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Message: <blockquote data-quote="steeldragons" data-source="post: 8470178" data-attributes="member: 92511">I use a combo of what, apparently, are termed "hard" and "soft" magic.The soft part -if I'm getting this- is generally about the in-game descriptions -visuals, sensations, and such. For arcane casters, I generally let the players choose their preferred visuals. Magic Missile creates shards of magic/arcane energy which may be visually very strictly arrows/darts or more vaguely arrow shaped or just plain "bolts" of raw energy. Color is up to player's preference (though is consistent when that caster uses the spell). Does it matter, in game, if when you cast Fireball it is a glowy orange/yellow/red flame? Or can it be green or blue or violet? Sure. Enjoy. For divine casters, I tend to play a more narrative role - the magic/spell being "granted" by the cleric's deity (in my campaign world pantheon). So things like Spiritual Weapon and Hold Person tend to manifest differently for different clerics. The cleric of the god of smiths? Sure, her Spiritual Weapon is the traditional shaped like a hammer of radiant energy. The halfling goddess of the hearth? That spirit weapon is going to be a cudgel-like bough with pinecones (her holy symbol) at the end. The evil clerics of the goddess of disease and undeath?  Entropic "force" shaped like skulls awash in putrid green energies. And so forth. Casting certain higher level spells of the goddess of life & healing, whose symbol is a budding rose, a waft of the scent of roses fills the area. The clerics of the goddess of the sea revel in the sounds (rumbling or thundrous) of crashing waves or a breeze of salty sea air when they invoke their goddess' power. And so forth. My magic system, if I am understanding the "hard" side of things properly, includes not using 7-9th level spells as a typical spell progression. When you get to that level of power, things get difficult. The fueling of the energies and command of magic required for such lasting reality altering (and/or reality making) effects is no small feat. I refer to them as the "transcendent" spell tiers and/or "trans-tier or inter-tier" spells. "TM" me. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" />  That is, when the spell progression table says you get 1 7th level spell. Per usual, that's the number of slots you have for that level of spells for the day. A bit more "hard," that is the number of spells of that level you can cast that day. That's all. It's not really a slot, unto itself, simply a casting limit.In order to cast it, instead of just 'using my 7th level slot to cast my 7th level spell," you have to "add up" your 5th or lower level slots to generate 7 "tiers" of magic. That is, you need to use your lower level slots to fuel the highest levels (7-8-9) of magic. So, you can burn a 3rd + 4th level spell slot and get to use your 7th level spell. That's not generally the way it goes (or necessarily advisable), but in a pinch/emergency situations, certain tough choices need be made. More often, it is burning up your 1st and 2nd level slots to get where you want. So in the above example of a 7th level spell - you'd use three 2nd slots (6) and a 1st (1), or two 2nd slots (4) and three 1st (3), however you get there, you need to add up to 7 to use that 7th level slot. Not only does this keep the mages from becoming tooooo uber-over-all-powerful. But also gives reason for players to pay attention and use their lower level slots which, ime, when you get to higher level adventures tend to be lost/forgotten/unused...because the threats they're facing, by and large, aren't really going to be effected by 1st, 2nd, in some cases 3rd level spells. Blanket magic resistances. Damage-type immunities. Just plain number of HP/HD. There are plenty of reasons for this. It's not a player's fault, certainly. The system just makes those lower level spells less and less useful for their masters. This, I feel, gives them some new "life." And makes those highest levels of magic really feel "big" and mysterious and difficult. There's a "cost" to their use...if you need to dip into your "transcendent" magics then chances are, things are getting dire.</blockquote>

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