Counterspell [Archive] - Wizards Community

Counterspell [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
lamzak
11-11-05, 03:21 AM I was wondering if there were any threads about counterspelling. If nog I was wondering if anyone could tell if it is practical to use. And excectly how to use it. My main question for that is. What happens when you ready to counterspell a spell cast by an enemy wizard and you succesfully identify his spell but you don't have the right spell to use to counterspell? Do you lose your action that round? Or are you still able to cast a different spell as say a standard action?
How good is counterspelling?
Rjo
11-11-05, 05:53 AM If you fail the Spellcraft check you have one or two options, depending on your DM

1) you can, if you have it ready, cast Dispel Magic as a counterspell (see the spell description (http://d20srd.org/srd/spells/dispelMagic.htm))

2) if your DM is more loose with what you have to specify as your readied action (for example, strict would require you to say "I'm readying a counterspell for when an enemy casts a spell" while loose would be "I'm readying a spell for when an enemy casts a spell"), then you can opt to cast another spell, such as a Magic Missile to damage the caster and force a concentration check, or a Silence spell to ruin any spell with a verbal component.

Countering spells isn't very good at low levels, but can be very good at the high levels where the battle can be decided by a well chosen counterspell. It is also made much easier by feats like Improved Counterspell (http://d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#improvedCounterspell) and Reactive Counterspell (Player's Guide To Faerun, pg 42).
runestar
11-11-05, 07:25 AM Use the offensive counterspell instead - fireball..... :)
High Octane
11-11-05, 08:57 AM Use the offensive counterspell instead - fireball..... :)
magic missle works just as well, since its a no miss.
Kyuketsukiouji
11-11-05, 09:05 AM Counterspell can be quite useful in the right circumstances. In particular, it's a very good tactic to use when you outnumber your opponent. A few counterspell can allow you to keep valuable combat spells for later encounters, while also preserving your party's healing abilities. In a protracted adventure, where rest and return to a city isn't an assured thing, it's often better for fights to last a bit longer, with your party taking less damage, then have them end fast, but with you taking hits and wasting valuable resources.

This kind of tactic makes having an item that allows you to cast multiple Dispel Spells very useful. A staff, in particular, is a very good way to use the Dispel spells as a good counterspell battery, especially when coupled with something that raises your caster level (such as an Orange Ioun Stone)

To answer the original post: If you ready an action to counter a spell, and there are no spells cast you can counter, then yes, you have wasted your action, unless you can do more than one thing in a round. You can, for instance, cast a quickened spell, then ready an action to counterspell someone.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
lamzak 11-11-05, 03:21 AM	I was wondering if there were any threads about counterspelling. If nog I was wondering if anyone could tell if it is practical to use. And excectly how to use it. My main question for that is. What happens when you ready to counterspell a spell cast by an enemy wizard and you succesfully identify his spell but you don't have the right spell to use to counterspell? Do you lose your action that round? Or are you still able to cast a different spell as say a standard action? How good is counterspelling?
Rjo 11-11-05, 05:53 AM	If you fail the Spellcraft check you have one or two options, depending on your DM 1) you can, if you have it ready, cast Dispel Magic as a counterspell (see the spell description (http://d20srd.org/srd/spells/dispelMagic.htm)) 2) if your DM is more loose with what you have to specify as your readied action (for example, strict would require you to say "I'm readying a counterspell for when an enemy casts a spell" while loose would be "I'm readying a spell for when an enemy casts a spell"), then you can opt to cast another spell, such as a Magic Missile to damage the caster and force a concentration check, or a Silence spell to ruin any spell with a verbal component. Countering spells isn't very good at low levels, but can be very good at the high levels where the battle can be decided by a well chosen counterspell. It is also made much easier by feats like Improved Counterspell (http://d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#improvedCounterspell) and Reactive Counterspell (Player's Guide To Faerun, pg 42).
runestar 11-11-05, 07:25 AM	Use the offensive counterspell instead - fireball..... :)
High Octane 11-11-05, 08:57 AM	Use the offensive counterspell instead - fireball..... :) magic missle works just as well, since its a no miss.
Kyuketsukiouji 11-11-05, 09:05 AM	Counterspell can be quite useful in the right circumstances. In particular, it's a very good tactic to use when you outnumber your opponent. A few counterspell can allow you to keep valuable combat spells for later encounters, while also preserving your party's healing abilities. In a protracted adventure, where rest and return to a city isn't an assured thing, it's often better for fights to last a bit longer, with your party taking less damage, then have them end fast, but with you taking hits and wasting valuable resources. This kind of tactic makes having an item that allows you to cast multiple Dispel Spells very useful. A staff, in particular, is a very good way to use the Dispel spells as a good counterspell battery, especially when coupled with something that raises your caster level (such as an Orange Ioun Stone) To answer the original post: If you ready an action to counter a spell, and there are no spells cast you can counter, then yes, you have wasted your action, unless you can do more than one thing in a round. You can, for instance, cast a quickened spell, then ready an action to counterspell someone.