D&D General Which school of magic is responsible for things such as Weapon & Armor enhancements and Magic Items?

[James Gasik]

There doesn't really seem to be many spells that were in the universal group back in 3e. Just in the srd there was: arcane mark, prestisigitation, permanency, limited wish, wish.

I think 2e had a few more that dropped off in 3e like detect magic and enchant item, but otherwise, especially with specialists not losing access to spell schools, I'm not sure a universal school is really needed.

It would however work for things like this, is all I'm saying. And yeah, the current age of "non-specialist" Wizards doesn't need it. Though whether we need "non-specialist" Wizards is another debate...

 

[Alzrius]

There doesn't really seem to be many spells that were in the universal group back in 3e. Just in the srd there was: arcane mark, prestisigitation, permanency, limited wish, wish.

I think 2e had a few more that dropped off in 3e like detect magic and enchant item, but otherwise, especially with specialists not losing access to spell schools, I'm not sure a universal school is really needed.

Well, 2E defaulted to having "lesser divination" as the school of magic every arcane spellcaster knew, but retired it in favor of a proper "universal" school of magic in Player's Option: Spells & Magic (affiliate link), with the following spells on the list:

• cantrip (1st)
• comprehend languages (1st)
• detect magic (1st)
• hold portal (1st)
• identify (1st)
• read magic (1st)
• wizard mark (1st)
• knock (2nd)
• protection from cantrips (2nd)
• wizard lock (2nd)
• dispel magic (3rd)
• remove curse (4th)
• teleport (5th)
• enchant an item (6th)
• teleport without error (7th)
• permanency (8th)
• astral spell (9th)

 

[Ondath]

Two systems that already work better for me are Cleric domains, which are all consistently themes, and Psionic disciplines, that are all consistently means. They might some tweaking, but are generally pretty good.

If the spell lists simply added the domains and disciplines as tags, in addition to the school tag, I would just use those instead of schools, including for my Wizard characters.

I think A5E went slightly in this direction, with a lot of spells having extra "schools" that are just tags in disguise, and most of those tags are means-based. On the one hand, I really, really dislike the mess that is D&D's magic school (non)distinction, but at the same time I feel like any attempt at changing it would get people angry because they slayed another sacred cow. Perhaps if there was a way to keep the general idea/most of the school names but make them all consistent...

 

[Yaarel]

Perhaps if there was a way to keep the general idea/most of the school names but make them all consistent...

The most important "sectors" of D&D spells, are Mind, Life, Matter.

Mind can be called "enchantment". Life called "primal", including animals. And Matter − namely the elements − can be called "transmutation". (Think of transmuting lead to gold, but transmuting applies equally to the shaping or transforming of any element: earth, water, air, fire, and also plant as a kind of element.)

Each of these sectors has a spiritual aspect. Mind has prescience and outofbody projection, which I associate also with teleportation, spacetime, and fate, all of which can be called "divination". Life has resurrection and healing, which I feel deserves its own school, but might be called "abjuration". And Matter has ethereal force relating to ether, gravity, telekinesis, flight, force energy and force constructs, which might be called "evocation".



So.
Mind spells subdivide: divination, enchantment, illusion.
Life spells subdivide: abjuration (healing), primal (shapeshifting).
Matter spells subdivide: evocation (ether force), transmutation (earth, water, air, fire, plant).

Note, "necromancy" broadly includes the darkside of each sector. Mind: fear, insanity, amnesia, nightmare scapes with aberrations and fiends. Life: undead. Matter: , shadowstuff.



It seems possible to repurpose the traditional names to create useful categories that are consistently both means and themes.