Why did WotC start the Polymorph "Errata Wars"?

[AdmundfortGeographer]

Granted, I'm not proficient in "optimizing until it breaks"...but for actual game play, was that version of the spell that buggy? I can't wrap my head around the need to change and alter it until they arrived at the weird polymorph rulings they did by now.

One abuse, take your higher-level warrior with the Leadership feat, get a wizard cohort with the polymorph spell. Quickened enlarge person (so that the equipment doesn't disappear) then polymorph the warrior into a troll of annis hag.

The new polymorph chain spells all seem to be personal only spells, removing the abuse of making warriors into obscene monsters.

The fix with regards to the druid wildshaping took away certain druid builds where all physical stats were dump stats, allowing the three mental stats to be pumped up in point buy character creation methods (which the RPGA uses in its campaigns). The druid would take the feat that allowed spells to be cast while in wildshaped form, and then stay wildshaped all day long. The old wildshape would give the druid all new physical stats leaving mental stats alone.

 

[Eldragon]

What bothers me about the idea of "ban it, since its broken" mentality is that it totally ignores Rule Zero.

If I want to Polymorph into something crazy. My DM simply says "No".

I think the designers should take a Cue from the D&D video games and make a finite list of possibilities if the scope of available monsters is a problem.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I think the designers should take a Cue from the D&D video games and make a finite list of possibilities if the scope of available monsters is a problem.

That's what the new spells are effectively doing.

 

[Nareau]

This is exactly what I hate about WotC's "rules experts":

bless gives a +1 bonus on attack rolls and on saves against charm and fear effects to all allies within a 50-foot burst

No, it doesn't. Why would you write (and publish?!) an article on the most complicated spell rules in the game when you can't grasp the most basic ones? Grrr...

At any rate, we use Rich Berlew's polymorph rules, with a couple of corrections/updates. They're somewhat more complicated, but do a very nice job of balancing things out.

If I were to run a new campaign, I would have a list of things Polymorph (and related powers) could change you into. I'd basically re-work the whole system to make it about 1% as versatile as it is now, and leave it up to my players to decide if they still wanted to pursue such powers at all.

Nareau

 

[pedr]

That's what the new spells are effectively doing.

Though as spells known (and prepared, for Wizards) are a finite resource, the new system is far far tougher on the Transmuter. Previously he could have learned Alter Self, or Polymorph Any Object or whatever, and chosen the form that suited the occasion - river that needs crossing, tower 60' up, door that needs troll's strength to bash down. Now he can turn into a Warforged Titan if he knows that spell, but if he wants to be able to turn into something that can fly that's not going to do him any good.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Anything that encourages wizards to research new spells is a good thing in my mind.

A smart transmuter will want to cover certain bases for shapechanging -- big brute, quick escape, fly, breathe underwater, resist certain common types of damage, etc. At the moment, most of the polymorph line seems to be about turning into a damaging monster, meaning players will have to forge their own paths, at least for a while.

 

[Chaldfont]

Though as spells known (and prepared, for Wizards) are a finite resource, the new system is far far tougher on the Transmuter. Previously he could have learned Alter Self, or Polymorph Any Object or whatever, and chosen the form that suited the occasion - river that needs crossing, tower 60' up, door that needs troll's strength to bash down. Now he can turn into a Warforged Titan if he knows that spell, but if he wants to be able to turn into something that can fly that's not going to do him any good.

That's what really bugged me when they started changing things. Ok, so some people in their games abused Polymorph to make their PCs combat machines. So what!? One of the coolest thing a player can do is have his PC change into another form. We would mostly use these abilities outside of combat or to make scenes even more exciting. Don't mess up my game because some freaks broke their game.

Same thing with wildshape. I think its cool that a druid spends day-after-day in animal form. Maybe he's spying on the bad guys as a squirrel. Or maybe he's turned into a river dolphin to patrol the river for bandits?

There are better, more imaginative ways to fix a broken game than just changing the rules wholesale.

 

[Eldragon]

That's what the new spells are effectively doing.

Yeah, but they lack the utility of the original Polymorph. E.g. Trollshape.

You can turn into a troll. Its very nice to turn into a troll when you want to bash something. But I found 90% of my uses with Polymorph as just to adapt to a non-combat problem. The New polymorph spells have their uses, but they are completely centered on combat.

Correct me if I am wrong, but The new polymorph spells don't scale with level very well either. Turning into a Troll at level 7 is pretty useful, but by Level 12 That +4 BAB can't hit anything.

 

[HeavenShallBurn]

I do not use and will not use the errata related to the "polymorph wars". I use polymorph, wildshape, and the alter self chain in their pre-errata form. But I've given the alter self chain back their longer 3e durations. They've tried to balance something that should have been left to DMs and it screwed up an important part of magic.

I never had trouble with these things, they were used far more out of combat than inside combat. All it took was a ruling that any form which effected stats had to be pre-statted to be used in game.

 

[Vocenoctum]

Anything that encourages wizards to research new spells is a good thing in my mind.

A smart transmuter will want to cover certain bases for shapechanging -- big brute, quick escape, fly, breathe underwater, resist certain common types of damage, etc. At the moment, most of the polymorph line seems to be about turning into a damaging monster, meaning players will have to forge their own paths, at least for a while.

I'd prefer if they had "Polymorph" like "Summon Monster" and had Polymorph I, II, II, et cetera.
Each level spell would have assorted forms tied to it, and you could use those forms or that of a lower level version.

I've also always kicked around the idea that you can learn Summon Monster 1 and memorize it at any level without learning a new spell. So a sorcerer would only count it as 1 spell known. Same way a divine spont caster could learn CLW and cast it as CMW, CSW or whatnot as the appropriate level spell. Sort of like Psi's scaling.