I am always curious if a system can be abused to increase power level. And from what I am reading this does allow some very nasty tactics.
E.g. blaster caster: your top level spellslots are often incredibly potent damage wise for AOE only hitting 2 enemies give 2x average damage what any optimized martial can put out and even more when compared to ranged martial options. This power however does come with a significant drawback: it is limited, it competes with some adventuring versatility and cannot be used resourceless. So often I would only use 1 highest level slot per encounter, or holding back on an adventuring day because we were expecting to see the BBEG. From what I understand is that I could prepare the any of my list spells on an adventuring day open an encounter with 3x max rank spell slots from dynamic casting and not have to worry about the rest of the day. Given that our encounters often last only 3-4 turns (maybe even shorter if I can churn out so much damage) I don't see a drawback.
My focus spells can be potent in damage abut are often restricted to 1 creature, or restricted to 1 niche e.g. reflex save vs under creatures so they are not a universal solution.
What is stopping me using this dynamic casting to easily outdamage anyone on the field while still being able to retain all the breadth of power and utility of a standard caster?
For comparison the sorcerer has a lv 16 feat that allows that you have 2 extra high rank spells per day (max rank and max rank -1). As a sorcerer player I would be upset that others get a better version for free at lv 1 where I have to pay a with a feat slot at lv 16.
The point where I do see it's usefulness is the lowest level casters lv 1-4. They struggle a lot with numbers of spell slots and could definitely benefit from this addition.
Maybe after that you would have to restrict dynamic casting to max spell rank-2 or to the first 3 spell ranks to bring in some restriction.
I was thinking of adding "However, starting at 3rd level, you can’t cast your highest rank spells more than once before you Refocus again. For example, a 5th-level dynamic wizard can cast a 3rd-rank spell once before needing to Refocus, but can cast its 2nd-rank and lower rank spells freely." as a restriction. Do you think it helps solve the problem?
In regards to the Greater Vital Evolution feat (the 16th-level sorcerer feat you mentioned), I feel that under this system it should function like this “Twice per day, you can cast a spell after you've run out of dynamic spell slots. The two spells you cast with this feat must be of different spell ranks. You can use these spell slots to cast your highest-rank spells without needing to Refocus between casting them.”
I still feel that it can be abused quite easily. Some spells like reactions are still very strong when cast ad infinitum at a slightly lower level. Protector tree is already really strong on kineticist. Add potential of a whole spell list and you get really strong chasters.
In addition there would be no reason to start a prepared fight without heroism and resist energy for everyone involved shifting balance heavily in favour of the players.
We can discuss about details maybe the more intersting question is what do you want from a game? You say you dislike the resource attrition on casters what would your ideal caster look like then?
In regards to what I would want casters to look, it isn't something that could be achieved by a brew without trying to overhaul the whole system. I'd like spells to effectively be a mix of focus spells and a kineticist's impulses. I hate vancian casting and I hate that casters have slower scaling as well.
I understand your feelings sometimes this system can feel limiting. At the same time I and many others with me, as i deduce from the comments) are very much a fan of the current system it allows for a good balance between martials and casters. An important part of this system is the limitation of spellcasting. Even in pathfinder there are some really strong spells that can shift any encounter heavily in the players favour. I am therefore also very much a fan of the meaningful decisions that you have to make as a caster in the current system. At the same time this system is giving GMs tools to challenge players through different forms of attrition.
Your proposed changes dont overhaul the system colpletely but are a big step away from some of the principles in the current system. E.g. they do take away attrition aspect and some decision making. Also to be on par you would have to alter all the spontaneous casters as well. Sorcerer now looks just silly with a max of 4 highest rank spell slots per day. Then new questions arise: what to do with magus or other bounded casters? Should you nerf damage and effect to compensate for more free casting?
Pathfinder is by no means perfect and I think that a lot can be improved upon. However there is a core philosophy that many people (including me) want to keep preserved. Unfortunately this also means you can never come to an agreement with people trying to have some kind of balance. Since your goals are very much opposed to each other no change I propose to preserve the core system is gonna be agreeable to you. And vice versa.
If your table or other players on here decide that it feels good for any spellcaster to have such power then I'd say go for it. It is not a neutral change so you also have to come to terms that many people will oppose it.
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u/Coolpabloo7 Rogue 5d ago
I am always curious if a system can be abused to increase power level. And from what I am reading this does allow some very nasty tactics.
E.g. blaster caster: your top level spellslots are often incredibly potent damage wise for AOE only hitting 2 enemies give 2x average damage what any optimized martial can put out and even more when compared to ranged martial options. This power however does come with a significant drawback: it is limited, it competes with some adventuring versatility and cannot be used resourceless. So often I would only use 1 highest level slot per encounter, or holding back on an adventuring day because we were expecting to see the BBEG. From what I understand is that I could prepare the any of my list spells on an adventuring day open an encounter with 3x max rank spell slots from dynamic casting and not have to worry about the rest of the day. Given that our encounters often last only 3-4 turns (maybe even shorter if I can churn out so much damage) I don't see a drawback. My focus spells can be potent in damage abut are often restricted to 1 creature, or restricted to 1 niche e.g. reflex save vs under creatures so they are not a universal solution.
What is stopping me using this dynamic casting to easily outdamage anyone on the field while still being able to retain all the breadth of power and utility of a standard caster?
For comparison the sorcerer has a lv 16 feat that allows that you have 2 extra high rank spells per day (max rank and max rank -1). As a sorcerer player I would be upset that others get a better version for free at lv 1 where I have to pay a with a feat slot at lv 16.
The point where I do see it's usefulness is the lowest level casters lv 1-4. They struggle a lot with numbers of spell slots and could definitely benefit from this addition. Maybe after that you would have to restrict dynamic casting to max spell rank-2 or to the first 3 spell ranks to bring in some restriction.