Ah, Find Steed and its big brother, Find Greater Steed. A bit of a janky implementation of the old Paladin's mount feature. But with the advent of the Tasha's summoning spells, I think it's about time we take another look at how to implement this with a little more elegance. Or at least, try to conform it to the new standard of summoning spells and subclasses.
Summon Steed - 2nd Level Conjuration; 1 Minute Casting Time; Range 30 ft; Instantaneous Duration; Verbal and Somatic spell components
You call forth a spirit to serve as your trusty steed. It manifests in an unoccupied space that you can see within range. This corporeal form uses the Steed Spirit stat block. When you cast the spell, you determine what the spirit looks like, though this has no effect on its in-game statistics. A Steed Spirit may look like a Warhorse, a Mastiff, or an Elk. Steed Spirits summoned by a higher level casting may appear as a Griffon, a Pegasus, or some other fantastical beast. The spirit is a Celestial, Fey, or Fiend creature when summoned (you choose).
Your steed serves you as a mount, both in combat and out, and you have an instinctive bond with it that allows you to fight as a seamless unit. While mounted on your steed, you can make any spell you cast that targets only you also target your steed. When the steed drops to 0 hit points, it disappears, leaving behind no physical form. You can also dismiss your steed at any time as an action, causing it to disappear. In either case, casting this spell again summons the same steed, restored to its hit point maximum. While your steed is within 1 mile of you, you can communicate with each other telepathically. You can't have more than one steed summoned by this spell at a time. If you attempt to cast the spell again while your steed is summoned, the steed is instead teleported to an empty space within 30 feet of you.
In combat, the spirit shares your initiative count, and it may take its turn during yours. It obeys your verbal commands (no action required by you). If you don't issue any, it takes the Dodge action and uses its move to avoid danger.
At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, use the higher level wherever the spell's level appears in the stat block. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 4th level or higher, you may add an additional movement type to your steed (Climb, Swim, Burrow, or Fly) with a value of 60 ft. You also choose one feature in its stat block to use. You may choose a different feature if you cast this spell again.
Steed Spirit Large Fey, Fiend, or Celestial, Shares Your Alignment -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Armor Class: 12 + Level of the Spell (Natural Armor) Hit Points: 25 + 10 * Each spell level above 2nd Speed: 45 ft, 60 ft Climb, Swim, Burrow, or Fly (4th+ Level casting only) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Str Dex Con Int Wis Cha 16(+3) 14(+2) 14(+2) 10(+0) 12(+1) 9(-1) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Senses: Perception +3, Passive Perception 11 Languages: Understands your languages, but cannot speak -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unusual Nature: The Steed doesn't require air, food, drink, or sleep. Enchanted Ally: The Steed's Slam attacks are considered magical for the purposes of overcoming resistances. Keen Senses (4th+ Level casting only): The Steed has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks. Pack Tactics (4th+ Level casting only): The Steed has advantage on an attack roll against a creature if at least one of the Steed's allies is within 5 feet of the creature and the ally isn't incapacitated. Flyby (4th+ Level casting only): The Steed doesn't provoke an Opportunity Attack when it flies out of an enemy's reach. Charge (4th+ Level casting only): If the Steed moves at least 20 feet straight toward a target and then hits it with an attack on the same turn, the target takes an extra 9 (2d8) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a Strength saving throw against your spell save DC or be knocked prone. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Actions: Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: your Spell Attack Modifier to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1d6 + 3 + the spell's level bludgeoning damage.
I'm not quite sure of the balance of this, as I haven't tested it yet. I tried to sort of 'average out' the various creatures that the Steed spells could summon. The series of features locked behind a 4th+ casting is to mimic the additional abilities that the creatures summoned by Find Greater Steed get. The intent of allowing it to act during your turn is to try and avoid the issues the Drakewarden has when trying to use its companion as a mount, but that may potentially mess up the whole implementation. Or it may be unnecessary due to the mount rules 5e has.
I think instead of Swim/Burrow/Fly and the additional feature choices, it would be good to have 3 "types" of creature... similar to the new Ranger which has beasts of Land, Sea, and Sky. Then each one climbs with a climb, swim, or burrow speed right off the bat, then all variables gain flight when cast as a 4th level spell. Then each different type has different bonuses at 4th level. Maybe not a burrow speed...
Here's what I think... there would be three creature options. One has a climb speed, one has a swim speed, and the third would have a much higher speed. Let's call them... "Treetop", "Sea" and "Plains". So a Treetop Stead and Sea Stead would have a walking speed and a climbing/swimming speed (respectively) of 45, while the Plains Steed would have only a traditional walking speed of 60. Then each steed type gains a fly speed equal to its walking speed if summoned at 4th level or higher... the plains steed is still faster, but has less it can do.
Then you just have to decide which feature is most useful for each type. I think because Treetop Stead would lose some important functionality if it gains a Fly Speed, it should probably get the best bonus... so I think it should get Pack Tactics and Charge.
Sea is less likely to get used, but I think it would help to give it Flyby... makes it very valuable in and out of water, kind of leaning more toward a support role.
And finally the Plains Steed would just get Keen Senses. A 60 foot fly speed without concentration is major all on its own, and Keen Senses kind of represents how creatures that live on open plains kind of need to be able to perceive everything around them more clearly, since they don't have room to hide.
Anyway, I brought this up because I thought it would help to simplify things, since the intent seems to be to simplify these spells in such a way that you don't need to keep track of a lot of different creature types or need to check with your DM to make sure they'll allow whichever creature you want as a steed if it's not one of the examples listed in the spell. I am a bit worried that my suggestions might actually complicate it more, but at the very least I feel like it gives less to keep track of with every casting of the spell.
Ah, Find Steed and its big brother, Find Greater Steed. A bit of a janky implementation of the old Paladin's mount feature. But with the advent of the Tasha's summoning spells, I think it's about time we take another look at how to implement this with a little more elegance. Or at least, try to conform it to the new standard of summoning spells and subclasses.
I'm not quite sure of the balance of this, as I haven't tested it yet. I tried to sort of 'average out' the various creatures that the Steed spells could summon. The series of features locked behind a 4th+ casting is to mimic the additional abilities that the creatures summoned by Find Greater Steed get. The intent of allowing it to act during your turn is to try and avoid the issues the Drakewarden has when trying to use its companion as a mount, but that may potentially mess up the whole implementation. Or it may be unnecessary due to the mount rules 5e has.
I think instead of Swim/Burrow/Fly and the additional feature choices, it would be good to have 3 "types" of creature... similar to the new Ranger which has beasts of Land, Sea, and Sky. Then each one climbs with a climb, swim, or burrow speed right off the bat, then all variables gain flight when cast as a 4th level spell. Then each different type has different bonuses at 4th level. Maybe not a burrow speed...
Here's what I think... there would be three creature options. One has a climb speed, one has a swim speed, and the third would have a much higher speed. Let's call them... "Treetop", "Sea" and "Plains". So a Treetop Stead and Sea Stead would have a walking speed and a climbing/swimming speed (respectively) of 45, while the Plains Steed would have only a traditional walking speed of 60. Then each steed type gains a fly speed equal to its walking speed if summoned at 4th level or higher... the plains steed is still faster, but has less it can do.
Then you just have to decide which feature is most useful for each type. I think because Treetop Stead would lose some important functionality if it gains a Fly Speed, it should probably get the best bonus... so I think it should get Pack Tactics and Charge.
Sea is less likely to get used, but I think it would help to give it Flyby... makes it very valuable in and out of water, kind of leaning more toward a support role.
And finally the Plains Steed would just get Keen Senses. A 60 foot fly speed without concentration is major all on its own, and Keen Senses kind of represents how creatures that live on open plains kind of need to be able to perceive everything around them more clearly, since they don't have room to hide.
Anyway, I brought this up because I thought it would help to simplify things, since the intent seems to be to simplify these spells in such a way that you don't need to keep track of a lot of different creature types or need to check with your DM to make sure they'll allow whichever creature you want as a steed if it's not one of the examples listed in the spell. I am a bit worried that my suggestions might actually complicate it more, but at the very least I feel like it gives less to keep track of with every casting of the spell.
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