Would anyone prefer spellcasting to stay as it is?

[glass]

I hate hate hate Vancian spellcasting. If 4E can partially kill it off that's a great step forward IMO.

So because you hate it, it has to go away? You are already served (in 3.5) by the Srocerer, Warmage and lots of others, and sounds like you are going to be even better served in 4e.

Why can't those of us who like it be served too?


glass.

 

[w_earle_wheeler]

While I like the Vancian system, WotC might as well change everything in D&D4e.

It has strayed far from it's roots in Jack Vance, H.P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, Fritz Leiber, and Tolkien.

The current D&D model is based on anime, wuxia and video games -- video games that D&D influenced!

 

[Li Shenron]

I may be in the minority, but I DO hope casting stays the way it is.

If and when Vancian casting eventually disappears from D&D, a little part of what makes D&D special to me will be gone. I still have fond memories of some of my earliest characters agonizing over what to memorize for the coming day.

Well, I'm not necessarily going to dislike the new system, but I think you're speaking the truth...

D&D is D&D because of at least a small bunch of sacred cows. If you remove the sacred cows, why still calling it D&D? Just because it sells better? We got a myriad of other RPG that strode away from the sacred cows of D&D significantly. I don't see why the core D&D should try to move away from itself, when we can then choose 100 other games with mana systems etcetera...

 

[Mallus]

I really like what I've heard so far.

But the big issue for me will be the spells/abilities on the per day spell lists. I sincerely hope they move in the direction of the more focused alternative casters introduced in the later books like the Beguiler and the Warmage. My biggest problem was the sheer breadth of most caster's spell lists. It seemed every campaign eventually reached a point where the spell casters had the answer to every problem, and often the only answer, unless, the DM went the counter-magic escalation route, or simply started brickfacing every important structure w/magic-proof siding.

Always something to do, never everything to do.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

No I would like to see a change. The current model encourages the blast and rest party mode. Currently magic users can decisvely turn a couple of battles and then they are out of useful combat spells. At that point the party becomes reluctant to preoceed further until the magic users rest.

I suspect the likely scenario will be the mage gets a basic attack at will based on reserved feats or similar mechanism and that works as a range touch attack and is as effective as missile weapons (e.g. 1d6 or 1d8 damage) and they have recoverable resources that can enhance this effect (or feats). This effect can be used pretty much at will

In addition they probalbly will get some spells that will work similar to the book of the nine swords manouvers and are recoverable between encounters. Buffs and single target save or die spells would be canditated for this.

Then they may through in a few vancian major spells that alter space time and reality on a per day limited usage. Area clearance spells, teleports, wish and so forth may fall in to that category.

Personally I would like if they made a lot of spells in to rituals, warding spells and scrying, opening planar gates and that kind of stuff should be rituals and not something that can be done in a 6 second incantation.

This is very much what I was thinking.

Remember there are now going to be 30 levels. They are going to probably level to spellcaster power over the entire 30 levels, trying to make the power curve a little more linear. When they say they want to expand the "sweet spot" of levels, that says to me that some of the most potent magic is going be delayed until extreme levels so that by level 15 the game isn't about the wizards and clerics blasting everything in sight and the fighters mopping up. The tradeoff will be the ability to do some of the more "common" magic much more frequently.

Hopefully the change will result in HP becoming the major reason to rest, rather than "we are out of spells!"

 

[Shade]

Nope. Spellcasting has always been the weak link in D&D throughout the various editions, IMHO. I've wanted a spell points/mana system for over a decade now.

 

[RFisher]

This is one area in which I am trying especially hard to keep an open mind until I see the final system.

 

[DragonLancer]

From what I've read thus far I would prefer they kept the Vancian magic system over what they seem to have replaced it with.

SAVE THE SACRED COWS!

 

[EATherrian]

I actually enjoy the Vancian system. Deciding which spell would serve you best for the adventure, and having to deal with your choices made playing a Wizard a much more strategic class. I like having some limitations, especially on the most powerful abilities, of course I'm more of gritty, low-magic kind of guy so these changes are concerning me greatly.

 

[GreatLemur]

I have always hated Vancian spellcasting. It's actually kind of an interesting, weird, flavorful concept that's just fine for specific settings, but it has no place as the default spellcasting mechanic in a generic fantasy system intended to support diverse published settings and innumerable homebrews. Also, it offends my sense of logic, and the fact that the game does nothing at all to explain or justify its idiosyncrasies really bugs me.