Adaptive Casting

[callen]

@David_Chart

So, if Adaptive Casting were errata'd to apply to all Similar Spells, would that break anything?

It probably wouldn't break anything. It would solve your issue of General spells being a notational convenience, as Adaptive Casting existing essentially requires magi to recognize general spells. However, I think magi do recognize General spells. Let's say one magus casts Aegis of the Hearth (ReVi 20). Now let's say a second magus casts some spell that we note as Aegis of the Hearth (ReVi 25). What name do the characters use for the second magus's spell? If it's still known as Aegis of the Hearth, then the concept of a General spell is known in-character even if characters wouldn't use the term "General."

That said, while it wouldn't really break anything, it wouldn't fix much of anything, either.

@David_Chart

(It also needs a note that you can only apply a single Spell Mastery to a single casting of a spell, even if you have multiple mastered Similar Spells all with Adaptive Casting. I can actually see use cases for that if someone has Flawless Magic — I can't see it being worth the time for anyone else.)

Yes, this is one of the problems. As it exists, we can have situations like the following. Imagine a magus with Flawless Magic who has a General spell at level 30 with Spell Mastery 10. The magus spends a single season in the lab inventing the same spell at levels 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, each time taking Adaptive Casting. Does the magus get to add +5 and remove 5 more botch dice when casting the level-30 spell?

There remain other problems that must still be addressed as well. This only addresses one of them.

@dc444

Personally I like the idea that all the formula-like guidelines be rewritten as general ones using the formula, if the intent was to have a maximum (to say the amount of damage a flame could do) there could be a max guideline level listed in the guideline. I also think it would save a bit of space that could be used for more guidelines from some of the supplements which many would like to see.

Yes, that would be nice. There are some times the formula is tougher to write, like when the pattern goes 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, ... That 1 there is tougher to include, but it would still be better to write it with such a pattern and a note about the exception with that first magnitude used.

There are also other guidelines that don't seem to have such a pattern due to wording, even though they do. Consider CrCo healing wounds: "Heal a Light Wound" v. "Heal a Medium Wound." The higher-level one does the same thing ("Heal a [severity] Wound"), it's just more powerful. Technically these qualify, but I don't think writing them as a pattern would simplify things for anyone.

@Samsaptaka

Would that also apply outside of the general spell and Adaptive Casting context? That is, would it prevent one from, say, both fast- and multi-casting a Pilum of Fire at the same time?

That's a separate issue. I've always read the core rule "the maga may not exploit any other spellcasting options, as there is not enough time" (p.83) as saying you cannot do this.

@Red-Shadow-Claws

Other than Magi who have Flawless Magic, or Mastered Spell, how often have you seen players invest in Spell Mastery?

Pretty much every magus I make. There tend to be a few spells that are so central to a magus's repertoire that it's worth sinking 5 or 15 experience from character creation or adventure into these at the very least.