Hi there. Thanks for checking out the game. So, if a Path gives you spells or companions, go ahead and take it for free! It's true you may have quite a few cards in front of you if you have lots of spells (+ your usual assets) but I think that's part of the play experience of being a magic user. Spells are just optional tools so feel free to use them as little or as often as you like. If using them makes your gameplay feel overly-complex, that's alright. You can avoid them and focus on other aspects of the game. Thanks for your interest and questions.