So the survey drops tomorrow. What comments/opinions are you going to leave?
For Warlock I am going to suggest more options for Pact of the Chain like a Gazer or a Death’s Head, each Warlock subclass gets the change damage type of their warlock spells like the GOO has and an bonus language based on the patron, Magical Cunning should add a bonus to intelligence based skills that you have proficiency in equal to your charisma modifier, a repeatable invocation that lets you select a spell from any list and be able to cast that spell once per long rest, a free casting of a patron spell at base level per long rest.
Flex can stay gone. It was a bad boring terrible option that didn't even exist if you used your weapon in two hands already, i.e. any spellcasting swordsman that needed a free hand.
I intend to leave extremely scathing feedback on the survey as a whole castigating Wizards for being cowards and abandoning any attempt to make real, positive changes to the game. Discarding the master spell lists, discarding ALL of the changes to wizard and warlock, discarding almost everything they did for sorcerer.... this UA doc was nothing but disappointment after disappointment, and even if I'm the only one who dares to say so, they're going to hear it.
For the warlock: reinstate "pact of the____" boons and base subclasses on them, NOT PATRONS, reinstate lost invocations.
The given spells from patrons is nice, they would have never been picked otherwise since they're competing with stronger spells. Unfortunately with limited slots, they'll now just never get cast. Swap them out for invocations that are flavorful but also just given.
A given "at will" telepathy for the great old one is not going to be game breaking. An at will charm invocation is something the archfey warlock would love and these follow with existing or pre-existing 3rd level abilities.
Get rid of the mystic arcanum (6-9 spells), and make the pact of the chain, pact of the blade, pact of the tome stronger. (Pact of the tome can get the mystic arcanum spells. Pact of the chain can get a summon or conjure type creature appropriate to a 6-9 spell level to replace their familiar. Pact of the blade gets similar upgrades).
Recharge at short rests is retained AS IS. The other classes should be given enticements to short rest, and the short rest should only be 15 minutes in game time.
For the brawler. The subclass is fantastic. The mechanics behind it, however, seem to be lacking. A lot more clarification needs to be done to improvised weapons, grappling mechanics, etc.
I'm going to go against the grain and say that the unarmed strikes need to be de-emphasized and improvised weapons given more emphasis. This will help to differentiate the class from the other unarmed combatant, the monk (a lot of the upgrades to unarmed fighting however are great additions to the monk class. It's just more about giving classes definition and sharpening up the class archetype rather diluting the image, as the dance bard in the last UA did.)
Also needed to this type, which I think many missed is a mechanic for throwing stones, projectiles, etc. Or fighting with some brass knuckles (or just holding a stone or a bunch of gold coins in hand. Or using coins as projectiles. As mentioned, the class is seriously lacking the underlying rules and mechanics. It needs to be emphasized, the subclass is great. It just falls into a hole that is in the general rules and mechanics of the game)
Weapon masteries need to be rethought as a whole. The extra masteries make no sense with the long rest mechanic, and giving them to all classes dilutes how "special" they are for the fighter.
Either the mastery attributes simply apply to the weapon, (i.e. all rapiers can grant the properties of advantage on next turn) and no masteries, or, get rid of masteries and just allow them to be properties that fighters can give to the weapons their wield (which is a far better, flavorful and most importantly, fighter specific option).
The change back to class specific spell lists is a wise move. Although I cannot comment too much on the changes to jump and counterspell, I agree completely with the decision to revisit the spell list and make changes. I would like to see a number of higher level spells removed from the lists and offered in the dungeon master's guide as spells only offered or used at the dungeon master's discretion.
The sorcerer class and wizard class still feel too identical. I would like to see more metamagic offerings for the sorcerer as well as more sorcerer points to encourage use of the mechanic. Perhaps at the cost of losing the ability to convert sorcerer points into spell slots.
The wild sorcerer's wild magic surge is fine with the caveat of more combat meaningful effects on the wild magic surge table and less role play flavorful options.
Although fun, many of the wild magic surges can derail a campaign with leads to their banning from many tables.
A better dm/player compromise is the edit the table in ways that take this into consideration and either increase the power of the attack, decrease the power of the attack, remove or add enemies to the battlefield , increase or decrease the cost of spell slots, etc.
Also, as a personal wish, I would like to see wild magic sorcerers be able to attempt to cast a spell 1/2 their maximum spell slot level, without metamagic and only when depleted of spell slots, as a save of 10+ the spell attempting to be cast's level, and get a roll on the REVISED wild magic surge table.
This would be a chance to really showcase the wild magic sorcerer's trying to wrestle the wild arcane web with the sheer power of the sorcerer's will.
Just a thought.
The choice to remove modify and create spell from the wizard's arsenal is wise. This already overlaps too much with sorcerer like abilities and the classes need more definition.
The wizard class as is is quite fine. The overall definition of the class is to have the most spells learned and available. If I were to make any offerings to the wizard's refinement, it would be that around level 14, the wizard to gain the ability through study to cast spells from ANY spell list 1/2 the maximum available spell slot (rounded up) the wizard possesses. (I.e. the wizard wants to learn a druid only 3rd level spell, it must know at least 5th level wizard spells).
I'm much happier with this UA versus the last, and look forward to future revisions.
Flex can stay gone. It was a bad boring terrible option that didn't even exist if you used your weapon in two hands already, i.e. any spellcasting swordsman that needed a free hand.
Flex should build on Versatile not make it useless. Gain +1 AC when using versatile weapon with 2 hands..
First and foremost, I will give positive feedback for changes I approve of. The developers get an earful of negative feedback already. Carrots instead of sticks. There were some minor tweaks that were good. And I will lavish praises on the idea of Magic Items for Unarmed Strikes / Improvised Weapons / Grappling.
I will request Classes each get roughly the same amount of power back on a Short Rest. Barbarians should get something like Rage back on a Short Rest. Sorcerers should get more Points back on a Short Rest. Warlocks should regain some (not all) Pact slots on a Short Rest, with the total number of Pact slots increased. Otherwise Warlock & Monk will be difficult to balance compared to other classes.
I'll be recommending swapping out half-baked Brawler for Rune Knight. And that the best parts of Brawler get added to the Feats Grappler and Tavern Brawler to make those Feats good and fun.
I'm gonna bomb the hell out of their regressive approach. Unified spell lists, stardartized subclass progression, warlock being a flexible half-caster, these were all great ideas they buried at the first sign of discontent instead of working on them further.
It's easy to fix wizard identity issue with unified spell lists - just take roughly a quarter of spells off the arcane spell list and make them wizard-only, with a feature for it, something like "Academic Spells", explaining that certain spells are products of decades of research and require a level of understanding of arcane theory that other classes don't specialize in. Things like Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion, Gate, Simulacrum, Rope Trick, complicated effects and costly rituals.
I absolutely loathe the return of crippled disfunctional Pact Magic. A little crutch that is Magical Cunning doesn't fix the issue. Warlocks will still be begging for short rests or hoarding the spell slots. Now exactly one less time per day. Yay. Subclasses are now great (though I'd rather prefer Undead over Celestial in the PHB), but old Pact Magic is old problems all over again.
Brawler is very weird, it stumbles into a fundamental problem of regular weapons simply being better, being magical. Once you find your very first longsword+1, it's going to have a to hit bonus that no chair or shovel will ever have. And a flaming longsword with 1d6 fire damage? Good luck finding a bench or a chandelier enchanted for damage. No, brawler makes sense as a monk subclass, because it could naturally scale with martial arts die and just like bare fists it can't be magical. And it fits the drunken master concept - because who if not a drunken master will be the expert in bar brawls?
Why does the Fighter now get more features designed to promote unarmed strikes and improvised weapons than the Monk class which is heavily structured around using unarmed strikes and has no access to Martial Weapons? Why does this make 2 UAs in a row where a non-Monk subclass got new, unique Unarmed Strike features while the Monk didn't receive any new mechanical updates to Unarmed Strike or the Martial Arts feature?
Why does the 2024 Warlock Pact Magic system still rely on Short Rests and yet has no mechanical changes from the 2014 PHB, when the whole point of the Warlock redesign was that WOTC identified multiple structural problems with the design of Pact Magic and its reliance on Short Rests?
Why was the unified general spell lists idea abandoned?
Why does WOTC seem to assume that every class needs to be a zero sum equation when it comes to class identity? Wizards can learn a lot of spells, but WOTC seems to think that means other spellcasters can't be allowed to learn lots of spells. Bards could learn from many schools of magic, but now they get squeezed for potentially knowing too much magic. On the Martial side, we're getting descriptions that some classes are defined by their ability to wield weapons and wear armor instead of performing a unique role in or out of combat.
Flex can stay gone. It was a bad boring terrible option that didn't even exist if you used your weapon in two hands already, i.e. any spellcasting swordsman that needed a free hand.
Flex should build on Versatile not make it useless. Gain +1 AC when using versatile weapon with 2 hands..
That is a good idea.
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"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
I realize the importance of the feedback, but feel a little demoralized. Not sure I even want to fill this one out.
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"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
I am pretty sure they have incorporated a lot of the ideas people have given them over the years. I think that is where cunning strikes came from. I know I had asked for something "more interesting" at level 5 than just skills defense and more damage. I wanted to be able to do more interesting things in combat with a rogue and they delivered. I know that any of the stuff they didn't list that I want to talk about I have dialog boxes for. This included my evaluation of warlock spell slots and the belief that the third slot needed to come in at level 9. It also included my thoughts on warlock spell lists and missing spells from those lists and invocations. They may not ask for feedback on certain things, but if those are the things I see as issues I am going to put them in regardless. It is part of the overall class.
I have been very hard on the warlock chassis. Especially with pact magic. I've also asked that Tome Pact give you the ability to use Int as your spelcasting ability. I have criticized that they have removed modify and create spell from the wizard. For the rest I have given my opinions based on my last playtest. And in the additional comment at the end I have asked them to, at a minimum, give us a PHB that does not incite ravinic discussions. The rules have to be clear, leave no room for interpretation, and be well written. People are doing it out there, and they have fewer resources than WoTC. Can't they do it? Although I am very disappointed with the direction of the playtest (which is the removal of substantial changes), I want to be constructive. In the end our goal is the same, right? Make a better game.
Flex can stay gone. It was a bad boring terrible option that didn't even exist if you used your weapon in two hands already, i.e. any spellcasting swordsman that needed a free hand.
Flex was terrible in its previous form, but I don't think it should be abandoned completely. The problem was it took weapons that by definition are supposed to be versatile, then made them… not, it was a definite head-scratch how anyone thought that was a good idea.
But I'd like to see it return as a bracketed mastery giving different benefits to one and two handing, e.g- reach when one-handing (which is appropriate to how these types of weapons might actually be used) and another mastery in brackets when two handing, e.g- warhammer might be Flex (Topple). This would make versatile weapons especially appealing to classes with fewer masteries (or that pick it up via a feat) thanks to the dual option.
I intend to leave extremely scathing feedback on the survey as a whole castigating Wizards for being cowards and abandoning any attempt to make real, positive changes to the game. Discarding the master spell lists, discarding ALL of the changes to wizard and warlock, discarding almost everything they did for sorcerer.... this UA doc was nothing but disappointment after disappointment, and even if I'm the only one who dares to say so, they're going to hear it.
I've been quite scathing about the rolling back of so many good ideas, but I've tried to give plenty of suggestions about how they could be made to work if brought back, or alternatives to retain some of the benefits of those ideas.
For example, the Arcane/Divine/Primal spell lists was such an obvious thing to do, all they really needed was for some spells to go back to being class specific. But for the most part it's only really Paladin/Ranger/Warlock/Wizard that need this (Bard, Cleric, Druid and Sorcerer should be fine with just the core list, since Sorcerer could just get Sorcerous Burst as a default cantrip again, as there's no need for them to have a spell list just for that).
I'm not too bothered about what else was dropped on Sorcerer; most of it was a mess, and I quite like the new Innate Sorcery and the way it's built upon to enhance Metamagic, along with the increase in available Sorcery Points. I still dislike the new Twinned Spell though; once again it would make a good new Metamagic, but it completely misses the point of what was fun about the old Twinned Spell, i.e- casting a spell on multiple targets that normally can't be. There are so many other ways they could easily fix it though, i.e- if you twin a spell you can't cast another, cantrips included, on the same turn if that's their main concern, but really it just needs either a spell level cap or a tweaked cost.
I also dislike the rolling back of standardised sub-class levels; in their explanation for this they basically blamed us for not heaping praise upon them for proposing it, but it was a) one of the most obvious changes to make, so much so it should have been how 5e was designed in the first place so it being the right choice went without saying and b) they never actually gave us a way to give feedback on that specific change, and actually made it harder in later feedback forms (removed sub-class features from the feedback options). I really deeply resent how they've tried to blame us for that one.
I wouldn't say they discarded all changes to Wizard; they still have memorize spell, arguably in a better form, and it's a solid feature. A lot of the other changes they made just weren't necessary so losing them is no biggy; Wizards still have the edge in flexibility even while some other classes gain some to make them less spell choice constrained, especially when combined with the bonus spell known for each of the sub-classes so far.
The Warlock rollback I'm not too bothered by; I really did not like the half-caster playtest at all. While it's possible they could have improved it to make it more workable, it just had so much wrong with it that going back to the drawing board may have been the right choice. My main issue with Warlock is that in going back, they've resurrected the problems that led them to try something new in the first place; but there are easier ways to fix Warlock than making them a half-caster. Having more pact magic slots that reset on long rest, but with some regained on short rest would be the easiest IMO, alongside giving all other classes something to regain on short rest (rather than 5e's situation where only some classes need short rests and others seem specifically designed to consider them a waste of everybody's time).
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Upper level Barbarian features need a buff as there is little reason to keep going Barb after level 7, and Barbarians need more Rages or SR recharge of Rage since now rage is intended to be used out of combat as well as in combat, and a Barbarian with no rages left is not a barbarian. Also that the tree teleportation need to be more creatures because 6 is just not enough these days b/c so many character classes get permanent pets.
That Ranger, Barbarian, Paladin, Monk should get a 3rd attack at level 11.
That Warlock is so good as a martial I'd never play a Fighter, or Ranger ever again.
That Eldritch Knight is the only Fighter worth playing because the combination of Booming Blade / Green Flame Blade with their new War Magic is just so much higher DPR, while Shield + heavy armour is better Defense than any other Fighter.
Counterspell should be the target's spellcasting ability saving throw because it's arguably now more powerful than it was before because so many enemy casters have lower constitution saves.
Weapon Mastery needs more. I'm not totally sure what. Just more.
Bringing back Int to Warlock (alongside Cha.) I'll also add the 1/3 casting suggestion (alongside Pact Magic and Invocations) but not holding my breath there. Blade Pact is too powerful.
There's still too little reason to stay in Barbarian past 8th level.
Flex can stay gone. It was a bad boring terrible option that didn't even exist if you used your weapon in two hands already, i.e. any spellcasting swordsman that needed a free hand.
I intend to leave extremely scathing feedback on the survey as a whole castigating Wizards for being cowards and abandoning any attempt to make real, positive changes to the game. Discarding the master spell lists, discarding ALL of the changes to wizard and warlock, discarding almost everything they did for sorcerer.... this UA doc was nothing but disappointment after disappointment, and even if I'm the only one who dares to say so, they're going to hear it.
Just copy all of your feedback into a Word doc and submit it multiple times. There's nothing stopping you except your own conscience. I guarantee there are plenty of people that are advocating for bad or no changes that are doing it.
my feedback will be something along the lines of...
barbarian: for lack of a better word, world tree barb is flamboyant: lots bits flapping around, very magical, very 'look at me!' in the key of viking. could easily have been a druid subclass. wild heart seems like all logical changes. [edit: except for the birdman falcon flight thing. THANK YOU, Halcy, for mentioning that in your post below! previously it was just a big damn jump and now it's full flight?? like a flamingo. flamboyant.]
fighter: second wind gains an expended use upon short rest. nice. it helps that more classes benefit from short rests, but hopefully without creating an expectation or dependence on them. tactical mind puts some strain on that, but at least you keep the s.wind if the check fails. action surge ditches Magic action: yeah, keep that sort of thing in your homebrew, optimizers. brawler is yet another 'unarmed combat' subclass out before monks, which is not confidence building. brawler might be fun in a more urban and social setting (unarmed but not un-dangerous), but either needs some charisma help for that or else needs some dungeoneering help to not be useless in a cave or open field.
sorcerer: skip.
warlock: i'll accept that pact of chain is a secondary boon, but you have to update the familiar spell / rules. and what size is that skeleton?? tome and blade seem alright (assuming that third blade attack was just a blip). pact magic is back but you missed the obvious chance to leave short rest dependence behind by replacing it fully with magical cunning. just give the warlock an appropriate number of pact slots and magical cunning uses upon long rest. also let magical cunning gain an expended use upon short rest, just so warlock's aren't left out since short rests aren't gone gone. also, please expand rituals for warlocks who are the closest thing to playable witches. new pact of the fey is nearly as flamboyant as tree barb. so much bamfing around. however, the various 'step' powers seem to tie it in and really make it live. eldritch hex is a nice surprise, but too bad it had to be hidden in a single subclass. having said that, actually the pact of the goo's is looking pretty enticing starting immediately with changing damage type of spells to psychic.
wizard: scholar makes sense. moving arcane recovery will bait out multiclass dips, but maybe that's intended. can't wait to see next iteration of modify/create spell. savant adding a spell to your spellbook is a great way to encourage wizards to lean into their chosen flavor, but i'd also accept being shut out of 'opposing' schools. similarly, expert divination encourages casting divination spells. nice! illusory self becomes a shield replacement, could be fun.
misc: counterspell seems positioned to cast more frequently at players, which sounds alright to me. jump might be useful finally. sap should be an option for quarterstaff (as per the 'now works with versatile' text) which might benefit monks who should already have access to topple as a base class feature. Hide should expand upon the condition 'an enemy finds you,' regarding line of site and how far to stretch the invisible condition. oh, and re-reading the rules for 'knocking out' remind me: please include a skill or feat for mundane healing with herbalist and/or healer's kits with regards to skill checks, whether hit dice are spent, how long the process takes, and whether magical ingredients would influence this (or is that too deep into the realm dm's fiat?)
Yeah, I was very pleased with how the base fighter turned out with UA7. The regaining of a Second Wind on short rest (queue Billy Idol's 'Only Human') gives them a very nice sustain, and that's not even talking about their ability to basically self-inspire. It feels like there are the tools of a Warlord-type subclass forming out of the fighter. Imagine being able to give Second Wind, Tactical Mind, or Tactical Shift to allies? I know, I know, "Battle Master" (especially with Rally and such). Yes, yes. You're right, person in the third row! But Warlord, though! :)
I really enjoy cross-role subclasses, and would very much welcome a support-type fighter subclass. Just like I'd love a tanky sorcerer subclass, or a holy-slayer rogue with divine tools at their disposal (Who may or may not call themselves Alexander Anderson).
... wait, we were discussing UA7, not my phantasia-du-soir.
Right! While I never got around to playtesting the sorcerer, I was a little bummed out that the subclasses didn't get a bonus spell selection, like the Tasha's subclasses did. I had hoped that Aberrant and Clockwork would set a standard for how sorcerous subclasses would be going forward. Oh well.
In the survey, I mostly commented on how Wild Heart Falcon Flight and World Tree Planeshifting felt weeeiiird for a barbarian. Thematically on point with the subclass, but far away from my concept of the class as a whole.
Brawler got the spiel about how it spends so much of its subclass allotment on just being equal with a regular weapon-wielder, and how the capstone ability rather feels like a level 10 upgrade. Compare with functional immortality (Champion) or Arcane Machine Gun (Eldritch Knight).
Wizard... well, I didn't have much to say there. I was just sulking over the fact that none of my favourite schools were represented in this batch of subclasses (Where are my transmuter darlings? Or my skelly-boi necrodancermancers?)
Warlock was, yeah, I had a lot of feelings about warlocks. Pretty much all over the place, and mostly echoing my posts on this forum. To consider a hybrid spellcasting system with a limited amount of spell-slots and pact-slots, or a new baseline recovery system, OR just abandoning inherent magic and buy all the tickets on the Invocation train. Choo-choo! Pretty much anything except being rolled back into the pit of creativity capitulation that is the 2014 model. Yeah, all of that, and a bag of crisps.
Aaand theeen... no. That was pretty much it.
Oh, right. I love the new Jump spell?
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So the survey drops tomorrow. What comments/opinions are you going to leave?
For Warlock I am going to suggest more options for Pact of the Chain like a Gazer or a Death’s Head, each Warlock subclass gets the change damage type of their warlock spells like the GOO has and an bonus language based on the patron, Magical Cunning should add a bonus to intelligence based skills that you have proficiency in equal to your charisma modifier, a repeatable invocation that lets you select a spell from any list and be able to cast that spell once per long rest, a free casting of a patron spell at base level per long rest.
And to bring back the Flex Weapon Mastery.
Flex can stay gone. It was a bad boring terrible option that didn't even exist if you used your weapon in two hands already, i.e. any spellcasting swordsman that needed a free hand.
I intend to leave extremely scathing feedback on the survey as a whole castigating Wizards for being cowards and abandoning any attempt to make real, positive changes to the game. Discarding the master spell lists, discarding ALL of the changes to wizard and warlock, discarding almost everything they did for sorcerer.... this UA doc was nothing but disappointment after disappointment, and even if I'm the only one who dares to say so, they're going to hear it.
Please do not contact or message me.
For the warlock: reinstate "pact of the____" boons and base subclasses on them, NOT PATRONS, reinstate lost invocations.
The given spells from patrons is nice, they would have never been picked otherwise since they're competing with stronger spells. Unfortunately with limited slots, they'll now just never get cast. Swap them out for invocations that are flavorful but also just given.
A given "at will" telepathy for the great old one is not going to be game breaking. An at will charm invocation is something the archfey warlock would love and these follow with existing or pre-existing 3rd level abilities.
Get rid of the mystic arcanum (6-9 spells), and make the pact of the chain, pact of the blade, pact of the tome stronger. (Pact of the tome can get the mystic arcanum spells. Pact of the chain can get a summon or conjure type creature appropriate to a 6-9 spell level to replace their familiar. Pact of the blade gets similar upgrades).
Recharge at short rests is retained AS IS. The other classes should be given enticements to short rest, and the short rest should only be 15 minutes in game time.
For the brawler. The subclass is fantastic. The mechanics behind it, however, seem to be lacking. A lot more clarification needs to be done to improvised weapons, grappling mechanics, etc.
I'm going to go against the grain and say that the unarmed strikes need to be de-emphasized and improvised weapons given more emphasis. This will help to differentiate the class from the other unarmed combatant, the monk (a lot of the upgrades to unarmed fighting however are great additions to the monk class. It's just more about giving classes definition and sharpening up the class archetype rather diluting the image, as the dance bard in the last UA did.)
Also needed to this type, which I think many missed is a mechanic for throwing stones, projectiles, etc. Or fighting with some brass knuckles (or just holding a stone or a bunch of gold coins in hand. Or using coins as projectiles. As mentioned, the class is seriously lacking the underlying rules and mechanics. It needs to be emphasized, the subclass is great. It just falls into a hole that is in the general rules and mechanics of the game)
Weapon masteries need to be rethought as a whole. The extra masteries make no sense with the long rest mechanic, and giving them to all classes dilutes how "special" they are for the fighter.
Either the mastery attributes simply apply to the weapon, (i.e. all rapiers can grant the properties of advantage on next turn) and no masteries, or, get rid of masteries and just allow them to be properties that fighters can give to the weapons their wield (which is a far better, flavorful and most importantly, fighter specific option).
The change back to class specific spell lists is a wise move. Although I cannot comment too much on the changes to jump and counterspell, I agree completely with the decision to revisit the spell list and make changes. I would like to see a number of higher level spells removed from the lists and offered in the dungeon master's guide as spells only offered or used at the dungeon master's discretion.
The sorcerer class and wizard class still feel too identical. I would like to see more metamagic offerings for the sorcerer as well as more sorcerer points to encourage use of the mechanic. Perhaps at the cost of losing the ability to convert sorcerer points into spell slots.
The wild sorcerer's wild magic surge is fine with the caveat of more combat meaningful effects on the wild magic surge table and less role play flavorful options.
Although fun, many of the wild magic surges can derail a campaign with leads to their banning from many tables.
A better dm/player compromise is the edit the table in ways that take this into consideration and either increase the power of the attack, decrease the power of the attack, remove or add enemies to the battlefield , increase or decrease the cost of spell slots, etc.
Also, as a personal wish, I would like to see wild magic sorcerers be able to attempt to cast a spell 1/2 their maximum spell slot level, without metamagic and only when depleted of spell slots, as a save of 10+ the spell attempting to be cast's level, and get a roll on the REVISED wild magic surge table.
This would be a chance to really showcase the wild magic sorcerer's trying to wrestle the wild arcane web with the sheer power of the sorcerer's will.
Just a thought.
The choice to remove modify and create spell from the wizard's arsenal is wise. This already overlaps too much with sorcerer like abilities and the classes need more definition.
The wizard class as is is quite fine. The overall definition of the class is to have the most spells learned and available. If I were to make any offerings to the wizard's refinement, it would be that around level 14, the wizard to gain the ability through study to cast spells from ANY spell list 1/2 the maximum available spell slot (rounded up) the wizard possesses. (I.e. the wizard wants to learn a druid only 3rd level spell, it must know at least 5th level wizard spells).
I'm much happier with this UA versus the last, and look forward to future revisions.
Flex should build on Versatile not make it useless. Gain +1 AC when using versatile weapon with 2 hands..
First and foremost, I will give positive feedback for changes I approve of. The developers get an earful of negative feedback already. Carrots instead of sticks. There were some minor tweaks that were good. And I will lavish praises on the idea of Magic Items for Unarmed Strikes / Improvised Weapons / Grappling.
I will request Classes each get roughly the same amount of power back on a Short Rest. Barbarians should get something like Rage back on a Short Rest. Sorcerers should get more Points back on a Short Rest. Warlocks should regain some (not all) Pact slots on a Short Rest, with the total number of Pact slots increased. Otherwise Warlock & Monk will be difficult to balance compared to other classes.
I'll be recommending swapping out half-baked Brawler for Rune Knight. And that the best parts of Brawler get added to the Feats Grappler and Tavern Brawler to make those Feats good and fun.
I'm gonna bomb the hell out of their regressive approach. Unified spell lists, stardartized subclass progression, warlock being a flexible half-caster, these were all great ideas they buried at the first sign of discontent instead of working on them further.
It's easy to fix wizard identity issue with unified spell lists - just take roughly a quarter of spells off the arcane spell list and make them wizard-only, with a feature for it, something like "Academic Spells", explaining that certain spells are products of decades of research and require a level of understanding of arcane theory that other classes don't specialize in. Things like Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion, Gate, Simulacrum, Rope Trick, complicated effects and costly rituals.
I absolutely loathe the return of crippled disfunctional Pact Magic. A little crutch that is Magical Cunning doesn't fix the issue. Warlocks will still be begging for short rests or hoarding the spell slots. Now exactly one less time per day. Yay. Subclasses are now great (though I'd rather prefer Undead over Celestial in the PHB), but old Pact Magic is old problems all over again.
Brawler is very weird, it stumbles into a fundamental problem of regular weapons simply being better, being magical. Once you find your very first longsword+1, it's going to have a to hit bonus that no chair or shovel will ever have. And a flaming longsword with 1d6 fire damage? Good luck finding a bench or a chandelier enchanted for damage. No, brawler makes sense as a monk subclass, because it could naturally scale with martial arts die and just like bare fists it can't be magical. And it fits the drunken master concept - because who if not a drunken master will be the expert in bar brawls?
Points of contention I plan to identify:
Why does the Fighter now get more features designed to promote unarmed strikes and improvised weapons than the Monk class which is heavily structured around using unarmed strikes and has no access to Martial Weapons? Why does this make 2 UAs in a row where a non-Monk subclass got new, unique Unarmed Strike features while the Monk didn't receive any new mechanical updates to Unarmed Strike or the Martial Arts feature?
Why does the 2024 Warlock Pact Magic system still rely on Short Rests and yet has no mechanical changes from the 2014 PHB, when the whole point of the Warlock redesign was that WOTC identified multiple structural problems with the design of Pact Magic and its reliance on Short Rests?
Why was the unified general spell lists idea abandoned?
Why does WOTC seem to assume that every class needs to be a zero sum equation when it comes to class identity? Wizards can learn a lot of spells, but WOTC seems to think that means other spellcasters can't be allowed to learn lots of spells. Bards could learn from many schools of magic, but now they get squeezed for potentially knowing too much magic. On the Martial side, we're getting descriptions that some classes are defined by their ability to wield weapons and wear armor instead of performing a unique role in or out of combat.
*throws the playtest survey papers into the air in a fit*
Why are the 'Next' and 'Back' buttons in that order? Whyys?!
That is a good idea.
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
In the survey, where is the Fiend Patron feedback section???
You didn’t get it either? The Evoker wasn’t there either.
I realize the importance of the feedback, but feel a little demoralized. Not sure I even want to fill this one out.
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
I am pretty sure they have incorporated a lot of the ideas people have given them over the years. I think that is where cunning strikes came from. I know I had asked for something "more interesting" at level 5 than just skills defense and more damage. I wanted to be able to do more interesting things in combat with a rogue and they delivered. I know that any of the stuff they didn't list that I want to talk about I have dialog boxes for. This included my evaluation of warlock spell slots and the belief that the third slot needed to come in at level 9. It also included my thoughts on warlock spell lists and missing spells from those lists and invocations. They may not ask for feedback on certain things, but if those are the things I see as issues I am going to put them in regardless. It is part of the overall class.
I have been very hard on the warlock chassis. Especially with pact magic. I've also asked that Tome Pact give you the ability to use Int as your spelcasting ability.
I have criticized that they have removed modify and create spell from the wizard.
For the rest I have given my opinions based on my last playtest. And in the additional comment at the end I have asked them to, at a minimum, give us a PHB that does not incite ravinic discussions. The rules have to be clear, leave no room for interpretation, and be well written. People are doing it out there, and they have fewer resources than WoTC. Can't they do it?
Although I am very disappointed with the direction of the playtest (which is the removal of substantial changes), I want to be constructive. In the end our goal is the same, right? Make a better game.
Flex was terrible in its previous form, but I don't think it should be abandoned completely. The problem was it took weapons that by definition are supposed to be versatile, then made them… not, it was a definite head-scratch how anyone thought that was a good idea.
But I'd like to see it return as a bracketed mastery giving different benefits to one and two handing, e.g- reach when one-handing (which is appropriate to how these types of weapons might actually be used) and another mastery in brackets when two handing, e.g- warhammer might be Flex (Topple). This would make versatile weapons especially appealing to classes with fewer masteries (or that pick it up via a feat) thanks to the dual option.
I've been quite scathing about the rolling back of so many good ideas, but I've tried to give plenty of suggestions about how they could be made to work if brought back, or alternatives to retain some of the benefits of those ideas.
For example, the Arcane/Divine/Primal spell lists was such an obvious thing to do, all they really needed was for some spells to go back to being class specific. But for the most part it's only really Paladin/Ranger/Warlock/Wizard that need this (Bard, Cleric, Druid and Sorcerer should be fine with just the core list, since Sorcerer could just get Sorcerous Burst as a default cantrip again, as there's no need for them to have a spell list just for that).
I'm not too bothered about what else was dropped on Sorcerer; most of it was a mess, and I quite like the new Innate Sorcery and the way it's built upon to enhance Metamagic, along with the increase in available Sorcery Points. I still dislike the new Twinned Spell though; once again it would make a good new Metamagic, but it completely misses the point of what was fun about the old Twinned Spell, i.e- casting a spell on multiple targets that normally can't be. There are so many other ways they could easily fix it though, i.e- if you twin a spell you can't cast another, cantrips included, on the same turn if that's their main concern, but really it just needs either a spell level cap or a tweaked cost.
I also dislike the rolling back of standardised sub-class levels; in their explanation for this they basically blamed us for not heaping praise upon them for proposing it, but it was a) one of the most obvious changes to make, so much so it should have been how 5e was designed in the first place so it being the right choice went without saying and b) they never actually gave us a way to give feedback on that specific change, and actually made it harder in later feedback forms (removed sub-class features from the feedback options). I really deeply resent how they've tried to blame us for that one.
I wouldn't say they discarded all changes to Wizard; they still have memorize spell, arguably in a better form, and it's a solid feature. A lot of the other changes they made just weren't necessary so losing them is no biggy; Wizards still have the edge in flexibility even while some other classes gain some to make them less spell choice constrained, especially when combined with the bonus spell known for each of the sub-classes so far.
The Warlock rollback I'm not too bothered by; I really did not like the half-caster playtest at all. While it's possible they could have improved it to make it more workable, it just had so much wrong with it that going back to the drawing board may have been the right choice. My main issue with Warlock is that in going back, they've resurrected the problems that led them to try something new in the first place; but there are easier ways to fix Warlock than making them a half-caster. Having more pact magic slots that reset on long rest, but with some regained on short rest would be the easiest IMO, alongside giving all other classes something to regain on short rest (rather than 5e's situation where only some classes need short rests and others seem specifically designed to consider them a waste of everybody's time).
Former D&D Beyond Customer of six years: With the axing of piecemeal purchasing, lack of meaningful development, and toxic moderation the site isn't worth paying for anymore. I remain a free user only until my groups are done migrating from DDB, and if necessary D&D, after which I'm done. There are better systems owned by better companies out there.
I have unsubscribed from all topics and will not reply to messages. My homebrew is now 100% unsupported.
The main points I left were:
Upper level Barbarian features need a buff as there is little reason to keep going Barb after level 7, and Barbarians need more Rages or SR recharge of Rage since now rage is intended to be used out of combat as well as in combat, and a Barbarian with no rages left is not a barbarian. Also that the tree teleportation need to be more creatures because 6 is just not enough these days b/c so many character classes get permanent pets.
That Ranger, Barbarian, Paladin, Monk should get a 3rd attack at level 11.
That Warlock is so good as a martial I'd never play a Fighter, or Ranger ever again.
That Eldritch Knight is the only Fighter worth playing because the combination of Booming Blade / Green Flame Blade with their new War Magic is just so much higher DPR, while Shield + heavy armour is better Defense than any other Fighter.
Counterspell should be the target's spellcasting ability saving throw because it's arguably now more powerful than it was before because so many enemy casters have lower constitution saves.
Weapon Mastery needs more. I'm not totally sure what. Just more.
Bringing back Int to Warlock (alongside Cha.) I'll also add the 1/3 casting suggestion (alongside Pact Magic and Invocations) but not holding my breath there. Blade Pact is too powerful.
There's still too little reason to stay in Barbarian past 8th level.
Just copy all of your feedback into a Word doc and submit it multiple times. There's nothing stopping you except your own conscience. I guarantee there are plenty of people that are advocating for bad or no changes that are doing it.
my feedback will be something along the lines of...
barbarian:
for lack of a better word, world tree barb is flamboyant: lots bits flapping around, very magical, very 'look at me!' in the key of viking. could easily have been a druid subclass. wild heart seems like all logical changes. [edit: except for the birdman falcon flight thing. THANK YOU, Halcy, for mentioning that in your post below! previously it was just a big damn jump and now it's full flight?? like a flamingo. flamboyant.]
fighter:
second wind gains an expended use upon short rest. nice. it helps that more classes benefit from short rests, but hopefully without creating an expectation or dependence on them. tactical mind puts some strain on that, but at least you keep the s.wind if the check fails. action surge ditches Magic action: yeah, keep that sort of thing in your homebrew, optimizers. brawler is yet another 'unarmed combat' subclass out before monks, which is not confidence building. brawler might be fun in a more urban and social setting (unarmed but not un-dangerous), but either needs some charisma help for that or else needs some dungeoneering help to not be useless in a cave or open field.
sorcerer:
skip.
warlock:
i'll accept that pact of chain is a secondary boon, but you have to update the familiar spell / rules. and what size is that skeleton?? tome and blade seem alright (assuming that third blade attack was just a blip). pact magic is back but you missed the obvious chance to leave short rest dependence behind by replacing it fully with magical cunning. just give the warlock an appropriate number of pact slots and magical cunning uses upon long rest. also let magical cunning gain an expended use upon short rest, just so warlock's aren't left out since short rests aren't gone gone. also, please expand rituals for warlocks who are the closest thing to playable witches. new pact of the fey is nearly as flamboyant as tree barb. so much bamfing around. however, the various 'step' powers seem to tie it in and really make it live. eldritch hex is a nice surprise, but too bad it had to be hidden in a single subclass. having said that, actually the pact of the goo's is looking pretty enticing starting immediately with changing damage type of spells to psychic.
wizard:
scholar makes sense. moving arcane recovery will bait out multiclass dips, but maybe that's intended. can't wait to see next iteration of modify/create spell. savant adding a spell to your spellbook is a great way to encourage wizards to lean into their chosen flavor, but i'd also accept being shut out of 'opposing' schools. similarly, expert divination encourages casting divination spells. nice! illusory self becomes a shield replacement, could be fun.
misc:
counterspell seems positioned to cast more frequently at players, which sounds alright to me. jump might be useful finally. sap should be an option for quarterstaff (as per the 'now works with versatile' text) which might benefit monks who should already have access to topple as a base class feature. Hide should expand upon the condition 'an enemy finds you,' regarding line of site and how far to stretch the invisible condition. oh, and re-reading the rules for 'knocking out' remind me: please include a skill or feat for mundane healing with herbalist and/or healer's kits with regards to skill checks, whether hit dice are spent, how long the process takes, and whether magical ingredients would influence this (or is that too deep into the realm dm's fiat?)
unhappy at the way in which we lost individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
tell them you don't like features disappeared quietly in the night: provide feedback!
Yeah, I was very pleased with how the base fighter turned out with UA7. The regaining of a Second Wind on short rest (queue Billy Idol's 'Only Human') gives them a very nice sustain, and that's not even talking about their ability to basically self-inspire. It feels like there are the tools of a Warlord-type subclass forming out of the fighter. Imagine being able to give Second Wind, Tactical Mind, or Tactical Shift to allies? I know, I know, "Battle Master" (especially with Rally and such). Yes, yes. You're right, person in the third row! But Warlord, though! :)
I really enjoy cross-role subclasses, and would very much welcome a support-type fighter subclass. Just like I'd love a tanky sorcerer subclass, or a holy-slayer rogue with divine tools at their disposal (Who may or may not call themselves Alexander Anderson).
... wait, we were discussing UA7, not my phantasia-du-soir.
Right! While I never got around to playtesting the sorcerer, I was a little bummed out that the subclasses didn't get a bonus spell selection, like the Tasha's subclasses did. I had hoped that Aberrant and Clockwork would set a standard for how sorcerous subclasses would be going forward. Oh well.
In the survey, I mostly commented on how Wild Heart Falcon Flight and World Tree Planeshifting felt weeeiiird for a barbarian. Thematically on point with the subclass, but far away from my concept of the class as a whole.
Brawler got the spiel about how it spends so much of its subclass allotment on just being equal with a regular weapon-wielder, and how the capstone ability rather feels like a level 10 upgrade. Compare with functional immortality (Champion) or Arcane Machine Gun (Eldritch Knight).
Wizard... well, I didn't have much to say there. I was just sulking over the fact that none of my favourite schools were represented in this batch of subclasses (Where are my transmuter darlings? Or my skelly-boi necro
dancermancers?)Warlock was, yeah, I had a lot of feelings about warlocks. Pretty much all over the place, and mostly echoing my posts on this forum. To consider a hybrid spellcasting system with a limited amount of spell-slots and pact-slots, or a new baseline recovery system, OR just abandoning inherent magic and buy all the tickets on the Invocation train. Choo-choo!
Pretty much anything except being rolled back into the pit of creativity capitulation that is the 2014 model. Yeah, all of that, and a bag of crisps.
Aaand theeen... no. That was pretty much it.
Oh, right. I love the new Jump spell?