UA Class Features and Tasha's Cauldron of Everything (TCoE)

Tasha Contemplating

 TCoE includes a large number of class specific options.  Each class has a number of OPTIONAL Class Features and then a handful of new subclasses.  

Tha Class Features are most, but by no means all of the features specified in the 2019, UNEARTHED ARCANA Class Feature Variants article. They will be the focus of this posting.

The subclasses are a combination of new and retreaded information. Many of them have previously been specified in various Unearthed Arcana articles.  Some are from campaign source books, such as Artificer from Eberron and Bladesinger from the Sword Coast. I've not looked in detail, but I presume that some tweaks have been made and that the TCoE version, as the newest is the default RAW definition. I'm not going to look further at the subclasses unless a game setting suggests one as useful or a player wants to play one.

TCoE Class Features

Tasha offers a number of enhancements to the various classes.  On a quick look, all of them appear to provide potentially useful enhancements to each class without significantly altering the power of each class.  As such, I am inclined allowing any and all of the class features specified.  I'll step through a summary for Bards and Wizards as an illustration of what is included.

Bard Optional Class Features

Tasha provides three additional features.  One of which is nice in that it provides a wider selection of spells -- Helpful.  One generalizes the Magical Inspiration effect to make it apply to casters as it does melee characters -- about time.  While the last allows occasional changes to abilities otherwise baked in at character creation -- helpful, but very limited. 

1. Additional Bard Spells: 15 spells added to the Bard list.  A few of which are new in TCoE.  All of which are thematic for bard's dealing with illusion, mental manipulation, healing, and sustenance.  
2. Magical Inspiration: Allows the possessor of a Bardic Inspiration die to use it for additional damage or healing to a single target affected by a spell that they cast.  
3. Bardic Versatility: At levels that grant an ASI, the Bard may move expertise from one skill to another -or- replace a Cantrip with a different one from the Bard list. 

All of these make sense to me and I will absolutely allow them.  Bardic Versatility being available only at ASI levels (4, 8, 12, ...) is so restrictive that I would be inclined to allow its use more generously, perhaps once on leveling in each spell range, 2-4 then 5-8, etc. 

Wizard Optional Class Features

Tasha provides only two additional features for wizards. 

1. Additional Wizard Spells: 23 spells newly accessible by wizards.  Most (19) of these are new in TCoE.  A few are additions to the Wizard list from other classes.  
2. Cantrip Formulas: allow the wizard to swap out one wizard cantrip for another at the end of every long rest. 

More spells options should be welcomed by any Wizard, clearly not a break through though.  Cantrip flexibility is handy, allowing the Wizard to tailor spell load out to situations, totally in keeping with typical Wizard strengths and building on them. 

UA Class Feature Variants

The UA article I referred to at the beginning of this post contains much the same information, offering even more options for some/most/all of the classes.  I read TCoE as canonization of portions of the UA information into RAW and rejection of portions excluded by the powers that control RAW.  The net is that I will not recognize any feature specified in the UA version of this information without a deeper look and possible toning down of that feature.  

To better understand what was in UA, lets look at the two classes examined above.

Bard UA Class Feature Variants

The UA Class features are similar to TCoE.  Three features, one similar, one exactly the same, and one with a similar name that is totally different.

1. Additional Bard Spells: 22 spells newly accessible by Bards.  A good portion of these were carried forward into TCoE.  Some, mostly seemingly from Xanathar’s Guide, have been dropped from the Bard additions.
2. Magical Inspiration: Exactly the same in TCoE.
3. Spell Versatility: Similar name, totally different.  This allowed a Bard to swap one known spell for any other Bard spell of the same level after a each long rest. 

The interesting one here is spell versatility.  UA offered an absolutely awesome ability that totally eliminated one of the major restrictions on Bard spell casting - limited spell inventory - making them the equal or better of Wizards in this regard.  This always struck me funny (and I love to play Bards); to the point that I used it rarely in games allowing it as it strikes me as OP.  

I still like the idea of allowing a Bard to slowly morph their spell inventory but what UA offered just seemed game bracingly powerful if leveraged fully.  I'm happy to see it go, but tempted to bring something back to make the Versatility feature a bit more useful.  Perhaps allow a spell to be dropped at the end of a Full Rest and allow an ability check to fill an empty spell slot at the beginning of a Full Rest.  Perhaps a CHA check against DC 8 + Spell Level to fill the empty spell known slot. 

Wizard UA Class Feature Variants

The UA Class features are very similar to TCoE, although weaker:

1. Additional Wizard Spells: 4 spells newly accessible by wizards.  All are are additions to the Wizard list from other classes and are carried forward into TCoE.  
2. Cantrip Versatility: allow the wizard to swap out one wizard cantrip for another each time they level. 

TCoE as would be expected added a lot more spells, most of them brand new to the wizard list. In this case TCoE is a simple superset of the UA feature.

Cantrip Versatility as defined in UA allows some flexibility, though restricting it to leveling opportunities makes it seem rather un-wizard like.  TCoE makes this ability far more accessible and in keeping with Wizard abilities.  

Overall Reaction 

I haven't stepped through all of the classes, but from those that I have looked, TCoE seems to have done a good job of capturing the essence of UA and toning down the most powerful elements.  I feel fairly confident in banning the UA Class Variants at this point and allowing the TCoE features for classes. 

The one bit where I would like to retain a bit of UA excluded by TCoE is spell flexibility for Bards, Sorcs, and presumably any other class that has a fixed spell list. I'm considering the following as an experimental house rule:

Classes with fixed spell lists (e.g. Bard, Sorcs) can swap spells by dropping a known spell at the end of a Full Rest; the known spell list will then be one below the maximum.  The character can subsequently try to add a new spell from their class list by a casting stat ability check that must beat a DC of 8 plus the spell level at their next or subsequent Full Rest.

The above approach would make swapping spells much more of an effort while still leaving it possible to achieve.  I'm not sure on the base difficulty, perhaps it should be a higher bar or some other expense should be attached to make this more of a big deal.  For now, it is an idea.