Scroll and Wand swapping made easy

[Trumpy]

Hello all,

This is a short and simple suggestion I thought of today after being an extensive user of Scrolls and Wands for years.

I believe this suggestion will have a great positive impact on the use of Scrolls and Wands in the game, so here is what I thought of:

Add to Quick Draw Feat:

Toggle on or off:

Wands and Scrolls can be used without equipping the item.

--

Reasoning:

1) This is a convenience feat for those who use a lot of wands and scrolls. i.e. they can do away with it if they need another feat more than that. This will keep "everyone" from getting it. In other words it won't be a must considering an OP perspective. Dropping a feat for this one, I think is enough dilemma to consider, which in turn helps keep things balanced in game.
2) It will allow for more variations in builds. Think of the possibilities. It can allow for more spell slots. It will make things more fun.
3) How many times were you left with a scroll on your hand for a long time after using it by accident? This aims to put an end to this.
4) How many times did you avoid scrolls or wands completely, simply because of the idea that it would be annoying to use them? This will no longer be the case.
5) It is very reasonable to consider that a quick draw feat can benefit the swapping of scrolls and wands as it has to do with swapping things rapidly. Makes a lot of sense.

Please let me know of what you people think. If any of you thought of this or something similar please share, I would like to hear more ideas on how to make this workable. This is just an initial thought.

[PsychoBlonde]

Uh, do you have any notion of how much of a pain in the ass this would be to IMPLEMENT?! They would have to add an entire system for letting you activate a scroll or wand without equipping it--currently there isn't one! Activating one of these items auto-equips it!

The time required to use a wand or a scroll is an opportunity cost. It is part of the balance of the game--a small part, to be sure, but that doesn't mean it's a problem or an inconvenience that would BENEFIT from a "fix".

[PhotoRob]

Uh, do you have any notion of how much of a pain in the ass this would be to IMPLEMENT?! They would have to add an entire system for letting you activate a scroll or wand without equipping it--currently there isn't one! Activating one of these items auto-equips it!

The time required to use a wand or a scroll is an opportunity cost. It is part of the balance of the game--a small part, to be sure, but that doesn't mean it's a problem or an inconvenience that would BENEFIT from a "fix".

There most certainly is a system which would allow this: the exact same system which allows us to drink a potion more-or-less instantaneously without equipping it first. Done!

I thought the "cost of opportunity" was that most wands and scrolls have such a small effect/short duration/low DC (often all three) that they are often not worth using at all.

[DDOKillingMachine]

Please let me know of what you people think.

Okay. It's a terrible idea. If you can't manage your wand and scroll use, you shouldn't be using them. You have hotbars, use those. Yours is exactly the kind of suggestion that gets people talking about how everyone wants an easy button.

[Trumpy]

Okay. It's a terrible idea. If you can't manage your wand and scroll use, you shouldn't be using them. You have hotbars, use those. Yours is exactly the kind of suggestion that gets people talking about how everyone wants an easy button.

Yes I thought of that already. This is absolutely not the case. I have my hotbars. I can manage them expertly. I am not suggesting this for people who cannot manage their hotbars. I am not suggesting better hotbar use nor improvements of player skills either. I am suggesting not having to equip the scroll and swap it back for your primaries . In other words: to avoid having to cast from a scroll then equip your weapon again then equip the scroll again and back and forth. It is only for convenience, which will also make many of those "totally unused scrolls" in the game, useful again for those who may take the feat. I find "having to swap" all the time, one of the major reasons why a great majority of scrolls are left unused by myself. I find the low level of the scroll or the duration not to be the #1 reason for scrolls uselessness, but this!

I am quite positive my suggestion is not "exactly the kind of suggestion that gets people talking about how everyone wants an easy button". 1) This is very interesting: who is everyone? 2) In which other specific cases people wanted easy buttons and why is it similar to this?

Maybe you have a point and I would like to hear it.

[EllisDee37]

Uh, do you have any notion of how much of a pain in the ass this would be to IMPLEMENT?! They would have to add an entire system for letting you activate a scroll or wand without equipping it--currently there isn't one! Activating one of these items auto-equips it!

There are clickies in the game you use without equipping. Key to Eveningstar, for example.

Though I agree with your point about opportunity costs. The hassle of switching them in and out is a feature, not a bug.

[Trumpy]

Uh, do you have any notion of how much of a pain in the ass this would be to IMPLEMENT?! They would have to add an entire system for letting you activate a scroll or wand without equipping it--currently there isn't one! Activating one of these items auto-equips it!

The time required to use a wand or a scroll is an opportunity cost. It is part of the balance of the game--a small part, to be sure, but that doesn't mean it's a problem or an inconvenience that would BENEFIT from a "fix".

I agree that the time and opportunity cost balances the game out. In fact I think this is the most important aspect to consider. Balance! On the other hand, dropping a feat-slot for this, is a loss too that may offer a dilemma. I find available scrolls and wands not to be OP at all and someone who picks up this specific feat might play in a different way, not outbalancing or outweighing the game in general or other players, even when one saves that portion of time. It will be the same as if he were having to swap scrolls, but with a plus at the loss of a feat slot. BUT it can also be totally overcome, if more effective, in that timing remains exactly the same.

I am talking about frequent scroll use made less of a nightmare. Not having to waste so much energy swapping and swapping and swapping. The only alternative we have RIGHT NOW, to avoid this "back and forth" scroll swapping, is to drop all those scrolls that we might have used otherwise. And this is what is actually happening. When I ask people around, this is the response I get. There are so many actions to be taken in the game that having to swap scrolls frequently, in addition to those actions, is a pain in the butt to my " focusing too much attention" that simply makes the game not much fun played this way. Having to worry whether the weapon was re-equipped the first time I clicked on it or not, after using a scroll, is also a reason not to go with scrolls.

It may be made possible to attain this convenience, without affecting balance negatively. It may even affect it positively. How about making more frequent use of scrolls and also of scrolls left unused for ages. This needs much more thought and this thread is for this purpose.

Here is a rough idea to allow for your balance suggestion to not be an issue anymore:

Through toggling "feat" on, scrolls and wands take a little longer to cast but are not equipped. As long as it may require to balance the thing out.

The main dilemma for now is this:

Do I Prefer:

1) Sacrifice a Feat, and get "no-swapping" scrolls, + extra casting time or whatever.
2) Or keeping the feat and use scrolls the regular way.

And this is the best I came up so far (subject to improvement with your support)

More ideas welcome

[cru121]

I agree with OP's idea. Switching gear is often laggy affair. Using scrolls / wands is pretty awkward right now. Three clicks to activate item and switch back to original weapon set. This would be replaced with a single click, which would perform everything. This would still show the animation of character casting from a scroll, etc.

To me, this is a QoL improvement, similar to how crossbows now automatically shoot and reload with a single click.

/signed

[Impaqt]

There is no system in the game that allows you to USE items differently based on a feat or enhancement.

Even if there was, this is a horrible idea and unnecessary.

you have to READ a scroll to use it. That means it has to be in your hands. It has to be equipped.

Same argument for wands.... You need to gesture or use the wand in your hand, It needs to be equipped....

As for Potions, I'd actually be in favor of making us equip those as well before drinking them. Or at least make a dexterity check and if you fail, you stab yourself in the head with what ever is currently equipped in your hand.

[cru121]

Even if there was, this is a horrible idea and unnecessary.

you have to READ a scroll to use it. That means it has to be in your hands. It has to be equipped.

Same argument for wands.... You need to gesture or use the wand in your hand, It needs to be equipped....

Yes, but why does this process require three clicks on hotbars, when a single click could accomplish the same

[Trumpy]

There is no system in the game that allows you to USE items differently based on a feat or enhancement.

Even if there was, this is a horrible idea and unnecessary.

you have to READ a scroll to use it. That means it has to be in your hands. It has to be equipped.

Same argument for wands.... You need to gesture or use the wand in your hand, It needs to be equipped....

As for Potions, I'd actually be in favor of making us equip those as well before drinking them. Or at least make a dexterity check and if you fail, you stab yourself in the head with what ever is currently equipped in your hand.

you have to READ a scroll to use it. That means it has to be in your hands. It has to be equipped. => This is true. In this case the quick draw is better left out. So it is out of the question now. I respect DnD logic and I wouldn't like it altered. This makes quick draw NOT the solution to the swapping. The items must be equipped. Thank you.

Same argument for wands.... You need to gesture or use the wand in your hand, It needs to be equipped.... = Same as above. This is very true.

Even if there was, this is a horrible idea and unnecessary. => This idea is definitely not a horrible idea. It is the other way around. It is the beginning of an awesome idea. It can be made much more workable than what we have now, but apparently falls out of DnD logic. This is all about it. Referring to the gesture and the reading. I will think it out and come up with a better solution. If any has any other way of dealing with this that would be awesome.

I will add any suggestions to the initial post to make it more readily available.

[Impaqt]

Yes, but why does this process require three clicks on hotbars, when a single click could accomplish the same

I dont know why it takes you three. It only takes me 2. Once to equip. One to use.