(3.5) Focused Abjuration Specialist Optimization

[Johanas]

New game is starting up, and I'll be playing a gnome abjuration specialist, with the alternate class feature of focused specialist. Forbidden schools are necromancy and enchantment. I would like advice on the 3rd school to give up. I'm heading for Master Specialist, and Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil. Only feat needed will be Spell Focus: Abjuration, as Master Specialist provides the other 2 needed for Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil. Probably something like Wizard 3/Master Specialist 6/Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil 7/Master Specialist 4.

Stats as follows:

Str 6
Dex 12
Con 16
Int 18
Wis 16
Cha 8

I'm asking the forums for any advice. Everything from flavor, fun feats, optimizition, alternate class features, you name it. Even spell selection, as I've never played a specialist abjurer before.

[PhoenixRivers]

For abjuration specialists, I'd like to provide you with the most useful abjuration ever:

Dispel Magic

[Optimystik]

That's easy - give up Evocation.

Between your veils and Conjuration, you'll have all the blasty spells you could want, while Shadow Evocation/feats give you Contingency.

[jokey665]

I threw together an Abjurer build a while ago. Banned Evoc/Ench/Necro. Wiz3/MasterSpec7/IotSFV2/AbjCham2/IotSFV5/AbjCham1 was the final build, though i never actually figured out what feats I was gonna get.

[Eloel]

I'd say at least consider Abjurant Champion. At 5th level, all your 3rd level and below abjurations are auto-quickened - that's worth alot. There's a +9 armor-bonus-giving abjuration spell in BoED. Combine that with Shield, and you're looking at a good +24 AC in a single round (swift + standard) at 5th level of abjurant champion.

I personally like adding stuff like Legacy Champion to the mix, since Abjurant Champion gets to quicken spells upto half his level, and Legacy Champion adds virtual levels. Those combined should get you something like 6th level spells (Greater Dispel Magic !!!) auto-quickened, which imo, is worth a lost caster level.

[Johanas]

That is a very useful guide! And I think you're right Optimystik. Evocation seems to be a good choice to drop. I'm not a straight blaster with this build, and conjuration can blow things up good too.

[Johanas]

I have actually considered a dip into Abjurant Champion. I own the book, and have been staring at that class for a couple days now. The "final" build isn't final, I may drop a few levels of Master Specialist for some Abjurant Champion goodness.

[PhoenixRivers]

That is a very useful guide! And I think you're right Optimystik. Evocation seems to be a good choice to drop. I'm not a straight blaster with this build, and conjuration can blow things up good too.

If you need it again, ask me. I try not to reveal my secrets to too many. :smallwink:

[Johanas]

Thanks again you all! I'm currently looking into alternate class features to lose the familiar, since I don't plan on needing it. Any thoughts?

[deuxhero]

Ask the DM if you can get Mage Armor and its variants as Abjuration spells. Tell me if he is confused as the Abjuration Champion writer was.

[Johanas]

I just asked. She said it's ok. Woot.

[PhoenixRivers]

Thanks again you all! I'm currently looking into alternate class features to lose the familiar, since I don't plan on needing it. Any thoughts?

The imbue familiar with spell ability is very valuable. You may wish to reconsider.

That said, the Immediate Magic Variant would give you an immediate action shield a few times per day (PHB2).

[Thespianus]

Thanks again you all! I'm currently looking into alternate class features to lose the familiar, since I don't plan on needing it. Any thoughts?

How about Focus Caster?

I took this from the CrystalKeep D20 PDFs:


Focus Caster
A chosen masterwork-quality object now become a required Focus for all your spells. The Focus is associated with one school of magic and grants you benefits
associated with that school (see below). The Focus has the following properties:
a) bonus to Hardness equal to ½ Caster level (max 2x original Hardness) & bonus to hit-point equal to Caster level (max 2x original hp).
b) if destroyed, you may replace it with by bonding with a new masterwork-quality (but not magical) object of the same type, spending 24 hours, and expending
100 gp of reagents;
c) if your Focus is a weapon or a shield, you are Proficient with it (but not any other weapons / shields of the same type).
d) if you enchant your Focus, the XP & base materials cost is reduced by 10%.
e) additional bonus is School of Magic specific (note: if you are a Specialized Wizard, your Focus has the same School of Magic as your specialty):
Abjuration – Bracers, Buckler, Small Shield
1st level – any non-Personal Abjuration spell you cast with at least one target affects one extra target, but that target only has ½ the normal duration.
7th level – any non-Personal Abjuration spell you cast with at least one target affects one extra target, who now get the full duration.
15th level – you may cast Personal Abjuration spells as a Touch spells.

Basically, you can get a buckler and use it as a focus for all your spells (as well as getting some decent extra AC from it). You can share your Abjuration-spells wider, since you get an extra target when you cast them, and ..well..it adds to some kind of cool flavor (think Captain America with casting ;) )

It might be a low powered ACF, but it meshes in a cool way with Abjurant Champion later on. It's from a Dragon Magazine, though, DR348, so it might get stopped by your DM.

[Johanas]

Both good points. I remembered I wanted to read up on the Immediate Magic ACF, and then totally forgot about it as I started writing the character. That said....a familiar almost doubling my spellcasting, (i.e. here (http://www.enworld.org/forum/d-d-3rd-edition-rules/14681-imbue-familiar-spell-ability.html)) could be REALLY amazing.

[Johanas]

How about Focus Caster?

I'll ask. She's usually alright with Dragon Magazine, but it's good to know the options available.

[Johanas]

Yes, it's allowed. So that's a viable option too. Hmmm. Choices, choices.

[Thespianus]

Yes, it's allowed. So that's a viable option too. Hmmm. Choices, choices.

Cool. Yeah, the ability to target two targets with one Abjurant Champion-Swifted Dispel Magic spell isn't at all bad. I'm sure there are other Abjuration spells that gain mightily that Focus Caster-dual target feature.

The only problem with it is that you get a slight Arcane Spell Failure until you get a Mithril Buckler as your Focus. If you start at level 1, this might be a problem. If not, not so much. ;)

[Optimystik]

I would keep the familiar. The Immediate Magic ACF for Abjurers isn't very useful, whereas a familar grants extra actions. Imbue with Spell Ability (SpC) will let your familiar dispel and counterspell for you, and you can even share buffs like Battlemagic Perception with him, removing the need to cast them more than once.

[Johanas]

Ok. What if I do both? My feats are kinda up in the air, and so I could take the ACF for Focus Caster, and also take Obtain Familiar at 3rd. Best of both worlds?

[Optimystik]

Ok. What if I do both? My feats are kinda up in the air, and so I could take the ACF for Focus Caster, and also take Obtain Familiar at 3rd. Best of both worlds?

Oh, I hadn't read that and was only considering the Immediate Magic ACF. I suppose that could be worth giving up a familiar for (and reobtaining later.)

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Ok. What if I do both? My feats are kinda up in the air, and so I could take the ACF for Focus Caster, and also take Obtain Familiar at 3rd. Best of both worlds?

If you do that, grab Improved Familiar and an Imp. That way, you have a familiar who can UMD wands of Enervation for you.

[Johanas]

Shneeky...Always a pleasure hearing from you buddy. My Incantatrix won the gladiator match a few weeks back thanks to your assistance.

[Eldariel]

If you are interested in countermagic, consider a Cleric-dip for Divine Defiance. If you're an Illumian, that's all you'll need (it removes any need for Practiced Spellcasters to qualify). Immediate Action counters are excellent, as is Inquisition-domain (though you can Planar Touchstone it as a straight Wizard).

Of course, you'd do well to familiarize yourself with the few offensive Abjurations:
Anti-Magic Ray (SPC)
Maw of Chaos (SPC)
Dismissal-line
Karmic-line (CM) [well, ok, not really offensive but opponent-affecting at any rate]
Wall of Alignment (SPC)
Refusal (SPC)

Of course, you're probably already aware of them, but worth reiterating at any rate. They actually make your Spell Focus: Abjuration do something. And there's of course Explosive Runes, but that can be borderline broken if abused and weak otherwise. Disobedience also has a sorta Will-save that can actually be very useful for making opponent think he's controlling something he isn't.

And yeah, your build is solid. Archmage is another amusing class for an Abjuration-specialist, but as it only really kicks in after Master Abjurer 10, it kinda requires going all the way. Only way I can see freeing up the level is using Precocious Apprentice to early enter Master Specialist (it's not that bad an idea though given you're Focused Specialist anyways).

[taltamir]

the only familiars worth taking are the ones who let you make more actions per round using UMD and spells like imbue familiar with spell ability. (oh, and you want the to be able to fly)
PS. ok you can do a few more things with familiars... like polymorph, or getting some rare feat that lets you stack familiar powers with animal companion for real awesomeness... A cleric with the nature domain for animal companion, a domain that grants access to arcane spells, and the aquire familiar feat (he can cast arcane spells) and then a feat that lets you stack the two (normally forbidden by basic familiar rules, the feat bypasses that)... you can get some pretty nasty warbeast of death familiar. there are other specialist familiar builds... but in general your familiar is for breaking action economy. Note that most DMs frown upon this and leave the familiar as a useless XP bomb, in which case you want to trade it away for something good.

UMD familiar generally means that your familiar needs to be able to speak and have prehensile hands. Raven familiar might satisfy this depending on how prehensile their claws are according to your DM.

From SRD there's the imp or quasit with improved familiar... but they are both evil (although yours could always be non evil... always evil means they are born/created evil and can change alignment later according to WOTC).

using other sources you can use celestial familiar to get an eladrin coure, or with improved familiar, get a "petal" or nixie or pixie or whatever, there are tons of sentient familairs...

generally speaking, you want them to be able to fly too... the eladrin coure is unbelievably good with its long list of immunities, resistances, at will alternate form of a ball of light that is immune to physical attack, and an always on circle of protection against evil (+2 AC vs evil, and immunity to all mind affecting spells regardless of alignment). You can have your coure fly over to the fighter who failed his will save to free him from whatever it his that he is affected by...
remember that mind affecting is something that every single spell in the school of enchantment has AND a good number of spells from other schools have it too... this is why enchantment is considered such a bad school. it has some really nice spells (eg, mindrape), but there are a ridiculous amount of ways to achieve total immunity to it.

All the familiars are NOT worth it until you are about level 10... they need good UMD, and you need to have the spells and spell slots to imbue them with spells. so none of those are of any use at low levels. They are just an unnecessary and stupid risk to take and you should never take a familiar until you actually have use for one.

The advantage of the focus alternate feature is that it is less of a risk, and is usable (somewhat) at level 1. in the long term, a familiar is better at high levels, even though it is riskier to have.

[deuxhero]

I would keep the familiar. The Immediate Magic ACF for Abjurers isn't very useful, whereas a familar grants extra actions. Imbue with Spell Ability (SpC) will let your familiar dispel and counterspell for you, and you can even share buffs like Battlemagic Perception with him, removing the need to cast them more than once.

Better ideas

Some issue of dragon has a flaw that makes you unable to take a familiar (semi-reasonable, there is a feat that gives you a familar)

Abjurant Jaunt (PHB2) means you never have to deal with a grapple again.

[Eldariel]

Better ideas

Some issue of dragon has a flaw that makes you unable to take a familiar (semi-reasonable, there is a feat that gives you a familar)

Abjurant Jaunt (PHB2) means you never have to deal with a grapple again.

It's Abrupt Jaunt and it's the Conjuration Immediate Magic; Abjuration doesn't do teleportation.

[deuxhero]

Oh, still, take the flaw, even if you are going to get a new familiar with it.

[Optimystik]

Abjurant Jaunt (PHB2) means you never have to deal with a grapple again.

To be an Abjuration FS he needs to be an Abjurer, thus he cannot take Abrupt Jaunt (it is for Conjurers.)