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View Full Version : 3.5 Prestige Class - Scrolldrainer



Volthawk
2010-03-10, 04:49 PM
Well, I got the idea from this (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=144811) thread, where Lysander said this:


What if a sorcerer added any spell they cast from a scroll (or discarded from a scroll) to their spell list for 24 hours? Say casting the spell temporarily added it to their arsenal.

I just thought that that could be an interesting mechanic if tweaked, so here it is:

SCROLLDRAINER
"Yes, spellcasters can just use scrolls, but they only just understand the power scrolls can give you."

Any who can use magic can use scrolls, but only some can truly use the inherent magic in a scroll. Scrolldrainers can do this, draining scrolls of their magic and using it

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
-Skills: Spellcraft 8 ranks, Decipher Script 8 ranks, Use Magic Device 8 ranks
-Feats: Scribe Scroll
-Spells: Able to cast 4th level spells
-Special: Must have crafted 5 scrolls.

Class Skills
The Scrolldrainer's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int) and Use Magc Device (Cha).
Skills Points at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier

Hit Dice: d4

The Scrolldrainer
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Maximum Scroll Reserve Points|Spells per Day/Spells Known

1st|
+0|
+0|
+0|
+2|Scroll Drain, Scroll Refocusing, Scroll Focus, Scroll Reserve, Scroll Caster 1|
10 | None

2nd|
+1|
+0|
+0|
+3| Scroll Scriber (gold,time), Scroll Variety |
20 |+1 level of existing spellcasting class

3rd|
+1|
+1|
+1|
+3|Scroll Metamagic, Scroll Caster 3|
30 |+1 level of existing spellcasting class

4th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Scroll Multiscriber, Dual Focus|
40 |+1 level of existing spellcasting class

5th|
+2|
+1|
+1|
+4|Scroll Mastery, Scroll Scriber (XP), Scroll Caster 5 |
50 | +1 level of existing spellcasting class[/table]
Weapon Proficiencies: A scrolldrainer gains proficiency in no weapons or armour.

Scroll Drain: A scrolldrainer can absorb the magic inherent in scrolls as a full round action. This adds the spell levels of the spell(s) on the scroll to the scolldrainer's Scroll Reserve (see below).

Scroll Reserve: This is what powers the scrolldrainer's spellcasting ability. It's capacity is equal to your Intelligence modifier multiplied by your Scrolldrainer level, with a cap of 10*your scrolldrainer level.

Scroll Focus: When you enter this prestige class, you must focus on either arcane or divine scrolls. Only your focused type of scroll benefits from your class features.

Scroll Refocusing: The scrolldrainer can use the absorbed magic to cast spells. Initially, you can cast any spell from your spell list or have cast from a scroll. Casting a spell costs a number of scroll reserve points equal to the spell level of the spell +1, and the maximum spell level you can cast is equal to your class level +2.

Scroll Caster: When a scrolldrainer casts a spell from a scroll, your caster level is increased by 1 for the caster level check to use the scroll if it is too powerful. You can also use your own caster level when using a scroll, and you gain the caster level bonus for that as well.

At 3rd level, the bonus increases to +3.

At 5th level, the bonus increases to +5.

Scroll Scriber: When scribing a scroll, you only pay one quarter of the base price in gold for raw materials. Scribing scrolls also now take 1 day for every 1,500gp in it's base price.

At 5th level, you only pay 1/10 the base price in XP.

Scroll Variety: You can cast any spell from a scroll, as long as it is in your focus (arcane or divine). After casting, you can cast that spell with Scroll Refocusing.

Scroll Metamagic: A scrolldrainer can apply any metamagic feat he knows to a scroll. If he does this, he must pay scroll reserve points equal to twice the spell levels added by the metamagic. He can also do this when casting spells from Scroll Refocusing, paying the same cost.

Scroll Multscriber: When crafting, if you pay the normal costs instead of the reduced costs from Scroll Scriber, you can craft 3 scrolls in the time it takes for you to make 1 without the reduced time from Scroll Scriber.

Dual Focus: You can now apply all class features to both arcane and divine scrolls. All scrolls can now be cast, and added to the spells usable for Scroll Refocusing.

Scroll Mastery: You can now cast from scrolls twice. Once cast once, the scroll becomes inert to all except creatures with this ability. Scroll Draining still destroys the scroll, and cannot be used on scrolls if they have already been used once. Additionally, when Scroll Draining, you gain scroll reserve points equal to 1.5*the spell level(s) on the scroll. You can also gain scroll reserve points over your actual maximum, but they are lost at a rate of 5 per minute, until back below the maximum.

Volthawk
2010-03-11, 04:31 PM
There, finished now. Ideas? Any better names for the class features?

DragoonWraith
2010-03-11, 05:36 PM
Use Magic Device is not a Class Skill? Uhh....

Scroll Refocusing is sort of confusing to read, and the name's a little weird. Also, capping it at your class level, for a 5-level class... that's a bit of a problem, you can only cast 5th level spells with this, and those just aren't that useful later on. Half Caster Level, make it a 10 level class, or something, I think.

Scroll Caster - normally you don't use your Caster Level at all when casting a spell from a scroll (unless you need to make the Caster Level check in order to use it), so the first half of that doesn't seem to do anything. Do you mean to say that you add +1 to the scroll's Caster Level? Or do you mean to say that you can use your Caster Level for the scroll?

For Scroll Metamagic, consider changing it to Metamagic Spell Completion, as the Artificer class feature. It's worded more clearly.

Surrogate Spellcaster doesn't do anything; you're allowed to do that by default.

Also, this is not worth 3 lost spellcaster levels. It's potentially worth one - which is very significant - if you can cast spells higher than 5th with Scroll Refocusing. Scroll Variety's quite powerful too. But it's just not worth losing your 9th level spells over, unless you can replace them with scrolls (which might be interesting).

Finally, have you read the Unbound Scroll PrC from Dragonmarked? Similar fluff, might have some inspiration for you.

finalepic
2010-03-11, 05:49 PM
The text and table disagree on how many scroll reserve points the Scrolldrainer can have at any given level. Since the text is twice that of the table, it seems to be a small yet significant error.

Volthawk
2010-03-12, 04:45 AM
Use Magic Device is not a Class Skill? Uhh....

Scroll Refocusing is sort of confusing to read, and the name's a little weird. Also, capping it at your class level, for a 5-level class... that's a bit of a problem, you can only cast 5th level spells with this, and those just aren't that useful later on. Half Caster Level, make it a 10 level class, or something, I think.

Scroll Caster - normally you don't use your Caster Level at all when casting a spell from a scroll (unless you need to make the Caster Level check in order to use it), so the first half of that doesn't seem to do anything. Do you mean to say that you add +1 to the scroll's Caster Level? Or do you mean to say that you can use your Caster Level for the scroll?

For Scroll Metamagic, consider changing it to Metamagic Spell Completion, as the Artificer class feature. It's worded more clearly.

Surrogate Spellcaster doesn't do anything; you're allowed to do that by default.

Also, this is not worth 3 lost spellcaster levels. It's potentially worth one - which is very significant - if you can cast spells higher than 5th with Scroll Refocusing. Scroll Variety's quite powerful too. But it's just not worth losing your 9th level spells over, unless you can replace them with scrolls (which might be interesting).

Finally, have you read the Unbound Scroll PrC from Dragonmarked? Similar fluff, might have some inspiration for you.

1) Oops, fixed.

2) Changed the requirements to only be enterable at 10th, and made the max castable level 7th, which is what you'd be able to cast at the earliest level you can finish at. Got a better idea for a name? I'm not so good at coming up with names for abilities.

3)Changed to adding to caster level checks for casting and that you can use your own caster level, with the bonus.

4) Yeah, that sounds better, I'll use a modified version of that.

5) Oh, really? Feature removed.

6) Changed it to one lost caster level.

7) Similar fluff, yeah. Mine doesn't use Dragonmarks, though :smallwink:.

Actually, I just realised that this is quite similar to Artificer, just more focused and a PrC.

DracoDei
2010-03-13, 01:25 AM
Prerequisites: 5 scrolls doesn't seem like that much to have crafted... Wizards who value versitility might scribe that many scrolls before they hit 2nd level...


Other than getting your intellegence score up to 32 (which would normally mean epic levels), I don't see any way that the 10xClass level limit is ever going to come up.



The scrolldrainer can use the absorbed magic to cast spells. Initially, you can cast any spell from your spell list or have cast from a scroll. Casting a spell costs a number of scroll reserve points equal to the spell level of the spell +1, and the maximum spell level you can cast is equal to your class level +2.

Underlined part seems garbled to me.


For lower level spells than Scroll Multiscriber (which I think would sound better as just Multiscriber) is intended to work best with, I would recommend, at some level allowing the scribing of scrolls costing less than 100 gp to be done in one hour.