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Vancian spellcasting makes perfect sense, I don& #39;t get how it& #39;s confusing.
Here& #39;s how it works:
Here& #39;s how it works:
>Casting a spell is a lengthy ritual requiring precision and concentration.
>When you cast a spell like this, you can pause it at the penultimate moment, leaving it paused incomplete.
>If you hold the paused ritual in your mind, you can then complete it by saying the final words
>When you cast a spell like this, you can pause it at the penultimate moment, leaving it paused incomplete.
>If you hold the paused ritual in your mind, you can then complete it by saying the final words
You& #39;re doing the bulk of the casting ahead of time, and then pausing and concentrating on the incomplete ritual, so you can snap-cast it later.
Of course, the human mind has limits. You can only memorize a few spells like this at once, since each uses up a chunk of concenration.
Of course, the human mind has limits. You can only memorize a few spells like this at once, since each uses up a chunk of concenration.
Of course, as you become a more powerful magician, you can keep more such spells paused like this; your concentration is a muscle you& #39;ve been exercising.
This makes actual, intuitive sense in terms of the fiction. Way more than spell-points or spontaneous casting (but still with spell slots) or whatever weirdness with preparing-but-not-really 5e does.
It& #39;s not just a game-mechanic with "~memories~" plastered over as an excuse.
It& #39;s not just a game-mechanic with "~memories~" plastered over as an excuse.
You& #39;ll notice that in games with freeform magic, such as Mage, this pattern also tends to emerge. Lengthy rituals to pre-cast powerful effects that are held as stored potential to be completed at a later point.
