Adam Ormond wrote:
Serisan wrote:
My larger concern is Barrier.
Shock Arc Burning Flash Barrier at level 5 on a Wizard = 5d4 Electricity + 5d4 Fire in a close range (placed wherever you want) straight line stretching 10 ft per caster level (50 ft), 20 ft if boosted (100 ft, which has no level impact). This is at the same level as Fireball. Yes, it's still instantaneous.
In your reading of the Words of Power system, you missed this paragraph:
Ultimate Magic, p165 wrote:
Multiple Effect Words and Damage: If more than one
effect word causes the wordspell to deal damage, the total
number of dice of damage the wordspell can deal can be
no greater than the wordspell’s caster level. The caster
can decide which dice belong to which effect word, in any
combination, so long as the total number does not exceed
his wordcaster level and the number of dice allocated to a
specific effect word does not exceed its maximum.
That spell deals 5d4 Electricy OR Fire. And it is instantaneous. And he's limited himself to Close range that can only effect two squares. By comparison, if he used a Boosted Line he could effect 24 squares. Even a non-boosted Line could effect 4 squares. Alternatively, he could use the Burst target word and have the same Close range and effect 12 squares. Or a Boosted Burst for squares at Medium range.
Clearly Barrier is the losing choice.
The system has flaws, but that's not one of them. Evoking is better under Words of Power, but that's about the only type of casting that is better. And Evoking is so horribad in general, that a slight boost under an optional system is not only ok, it's warranted.
Having just perused this part of the book for ideas, I also think there is a portion in the Barrier info section that states it can't be placed anywhere that is occupied by any being, precluding it from being used anything but defensively. Yes the damages might apply but you can't substitute it as a line spell anyway you want.
