Daily Recovery of Spells Wizards and priests cannot simply stop anywhere and regain spells they have cast or change the spells they have memorized. Memorizing a spell is a difficult task that requires a clear head from a good night’s sleep and 10 minutes of effort per level of the spell (see the Player’s Handbook, Chapter 7). Memorizing a spell is an arduous mental task, and it is helpful to consider exactly what a character must do to accomplish it.

The basic requirement to memorize spells is a good night’s sleep. The character must awake feeling fresh and rested. The DM must decide if a character is rested well enough to regain spells, but about eight hours spent in reasonable comfort—one cannot regain spells after a night spent in a saddle—is the minimum.

The spellcaster must also have enough peace, quiet, and comfort to allow proper concentration on the character’s studies or devotions. Spellcasters do not necessarily have to be sitting in the lap of luxury to regain spells, but their minds must be free from overt distractions, such as combat raging nearby, exposure to inclement weather, or fatigue. Of course, wizards need plenty of light to read their spellbooks by.

Priests don’t use spellbooks but must have all the trappings required for solemn prayer and meditation. Such trappings include some token of the deity being petitioned for spells, such as a holy symbol, or perhaps prayer at a site that reflects the deity’s nature—petitioning a war deity from an ancient battlefield is going to get the deity’s attention.

Characters who do not require sleep (due to a magical item, racial ability, or other special circumstance) can acquire spells only once each day and only after eight hours of restful calm; the spellcaster cannot acquire spells immediately after movement, combat, spellcasting, or other distractions.

If a character is disturbed while studying or praying for a spell (by combat, injury, loud noise, or other distraction), the caster must begin work on the spell again and any time already spent on the spell is lost. For example, Rozmare is poring over her spell books to memorize a fly spell. She is seated in a forest glade where her party has spent the night. The sun is shining and the forest is fairly quiet, so all Rozmare needs to do is study her books for 30 minutes to memorize the spell. Unfortunately, after Rozmare has been studying for 20 minutes, the local pixies decide to play a prank, pitting Rozmare and her companions against an illusory band of goblin acrobats. When the confusion finally dies down, Rozmare has to begin studying her fly spell all over again, requiring another 30 minutes of uninterrupted study.

Limited Study Time: It is difficult to keep a clear head during a prolonged mental effort. A spellcaster can spend a maximum of eight hours a day acquiring spells. After that much effort, the character can no longer concentrate sufficiently to regain any spells, though the character suffers no other disadvantages.

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