Should casters be required to learn their new spells from books, teachers...

Should casters be required to learn their new spells from books, teachers, or some other source of information after leveling up, or should the player just be able to pick whatever spell they want from the PHB? I don't want to restrict character generation too much, but it also seems fairer -- after all, martials don't get to just pull whatever weapon they want out of their hats.

If you are playing dnd 5th there are optonal rules for level up training.

If that doesnt appeal to you why should only casters do something to unlock their level up?

I like systems where spellcasters have to actually find new spells out in the world when they level up, but I understand that's not for everyone.

Depends a bit on the caster type. I know that "Depends on..." is a bit of a cop-out answer, but I like having multiple distinct types of magic and am open to the idea that there might be different mechanics for different casters.

That said, it feels more interesting if they have to look for them, and fair since the warriors doesn't spontaneously grow better gear just by leveling up.

I like this too, because it discourages the metagaming inherent in flipping through the PHB to see which spell works best for your build. The players have to gain new spells by interacting with the world, not by thinking through charop choices. If minmaxing is your groups thing and you're okay with that, then go ahead and let them pick spells like feats, but otherwise, I think it's a better idea to give them spells in-game.

One way I like to do this is by presenting them with a number of standard magic textbooks that they can choose at character creation -- the idea being that these spellbooks are common enough that it's reasonable to expect that it wouldn't be too hard for an entry-level wizard to gain access to one. The books have a number of spells in them, from entry-level stuff to higher-level stuff, usually up to around level 3-4 spells. They can learn the spells in the spellbook they chose as soon as their experience level permits.

Of course, they can look for other spells in the world too -- whole other spellbooks, too. I avoid the idea that a single spellbook teaches a single spell, except for the really high-level earthshattering spells like Wish. A spellbook is a manual or textbook of magic, not a CD-rom containing a program for you to install.

It's a nice worldbuilding exercise for me, too: Who wrote this book? What kinds of spells would they put in the book? How do the spells in the book relate to one another? Are they all from the same school of magic ascending in complexity, or are they a buffet of different magical effects of roughly the same power level?

What would the name be like? What would be the style of the writing be? Dry but informative? Technical and academic? Archaic? Vernacular?

I like to include a diverse, high-level grimoire of thematically-appropriate magic called "Structure and Interpretation of Magic Spells" somewhere in the world as a sort of nerdy easter egg.

If the rest of the group is fine with having to go on constant side-quests to make sure their wizard isn't fucking useless, and the wizard is fine with his entire existence being dependent on "Mother may I?", then sure knock yourself out.

You could just handle it like any equipment need.

>"Hey guys what about this idea"
>"That's a horrible idea; you'll execute it badly"

Yes, I feel they should. That or work to discover spells on their own through research they can do on the side.

It's sort of meant to be a balancing thing but also a fluff thing. Even the strongest wizards might not even know any eighth or ninth level spells and only a few seventh level.

Ones who know eighth and ninth level spells tend to jealously guard the knowledge or it's locked away as some forgotten treasure.

Indeed, I mean you don't let fighters just walk into any town and ask for a sword, do you?

They need to find a good blacksmith to be able to forge them good gear who specializes in making weapons and/or armor.

Or they find it in their quests.

I mean, for example, if I havew the wizard and the party take down a lich, you van bet your ass the lich's spellbook is gonna have some topmagic spells in there or at the very least, some good research that will make it that much easier for the caster.

>Should martials be required to get their weapons from stores or loot after getting a new proficiency, or should the player just be able to pick whatever weapon they want out of the PHB

>If the rest of your group is fine going on constant side-quests to make sure their fighter isn't even more fucking useless, and the wizard is fine with his entire existence being dependent on "Mother may I?", then sure knock yourself out.