Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Suggestions & Feedback Please remove surface effects on cantrips

They're not supposed to be mechanically complex/interesting. They exist to allow casters to have a "basic attack" that scales with them, similar to how fighters will get weapons with +2d6 fire damage. Casters already get hundreds of interesting and complex spells that allow them to alter the terrain and create crazy effects on the battlefield (at least in 5e). They don't need to also do it on every single spell they cast.

They're not supposed to be mechanically complex/interesting. They exist to allow casters to have a "basic attack" that scales with them, similar to how fighters will get weapons with +2d6 fire damage. Casters already get hundreds of interesting and complex spells that allow them to alter the terrain and create crazy effects on the battlefield (at least in 5e). They don't need to also do it on every single spell they cast. [/quote]


That is where we disagree. I think they all should be interesting/complex and I'd rather the game be interesting than entirely faithful to the rules. If they came up with a way to make the fighter's basic attack more interesting I'd support that too.

I never said I want a game that's entirely faithful to the rules. In fact, I've said elsewhere that I think it would be a mistake to do a 1 to 1 adaptation. But right now we have a situation where every single battle turns into The Floor Is Lava. Oops, I used my Acid Splash on an enemy, which means I better not enter melee combat with him because my ally will inexplicably lose 2 AC. Having an AOE cantrip is already fantastic.

It's just too much.

I like the surface creation. It makes these spells more interesting than if they would just deal normal damage.

I get that and I can see where you are coming from. I just happen to enjoy the system as it is but if the majority of people want it changed and it is I am not going to complain about it.

I agree, I love the creativity, and maybe allow creating a surface if you target a surface instead of a creature, but otherwise firebolt should just be 1d10 damage.

This.... so much this...

Give Sacred flame something as well....

+1

Spells need to be 100% accurate to the source material. Ergo, firebolt lighting a desk on fire: awesome! Firebolt creating a puddle of scalding hot terrain: inaccurate and a big nope from me dawg.

I thought I would be clever and flank the goblin village to the left, went into timed mod or whatever you call it, you have to if not as soon as one person jumps up the hill the other 3 run off and right into the middle of the ambush and bam, acid arrows and fire arrows that leave 12x12 pools of acid and fire? WH all that from a arrow tip? way overpowered.

This is off topic but for the Love of God, give us a command option for the companions like I dont know ... STAY HERE DONT MOVE! lol

I like this version, I think the only reason why they dont have those effects in p&p is for the nightmare that will be to calculate surface effects, thats why a lot of dms have house rules for it.

Either way, this should be an easy thing to mod if we wanted to have the "no surfaces" option.

Not if the combat is balanced around it...

Please don't tone down the cantrips visually! I love seeing Eldritch Blast and the sacred fire priest one...

Really need this honestly. One Firebolt is pretty much 1d6 + (Unavoidable) 1d4 from the fire ground spawning + (Unavoidable) 1d4 at start of turn since they're standing in fire + 1d4 if the fire isn't put out before the start of their next turn. You've hit someone (and possibly others) with a 1d6 and a full 3 shots of magic missile using a CANTRIP.

Enemies rarely stay in just one point however

The problem is they've already taken the 1d6 + 1d4 from the initial cast and at the beginning of their turn before they can even move they take an additional 1d4 from the fire ground. If they move and cannot put the fire out they take an additional 1d4 because of lingering burn damage they had because of the fire ground they were forced to get hit by.

I think that there's a happy medium to be had here. I rather like the surface interaction because of the utility and flexibility they provide; one of my most triumphant feelings I got in this game was in the crypt when I realized I could use ray of frost to put out fires. But I think that surface effects do need to be toned down because it causes a lot of chaos in combat. Like acid damage-I don't think there should be an acid surface effect both because it apparently doesn't exist in D&D from what I've heard and logically it doesn't make sense that there should be a negative effect from standing in a puddle of acid. I think if an acid attack hits you it should do that reduced armour thing and if it doesn't either nothing happens or it becomes a surface you can ignite or freeze, just for that extra cool dynamic problem solving.

Urgh I really hoped they stick with the PnP rules.

I played DOS1 and I liked it. There I Tried to avoid surface effects and focussed on stuff that hit characters.
I never finished DOS2, partly because way too many effects. Half of the map is filled with necrofire or similar stuff after the first round of every combat. Even regular weapon attacks can cause crazy chain reactions ( enemies bleed poison or fire) and even in the most simple case a regular attack spills huge amounts of blood that could be frozen, electrified or cursed.

- Only spells that mention a surface effect in the PnP description should have such an effect (e.g. grease)
- Only spells whose PnP description mentiones an over time effect in PnO rules should do something in the next round.
- Cantrips are the basic attack for casters, not something that produces crazy effects.
- Please do not put oil barrels and similar stuff everywhere. This makes absolutely no sense ( unless maybe you have a fight in a harbor of a town that has oil as main export product).
In my life I have never seen barrels with oil, water or whatever standing around in the environment, except for industrial areas.