Pathfinder Remaster Includes Nerf to Spellcasters

Pathfinder fans are in an uproar due to a change to how cantrip damage is calculated in the upcoming Pathfinder Remaster ruleset. Earlier this week, Paizo released a preview for the Pathfinder Remaster, which shows off some of the changes in the upcoming revisions to the upcoming ruleset. The preview included several spells and cantrips that will appear in the Pathfinder Remaster rulebooks. Players quickly noticed that cantrips like ignition (a replacement for produce flames) had a larger number of damage dice than the cantrips they replace but lacked an ability score modifier add-on to damage. Pathfinder designers confirmed that this was a deliberate design feature and that ability score modifiers would no longer be added to cantrips when calculating damage. 

The math behind the main example provided in the Pathfinder Remaster preview indicates that produce flames at the very least is getting nerfed. Assuming a spellcasting modifier of 4, produce flames deals 1.5 points more damage than an ignition spell cast by the same spellcaster. However, ignition comes with the benefit of being able to be cast as a melee spell attack, which increases the spell damage dice to d6, which would significantly increase the damage of the spell. Keep in mind that the disparity between produce flames and ignition is likely even greater, as the below calculation assumes that the spellcaster never increases its core spellcasting ability, which they almost certainly would in Pathfinder. You can see how the math works out down below. 

While it seems that Pathfinder’s designers have added some additional versatility to ignition, many are speculating that the design change will especially impact low level spellcaster play. Generally speaking, spellcasters at low levels in Pathfinder face some significant damage output challenges (which again is a deliberate design choice) and fans worry that this change will increase the disparity between melee characters and spellcasters, especially at low levels. 

Of course, all of this debate is over one single preview document and not a full ruleset. There could be a lot of context missing that helps shore up the supposed decrease in spellcasting power, we just don’t have it yet. You can check out the full Pathfinder Remaster preview down below and leave your thoughts in the comments!