Simple Caster Limitation

[Batou1976]

Instead of messing with casting times as drastically as making a 9th level spell take 9 rounds to cast, perhaps what is needed is to bring back fluid initiative, but not like how it was done in 2E.

In 2E, for those who don't know, at the beginning of each round everyone declared their actions and *then* rolled initiative. Spells and "slow" weapons like greatswords applied a modifier which caused you to go later in the round than characters who'd declared faster actions.

Since in 3E/PF you don't decide your action until it's your turn, and initiative is rolled only once, what could be done instead is applying a modifier to the character's current initiative number, causing them to go later in *subsequent* rounds. Spycraft/ Fantasycraft uses this method.

This still wouldn't stop casters from breaking the game outside of combat, though. It would only cause them to think a bit more carefully about throwing around their higher-level (slower) spells.

Those gamebreaking spells and tricks are a big problem though, IMHO. I prefer campaigns that can be compared to Lord of the Rings, Dragonlance Chronicles, Final Fantasy VI, Skyrim (and Oblivion), Lodoss War, etc etc. I definitely do NOT care for games in which a wizard uses some funky combo of spells and feats to make himself king of the earth (and his rogue, fighter, and paladin buddies irrelevant).

Dragonlance would have been rather dull (and cheesy) if Raistlin had simply exploited some Time Stop/ Gate/ Candle of Invocation/ Wish spam trick to deal with things.