The way it works is players would have to study spells to learn how the spell is made by dissecting the components, then to make a spell they have to write it down, and spend money on testing supplies, using a point system to determine what level spell it is. I haven't made the point system, as it will be complicated, with some things costing points, others modifying the point cost of other stuff, like bonus action over action costing more overall, or adding concentration to a timed spell to make it cheaper, and I don't even have all the components yet. I eventually want to be able to make every spell in the game with this, so then the players can make their own spells. It uses the base of the spell, then major components, then subcomponents and component modifiers.
Directions: (Up / Down / Left / Right / North / South / East / West / Forward / Backwards / Push / Pull / Turn)
Number: (insert number)
Special effects
Charging:
Duration: (Rounds until activation)
Trigger: (End of turn / Specific action / Other)
Effect: (what is charging? How much?)
Persistent damage
When enter
When exit
When end turn inside
When end turn outside
Difficult terrain
Immune to counterspell
Anti magic
Light on fire
Movement does not provoke opportunity attacks.
Query Components
Read target health
Current health
Max health
Temp health
Read target distance (point 1 / point 2)
Read target conditions (specific / all)
Read target immunities
Read target resistance
Read target vulnerabilities
Read target stat (specific stat here)
Read spell level
Caster spellcasting ability
Some Current Examples
Re Creating Firebolt
Casting Time: Action
Components: V,S
Targeting: Single Target
Delivery: Projectile
Attack Role (adding this to make the spell cost less since this introduces a chance to not work.)
Range: 120 ft
Duration: Instant
Damage Dice: 1d10
Damage Type: Fire
Custom Spell that in a higher level aoe concentration that cures the poisoned condition and does increasing amounts of radiant damage to your enemies.
Casting Time: Action
Components: V, S , M (1 pint of holy water)
Targeting: Single Target (when used with aoe delivery it means 1 aoe area. multi target means multiple aoe areas.
Delivery: AOE
Shape: Sphere
Size: 20ft (for sphere automatically means radius.)
Range: 60ft
Duration: 1 minute
Concentration (to make it cheaper
Target Filter: All (the all filter is free, this simply is separate this effect from the other effect)
Conditions: Poisoned (this choses the condition im targeting
Logic (Remove) (this says that im removing the poisoned condition. Add would mean id apply it.)
Target Filter: Enemies
Damage Dice: 1d4
Charging: (this will increase the damage 1d4 every turn.
Effect: Logic:(Add) 1d4
Persistent damage (this is to make the damage happen every turn)
Damage Type: Radiant
Saving throw to take half damage (constitution) (Adding this to make the spell cheaper, and constitution made the most sense. If the DM thinks a different save is to be used, it's up to them.)
Power Word Kill
Casting Time: Action
Components: V
Targeting: Single Target
Delivery: Projectile
Range: 60 ft
Read target health ≤ 100
Damage: 100
Damage Type: True
Counterspell
Casting Time: reaction
Components: s
Targeting: Single Target
Upcasting effect: increase number next to both “read spell level” subcomponents”
Delivery: Projectile
Range: 60 ft
Read spell level ≤ 3
Antimagic
Read spell level > 3
Ability Check: caster spellcasting ability
DC: 10+Read spell level
Antimagic
Custom spell that summons grease in a circle and lights it on fire if an enemy gets halfway through it and slows them down. Not concentration because it's meant to be used with other aoe spells
Casting Time: Action
Components: V, S
Targeting: Single Target
Delivery: AOE
Range: 60 ft
AoE Shape: Circle 10 ft thick
AoE Size: 40 ft radius (that way a fireball can fit in the middle without igniting the grease.)
Duration: 1 minute
summon: grease
Read target distance (inner edge of the grease / animate entity in the grease) ≥ 5
It's not pointless, I cant make a point system till this is functional
You might as well say "you can combine any mechanics that already exist in the game". That is what I see from your above. That's the easy part. The hard part is how you assign what level the spell is. Whatever your "point system" is or will be doesn't really matter either, because the players will find a way to game the system to get as many points as possible. The only thing that matters for game balance is how you decide what spellslot is required to cast the spell.
IF you want to be consistent with existing mechanics of the game rather than just saying "you can combine whatever with whatever" then your list above should have constraints built in such as those I will detail below:
Spell Saving Throw Rules:
Any spell that imposes a condition on an enemy creature must require a saving throw from that enemy.
Certain spell effects are tied to certain saving throws, using the ranked list below you must use the saving throw closest to the top of the list for any of the effects you choose to include in the spell:
E.g. a spell that deals Acid damage and Blinds the enemy would require a Constitution saving throw, a spell that deals lightning damage and Paralyzes the target would require a Wisdom saving throw.
Spell Duration Rules:
Any spell that deals damage over multiple turns MUST have a saving throw to avoid or an attack roll to impose that damage each turn. Any spell that imposes one of the following conditions MUST have a saving throw at the end of each turn to end the condition: Frightened, Blinded, Paralyzed, Stunned, Incapacitated, Restrained, Poisoned. Any spell that deals damage cannot have a duration that exceeds 10 minutes.
Spell Action Rules:
Any spell that can target more than one creature MUST require the use of an Action. Any spell that conjures a creature with its own actions MUST require the use of an Action. Any spell that imposes one of the following conditions MUST require the use of an Action : Petrified, Stunned, Paralyzed, Incapacitated, Unconscious.
It's not pointless, I cant make a point system till this is functional
You might as well say "you can combine any mechanics that already exist in the game". That is what I see from your above. That's the easy part. The hard part is how you assign what level the spell is. Whatever your "point system" is or will be doesn't really matter either, because the players will find a way to game the system to get as many points as possible. The only thing that matters for game balance is how you decide what spellslot is required to cast the spell.
In OP's OP, they said the points will determine the spells level.
while limits might be needed for balance, i do think points will do most of the balance. once i balance the points, id then look to see what limits are necessary.
for your Spell Saving Throw Rules, i do think they are likely to be needed, but i think needing to manually choose to add a saving throw to make the spell cheaper (probably by affecting the point cost of another component with division) is important for creativity. for example, if i want to give someone Deafened, without a saving throw, id say a 9th level spell slot could do that (or arguably some cheaper ones)
tying spell effects to specific saving throws is a good idea, I'm likely to add that.
for the spell duration rules, i can see the last one being most likely one to be needed
for spell action rules, i dont think these are needed. a bonus action would make everything cost double then an action (not exact number yet, just example) and reaction would be even more expensive.
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The way it works is players would have to study spells to learn how the spell is made by dissecting the components, then to make a spell they have to write it down, and spend money on testing supplies, using a point system to determine what level spell it is. I haven't made the point system, as it will be complicated, with some things costing points, others modifying the point cost of other stuff, like bonus action over action costing more overall, or adding concentration to a timed spell to make it cheaper, and I don't even have all the components yet. I eventually want to be able to make every spell in the game with this, so then the players can make their own spells. It uses the base of the spell, then major components, then subcomponents and component modifiers.
Spell Base
Main Spell Components
Spell Subcomponents
Component Modifiers
Special effects
Query Components
Some Current Examples
Re Creating Firebolt
Custom Spell that in a higher level aoe concentration that cures the poisoned condition and does increasing amounts of radiant damage to your enemies.
Power Word Kill
Counterspell
Custom spell that summons grease in a circle and lights it on fire if an enemy gets halfway through it and slows them down. Not concentration because it's meant to be used with other aoe spells
Until you figure out a point system to balance spells, this is just a pointless list,
It's not pointless, I cant make a point system till this is functional
You might as well say "you can combine any mechanics that already exist in the game". That is what I see from your above. That's the easy part. The hard part is how you assign what level the spell is. Whatever your "point system" is or will be doesn't really matter either, because the players will find a way to game the system to get as many points as possible. The only thing that matters for game balance is how you decide what spellslot is required to cast the spell.
IF you want to be consistent with existing mechanics of the game rather than just saying "you can combine whatever with whatever" then your list above should have constraints built in such as those I will detail below:
Spell Saving Throw Rules:
Any spell that imposes a condition on an enemy creature must require a saving throw from that enemy.
Certain spell effects are tied to certain saving throws, using the ranked list below you must use the saving throw closest to the top of the list for any of the effects you choose to include in the spell:
1. Constitution : Necrotic, Cold, Poison, Thunder (Damage Types), Blindness, Deafened, Poisoned, Exhaustion, Petrified, Stunned (Conditions)
2. Wisdom: Psychic, Radiant (Damage Types), Charmed, Frightened, Paralyzed, Unconscious (Conditions)
3. Charisma: Incapacitated (Condition), Teleported or Plane Shifted (Other)
4. Dexterity: Fire, Lightning, Acid (Damage Types)
5. Strength or Dexterity: Prone, Grappled, Restrained (Conditions)
E.g. a spell that deals Acid damage and Blinds the enemy would require a Constitution saving throw, a spell that deals lightning damage and Paralyzes the target would require a Wisdom saving throw.
Spell Duration Rules:
Any spell that deals damage over multiple turns MUST have a saving throw to avoid or an attack roll to impose that damage each turn.
Any spell that imposes one of the following conditions MUST have a saving throw at the end of each turn to end the condition: Frightened, Blinded, Paralyzed, Stunned, Incapacitated, Restrained, Poisoned.
Any spell that deals damage cannot have a duration that exceeds 10 minutes.
Spell Action Rules:
Any spell that can target more than one creature MUST require the use of an Action.
Any spell that conjures a creature with its own actions MUST require the use of an Action.
Any spell that imposes one of the following conditions MUST require the use of an Action : Petrified, Stunned, Paralyzed, Incapacitated, Unconscious.
In OP's OP, they said the points will determine the spells level.
while limits might be needed for balance, i do think points will do most of the balance. once i balance the points, id then look to see what limits are necessary.
for your Spell Saving Throw Rules, i do think they are likely to be needed, but i think needing to manually choose to add a saving throw to make the spell cheaper (probably by affecting the point cost of another component with division) is important for creativity. for example, if i want to give someone Deafened, without a saving throw, id say a 9th level spell slot could do that (or arguably some cheaper ones)
tying spell effects to specific saving throws is a good idea, I'm likely to add that.
for the spell duration rules, i can see the last one being most likely one to be needed
for spell action rules, i dont think these are needed. a bonus action would make everything cost double then an action (not exact number yet, just example) and reaction would be even more expensive.