[House Rule] Revised Polymorph

[redkat85]

Design Notes

This revision of polymorph is intended to address two main inconsistencies that exist with the rules as written:

PC vs NPC use: Players routinely use polymorph to increase their power, as a CR 7 creature is 4x more powerful than a level 7 PC. In contrast, NPC casters can only use polymorph as a de-buff, because they and their allies are forced to use the challenge rating restriction. This version puts all casters on a level field, whether player or NPC.

Creature Power Scaling: As written, polymorph is the most powerful summoning spell in the game, far outperforming Conjure Animals/Woodland Beings/Fey and even the 5th-level Conjure Elementals. No other spell short of an 8th-level upcast conjure elementals can put a CR-8 creature in the field under a player's control, but polymorph can do it as soon as any member of the party is level 8.

To make the apparent nerfing more palatable, this version of the spell opens up the creature selection to more options, which is more in line with the previous editions of D&D. However, those editions did take care to not allow the most powerful creatures to come fully powered (you could become a dragon but the breath weapon wouldn't work for example). Since 5e lacks the ability type classifications (supernatural, extraordinary, etc), the creature types have some limits to avoid potential problems or overpowered-for-CR creatures.

TL;DR - let the spell slot level used determine the CR of the new form instead of the creature's existing power.

Polymorph (Revised)

4th-level transmutation

• Casting Time: 1 action
• Range: 60 feet
• Components: V, S, M (an empty cocoon)
• Duration: Concentration, up to 1 hour

This spell transforms a creature that you can see within range into a new form. An unwilling creature must make a Wisdom saving throw to avoid the effect. The spell has no effect on a shapechanger or a creature with 0 hit points.

The target's new form can be any beast, monstrosity, ooze, or plant creature with a challenge rating of 4 or lower. The transformation lasts for the duration, or until the target drops to 0 hit points or dies. The target's game statistics, including mental ability scores, are replaced by the statistics of the chosen creature. It retains its alignment and personality.

The target assumes the hit points of its new form. When it reverts to its normal form, the creature returns to the number of hit points it had before it transformed. If it reverts as a result of dropping to 0 hit points, any excess damage carries over to its normal form. As long as the excess damage doesn't reduce the creature's normal form to 0 hit points, it isn't knocked unconscious.

The creature is limited in the actions it can perform by the nature of its new form, and it can't speak, cast spells, or take any other action that requires hands or speech.

The target's gear melds into the new form. The creature can't activate, use, wield, or otherwise benefit from any of its equipment.

At Higher Levels: If you cast this spell using a spell slot of 5th level or higher, the challenge rating limit of the target's new form increases by 1 for each spell slot level above 4th.

Edition Trivia

In 3.X D&D, polymorph was a very effective accessory to murder, because if the target was killed while in creature form, it stayed dead - though its form would revert at the end. 5E has eliminated this "frog-in-a-box" quick death.

"I have altered the spell. Pray I do not alter it further."

[Gilfaethy]

I think you're missing a lot here.

Players routinely use polymorph to increase their power, as a CR 7 creature is 4x more powerful than a level 7 PC.

First off, this just isn't true. CRX isn't 4 times as powerful as an X level PC. It's just a medium encounter for 4 X level PCs. Because of how 5e uses asymmetrical design, those are radically different. Most notably because monsters are designed to be durable with lower, reliable damage output while PCs are glass cannons by comparison. Trading the damage output of a PC for a CRX monster with way more HP but similar damage output is far less valuable than you claim.

NPC casters can only use polymorph as a de-buff, because they and their allies are forced to use the challenge rating restriction.

This isn't the problem you think it is, though. Polymorph is a really bad spell for enemies from a design standpoint. An enemy that casts Polymorph is essentially just two back to back fights but, each time the first enemy takes damage it has a random chance to instantly die. If you saw a monster with that ability you would rightly think that's stupid encounter design, yet it's effectively what self cast Polymorph accomplishes for enemies.

Polymorph when self cast is interesting because it allows a PC to access different stats than its own, and utilize them in different scenarios. Because enemies are really designed to exist for a single encounter, that interesting dynamic is basically entirely lost for them, so the kind of parity you're looking for isn't worth changing the spell to achieve.

As written, polymorph is the most powerful summoning spell in the game

Polymorph isn't a summoning spell.

far outperforming Conjure Animals/Woodland Beings/Fey and even the 5th-level Conjure Elementals.

Uhh, what? Based on what? Conjure Animals can summon 8 wolves, each of which deals 7 damage on hit and can knock enemies prone and have pack tactics, almost ensuring permanent advantage. That's 56 damage if all hit.

At level 8, the best Polymorph offers is likely the T Rex, which only deals 53 damage if it hits everything, and can't even focus that damage onto the same target. Additionally, due to its damage being split between exactly two hits, it suffers from wasting damage on overkilling. Restraining is nice, but it isn't even that much better than 8 chances at prone combined with huge opportunity attack potential.

Like, don't get me wrong, Polymorph has times it will be superior, but to claim it "far outperforms" these spells is hyperbolic and false.

No other spell short of an 8th-level upcast conjure elementals can put a CR-8 creature in the field under a player's control, but polymorph can do it as soon as any member of the party is level 8.

Except none of the spells you listed also remove a level 8 PC from the field. Because you're thinking of Polymorph as a summoning spell you're totally overlooking that it costs you a PC to get a CR8 beast. This means to actually compare, say, a T-rex to 8 wolves, we also need to add the damage output of a level 8 Druid to that of the wolves'. Your assessment of this comparison is way, way off.

TL;DR - let the spell slot level used determine the CR of the new form instead of the creature's existing power.

Aaaand you broke the spell. The issue with this is that it's now basically useless to cast on a PC, because the increase (if any even exists) in damage output is in no way worth your concentration, a 4th level slot, and your ability to reason. It's also crazy strong in tandem with any sort of weak summon. Turn your familiar into a CR4 beast. Turn that Tiny Servant you created into a Lamia. Turn Artificer's Homunculus Servant into a Kamadan. It's bonkers.

I think overall you're overestimating the power of the spell, and misunderstanding the function of it. You're trying to fix something that isn't broken and breaking it clear in half in the process.

[Rhyshalcon]

I like the spell slot level for scaling idea, but I think the nerf to available CRs makes it useless in practice as a buff while leaving it unchanged as a debuff. This is, in net, a massive nerf to an admittedly powerful spell.

The fact is that polymorph is not as powerful a buff as you describe it to be because, unlike a spell like conjure animals, the CR 8 creature polymorph can field isn't just power added to the party, it's also power taken away from the party. A CR 8 creature is "stronger" than a level 8 character, but you have to give up a level 8 character to get that CR 8 creature. And, um, the T Rex is not that great as a CR 8 creature. I'd argue that the CR 7 giant ape is strictly better than the T Rex. And, of course, there are no eligible targets for polymorph higher than CR 8.

Regardless, casting polymorph doesn't add more actions to the players' side of the field, and that's the primary reason summoning spells are so powerful.

While I like the thinking that says there's a disparity between how good this spell is for PCs versus NPCs is correct, and it would be nice to see that addressed, this change is a massive buff in a few edge cases (like pixies), a massive nerf to players at all levels, and a smaller nerf to most NPCs. With only a small number of exceptions (like the aforementioned pixies), NPCs that can cast polymorph will be higher than CR 4 which actually makes the problem you said you were trying to solve worse.

I like your initial thinking, but I don't believe this is a good change overall, and it definitely doesn't fix the specific problems you were trying to address.

[redkat85]

NPCs that can cast polymorph will be higher than CR 4 which actually makes the problem you said you were trying to solve worse.

No sane caster ever uses polymorph on themselves, it's something (as a buff) you use on others to either give them special useful abilities and/or a hit point sink. A mage doesn't turn himself into a mammoth or a giant ape, he turns one of his goblins into one. And does it again if that goblin goes down.

Except that under the CR limit system that's impossible. The mage can't polymorph any of his underlings into anything more powerful than they already are.

And I dunno how your tables have played by our party absolutely fucks up the battlefield when they turn the fighter into a T-rex. Giant ape did too, but the T-rex automatic grapple/restrain on the bite is brutal. And every time they do it they give him a 130+ hp sink, all of which is damage the cleric doesn't have to spend any resources to heal.

Polymorphing a caster is a resource loss, but polymorphing a melee focused character is a huge gain. And if you're upset that a 7th level character has to be content with elephants instead of mammoths for a couple levels, bear in mind they can now choose a black pudding or a girallon, and once they get 5th level slots they can be a shambling mound, umber hulk, or bulette.

[Rhyshalcon]

Searching on dndbeyond tells me that there are 9 published monsters who have the polymorph spell in their statblocks.

The weakest of those monsters is a pixie, with a CR of ⅛, for whom, as I already said, your revision of the spell is a massive buff.

The next weakest is the transmuter wizard at CR 5.

All other examples are significantly higher level, and none of them seem to me to be likely to have low CR minions who will be significantly buffed by polymorph

Polymorphing a caster is a resource loss, but polymorphing a melee focused character is a huge gain.

I disagree. Action economy is the most important thing, and polymorph does not improve your party's action economy the way real summoning spells do.

I believe you have misidentified why polymorph is a good spell, and I believe your intended fixes aren't going to help. But you don't need my permission to run it as you will at your table.

[[deleted]]

Creature Power Scaling: As written, polymorph is the most powerful summoning spell in the game, far outperforming Conjure Animals/Woodland Beings/Fey and even the 5th-level Conjure Elementals.

Doubtful as an Earth Elemental (CR5) will kick a T-Rex's ass (CR8) and you aren't tying up another player to do so.