A simple balancing technique for every magic-user. [Archive] - Wizards Community

A simple balancing technique for every magic-user. [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Koga:The ninja trick
08-12-04, 07:33 PM The Koga was doing a little thinking and realised that the majority of core classes rely heavily or atleast partially on magic. (Or "spell-like" abilities..) Is it no wonder spellcasters are "broken"? When in constant competition with eachother they try to out-do one another (Notice the arguments of clerics/wizards.) and this leaves melee classes in the dust.

A simple idea that can help tone down the overpower that is arcane/divine magic without nesscarelly nerfing them to the point of being un-fun to play.

1: The cleric.
After doing some thinking, maybe platemail d8 isn't the problem with the cleric nor it's buffers, but perhaps the cleric has too many options considering it's suppose to work for a strict "clergy".

The answer? Restrict the cleric's spell list to the domains of thier chosen diety, this allows atleast two differant spells at first through ninth level. (I have yet to see a god that had less then one primary domain.) as for orosions/level zero spells they automatically know all of them and they still retain thier spells per day list as the gods bare them the gift of spellcasting in abudance but the divine have roles they fill and should only be able to supply thier worshippers with fitting spells. This may weaken the cleric's versatility, but hardly stops a player from playing a war-preist or a healer or a nature shaman. If anything it emphasizes more on the character instead of the character's potential in battle. (Or outside thereoff.) and because they automatically get all domains of thier chosen diety all those neat special abilities are thier's to keep. :D

2: The druid:
The druid is another class I hear alot of complaints about. This is a relatively simple answer, seeing as the druid gets his fill of special skills, limit the spell knowledge down to all level zero, three first level (Additional level 1 spells equal to your wisdom modifier.) and two additional spells of your choice the druid obtains every level thereafter. Nature inspires, nature enforces, but even our flourishing world has it's limits. The druid's power over the planet should be limited and more emphasized on specific parts sense the druids themselves are limited to a neutral alignment. To best represent the differant aspects of nature they pick spells accordingly. It's worth a try..

3: Ranger.
With the druid now knocked down a peg it would seem unfair to allow the ranger to countinue prospering considering he has no alignment restrictions, good hit die, nice abilities, a well-played skill list, AND spells.

The answer? Limit his spell knowledge down to that of a wilder. Again, nature has it's limits.. And a ranger is a dabbler not a full blown spellcaster so he should act like it should he not?

4: Paladin.
Paladin's divine powers don't nesscarelly come from the gods themselves, but vicarously through those holy energies they obtain such altitudes of skill so the only limit in spell knowledge I'd see needed for them is the number of spells they can learn so as not to put them at odds with other magic-users. A limitation in spell-knowledge like a psychic warrior seems appropiate..

5: Wizard.
Another controversial class. Well truly the wizard is not a broken class, let's face it, wizards are only truly useful when they have two things: spells and magic-items. Thier whole power level depends solely on the level of magic in your campaighn. If you're playing a Conan style rpg the wizard is weak cause not only does he have to prepare his spells but his "vast" knowledge just isn't all that vast. And though it may seem keen to be able to pump out magic-items for a fraction of the price EXP penalties add up and furthermore you have to have pre-knowledge (IE: in one of your spellbooks.) of the spell inorder to construct a suitable magic-tool. That's alot of work and alot of reliance on how the DM runs things. I don't think it's unfair to throw wizards a bone or two, but their heavy matinance and high concern with planning is more work then most players would rather put into character development. They should atleast get the gifts of the wizard for all the effort they're putting in. So the only real answer I see for an overpowerd wizard is lay off adventures where the wizard can find unlimited scrolls to copy down thier spells and cut-back on the magic-item developing. That's about it.

6: The sorcerer.
With every other spellcaster typed limited in spell-knowledge some may feel the sorcerer class is now even more bland, farther from the truth. One of the two spellcasters (Besides bards.) who can cast instanously is a huge promotion, combine that with the most spells per day and perhaps intimidation/diplomacy as class skills and you got yourself a decent character build. There's nothing really more to be said about the sorcerer, his slow progression balances everything out. Sense the others have differant means of obtaining more spells (Wizards have books, clerics have knowledge of the amount equal to thier god, druids rule at starter levels..) sorcerers perhaps need but one thing. A feat, a feat that allows them to learn two spells of one spell level lower then thier maxium on any given list. (Cleric, druid, wizard/sorcerer, etc.) this not only gives sorcerers thier own feel in versatility, but does not allow them to overshadow the other spellcasters, because even with excessive spells he'll still be falling short of other magic-users with lower level spell tones. The sorcerer's power should be fierce, but it should take longer to master. Just as the X-Men seem to have a harder time owning up to thier potential when compared to let's say The Avengers but still absolutely rule.

7: The Bard.
I wouldn't know how to go about changing the bard, why fix something that aint.. broken? (Sorry, couldn't resist. :P ) They're more of a jack of all trades, not quite as well off ability wise as the dabblers, (Though better at casting magic.) but still nowhere as well-off as the TRUE spellcasters. They lie somewhere in the middle, and not-changing them would not overpower them as they still have no means of obtaining extra spells besides a high charisma. Not to meation the bard's spell-list isn't exactly what I would call game-breaking arcana..

And there you have it. My simple annaylisis on how to lower the overhaul of spellriders creating a muck in your D&D universe without lowering thier fun factor. This is assuming your players arn't twinks and just want to enjoy raw power every now and then like your's truly. :D

My rule is simple, it's fun to be strong, but it aint no fun if I could do it alone..
Sae Cael Oanar
08-12-04, 08:06 PM 3.ranger...

i think the ranger does dabble as he gets spells fourth level IF his wis is high enough. he doesnt actually get a first level spell till eighth level and not a second until 10th. that is dabbling in my mind. he gains spells later and levels go up slower.
Koga:The ninja trick
08-14-04, 10:27 AM Originally posted by Sae Cael Oanar
3.ranger...

i think the ranger does dabble as he gets spells fourth level IF his wis is high enough. he doesnt actually get a first level spell till eighth level and not a second until 10th. that is dabbling in my mind. he gains spells later and levels go up slower.
Well yeah, but the ranger gets so much as it is to not change him atleast a little in spell progression like I did the other classes would seem a bit.. unfair..

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Koga:The ninja trick 08-12-04, 07:33 PM	The Koga was doing a little thinking and realised that the majority of core classes rely heavily or atleast partially on magic. (Or "spell-like" abilities..) Is it no wonder spellcasters are "broken"? When in constant competition with eachother they try to out-do one another (Notice the arguments of clerics/wizards.) and this leaves melee classes in the dust. A simple idea that can help tone down the overpower that is arcane/divine magic without nesscarelly nerfing them to the point of being un-fun to play. 1: The cleric. After doing some thinking, maybe platemail d8 isn't the problem with the cleric nor it's buffers, but perhaps the cleric has too many options considering it's suppose to work for a strict "clergy". The answer? Restrict the cleric's spell list to the domains of thier chosen diety, this allows atleast two differant spells at first through ninth level. (I have yet to see a god that had less then one primary domain.) as for orosions/level zero spells they automatically know all of them and they still retain thier spells per day list as the gods bare them the gift of spellcasting in abudance but the divine have roles they fill and should only be able to supply thier worshippers with fitting spells. This may weaken the cleric's versatility, but hardly stops a player from playing a war-preist or a healer or a nature shaman. If anything it emphasizes more on the character instead of the character's potential in battle. (Or outside thereoff.) and because they automatically get all domains of thier chosen diety all those neat special abilities are thier's to keep. :D 2: The druid: The druid is another class I hear alot of complaints about. This is a relatively simple answer, seeing as the druid gets his fill of special skills, limit the spell knowledge down to all level zero, three first level (Additional level 1 spells equal to your wisdom modifier.) and two additional spells of your choice the druid obtains every level thereafter. Nature inspires, nature enforces, but even our flourishing world has it's limits. The druid's power over the planet should be limited and more emphasized on specific parts sense the druids themselves are limited to a neutral alignment. To best represent the differant aspects of nature they pick spells accordingly. It's worth a try.. 3: Ranger. With the druid now knocked down a peg it would seem unfair to allow the ranger to countinue prospering considering he has no alignment restrictions, good hit die, nice abilities, a well-played skill list, AND spells. The answer? Limit his spell knowledge down to that of a wilder. Again, nature has it's limits.. And a ranger is a dabbler not a full blown spellcaster so he should act like it should he not? 4: Paladin. Paladin's divine powers don't nesscarelly come from the gods themselves, but vicarously through those holy energies they obtain such altitudes of skill so the only limit in spell knowledge I'd see needed for them is the number of spells they can learn so as not to put them at odds with other magic-users. A limitation in spell-knowledge like a psychic warrior seems appropiate.. 5: Wizard. Another controversial class. Well truly the wizard is not a broken class, let's face it, wizards are only truly useful when they have two things: spells and magic-items. Thier whole power level depends solely on the level of magic in your campaighn. If you're playing a Conan style rpg the wizard is weak cause not only does he have to prepare his spells but his "vast" knowledge just isn't all that vast. And though it may seem keen to be able to pump out magic-items for a fraction of the price EXP penalties add up and furthermore you have to have pre-knowledge (IE: in one of your spellbooks.) of the spell inorder to construct a suitable magic-tool. That's alot of work and alot of reliance on how the DM runs things. I don't think it's unfair to throw wizards a bone or two, but their heavy matinance and high concern with planning is more work then most players would rather put into character development. They should atleast get the gifts of the wizard for all the effort they're putting in. So the only real answer I see for an overpowerd wizard is lay off adventures where the wizard can find unlimited scrolls to copy down thier spells and cut-back on the magic-item developing. That's about it. 6: The sorcerer. With every other spellcaster typed limited in spell-knowledge some may feel the sorcerer class is now even more bland, farther from the truth. One of the two spellcasters (Besides bards.) who can cast instanously is a huge promotion, combine that with the most spells per day and perhaps intimidation/diplomacy as class skills and you got yourself a decent character build. There's nothing really more to be said about the sorcerer, his slow progression balances everything out. Sense the others have differant means of obtaining more spells (Wizards have books, clerics have knowledge of the amount equal to thier god, druids rule at starter levels..) sorcerers perhaps need but one thing. A feat, a feat that allows them to learn two spells of one spell level lower then thier maxium on any given list. (Cleric, druid, wizard/sorcerer, etc.) this not only gives sorcerers thier own feel in versatility, but does not allow them to overshadow the other spellcasters, because even with excessive spells he'll still be falling short of other magic-users with lower level spell tones. The sorcerer's power should be fierce, but it should take longer to master. Just as the X-Men seem to have a harder time owning up to thier potential when compared to let's say The Avengers but still absolutely rule. 7: The Bard. I wouldn't know how to go about changing the bard, why fix something that aint.. broken? (Sorry, couldn't resist. :P ) They're more of a jack of all trades, not quite as well off ability wise as the dabblers, (Though better at casting magic.) but still nowhere as well-off as the TRUE spellcasters. They lie somewhere in the middle, and not-changing them would not overpower them as they still have no means of obtaining extra spells besides a high charisma. Not to meation the bard's spell-list isn't exactly what I would call game-breaking arcana.. And there you have it. My simple annaylisis on how to lower the overhaul of spellriders creating a muck in your D&D universe without lowering thier fun factor. This is assuming your players arn't twinks and just want to enjoy raw power every now and then like your's truly. :D My rule is simple, it's fun to be strong, but it aint no fun if I could do it alone..
Sae Cael Oanar 08-12-04, 08:06 PM	3.ranger... i think the ranger does dabble as he gets spells fourth level IF his wis is high enough. he doesnt actually get a first level spell till eighth level and not a second until 10th. that is dabbling in my mind. he gains spells later and levels go up slower.
Koga:The ninja trick 08-14-04, 10:27 AM	Originally posted by Sae Cael Oanar 3.ranger... i think the ranger does dabble as he gets spells fourth level IF his wis is high enough. he doesnt actually get a first level spell till eighth level and not a second until 10th. that is dabbling in my mind. he gains spells later and levels go up slower. Well yeah, but the ranger gets so much as it is to not change him atleast a little in spell progression like I did the other classes would seem a bit.. unfair..