Drolyt
2010-01-06, 12:15 PM
My entire line of Homebrews can now be found here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7715477&postcount=60). Original Post is inside the last spoiler. This was an attempt to make the Sorcerer and Wizard equal. Instead of the complicated mess in the original post, simply make the following adjustments:
Spells Per Day
{table=head]Level|0|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9
1st|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
2nd|6|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
3rd|6|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
4th|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
5th|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-
6th|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-
7th|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-
8th|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-
9th|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-
10th|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-
11th|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-
12th|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-
13th|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-
14th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-
15th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-
16th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-
17th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3
18th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4
19th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5
20th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6
[/table]
Spells Known
Same as Spells Per day, except all 0th level spells. You gain the same bonus spells known from a high charisma as you do spells per day (see table 1-1 in the Player's Handbook or here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/theBasics.htm#abilityScores) in the SRD.
{table=head]Level|0|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9
1st|All|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
2nd|All|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
3rd|All|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
4th|All|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
5th|All|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-
6th|All|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-
7th|All|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-
8th|All|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-
9th|All|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-
10th|All|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-
11th|All|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-
12th|All|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-
13th|All|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-
14th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-
15th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-
16th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-
17th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3
18th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4
19th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5
20th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6
[/table]
Feats: Gain Eschew Materials as a Bonus Feat at first level. At 5th, 10th, 15th, and 20th levels you gain a bonus feat which can be either a Metamagic Feat, a Heritage Feat, or a Draconic Feat.
Metamagic Sorcerers do not take a longer time to cast metamagic enhanced spells, and can therefore use quicken spell.
Skills Make 4 + Int Modifier per level and add all Knowledge Skills as well as Diplomacy, Sense Motive, Gather Information, and Intimidate.
There, that should be good to make the Sorcerer and Wizard fairly even. You are free to use this variant as you see fit including in your own homebrew.
I have noticed a number of projects to try and improve/replace Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 edition. I am very intrigued and have a number of ideas of my own, but I don't have the time at the moment for a gigantic revision. I will instead post some of my ideas in the form of standalone homebrew. To start with I am going to try and bring two similar classes closer together in terms of power level: the Wizard and Sorcerer. After that I'm going to try my hand at mending the brokenness of some of their spells so that they cease to steal the show completely; although I prefer to buff weak classes rather than nerf strong ones some arcane spells are simply beyond hope. Without further ado, here is the new rebalanced Sorcerer. I've bolded changes from the SRD Sorcerer.
Sorcerer
Alignment: Any
Hit Die: d4
Class Skills: The sorcerer’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (All Skills, Taken Individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + Int modifier) ×4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int modifier.
The Sorcerer
{table=head]Level|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th| 9th
1st|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Summon Familiar,Eschew Materials, Heritage|*|2
2nd|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3||*|3|-
3rd|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3||*|3|2|-
4th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4||*|4|3|-|-
5th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Bonus Feat|*|4|3|2|-|-
6th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5||*|4|4|3|-|-|-
7th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5||*|5|4|3|2|-|-|-
8th|
+4|
+2|
+2|
+6|Bonus Feat|*|5|4|4|3|-|-|-|-|-
9th|
+4|
+3|
+3|
+6||*|5|5|4|3|2|-|-|-|-
10th|
+5|
+3|
+3|
+7||*|5|5|4|4|3|-|-|-|-
11th|
+5|
+3|
+3|
+7|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|4|3|2|-|-|-
12th|
+6|
+4|
+4|
+8||*|5|5|5|4|4|3|-|-|-
13th|
+6|
+4|
+4|
+8||*|5|5|5|5|4|3|2|-|-
14th|
+7|
+4|
+4|
+9|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|5|4|4|3|-|-
15th|
+7|
+5|
+5|
+9||*|5|5|5|5|5|4|3|2|-
16th|
+8|
+5|
+5|
+10||*|5|5|5|5|5|4|4|3|-
17th|
+8|
+5|
+5|
+10|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|5|5|5|4|3|2
18th|
+9|
+6|
+6|
+11||*|5|5|5|5|5|5|4|4|3
19th|
+9|
+6|
+6|
+11||*|5|5|5|5|5|5|5|4|4
20th|
+10|
+6|
+6|
+12|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|5|5|5|5|5|5[/table]
* Sorcerers have no limit on how many 0th level spells they may cast in one day.
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the sorcerer.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Sorcerers are proficient with all simple weapons. They are not proficient with any type of armor or shield. Armor of any type interferes with a sorcerer’s gestures, which can cause his spells with somatic components to fail.
Spells: A sorcerer casts arcane spells which are drawn primarily from the sorcerer/wizard spell list. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time, the way a wizard or a cleric must (see below).
To learn or cast a spell, a sorcerer must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a sorcerer’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the sorcerer’s Charisma modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a sorcerer can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Sorcerer. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score.
A sorcerer’s selection of spells is extremely limited. A sorcerer begins play knowing all 0-level spells and two 1st-level spells of your choice, in addition to any bonus spells for a high charisma (see below). At each new sorcerer level, he gains one or more new spells; his base number of spells known (except for 0th level spells) is the same as his base number of spells per day. He also receives bonus spells known if he has a high charisma; use table 1-1 in the Player's Handbook (Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells) to determine bonus spells known just as you do for bonus spells per day. These new spells can be common spells chosen from the sorcerer/wizard spell list, or they can be unusual spells that the sorcerer has gained some understanding of by study. The sorcerer can’t use this method of spell acquisition to learn spells at a faster rate, however.
Upon reaching 3rd level, and every level thereafter, a sorcerer can choose to learn a new spell in place of one he already knows. In effect, the sorcerer "loses" the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell’s level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged, and it must be at least one level lower than the highest-level sorcerer spell the sorcerer can cast. A sorcerer may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that he gains new spells known for the level.
Unlike a wizard or a cleric, a sorcerer need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his spells per day for that spell level. He does not have to decide ahead of time which spells he’ll cast.
Unlike other spontaneous casters, a Sorcerer's may cast spells enhanced by metamagic feats without increasing the casting time. Because of this he can use Quicken Spell normally.
Familiar:
A sorcerer can obtain a familiar. Doing so takes 24 hours and uses up magical materials that cost 100 gp. A familiar is a magical beast that resembles a small animal and is unusually tough and intelligent. The creature serves as a companion and servant.
The sorcerer chooses the kind of familiar he gets. As the sorcerer advances in level, his familiar also increases in power.
If the familiar dies or is dismissed by the sorcerer, the sorcerer must attempt a DC 15 Fortitude saving throw. Failure means he loses 200 experience points per sorcerer level; success reduces the loss to one-half that amount. However, a sorcerer’s experience point total can never go below 0 as the result of a familiar’s demise or dismissal. A slain or dismissed familiar cannot be replaced for a year and day. A slain familiar can be raised from the dead just as a character can be, and it does not lose a level or a Constitution point when this happy event occurs.
A character with more than one class that grants a familiar may have only one familiar at a time.
Eschew Materials: A Sorcerer's method of casting is more natural than a Wizards. He gains this feat as a bonus feat at first level.
Heritage: At first level a Sorcerer must decide from where he derives his supernatural powers. He gains a bonus feat. This bonus feat must be either a heritage feat (a feat with the heritage or draconic descriptors), or a feat of which the DM approves that fits the character concept(if you are restricted to feats in the Player's Handbook you instead gain Spell Focus in the school most closely aligned to the source of your power).
Bonus Feats: At 5th, 8th, 11th, 14th, 17th, and 20th levels a Sorcerer gains a bonus feat. This feat must be either a Metamagic Feat, a Heritage Feat, a Draconic Feat, or a Sorcerer Feat.
The idea here is to increase the Sorcerer's versatility without allowing him to become stronger (or weaker) than the Wizard. So the idea was to focus on what makes the two classes different mechanically while enhancing the fluff as well: he gets the same number of spells every day as a Wizard but cannot change them out every morning; instead he can freely cast them in any order. The fluff is tackled with bonus feats related to the Sorcerer's heritage. The reason the Sorcerer gets more feats than a Wizard is that I think the Wizard might still have an edge without them. Also most of the feats come after 5th level, trying to make single class Sorcerers more attractive. This is important since Wizards usually have a better pick of Prestige Classes. I also increased the Sorcerer's skill points and gave him all knowledge skills and a few interaction skills. The reason a Sorc gets more weapon proficiencies is that he doesn't have to train as much as a Wizard, I'm simply applying that to skills (though Wizards will still have more).
Edit: I'm wondering whether the Sorcerer's spells/day and spells known shouldn't be higher... I don't want the Sorcerer to outshine the Wizard, but I think as I have it the Wizard's still got him beat.
Edit #2: I've given him the same number of spells per day as a specialist wizard, and also the same amount of spells known. This should make the sorcerer just as strong as the Wizard, but hopefully not too strong. As a side note, I think level 0 spells should be cast an infinite number of times per day for all classes (nixing cure minor wounds/inflict minor wounds), but I didn't include that so this could be used in a standard campaign. Edit 3: I included it.
Spells Per Day
{table=head]Level|0|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9
1st|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
2nd|6|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
3rd|6|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
4th|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
5th|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-
6th|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-
7th|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-
8th|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-
9th|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-
10th|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-
11th|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-
12th|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-
13th|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-
14th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-
15th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-
16th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-
17th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3
18th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4
19th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5
20th|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6
[/table]
Spells Known
Same as Spells Per day, except all 0th level spells. You gain the same bonus spells known from a high charisma as you do spells per day (see table 1-1 in the Player's Handbook or here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/theBasics.htm#abilityScores) in the SRD.
{table=head]Level|0|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9
1st|All|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
2nd|All|5|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
3rd|All|6|3|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
4th|All|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-|-
5th|All|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-|-
6th|All|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-|-
7th|All|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-|-
8th|All|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-|-
9th|All|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-|-
10th|All|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-|-
11th|All|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-|-
12th|All|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-|-
13th|All|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-|-
14th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-|-
15th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3|-
16th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4|-
17th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5|3
18th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|4
19th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|5
20th|All|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6|6
[/table]
Feats: Gain Eschew Materials as a Bonus Feat at first level. At 5th, 10th, 15th, and 20th levels you gain a bonus feat which can be either a Metamagic Feat, a Heritage Feat, or a Draconic Feat.
Metamagic Sorcerers do not take a longer time to cast metamagic enhanced spells, and can therefore use quicken spell.
Skills Make 4 + Int Modifier per level and add all Knowledge Skills as well as Diplomacy, Sense Motive, Gather Information, and Intimidate.
There, that should be good to make the Sorcerer and Wizard fairly even. You are free to use this variant as you see fit including in your own homebrew.
I have noticed a number of projects to try and improve/replace Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 edition. I am very intrigued and have a number of ideas of my own, but I don't have the time at the moment for a gigantic revision. I will instead post some of my ideas in the form of standalone homebrew. To start with I am going to try and bring two similar classes closer together in terms of power level: the Wizard and Sorcerer. After that I'm going to try my hand at mending the brokenness of some of their spells so that they cease to steal the show completely; although I prefer to buff weak classes rather than nerf strong ones some arcane spells are simply beyond hope. Without further ado, here is the new rebalanced Sorcerer. I've bolded changes from the SRD Sorcerer.
Sorcerer
Alignment: Any
Hit Die: d4
Class Skills: The sorcerer’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (All Skills, Taken Individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + Int modifier) ×4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int modifier.
The Sorcerer
{table=head]Level|Base Attack<br>Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|0lvl|1st|2nd|3rd|4th|5th|6th|7th|8th| 9th
1st|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Summon Familiar,Eschew Materials, Heritage|*|2
2nd|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3||*|3|-
3rd|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3||*|3|2|-
4th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4||*|4|3|-|-
5th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Bonus Feat|*|4|3|2|-|-
6th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5||*|4|4|3|-|-|-
7th|
+3|
+2|
+2|
+5||*|5|4|3|2|-|-|-
8th|
+4|
+2|
+2|
+6|Bonus Feat|*|5|4|4|3|-|-|-|-|-
9th|
+4|
+3|
+3|
+6||*|5|5|4|3|2|-|-|-|-
10th|
+5|
+3|
+3|
+7||*|5|5|4|4|3|-|-|-|-
11th|
+5|
+3|
+3|
+7|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|4|3|2|-|-|-
12th|
+6|
+4|
+4|
+8||*|5|5|5|4|4|3|-|-|-
13th|
+6|
+4|
+4|
+8||*|5|5|5|5|4|3|2|-|-
14th|
+7|
+4|
+4|
+9|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|5|4|4|3|-|-
15th|
+7|
+5|
+5|
+9||*|5|5|5|5|5|4|3|2|-
16th|
+8|
+5|
+5|
+10||*|5|5|5|5|5|4|4|3|-
17th|
+8|
+5|
+5|
+10|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|5|5|5|4|3|2
18th|
+9|
+6|
+6|
+11||*|5|5|5|5|5|5|4|4|3
19th|
+9|
+6|
+6|
+11||*|5|5|5|5|5|5|5|4|4
20th|
+10|
+6|
+6|
+12|Bonus Feat|*|5|5|5|5|5|5|5|5|5[/table]
* Sorcerers have no limit on how many 0th level spells they may cast in one day.
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the sorcerer.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Sorcerers are proficient with all simple weapons. They are not proficient with any type of armor or shield. Armor of any type interferes with a sorcerer’s gestures, which can cause his spells with somatic components to fail.
Spells: A sorcerer casts arcane spells which are drawn primarily from the sorcerer/wizard spell list. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time, the way a wizard or a cleric must (see below).
To learn or cast a spell, a sorcerer must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a sorcerer’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the sorcerer’s Charisma modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a sorcerer can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Sorcerer. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score.
A sorcerer’s selection of spells is extremely limited. A sorcerer begins play knowing all 0-level spells and two 1st-level spells of your choice, in addition to any bonus spells for a high charisma (see below). At each new sorcerer level, he gains one or more new spells; his base number of spells known (except for 0th level spells) is the same as his base number of spells per day. He also receives bonus spells known if he has a high charisma; use table 1-1 in the Player's Handbook (Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells) to determine bonus spells known just as you do for bonus spells per day. These new spells can be common spells chosen from the sorcerer/wizard spell list, or they can be unusual spells that the sorcerer has gained some understanding of by study. The sorcerer can’t use this method of spell acquisition to learn spells at a faster rate, however.
Upon reaching 3rd level, and every level thereafter, a sorcerer can choose to learn a new spell in place of one he already knows. In effect, the sorcerer "loses" the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell’s level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged, and it must be at least one level lower than the highest-level sorcerer spell the sorcerer can cast. A sorcerer may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that he gains new spells known for the level.
Unlike a wizard or a cleric, a sorcerer need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his spells per day for that spell level. He does not have to decide ahead of time which spells he’ll cast.
Unlike other spontaneous casters, a Sorcerer's may cast spells enhanced by metamagic feats without increasing the casting time. Because of this he can use Quicken Spell normally.
Familiar:
A sorcerer can obtain a familiar. Doing so takes 24 hours and uses up magical materials that cost 100 gp. A familiar is a magical beast that resembles a small animal and is unusually tough and intelligent. The creature serves as a companion and servant.
The sorcerer chooses the kind of familiar he gets. As the sorcerer advances in level, his familiar also increases in power.
If the familiar dies or is dismissed by the sorcerer, the sorcerer must attempt a DC 15 Fortitude saving throw. Failure means he loses 200 experience points per sorcerer level; success reduces the loss to one-half that amount. However, a sorcerer’s experience point total can never go below 0 as the result of a familiar’s demise or dismissal. A slain or dismissed familiar cannot be replaced for a year and day. A slain familiar can be raised from the dead just as a character can be, and it does not lose a level or a Constitution point when this happy event occurs.
A character with more than one class that grants a familiar may have only one familiar at a time.
Eschew Materials: A Sorcerer's method of casting is more natural than a Wizards. He gains this feat as a bonus feat at first level.
Heritage: At first level a Sorcerer must decide from where he derives his supernatural powers. He gains a bonus feat. This bonus feat must be either a heritage feat (a feat with the heritage or draconic descriptors), or a feat of which the DM approves that fits the character concept(if you are restricted to feats in the Player's Handbook you instead gain Spell Focus in the school most closely aligned to the source of your power).
Bonus Feats: At 5th, 8th, 11th, 14th, 17th, and 20th levels a Sorcerer gains a bonus feat. This feat must be either a Metamagic Feat, a Heritage Feat, a Draconic Feat, or a Sorcerer Feat.
The idea here is to increase the Sorcerer's versatility without allowing him to become stronger (or weaker) than the Wizard. So the idea was to focus on what makes the two classes different mechanically while enhancing the fluff as well: he gets the same number of spells every day as a Wizard but cannot change them out every morning; instead he can freely cast them in any order. The fluff is tackled with bonus feats related to the Sorcerer's heritage. The reason the Sorcerer gets more feats than a Wizard is that I think the Wizard might still have an edge without them. Also most of the feats come after 5th level, trying to make single class Sorcerers more attractive. This is important since Wizards usually have a better pick of Prestige Classes. I also increased the Sorcerer's skill points and gave him all knowledge skills and a few interaction skills. The reason a Sorc gets more weapon proficiencies is that he doesn't have to train as much as a Wizard, I'm simply applying that to skills (though Wizards will still have more).
Edit: I'm wondering whether the Sorcerer's spells/day and spells known shouldn't be higher... I don't want the Sorcerer to outshine the Wizard, but I think as I have it the Wizard's still got him beat.
Edit #2: I've given him the same number of spells per day as a specialist wizard, and also the same amount of spells known. This should make the sorcerer just as strong as the Wizard, but hopefully not too strong. As a side note, I think level 0 spells should be cast an infinite number of times per day for all classes (nixing cure minor wounds/inflict minor wounds), but I didn't include that so this could be used in a standard campaign. Edit 3: I included it.