Catnap: A Shorter Short Rest
Usable By: Artificer, Bard, Sorcerer, Wizard
Spell Level: 3
School: Enchantment
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 30 feet
Duration: 10 minutes
Components: S, M (a pinch of sand)
You make a calming gesture, and up to three willing creatures of your choice that you can see within range fall unconscious for the spell’s duration. The spell ends on a target early if it takes damage or someone uses an action to shake or slap it awake. If a target remains unconscious for the full duration, that target gains the benefit of a short rest, and it can’t be affected by this spell again until it finishes a long rest.
Review by Sam West, Twitter: @CrierKobold
Catnap, to me, highlights a glaring problem in 5th edition: resting. Short versus long rest mechanics were designed and playtested with a fairly large quantity of encounters in mind. Turns out, most tables don’t come close to running the recommend quantity of fights before each long rest, and short rests tend to happen once in awhile between the two fights a session might cram in. This leaves classes like warlocks starved for spells while long rest resource based characters like paladins and wizards can fire off all their spell slots in a handful of rounds and look and feel way more badass.
To rectify the variety of play styles, the designers have a good chunk of variants built into their books. Alternate resting is one such variant; short rests can become shorter, long rests can take longer. These goals aim to change the feel of a game. Having more resources with less time loss hypothetically can lend itself to more games where everyone is blasting all their coolest stuff out every fight. Unfortunately, with how wonky time is within the scope of an RPG, the difference between an hour and ten minutes can get very blurry. Some tables could play with ten minute short rests and feel next to no difference in game play, while others suddenly could get all their resources back after every fight. Other tables yet will still just do one big encounter each session with long rests in between, making the short rest mechanic still moot.
Catnap then is in an awkward space. Getting a fifty minute discount on a short rest for a 3rd level slot can be entirely useless, or unbelievably busted. Some games will find their Warlock refreshing their spell slots an extra time brings them up to speed with the rest of the casters; others may find their fighter really doesn’t benefit all that much from it anyway, as a third level slot may not be worth the single action surge and second wind.
This spell aims to aid a problem, and at the right tables, can be a welcome tool in addressing the game design issues with the resting system. I worry that at others it will come as a false promise, and player’s will find spending ten consecutive minutes in the high-stakes dungeons their delving into just as difficult as taking an hour rest. If you’re looking to help you your short rest friends who you feel are struggling, or think you can boost up an already powerful buddy into broken territories, try it out. Be ready to swap it out though should you find your table just doesn’t work with it.
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