards
Herremann the Wise

 

[Ridley's Cohort]

I think we can boil this survey down to a rather simple question: Would you rather have a Magic Missile or a Scorching Ray handy?

For all the theorectical cool advantages of Magic Missile a big pile of damage dice is the way to go if you are going to bother doing direct damage at all.

 

[Christian]

Where does it say that?

I don't think it does ... The 'strongest' first-level sorcerer/wizard spells, according to the spell design guidelines on pp. 35-36, are evidently charm person and sleep. Two spells I rarely see taken, especially by sorcerers, for whom the utility will very rapidly fade. (That may have been written before the 3.5 sleep update was finalized--that full-round casting time nerfs it to hell and back. ) Still, the scaling of magic missile is very strong--a mid- to high-level wizard will generally want to have this in his repertoire, and a sorcerer who doesn't take it at 1st level will want to use one of his later slots for it, or swap it in. But a sorcerer would probably never learn it if it were a second-level spell; it belongs where it is. (I voted the first option, and fully agree with it. It's not a weak or even middle-tier first-level spell, IMO. It may not be the strongest, but it's definitely in the top quartile or so of first-level spells.)

 

[Infiniti2000]

Thanks to everyone for registering their opinions- especially to those keeping count of the option I should have but didn't include.

Not a problem.

I'm Mistwell's DM and have long felt MM to be overpowered and felt somewhat frustrated about the lack of novelty it introduced to the game. Seeing that the overwhelming majority of you consider it to be balanced at the level it is, I don't feel quite so tempted to nerf or ban it.

Mistwell! Why didn't you say so in the first place? I'd put MM at 3rd level in that case, maybe 6th.

Seriously, I'll point out that lack of novelty is something else altogether. I'd probably agree with that, but in general what one person thinks is overused someone else thinks is brand new, never been seen before. So, I don't think you could even possibly get a decent poll from that question. Besides, cure light wounds has the exact same lack of novelty and is probably used even more than magic missile. If your players like it, I see no reason at all to do anything about it.

Quidam, you're probably familiar with my campaign and I have never even remotely noticed a problem with respect to magic missile. I have other spells on my ban list (check my website if interested), but this will never be one.

 

[EyeontheMountain]

I not-voted "a reasonalbe 1st level spell" for a couple of reasons.

First, it is underpowered at 1st to 4th level, when its one or two missles just don't do the damage necessary, unless you are trying to kill the enemy as it is fleeing for its life. then it is quite effective.

From 5th to 11th or so it is in its best stae as its damage is not bad, and touch spells still occasionally miss.

But after 11th or so, when touch spells missing runs about 5% or less, it starts to really fall back in effectiveness, especially when the orb spells start coming into their best power. An orb of force cast by an 11th elvel mage with a decent dex (i.e. missing on a 1) is a far more effective use of a combat round , and face it, most combats take place at close range, which at that level is a respectable 50+ feet. The MM's extra hundreds of feet of range do not really matter much.

So I consider it balanced.