With all the talk about the removal of so many spells or "dumbing down" of the mage class, I wanted to do an actual comparison to see exactly what we lost, what was replaced, what was changed, etc.
If you don't want to read through everything (I needed something to occupy my morning, I wrote a lot xD) I can tell you this: Nearly every spell that was "removed" was either a duplicate of an already existing spell (Lightning/Arcane Bolt, Weakness/Disorient, Affliction/Vulnerability, etc.) or was combined into an existing spell (Death Siphon+Death Magic=Necromancer's Death Siphon. Cleansing Aura+Group Heal+Revive= KE's Resurgence.) and other spells were removed because the mechanic behind them was altered. For example, most of the Creation tree was arguably removed due to the changes to Ranged/Melee/Magic Defense, healing with Barrier/Guard, similar spells in other trees, etc. And other spells were removed because their utility was built into an existing spells: Which means you can basically play the exact same way, you'll just do it with far fewer spells. Instead of casting Mass Paralysis+Tempest, simply cast Static Cage to achieve a nearly identical effect. In a way, this compensates for the 8 ability + 100 mana limits.
Things I didn't include in this list: DA:Awakening, DA2, new spells we got in DAI.
Conclusion: Although many spells were seemed to be removed, they technically still exist, just combined with other spells. This essentially leaves us with almost as many options, but with fewer buttons to press and (perhaps) fewer decisions to make, not only while choosing abilities but also in combat.
Mage
Spoiler
Arcane Bolt: Single target Spirit damage missile. Arguably replaced by increased Staff DPS / Spirit Runes.
Arcane Shield: Increases defense. With the removal of the "defense" stat, dodging attacks actually require movement instead of failing auto-attacks.
Staff Focus: Increases staff DPS. Staff DPS was increased in later games; this spell became built-in.
Arcane Mastery: Passive effect that increases spell power by 5. Most mage passives increase Magic/Willpower by small amounts.
Primal
Spoiler
Fire
Spoiler
Flame Blast: AOE Cone DoT. Replaced by targeted AOE Circle DoT (Immolate)
Flaming Weapons: Adds fire damage on-hit. Arguably replaced by Fire Runes... But mostly removed.
Fireball: AOE Damage+DoT+Knockdown. Arguably nerfed and replaced by Immolate, with the knockdown becoming a brief stagger. Also, Fire Mine: the time it takes for the glyph to prime takes only slightly longer than it did for the Fireball to reach its destination. More tactical, less flashy.
Inferno: AOE DoT. Replaced by Rift Mage's Firestorm, and arguably by a much smaller-scale Wall of Fire.
Cold
Spoiler
Winter's Grasp: Single target damage+freeze. Still in the game, buffed to add chill/AOE.
Frost Weapons: Same as Flaming Weapons explanation.
Cone of Cold: AOE Cone damage+freeze. Arguably replaced by Mana Surge: AOE Freeze upon Barrier depletion.
Blizzard: AOE DoT+Chill. Still in the game.
Lightning
Spoiler
Lightning: Same as Arcane Bolt, but with Lightning. Replaced by increased DPS Lightning Staves.
Shock: AOE Cone damage. Pretty much removed, although there are other AOE Lightning Spells like Lighting Bolt.
Tempest: AOE DoT. Replaced and arguably buffed in the form of Static Cage: AOE damage on-hit, paralyze, pull.
Chain Lightning: Still in the game.
Earth
Spoiler
Rock Armor: Armor bonus. Removed. Arguably transformed into Ice Armor.
Stonefist: Single target damage+knockdown. Still in the game, arguably buffed.
Earthquake: AOE Slow+Knockdown. Removed. The slow isn't dissimilar to Blizzard's slow, or KE's Disruption Field, on a smaller scale.
Petrify: Single target freeze. Removed, replaced by Winter's Grasp/Ice Mine/Brittle Glyph etc.
Creation
Spoiler
Healing
Spoiler
Heal: Obviously Removed... arguably replaced by Guard/Barrier/Healing Potions/Camps mechanics lol
Rejuvenate: Stamina regen buff. Removed, compensated for by drastically increased Stamina regeneration rate and Rejuvenating Barrier.
Regeneration: HoT. Removed, compensated for by Barrier/Guard.
Mass Rejuvenation: Group Stamina regen. Same as Rejuventate. Also compensated for by (bugged?) stamina on kill masterworks + stamina regen passives. Also, Rejuvenating Barrier.
Enhancements
Spoiler
Heroic Offense: Single target attack buff. Removed, compensated for by rework of the Attack/Defense dodge system. You actually have to move instead of relying on RNG chance.
Heroic Aura: Single target ranged defense buff. Ranged Defense now reduces damage taken and is increased by certain passives/cunning/elf racial.
Haste: Mana-draining group speed buff. Replaced by Necromancer's Haste; Everything else is slowed.
Glyph of Warding: AOE Magic/Ranged/Defense Buff. Removed.
Glyph of Knockback: Persistent Knockback Glyph. Removed. Arguably compensated for by Ice/Fire Mine, or replaced by Ice Wall.
Glyph of Neutralization: Instant AOE Mana Drain. Removed, made less useful by the buffs to mana regeneration.
Summoning
Spoiler
Spell Wisp: Sustained Spellpower boost. Removed, compensated by various +Magic on kill passives/masterworks.
Grease: AOE Slow, combo for tickling fire. Removed.
Manabloom: AOE Mana regeneration buff. Removed, no longer needed with the buffs to mana regen.
Insect Swarm: AOE Dot+Swarm. Replaced by Jar of BEEEES
Spirit
Spoiler
Anti-Magic
Spoiler
Spell Shield: Spell damage drains mana instead of health. Removed, replaced by Barrier.
Dispel Magic: Single target dispel. Replaced by AOE Dispel.
Anti-Magic Ward: Protects target from all magical effects. Removed.
Anti-Magic Burst: AOE Dispel. Still in the game, arguably buffed with the detonator.
Mana Alteration (Pretty Much Entirely Removed)
Spoiler
Mana Drain: Single target mana drain. As the name implies. Removed.
Mana Cleanse: AOE Mana depletion. Removed.
Spell Might: Spellpower bonus, mana penalty. Removed. Arguably replaced by +Magic on kill passives/masterworks.
Mana Clash: Single target mana sacrificed = damage. Removed.
Telekinesis
Spoiler
Mind Blast: AOE Stun. Altered to AOE Knockback+Threat Reduction+Barrier Generation.
Force Field: Single target stasis. Removed.
Telekinetic Weapons: Armor Penetration bonus. Removed, arguably compensated for by changes to Armor penetration.
Crushing Prison: Single target paralysis+damage. Removed, arguably compensated for by Paralyzed Storm targets getting smacked.
Entropy
Spoiler
Death
Spoiler
Walking Bomb: Well, you know what it does. Still in the game, Necromancer.
Death Siphon: Drains mana from nearby dead things. Still in the game: Necromancer's Death Siphon.
Virulent Walking Bomb: Still in the game, upgraded Necromancer Walking Bomb.
Animate Dead: Raises a skeleton from a dead thing. Arguably replaced and buffed by Spirit Mark. Arguably.
Debilitation
Spoiler
Weakness: Single target attack/defense/speed debuff. Removed, arguably compensated for by changes to mentioned mechanics/chill effects. Also, the "weakened" status.
Paralyze: Single target paralysis. Removed, compensated for by having Paralysis built into different Storm spells.
Miasma: AOE Weakness. Removed, arguably replaced by Blizzard and changes to Weakness mechanics. Rift Mage AOE weakness accomplishes the same thing.
Mass Paralysis: As the name implies. Removed, compensated for by Static Cage's AOE Paralysis effect.
Sleep
Spoiler
Disorient: Literally does the exact same thing as Debilitation's Weakness, but without the slow. See Weakness.
Horror: Single target stun. Removed, arguably replaced and buffed by Necromancer's AOE Horror+Panic.
Sleep: AOE Sleep. Removed from mages, essentially became a rogue mechanic. Arguably replaced by Panic.
Waking Nightmare: Messes with an enemy to make them crazy... Difficult to summarize lol. Removed.
Hexes (Pretty much entirely removed)
Spoiler
Vulnerability Hex: Single target resistances debuff. Removed.
Affliction Hex: Its the same as Vulnerability Hex, but AOE. Removed.
Misdirection Hex: Enemies miss attacks, crits become normal hits. Removed.
Death Hex: All hits become critical on this target. Removed.
Draining
Spoiler
Drain Life: Drain life from an enemy. Removed, compensated for by heal on kill / heal on hit enhancements.
Death Magic: Drain health from dead enemies. Still in the game: Necromancer's Death Siphon does the same thing on kill.
Curse of Mortality: Prevents healing, inflicts constant damage. Removed, made useless by the lack of enemy healing.
Death Cloud: AOE DoT. Arguably replaced by Necromancer's upgraded Horror... But not really.
Specializations
Spoiler
Blood Magic: Removed, Blood Control = Spirit Mark though. Arguably, using a health potion = Blood Sacrifice, since you're taking away an ally's chance to restore health.
Shape shifter: Removed. Teach us, Morrigan. I want to be a dragon.
Arcane Warrior: KE is way more fun in my opinion, and just as balanced. Instead of relying on a number of passives/sustainables, KE simply generates barrier on hit and has a melee-range spell, and can switch from being melee to ranged seamlessly. Very versatile.
Spirit Healer: Group Heal becomes Resurgence. Revive is still Revive. Cleansing Aura built into Resurgence. Lifeward becomes Lifeward Amulet.
Your opinions on spells that are basically the same is laughable. Wall of fire(an 8 foot wide, 8 foot high line spell) is the same as Inferno(A giant 360* flame tornado)...?
Arcane Shield: Increases defense. With the removal of the "defense" stat, dodging attacks actually require movement instead of failing auto-attacks.
----
[spoiler]Heroic Offense: Single target attack buff. Removed, compensated for by rework of the Attack/Defense dodge system. You actually have to move instead of relying on RNG chance.
Those two alone show the problem with this game compared to DAO,DAII
In RPG's I want my character to be dodgy/have good reflexes/have defense spells. My reflexes shouldn't matter at all.
The more I think about it, Fire Mine is really similar to fireball. It has damage, burning, knockdown (when upgraded), and it takes time to prime similar to how fireball has to travel (though a bit slower).
We definitely did lose some ongoing damage AOE spells, but we still have Blizzard and the Rift Mage focus ability. That leaves Tempest as the most obvious one missing, and Lightning Cage is broadly similar.
Your opinions on spells that are basically the same is laughable. Wall of fire(an 8 foot wide, 8 foot high line spell) is the same as Inferno(A giant 360* flame tornado)...?
Don't be so literal, you're missing my point.They accomplish the same purpose, even if they are different visually. Inferno is DoT in an area....
Wall of Fire: DoT+Panic in an area.
Firestorm: Damage in an area.
Horror: Spirit DoT+Panic in an area.
Static Cage: Lightning Damage on-hit in an area.
Immolate: Damage+DoT in an area.
You get my point, yes? The spell is actually redundant: There is nothing unique about it... But yeah, fire tornadoes are cool, but I was not examining which abilities were different visually. In actual gameplay, most of them accomplish the same purpose.
They just took away the auomatic win spells, like:
Glyph of Repulsion + Glyph of Paralysis
Spell Might + Blizzard + Tempest
Heal
Any AoE spell. They were ALL overpowered in DA:O, with the exception of Earthquake maybe. But you could use that to keep the enemies inside one of the other ridiculous AoE spells for a longer time
Hell, you can almost beat the entire game by just using the first 5 spells I mentioned, were it not for the fact you have to level up first to get them all.
Me too! I loved that spell. It was fun as hell watching enemies bounce off of my mage when he placed it himself.
I just clued in: Its essentially the same as Ice Wall: It prevents melee enemies from closing in on you. Ice Wall also has the added utility of blocking ranged attacks, and the disadvantage of possibly getting destroyed and blocking your movement/ranged abilities as well. Gonna add that to the main post.
Hell, you can almost beat the entire game by just using the first 5 spells I mentioned, were it not for the fact you have to level up first to get them all.
When I play a mage in DAO, the first spells I get are ice up to Cone of Cold, lightning up to Shock, and fire up to Fireball. I can then solo most of the game by casting fireball, then hitting the enemies that come at me with a 1-2-3 combo of Cone of Cold, Shock, Flame Blast. Only elites or bosses ever survive that combination of spells. Ranged enemies were somewhat problematic if Fireball didn't kill them outright, but at higher levels I'd find ways to use the Storm of the Century combo from a distance or from around a corner. The enemies were so stupid they couldn't figure out where I was. They would all just stand there and die.
It seems to me, that while the OP is trying to make the argument that most of the DAO spells can be found in DAI, just condensed or in another class or skill, what I am seeing, is that he/she really did is make the case that DAI has been dumbed down. In DAO, you had your lower level spells, that were always low level, but you could always use them, from the beginning of the game, to the end. And learning those spells, allowed you to learn more powerful spells. Which gave your mage more flexibility, and more choices. Now in DAI, a chain of spells has been condensed down to one choice. In my opinion, that is dumbing down the game. Sure, it is simple, and It is easy. Just like checkers is easier and simpler than chess.
I miss my hexes. sticking a misdirection hex on bosses and watching them flail about ineffectually was so satisfying. I knew back when the trees were first shown that I'd miss the entropy school, but dang. Also crushing prison. And I still think the thematic change of making everything but barrier and and specs elemental-based is really boring and a shame.
I mean, playing mage in DAI is fine, I guess. I just don't find it nearly as satisfying as it was in Origins and 2. I'd probably enjoy it a lot more if I could bump up the difficulty and try to get to know the spells better, but then I feel like I'm fighting the companion AI rather than the enemies.
the thematic change of making everything but barrier and and specs elemental-based is really boring and a shame.
I think this probably hits the nail on the head for a lot of people. I don't have a problem with mages in DAI, but that's probably because I almost exclusively play Elemental damage dealing mages in every RPG I play. For people who enjoy the more subtle and strategic uses of magic, I can see how DAI would be a disappointment. There's some of that in DAI, like Ice Wall and Ice Mine for instance, but to be honest those spells aren't very good. Ice Wall can be destroyed by melee attacks and melted by fire. On Nightmare, it doesn't last long enough to really be effective. Or maybe I'm just using it wrong. I don't know. Like I said, I tend to use the "best defense is a good offense" philosophy and just blow things up.
Don't be so literal, you're missing my point.They accomplish the same purpose, even if they are different visually. Inferno is DoT in an area....
Wall of Fire: DoT+Panic in an area.
Firestorm: Damage in an area.
Horror: Spirit DoT+Panic in an area.
Static Cage: Lightning Damage on-hit in an area.
Immolate: Damage+DoT in an area.
You get my point, yes? The spell is actually redundant: There is nothing unique about it... But yeah, fire tornadoes are cool, but I was not examining which abilities were different visually. In actual gameplay, most of them accomplish the same purpose.
I see your point, but I don't agree with it. Removing spells just creates a lackluster, bland, repetitive gameplay experience. Too many games do the same thing nowadays, streamlining everything to appeal to the masses. One spell having the effect of say 3 or 4 spells from DA:O isn't an improvement, it's going backwards and just turns DA into another copy paste RPG game as it removed the need for any of the mechanics that made DA unique and fun to play.
It seems to me, that while the OP is trying to make the argument that most of the DAO spells can be found in DAI, just condensed or in another class or skill, what I am seeing, is that he/she really did is make the case that DAI has been dumbed down. In DAO, you had your lower level spells, that were always low level, but you could always use them, from the beginning of the game, to the end. And learning those spells, allowed you to learn more powerful spells. Which gave your mage more flexibility, and more choices. Now in DAI, a chain of spells has been condensed down to one choice. In my opinion, that is dumbing down the game. Sure, it is simple, and It is easy. Just like checkers is easier and simpler than chess.
DAI still has low level bread-and-butter spells you can continue to use for the rest of the game.
Those spells still unlock higher level spells that are more situational, but more powerful when used properly. For example, throw static cage on one enemy and expect to win just because its the final Storm spell would be dumb. In DAO, throw any Primal spell against anyone and you'll be effective, assuming the enemy doesn't have a resistance to that damage.
Don't be fooled by more spells = more choices. As I've pointed out, nearly everything from DAO is still in the game, its just under a new name. Some things have been removed, mainly the whole mana alteration tree.
You seem to imply that the game is dumbed down because it has fewer spells... Is that how you measure how complex a game is? How many options do you have that do the same thing?
I do dislike how almost everything is elemental. I don't really know why I feel that way though, since a wall of arcane energy or something would function almost identically to a wall of ice, for instance. Still, it's nice when magic has a bit more flavor to it than just throwing fire or lightning around. That was the main reason I was so fond of Entropy and Spirit in Origins.
As to the new spell families, I prefer them over the spell lines in Origins. Nothing is more annoying than having to spend ability points on three spells I don't want and will never use just to get a good fourth spell. It was even worse with spells that are almost exactly the same like Disorient and the other one. Perhaps you had more choices, but I don't know about more flexibility, since you can much of what you were able to do in Origins.
When I played a mage in DAO, I rarely had to resort to using my staff to "shoot" things with. That is why I have an archer in the party. Also, with the much larger "quiver" of spells to choose from, I always had a spell handy, even if it only did minimal damage, or changed the battlefield to a minor degree. For me, counting on the staff to be a massive damage dealer, and a replacement to spells, is part of what is breaking the combat/spell system in DAI. Granted at lower levels, your mage should have a lower amount of spells, and have to resort to other means to be useful, but staff damage should be very minor compared to what other classes can do with their weapons. A mage's primary weapon should always be spells, and compensating for a lack of spell choices by giving them a fully automatic, high caliber weapon, should not be the answer.
And whatever happened to being able to cast spells outside of combat? Not just healing, but buffs or other non-combat spells. Not enough slots on the console to place them in?
That's fine and everything, but it's not an actual rule. Mages don't have to rely on spells for their damage just because that's how you like it. I'm not trying to be snarky or condescending or anything, but moving away from your or my or anyone's ideal isn't inherently breaking a system.
I think that, overall, mages are in a much better place now then they were. With Origins, the staff served practically no purpose because of how little it did. Spells are great and all, but mana regenerated slowly and running out was always a problem for me. To some that might be a resource management thing that they enjoy, but to me it meant sitting there being useless for portions of a battle. Now, not only can my mages reliably cast spells throughout an encounter, they can contribute even when things are on cooldown.
It's also worth noting that pretty much every spell meant for damage dealing does several times the damage of a staff attack, and the ones that are on the lower end of that spectrum usually apply a status effect or hit multiple targets (or both).
Well lore wise, most mages deal with elemental or spirit magic(magic that involves spirits, not magic that deals spirit damage) which i think they've done a fair job of.
They introduced a new form of magic that has changed some of the older spells (your trainer mentions it in the way of the rift mage quest), and brought back a much better version of arcane warrior / battlemage aka knight enchanter.
What do i miss from the older games however, is nature damage spells. I think that at least in inquisition, nature could deal poison damage instead.
It sucks that we can finally play a dalish mage yet cannot use spells That manipulate plants or shapeshift etc. (though lightning magic is referred to as old magic in the codex the tale of illoren, so at least we have storm magic).
With all the talk about the removal of so many spells or "dumbing down" of the mage class, I wanted to do an actual comparison to see exactly what we lost, what was replaced, what was changed, etc.
If you don't want to read through everything (I needed something to occupy my morning, I wrote a lot xD) I can tell you this: Nearly every spell that was "removed" was either a duplicate of an already existing spell (Lightning/Arcane Bolt, Weakness/Disorient, Affliction/Vulnerability, etc.) or was combined into an existing spell (Death Siphon+Death Magic=Necromancer's Death Siphon. Cleansing Aura+Group Heal+Revive= KE's Resurgence.) and other spells were removed because the mechanic behind them was altered. For example, most of the Creation tree was arguably removed due to the changes to Ranged/Melee/Magic Defense, healing with Barrier/Guard, similar spells in other trees, etc. And other spells were removed because their utility was built into an existing spells: Which means you can basically play the exact same way, you'll just do it with far fewer spells. Instead of casting Mass Paralysis+Tempest, simply cast Static Cage to achieve a nearly identical effect. In a way, this compensates for the 8 ability + 100 mana limits.
Things I didn't include in this list: DA:Awakening, DA2, new spells we got in DAI.
Conclusion: Although many spells were seemed to be removed, they technically still exist, just combined with other spells. This essentially leaves us with almost as many options, but with fewer buttons to press and (perhaps) fewer decisions to make, not only while choosing abilities but also in combat.
Mage
Spoiler
Arcane Bolt: Single target Spirit damage missile. Arguably replaced by increased Staff DPS / Spirit Runes.
Arcane Shield: Increases defense. With the removal of the "defense" stat, dodging attacks actually require movement instead of failing auto-attacks.
Staff Focus: Increases staff DPS. Staff DPS was increased in later games; this spell became built-in.
Arcane Mastery: Passive effect that increases spell power by 5. Most mage passives increase Magic/Willpower by small amounts.
Primal
Spoiler
Fire
Spoiler
Flame Blast: AOE Cone DoT. Replaced by targeted AOE Circle DoT (Immolate)
Flaming Weapons: Adds fire damage on-hit. Arguably replaced by Fire Runes... But mostly removed.
Fireball: AOE Damage+DoT+Knockdown. Arguably nerfed and replaced by Immolate, with the knockdown becoming a brief stagger. Also, Fire Mine: the time it takes for the glyph to prime takes only slightly longer than it did for the Fireball to reach its destination. More tactical, less flashy.
Inferno: AOE DoT. Replaced by Rift Mage's Firestorm, and arguably by a much smaller-scale Wall of Fire.
Cold
Spoiler
Winter's Grasp: Single target damage+freeze. Still in the game, buffed to add chill/AOE.
Frost Weapons: Same as Flaming Weapons explanation.
Cone of Cold: AOE Cone damage+freeze. Arguably replaced by Mana Surge: AOE Freeze upon Barrier depletion.
Blizzard: AOE DoT+Chill. Still in the game.
Lightning
Spoiler
Lightning: Same as Arcane Bolt, but with Lightning. Replaced by increased DPS Lightning Staves.
Shock: AOE Cone damage. Pretty much removed, although there are other AOE Lightning Spells like Lighting Bolt.
Tempest: AOE DoT. Replaced and arguably buffed in the form of Static Cage: AOE damage on-hit, paralyze, pull.
Chain Lightning: Still in the game.
Earth
Spoiler
Rock Armor: Armor bonus. Removed. Arguably transformed into Ice Armor.
Stonefist: Single target damage+knockdown. Still in the game, arguably buffed.
Earthquake: AOE Slow+Knockdown. Removed. The slow isn't dissimilar to Blizzard's slow, or KE's Disruption Field, on a smaller scale.
Petrify: Single target freeze. Removed, replaced by Winter's Grasp/Ice Mine/Brittle Glyph etc.
Creation
Spoiler
Healing
Spoiler
Heal: Obviously Removed... arguably replaced by Guard/Barrier/Healing Potions/Camps mechanics lol
Rejuvenate: Stamina regen buff. Removed, compensated for by drastically increased Stamina regeneration rate and Rejuvenating Barrier.
Regeneration: HoT. Removed, compensated for by Barrier/Guard.
Mass Rejuvenation: Group Stamina regen. Same as Rejuventate. Also compensated for by (bugged?) stamina on kill masterworks + stamina regen passives. Also, Rejuvenating Barrier.
Enhancements
Spoiler
Heroic Offense: Single target attack buff. Removed, compensated for by rework of the Attack/Defense dodge system. You actually have to move instead of relying on RNG chance.
Heroic Aura: Single target ranged defense buff. Ranged Defense now reduces damage taken and is increased by certain passives/cunning/elf racial.
Haste: Mana-draining group speed buff. Replaced by Necromancer's Haste; Everything else is slowed.
Glyph of Warding: AOE Magic/Ranged/Defense Buff. Removed.
Glyph of Knockback: Persistent Knockback Glyph. Removed. Arguably compensated for by Ice/Fire Mine, or replaced by Ice Wall.
Glyph of Neutralization: Instant AOE Mana Drain. Removed, made less useful by the buffs to mana regeneration.
Summoning
Spoiler
Spell Wisp: Sustained Spellpower boost. Removed, compensated by various +Magic on kill passives/masterworks.
Grease: AOE Slow, combo for tickling fire. Removed.
Manabloom: AOE Mana regeneration buff. Removed, no longer needed with the buffs to mana regen.
Insect Swarm: AOE Dot+Swarm. Replaced by Jar of BEEEES
Spirit
Spoiler
Anti-Magic
Spoiler
Spell Shield: Spell damage drains mana instead of health. Removed, replaced by Barrier.
Dispel Magic: Single target dispel. Replaced by AOE Dispel.
Anti-Magic Ward: Protects target from all magical effects. Removed.
Anti-Magic Burst: AOE Dispel. Still in the game, arguably buffed with the detonator.
Mana Alteration (Pretty Much Entirely Removed)
Spoiler
Mana Drain: Single target mana drain. As the name implies. Removed.
Mana Cleanse: AOE Mana depletion. Removed.
Spell Might: Spellpower bonus, mana penalty. Removed. Arguably replaced by +Magic on kill passives/masterworks.
Mana Clash: Single target mana sacrificed = damage. Removed.
Telekinesis
Spoiler
Mind Blast: AOE Stun. Altered to AOE Knockback+Threat Reduction+Barrier Generation.
Force Field: Single target stasis. Removed.
Telekinetic Weapons: Armor Penetration bonus. Removed, arguably compensated for by changes to Armor penetration.
Crushing Prison: Single target paralysis+damage. Removed, arguably compensated for by Paralyzed Storm targets getting smacked.
Entropy
Spoiler
Death
Spoiler
Walking Bomb: Well, you know what it does. Still in the game, Necromancer.
Death Siphon: Drains mana from nearby dead things. Still in the game: Necromancer's Death Siphon.
Virulent Walking Bomb: Still in the game, upgraded Necromancer Walking Bomb.
Animate Dead: Raises a skeleton from a dead thing. Arguably replaced and buffed by Spirit Mark. Arguably.
Debilitation
Spoiler
Weakness: Single target attack/defense/speed debuff. Removed, arguably compensated for by changes to mentioned mechanics/chill effects. Also, the "weakened" status.
Paralyze: Single target paralysis. Removed, compensated for by having Paralysis built into different Storm spells.
Miasma: AOE Weakness. Removed, arguably replaced by Blizzard and changes to Weakness mechanics. Rift Mage AOE weakness accomplishes the same thing.
Mass Paralysis: As the name implies. Removed, compensated for by Static Cage's AOE Paralysis effect.
Sleep
Spoiler
Disorient: Literally does the exact same thing as Debilitation's Weakness, but without the slow. See Weakness.
Horror: Single target stun. Removed, arguably replaced and buffed by Necromancer's AOE Horror+Panic.
Sleep: AOE Sleep. Removed from mages, essentially became a rogue mechanic. Arguably replaced by Panic.
Waking Nightmare: Messes with an enemy to make them crazy... Difficult to summarize lol. Removed.
Hexes (Pretty much entirely removed)
Spoiler
Vulnerability Hex: Single target resistances debuff. Removed.
Affliction Hex: Its the same as Vulnerability Hex, but AOE. Removed.
Misdirection Hex: Enemies miss attacks, crits become normal hits. Removed.
Death Hex: All hits become critical on this target. Removed.
Draining
Spoiler
Drain Life: Drain life from an enemy. Removed, compensated for by heal on kill / heal on hit enhancements.
Death Magic: Drain health from dead enemies. Still in the game: Necromancer's Death Siphon does the same thing on kill.
Curse of Mortality: Prevents healing, inflicts constant damage. Removed, made useless by the lack of enemy healing.
Death Cloud: AOE DoT. Arguably replaced by Necromancer's upgraded Horror... But not really.
Specializations
Spoiler
Blood Magic: Removed, Blood Control = Spirit Mark though.
Shape shifter: Removed. Teach us, Morrigan.
Arcane Warrior: KE is way more fun, and just as balanced.
Spirit Healer: Group Heal becomes Resurgence. Revive is still Revive. Cleansing Aura built into Resurgence. Lifeward becomes Lifeward Amulet.
despite all heresy there is one major offensive **** here...
Being able to choose weapons >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> dumb light saber
RPG is diversity
I suppose I should have said "arguably"... I rushed the specializations, because it was obvious they were going to be totally different. I should edit my original post to make it more of an examination and less of a personal opinion, like yours.
@Dakota Strider: Of course you didn't resort to using your staves: You never ran out of mana with Lyrium Potions, and staves did pitiful DPS. You could arguably say that throwing fireballs from magic stick is a spell, even if it doesn't cost mana to use it.
As for not being able to cast spells outside of combat... uh, what? You can. Just not when you're in Skyhold or Val Royeaux... Out in the world, you can spam abilities as much as you want. You didn't actually test that, did you?
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