Simplified 5e: Spell Lists

D&D's spell lists are the clearest sign that the game needs an overhaul.

Most editions of D&D are designed with backward compatibility in mind. Each one dutifully takes the prior edition's spell list, converts its contents to the new rules, and then adds a few new spells to spice things up.

The thought process is pretty simple. People need the old spells to use the old content, plus new content adds another feature to the list of reasons to upgrade. Over time, though, that means spell lists turn into sprawling lists of effects that a DM needs to track.

Let's do some simple math. I want to write an adventure for a 3rd level party. I can probably assume that there's a cleric in the group. The cleric picks which spells they want to prepare after each long rest. In designing my adventure, I need to account for at least 32 spells, probably more based on the cleric's domain.

I need to remember that this single character can use a spell to:

• Determine if an NPC is lying

• Shut down all noise in an area

• Grant resistance to poison

• Name an object and find a path to it

• Determine if a creature is extraplanar or undead

• Ward against possession by spirits

• Effectively solve for food and water needs

That's one character! The character who is supposed to be a healer!

I don't think the flaw is the existence of these effects. The flaw is one of access. In its earliest days, D&D had few classes and relatively few spells. When running Basic D&D back in the day, I could keep all of the cleric's spells in my head. The list was relatively narrow in scope.

This went double for wizards/magic-users. They rolled for their spells at random. When they tried to add a spell to their book, they had to roll to see if they could understand it. If they failed, they could never learn that spell. Did you ever wonder why D&D has so many spells that are area of effect plus damage? That's why! If you could never learn fireball, you settled for lightning bolt, or cone of cold, or ice storm.

Today, after over 50 years of development, characters have spell casting mechanisms designed for sparse access to spells combined with a teeming ecosystem of magic. The result, in my experience at least, is a game where the DM is always on the back foot.

For my trim down of 5e, I have made drastic cuts to the spell list. The idea is to give DMs a starting list that they can understand. Since this is still just 5e, you can add more spells as you wish. In the class mechanics for casters, spellcasters start with a few spells known and acquire new ones slowly. However, they can add spells they find on scrolls to their list of known spells.

This approach turns spells into treasure and gives the DM an easy way to add spells on a case-by-case basis.

Later this week I'll share some of the revised spell lists and walk through my philosophy on which spells I chose to keep. Paid subscribers will also get access to the priest class on Friday.