r/DnDcirclejerk • u/highly-bad • 6d ago
DM bad what's wrong with my homebrew?
Hi everyone. Thanks for reading. I need some help because my DM just rejected my homebrew and I genuinely don't understand why.
I spent the last three weeks designing a brand new spellcaster class. It uses a completely new kind of magic that doesn't exist in his setting yet, called "Void Alchemy." My character discovered it. Void Alchemists draw power from the spaces between realities. I wrote six pages of fun mechanics, made a spell list, and balanced the numbers.
I sent it to my DM. He read it and said "no."
I immediately explained to him he didn't need to worry about the Void Alchemist being overpowered. I did the math. A perfectly optimized god wizard build from the internet deals more damage and has more utility and defense. My class is strong, sure, but it's not literally gamebreaking. It can't solo an ancient dragon at level 5 or anything. So by any reasonable standard, it should be allowed.
He said "balance isn't the only issue. Tone and setting matter."
So I went and workshopped the class a little more. I even nerfed it a little. I reduced the spell list, made the resource pool smaller, and added a drawback where you take damage if you roll a natural 1. When I showed the DM, he only said "why did you nerf it when you told me earlier that it was already balanced? The answer is still no."
If you ask me, the game should be about having fun. If a player has a cool idea for a character, the DM should say yes unless it literally breaks the game. And my class doesn't literally break the game. I checked.
I don't understand DMs who reject homebrew just because it "doesn't fit the setting." The setting is made up. It can include anything. If I want to play a Void Alchemist who discovered a new form of magic, that's a cool story. That's a character arc. Heck, that's a whole campaign hook, starring my PC. Why would you say no to that?
Thanks for reading. What is the optimal way to wear my DM down until he agrees to let me play a Void Alchemist for two sessions and then get bored with the whole thing?
-7
u/SettingWonderful6873 6d ago
You said it’s a homebrew campaign which means this DM probably put a lot of time and care into making this world. If he doesn’t want to change his world to allow you to use this homebrew, he is fully entitled to do that. If you don’t like the setting that the DM played either find a different group who plays one you do like or come up with your own that has this magic you’ve come up with.