Author Topic: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?  (Read 8368 times)

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Endarire

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What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« on: April 13, 2010, 05:25:52 AM »
Preface
These spells aren't necessarily the most powerful, or even in core, but they're associated so heavily with a class that their frequent use is expected or using them feels 'right.'

For spell chains (cure light wounds, polymorph...), I assume mentioning one includes the chain.

I'm curious how 'optimal' these iconic spells are in 3.5.

I present you my lists in no particular order.

CLERIC
blade barrier, cure light wounds/heal, dispel magic, divine power, freedom of movement, greater magic weapon, holy word, magic vestment, raise dead, spiritual weapon

DRUID
barkskin, call lightning, entangle, fire seeds, flame strike, freedom of movement, reincarnate, shapechange, shillelagh, vigor

WIZARD
contingency, fireball, grease, haste, invisibility, magic missile, polymorph, scrying, teleport, time stop
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Anklebite

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #1 on: April 13, 2010, 12:03:26 PM »
flamestrike belongs to the cleric, the druid's iconic is firestorm. very iconic, as it specifically doesn't hurt the vegetation around.
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archangel.arcanis

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #2 on: April 13, 2010, 12:14:16 PM »
i would say add disintegrate and Mord.'s Disjunction/Dispel to wizards list. They just always seem to come up in game and always seem to be the "right" choice for preparation.

druid i would also include animal growth and other animal buffs as well as control weather (i actually built a whole character around being a weather based druid) and plant growth (often used in staving villagers farms)

for me cleric is all about the flamestrike. Nothing says old testament like the vengeful wrath of god in pillar form, and old testament is how my clerics roll none of this turn the other cheek stuff.
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PhaedrusXY

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #3 on: April 13, 2010, 12:18:48 PM »
Druid: Entangle (I think the druid is more defined by the animal companion and Wild Shape. Their spellcasting is certainly not the first thing to come to mind when I think of them.)
Cleric: Cure X Wounds, Heal (Yeah, suck it you healbot!)
Wizard: Fireball, Polymorph et al
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Agita

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #4 on: April 13, 2010, 12:30:06 PM »
I'd say Righteous Might is pretty iconic for the Cleric as well.
For Wizards, 'I cast Magic Missile at the darkness', anyone?
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Anklebite

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #5 on: April 13, 2010, 12:31:50 PM »
For Wizards, 'I cast Magic Missile at the darkness', anyone?
you're right. totally gotta add darkness to that list.
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PhaedrusXY

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #6 on: April 13, 2010, 12:40:59 PM »
For Wizards, 'I cast Magic Missile at the darkness', anyone?
you're right. totally gotta add darkness to that list.
:lol
[spoiler]
A couple of water benders, a dike, a flaming arrow, and a few barrels of blasting jelly?

Sounds like the makings of a gay porn film.
...thanks
[/spoiler]

Agita

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #7 on: April 13, 2010, 12:43:19 PM »
For Wizards, 'I cast Magic Missile at the darkness', anyone?
you're right. totally gotta add darkness to that list.
Well played, sir. :D
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Havok4

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #8 on: April 13, 2010, 01:09:45 PM »
You cannot forget about fly for the wizard.

ninjarabbit

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #9 on: April 13, 2010, 01:17:26 PM »
Fireball stopped being iconic in 3rd edition, it's iconness is just carryover from 1st and 2nd edition. In fact I'd be ROFLing in-character if a wizard/sorcerer casted a fireball at me.

I'd say that scorching ray and wings of flurry are the 3rd edition iconic damage spells.

Etarran

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #10 on: April 13, 2010, 01:40:09 PM »
I would definitely consider Prestidigitation to be iconic. Since it basically reads "be a magician."

Charm Person, Enlarge Person, Mirror Image, Sleep, Prismatic Whatever; actually, as far as damage spells go, they mostly show up on the power list for 4th edition. Some utility spells are also ported over.

A good question to ask might be "What do the characters in Order of the Stick cast?"

PhaedrusXY

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #11 on: April 13, 2010, 01:42:23 PM »
Fireball stopped being iconic in 3rd edition, it's iconness is just carryover from 1st and 2nd edition. In fact I'd be ROFLing in-character if a wizard/sorcerer casted a fireball at me.

I'd say that scorching ray and wings of flurry are the 3rd edition iconic damage spells.
Yeah, but I'm old skool.

"This is my fireball. There are many like it, but this one is mine."

"Optimal" and "iconic" have (almost) nothing to do with each other, anyway.
[spoiler]
A couple of water benders, a dike, a flaming arrow, and a few barrels of blasting jelly?

Sounds like the makings of a gay porn film.
...thanks
[/spoiler]

veekie

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #12 on: April 13, 2010, 04:31:09 PM »
Iconic, I think, for nearly all powerful casty types is Telekinesis.
The mind transcends the body.
It's also a little cold because of that.
Please get it a blanket.

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Bloody Initiate

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #13 on: April 13, 2010, 04:37:47 PM »
Fireball stopped being iconic in 3rd edition, it's iconness is just carryover from 1st and 2nd edition. In fact I'd be ROFLing in-character if a wizard/sorcerer casted a fireball at me.

I'd say that scorching ray and wings of flurry are the 3rd edition iconic damage spells.
Yeah, but I'm old skool.

"This is my fireball. There are many like it, but this one is mine."

"Optimal" and "iconic" have (almost) nothing to do with each other, anyway.

Add in the fact that you have to semi-optimize to get Wings of Flurry (last i checked it wasn't even on the wizard list)
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skydragonknight

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #14 on: April 13, 2010, 04:50:06 PM »
Druids: Flaming sphere. I mean, there's a miniature of it.

Also: FIRESTORM!
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veekie

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #15 on: April 13, 2010, 04:55:18 PM »
Druids: Flaming sphere. I mean, there's a miniature of it.

Also: FIRESTORM!
For some reason, casters in media use a disproportionately large amount of fire.
The mind transcends the body.
It's also a little cold because of that.
Please get it a blanket.

I wish I could read your mind,
I can barely read mine.

"Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. At 2:15, it begins rolling up characters."

[spoiler]
"Just what do you think the moon up in the sky is? Everyone sees that big, round shiny thing and thinks there must be something round up there, right? That's just silly. The truth is much more awesome than that. You can almost never see the real Moon, and its appearance is death to humans. You can only see the Moon when it's reflected in things. And the things it reflects in, like water or glass, can all be broken, right? Since the moon you see in the sky is just being reflected in the heavens, if you tear open the heavens it's easy to break it~"
-Ibuki Suika, on overkill

To sumbolaion diakoneto moi, basilisk ouranionon.
Epigenentheto, apoleia keraune hos timeis pteirei.
Hekatonkatis kai khiliakis astrapsato.
Khiliarkhou Astrape!
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skydragonknight

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #16 on: April 13, 2010, 04:57:21 PM »
Druids: Flaming sphere. I mean, there's a miniature of it.

Also: FIRESTORM!
For some reason, casters in media use a disproportionately large amount of fire.

Yes, they should use more tentacles.
It always seems like the barrels around here have something in them.

Surreal

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #17 on: April 13, 2010, 05:35:09 PM »
How about psionics?

Fireball stopped being iconic in 3rd edition, it's iconness is just carryover from 1st and 2nd edition. In fact I'd be ROFLing in-character if a wizard/sorcerer casted a fireball at me.

I'd say that scorching ray and wings of flurry are the 3rd edition iconic damage spells.
Yeah, but I'm old skool.

"This is my fireball. There are many like it, but this one is mine."

"Optimal" and "iconic" have (almost) nothing to do with each other, anyway.

I think CO just has a prejudice against fireball and direct damage in general. I consider it a solid spell in those mid levels, especially in any game where you face mooks. I had a DM drop a pair of fireballs on my semi-optimized team and suddenly we (except the evasion guy) were staring at 1/3hp with a couple brutes coming our way. It sure changes your gameplan when you no longer have a hit point buffer to save you from a one hit kill.

Admittedly, I think it has greater impact in the DM's hands rather than the PCs. Knock the PCs down in hp and suddenly they start worrying about survival. Knock the monsters down... and often times they just act the same.
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skydragonknight

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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #18 on: April 13, 2010, 05:43:51 PM »
Psionics: Energy Missle, Mind Thrust and Ego Whip. It's not Psionics until that female wilder with 20+ Cha starts 'Whipping your ego.
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Re: What do you think are the top 10 iconic caster spells?
« Reply #19 on: April 13, 2010, 06:30:25 PM »
Fireball stopped being iconic in 3rd edition, it's iconness is just carryover from 1st and 2nd edition. In fact I'd be ROFLing in-character if a wizard/sorcerer casted a fireball at me.
It doesn't matter what it does (as long as it somehow inflicts fire damage). It wouldn't matter if scorching ray was called fireball. People just like casting a spell that's called fireball.
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