Ways a Wizard can gain spells. (Without buying them!)

[Aemoh87]

Anyone know any? I need a reliable way to get spells without blowing all my money on them or wasting feats to gain extra spells a level. My only current idea is go out and murder some other wizards.

[Maho-Tsukai]

Take Leadership. Make your cohort a wizard. Take that feat that makes your cohort only one level lower then you instead of the level he/she usually is. Ask your cohort to occasionally let you borrow his/her spellbook. Profit.

[Aemoh87]

Take Leadership. Make your cohort a wizard. Take that feat that makes your cohort only one level lower then you instead of the level he/she usually is. Ask your cohort to occasionally let you borrow his/her spellbook. Profit.

Still uses up a feat, and my character is tight as is :(

[Groverfield]

Murder is always reliable in D&D, but otherwise go around asking about mage-libraries... also there's some section about "Spell Experimentation" which all curious spellcasters go through at one time in their life or another

[subject42]

Max out your ranks in hide, move silently, and sleight of hand, then surreptitiously copy scrolls while inside of magic shops?

(Hide in the store until after closing time if necessary).

[Keld Denar]

If you met another wizard in traveling, you could always offer to trade. You let him copy one of yours, he lets you copy one of his. You both gain, and neither of you really loses anything.

Collegate Wizard (its in a sidebar in the back of Complete Arcane) would basically double your automatic spells known when you level. Its one feat, rather than a whole bunch like taking Extra Spell, but it must be taken at 1st.

[Maho-Tsukai]

Yeah, but if your going to blow a feat, there is no better way to blow it then Leadership. Leadership is one of the most broken feats in the game, bar-none. If you don't want to take leadership then I suppose you could try and get the fire-souled template instead(which gives you leadership for free.)...the only downside is that it gives you LA(+2, I think...I know it's not much.)....so I'd honestly just take leadership instead. If you are still tight on feats, take a class that grants lots of bonus feats. Incantatrix grants a good number of bonus feats and it one of the most overpowered PrCs in existence. The catch is they have to be metamagic feats, though as a wizard you will want metamagic anyway. There may be other PrCs that grant feats too...

Anyway, yeah...there is little you can do beyond murdering to get spellbooks without taking a feat like leadership of Collegate wizard...however, if you like enchantment, you can always pull the old "Lelouch trick" of charm person + Hypnotisim to make some wizard fanatical and just order them to hand over their spellbook...heck, if you want to be a Human Paragon 1/Wizard1/Human Paragon2/Wizard X and you can now be both a social manipulator and/or sneak...so you can just diplomance wizards into letting you borrow your spellbook, or just steal spellbooks.

[mootoall]

If you can spare even one slot, the best, guaranteed way is the Collegiate Wizard feat, which grants you 4 free spells at every level, rather than two. Edit: Curse you, ninjathulu!

[Malibar]

I know you said you don't want to waste feats but Collegiate Mage(CM i think) will give you a lot of extra spells. It doubles the base number you get, so 6 plus Int modifier at first level and then 4 every level after that. If you add up the cost of buying scrolls and then scribing them into your spellbook, this feat ends up being worth tens of thousands of gps. It also means you don't have to worry about scroll/wizards to kill availability. Its a feat but I wouldn't say its a waste since you get a hefty amount.

Edit: Ninja'd

[Cog]

fire-souled template instead(which gives you leadership for free.)...the only downside is that it gives you LA(+2, I think...I know it's not much.)
+3, though there's a lot of confusion around that one, as the infamous Crystalkeep documents put it at +1 instead.

[Aharon]

Similarly to Maho-Tsukai's advice, have other wizards in your party.

If your DM agrees with the interpretation, use Secret Page.
At higher levels, use a Boccob's blessed book so the costs aren't restrictive.

Mage of the Arcane Order gets you spells without buying them, but for a limited time.

[Alefiend]

Simple process:

Do some Knowledge: Planes research to identify outsiders who might know spells you want.
Cast Planar Binding and make teaching you those spells the condition of their release.
Sleep with one eye open for the rest of your life.

[Aemoh87]

Murder is always reliable in D&D, but otherwise go around asking about mage-libraries... also there's some section about "Spell Experimentation" which all curious spellcasters go through at one time in their life or another

D&D is actually called R&M (Rape & Murder) in our group, because most D&D games are just raping and murdering your way across the universe.

BUT! If anyone knows of this spell experimentation or spell research stuff let me know. I'd be interested!


Max out your ranks in hide, move silently, and sleight of hand, then surreptitiously copy scrolls while inside of magic shops?

(Hide in the store until after closing time if necessary).

It's gutsy, but a good idea since I am already a good hider and they will prolly only be looking for magical hiding. I find that mundane hiding can easily trump magic if done right.

As for other tricks Leadership is banned in my group, for the worst of reasons (Long story short but you can get all the cohort shennanigans you want but build one legitimate business using followers and your the devil). And Diplomacy is super house ruled in our group. I do fear charming wizards too as they tend not to like it, better off killing them and avoiding any backlash.

I hate on collegiate mage as well because my wizard did not goto college.


Simple process:

Do some Knowledge: Planes research to identify outsiders who might know spells you want.
Cast Planar Binding and make teaching you those spells the condition of their release.
Sleep with one eye open for the rest of your life.


This one is super fun. I took an insidious faustian pact once for optimization and had tons of fun playing a character paranoid he was being tricked into evil actions.

[Zale]

In which case, loot the spellbooks from the charred corpses of the wizards you've defeated.

There will probably be SOME spells in there that you don't have.

[subject42]

It's gutsy, but a good idea since I am already a good hider and they will prolly only be looking for magical hiding. I find that mundane hiding can easily trump magic if done right.

It's even better if you combine the two!


Alternately, you could take the drag net approach.

If you're reasonably high level, create intelligent undead minions that can seek out scrolls and spellbooks, collect them, then return them to you. There are multiple ways to reduce or eliminate the creation cost for undead, so even if only one in a hundred comes back to you with a scroll, sooner or later you're going to break even.

[dextercorvia]

Join a Wizards organization, and buy a Blessed Book. Many of them allow for free spell copying.

[Vizzerdrix]

Collegate Wizard (its in a sidebar in the back of Complete Arcane) would basically double your automatic spells known when you level. Its one feat, rather than a whole bunch like taking Extra Spell, but it must be taken at 1st.

This. this this this this this. Even if yer feat starved, find room. The time and money saved. I can't even begin to describe how good this feat is.

[Metahuman1]

Create an affiliation (Players handbook II, Chapter six or Seven.), and have one of the membership benefits be the ability to copy spells into your spell book for free as long as you do side missions or some crafting for them. The former just kills a bit of time, the latter, use the Wight trick and your just out the cash, use a WLB breaker trick and your not even out that, and you've got your spells. Boom.

[Elboxo]

Dominate a magic items shop owner? He probably has protection, but it'd be worth a shot. Get him to put all the scrolls + whatever else you want in a bag and put it out the back, then make him go back inside. You stand just around the corner. Make sure you dominate him while you are disguised. Even if he remembers, he won't know it was you. Dispel the domination after you get a good distance with the bag

[Greenish]

D&D is actually called R&M (Rape & Murder) in our group, because most D&D games are just raping and murdering your way across the universe.I don't think most D&D games involve much raping. :smallamused:

[elonin]

+1 for Collegiate wizard.
Can't remember the name of the prc but there is one that lets you have access to a spell pool in return for you giving prepared spells in return. There is also a prc in which you only need one page for a spell. That plus a bocobs book reduces spell cost.


It is possilbe to have too many spells in your book. Some utility spells should be cast from items which cost money but do not cost precious slots. Extra spells in the book can lead to problems with good spell selection.

[Alefiend]

I don't think most D&D games involve much raping. :smallamused:

Sadly, it's probably only because nobody likes using the grappling rules. :smallmad: There seem to be enough fans of the evil PC on these boards to make that kind of thing all too likely.

:remembers Palladium campaign from college
:shudders

[NNescio]

+1 for Collegiate wizard.
Can't remember the name of the prc but there is one that lets you have access to a spell pool in return for you giving prepared spells in return. There is also a prc in which you only need one page for a spell. ...

Mage of the Arcane Order and Geometer. Both PrCs are from Complete Arcane.

[Flickerdart]

+1 for Collegiate wizard.
Can't remember the name of the prc but there is one that lets you have access to a spell pool in return for you giving prepared spells in return. There is also a prc in which you only need one page for a spell. That plus a bocobs book reduces spell cost.


It is possilbe to have too many spells in your book. Some utility spells should be cast from items which cost money but do not cost precious slots. Extra spells in the book can lead to problems with good spell selection.
Mage of the Arcane Order and Geometer, respectively.

Having all the spells you want in your book isn't a problem, since even a regular one has a hundred pages, and then you can just buy more of the things.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

1. Copy a 1st level spell already in your book onto another page.
2. Find an individual or an organization which allows wizards to copy spells from its library, the standard fee is spell level x 50 gp (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicOverview/arcaneSpells.htm#addingSpellstoaWizardsSpellbook) (the actual price doesn't matter, it could be a thousand times that much).
3. Prepare Secret Page (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/secretPage.htm).
4. Go to that library and study the spell you want to learn. Roll the spellcraft check to understand it, but don't copy it into your book. Pretend you failed the spellcraft check in-character and didn't fully understand the spell, blame the poor quality of the copy you were given, and refuse to pay their fee. Tell them that you'll pay them when you actually gain a spell from them, but that you'd rather not waste another entire day studying chicken-scratches.
5. After you leave, cast Secret Page to turn the text of that 1st-level spell copy into that of the one you just learned. It only takes one page regardless of its level, and it cost you nothing more than the one-page scribing cost, a 2nd level spell cast, and the time you spent studying it.

[Aemoh87]

I don't think most D&D games involve much raping. :smallamused:

Figurativly yes. This was also a conversation piece in my group. Like saving the city just to send them to economic ruin or sacrificing millions in the name of the alignment scale.

[Kaeso]

I don't think most D&D games involve much raping. :smallamused:

BoEF probably has rules for that, right?

[Aemoh87]

What is BoEF?

[Kaeso]

What is BoEF?

Believe me, you're better off living in blissful ignorance

[mootoall]

I hate on collegiate mage as well because my wizard did not goto college.


So refluff it as Dedicated Wizard or whatever fits your concept.

[tyckspoon]

Having all the spells you want in your book isn't a problem, since even a regular one has a hundred pages, and then you can just buy more of the things.

Lugging them around can get annoying, but usually by the time you need a second spell book you can pretty comfortably afford extradimensional storage for them too.

[Acanous]

doesn't going Focused Specialist net you an additional free spell a level from your chosen school? Or is that just extra slots?

[Randomguy]

Ask the thief in your party nicely to pickpocket wizards of their spell-books on their way out of the magic shop. There's a spell that's basically unseen servant with super pickpocket skills that you could use, but I don't remember what it's called.

[NNescio]

Ask the thief in your party nicely to pickpocket wizards of their spell-books on their way out of the magic shop. There's a spell that's basically unseen servant with super pickpocket skills that you could use, but I don't remember what it's called.

See, the problem with this approach is that it makes targeting your spellbook kosher for the DM as well.

[King Atticus]

I don't think that any of the steal scrolls, murder for spellbooks type advice would work. None of that stuff lets you avoid paying the price to add to your spellbook. If you get another wizards spellbook the only spells you can use out of it without paying to add it to your own are spells you already know...

(Spoilered for length, all emphasis mine)

A wizard can use a borrowed spellbook to prepare a spell she already knows and has recorded in her own spellbook, but preparation success is not assured. First, the wizard must decipher the writing in the book (see Arcane Magical Writings, above). Once a spell from another spellcaster’s book is deciphered, the reader must make a Spellcraft check (DC 15 + spell’s level) to prepare the spell. If the check succeeds, the wizard can prepare the spell. She must repeat the check to prepare the spell again, no matter how many times she has prepared it before. If the check fails, she cannot try to prepare the spell from the same source again until the next day. (However, as explained above, she does not need to repeat a check to decipher the writing.)

The stealing scrolls would save you the price of the scroll but not the price to add to your spellbook.


A wizard can also add a spell to her book whenever she encounters one on a magic scroll or in another wizard’s spellbook. No matter what the spell’s source, the wizard must first decipher the magical writing (see Arcane Magical Writings, above). Next, she must spend a day studying the spell. At the end of the day, she must make a Spellcraft check (DC 15 + spell’s level). A wizard who has specialized in a school of spells gains a +2 bonus on the Spellcraft check if the new spell is from her specialty school. She cannot, however, learn any spells from her prohibited schools. If the check succeeds, the wizard understands the spell and can copy it into her spellbook (see Writing a New Spell into a Spellbook, below). The process leaves a spellbook that was copied from unharmed, but a spell successfully copied from a magic scroll disappears from the parchment.



Once a wizard understands a new spell, she can record it into her spellbook.
Time: The process takes 24 hours, regardless of the spell’s level.
Space in the Spellbook: A spell takes up one page of the spellbook per spell level. Even a 0-level spell (cantrip) takes one page. A spellbook has one hundred pages.
Materials and Costs: Materials for writing the spell cost 100 gp per page.

Note that a wizard does not have to pay these costs in time or gold for the spells she gains for free at each new level.


So the best way, unfortunately, to get them free or reduced are through feats.

The already mentioned Collegiate Wizard (or whatever fluff you want to give it) is your best bet. I would also recommend the Arcane Shorthand feat (Dragon #358)

You scribe spells in a spellbook using a shorthand that lets you transcribe faster and to occupy less space than normal. This shorthand cuts in half the time required to write a spell in a spellbook. Such spells also take up half as many pages and require half as much of the special materials normally used.

Or the Geometer PrC, that was mentioned earlier. Which cuts it to 1 page (So only 100gp) to add any spell into your spellbook.

[dextercorvia]

I don't think that any of the steal scrolls, murder for spellbooks type advice would work. None of that stuff lets you avoid paying the price to add to your spellbook. If you get another wizards spellbook the only spells you can use out of it without paying to add it to your own are spells you already know...

(Spoilered for length, all emphasis mine)


The stealing scrolls would save you the price of the scroll but not the price to add to your spellbook.





So the best way, unfortunately, to get them free or reduced are through feats.

The already mentioned Collegiate Wizard (or whatever fluff you want to give it) is your best bet. I would also recommend the Arcane Shorthand feat (Dragon #358)


Or the Geometer PrC, that was mentioned earlier. Which cuts it to 1 page (So only 100gp) to add any spell into your spellbook.


Blessed Book

This well-made tome is always of small size, typically no more than 12 inches tall, 8 inches wide, and 1 inch thick. All such books are durable, waterproof, bound with iron overlaid with silver, and locked.

A wizard can fill the 1,000 pages of a blessed book with spells without paying the 100 gp per page material cost. This book is never found as randomly generated treasure with spells already inscribed in it.

Moderate transmutation; CL 7th; Craft Wondrous Item, secret page; Price 12,500 gp; Weight 1 lb.

It isn't exactly free, but 12.5gp/page sure beats 100gp/page.

[King Atticus]

It isn't exactly free, but 12.5gp/page sure beats 100gp/page.

True enough, a little tough in the early goings but very worth it once you can afford it.

[dextercorvia]

True enough, a little tough in the early goings but very worth it once you can afford it.

There is also a (Faerun, IIRC) item called an Aurean Spellshard, which is essentially, Half Blessed Book for half the cost.

[Aemoh87]

I am not to concerned with the cost to add to my spell book. Though it's something it's a fraction of the cost of scrolls. I can afford to set aside some cash to add new spells especially if I am not wasting it at the magic shop :)

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Just copy a 1st level spell into your book a second time, and then cast Secret Page to turn it into a higher-level spell you just picked up. Every spell now takes up only one page, regardless of level.

As I said before, go to a library of some sort where you can pay to copy their spells. Study a spell, make the Spellcraft check, then pretend in-character that you failed to understand it and refuse to pay their fee for the pleasure of wasting a day to study a poor-quality copy. After you leave cast Secret Page to put the spell you just learned into your spellbook. If you keep going back and doing that, they're more likely to think your character is an idiot than that he's scamming them.

Another option would be to set up some sort of spell-sharing club with local NPC wizards. Four characters each sharing one spell with the other three would give everyone a net gain of three spells at no actual cost apart from the willingness to contribute one spell. The more participants, the more everyone gains by the arrangement. Everyone wins, except the establishment, so you may run into the typical government persecution encountered when participating in file sharing.

[Aemoh87]

I fear sharing spells with wizards as they may use them against me. Plus my character would be afraid of wizards sizing him up by viewing his spells.

[NNescio]

... Another option would be to set up some sort of spell-sharing club with local NPC wizards. Four characters each sharing one spell with the other three would give everyone a net gain of three spells at no actual cost apart from the willingness to contribute one spell. The more participants, the more everyone gains by the arrangement. Everyone wins, except the establishment, so you may run into the typical government persecution encountered when participating in file sharing.

That sounds like a positively awesome campaign idea.

[sreservoir]

There is also a (Faerun, IIRC) item called an Aurean Spellshard, which is essentially, Half Blessed Book for half the cost.

eberron. aureon's spellshard, ECS 265.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

I fear sharing spells with wizards as they may use them against me. Plus my character would be afraid of wizards sizing him up by viewing his spells.

1. Everyone contributes a spell of equal level.
2. Everyone decides ahead of time which spell each person will contribute.
3. Everyone already has a single page separate from their book with a single 1st level spell copied onto it, each person uses Secret Page to turn that into the spell they're going to contribute.
4. Everyone passes their page one person to the right, and goes home. The next day everyone passes their current page one person to the right and goes home. Repeat until everyone gets their original page back.

Nothing is given away apart from the highest level spell each person is willing to contribute.

[sreservoir]

1. Everyone contributes a spell of equal level.
2. Everyone decides ahead of time which spell each person will contribute.
3. Everyone already has a single page separate from their book with a single 1st level spell copied onto it, each person uses Secret Page to turn that into the spell they're going to contribute.
4. Everyone passes their page one person to the right, and goes home. The next day everyone passes their current page one person to the right and goes home. Repeat until everyone gets their original page back.

Nothing is given away apart from the highest level spell each person is willing to contribute.

what if multiple people have the same spell?

[Thespianus]

I don't think most D&D games involve much raping.

Sadly, it's probably only because nobody likes using the grappling rules.
This made me splatter coffee over my desk. :smallsmile: Awesome.

[Aemoh87]

Spell swapping is not really what I am looking for as I feel like I will get TONS of crap spells. My DM has a system for finding magic items so there is a decent chance scrolls I want will be for sale in magic shops of appropriate wealth, but random wizards could give me very strange spells I have no interest in preparing or making scrolls of...

[Squiggles]

If you can use campaign specific PrC's you can take Guild Wizard of Waterdeep (Magic of Faerun pg26). They not only gain access to a Spellpool but starting at the first level of Guild Wizard you gain an extra spell per level. You wind up with access to spells from the PHB and your 3 spells/level (coupled with collegiate wizard is always fun).

[Raimun]

When you have down time, Plane Shift (or ask a Cleric to do it) to a plane with:

1) Magic libraries
2) Benevolent beings (to you)

If you're saving the world etc., go to a Good plane and use the classic: "Honorable angels, we are trying to save the world. Wouldn't you help us in our noble endeavour in a way that costs you nothing?"

Might still not work.

[Tetrasodium]

auron's spellshard, buy one and start saving cash... it's like a better version of boccob's blessed book (gree scribing, lots of space).

[sreservoir]

auron's spellshard, buy one and start saving cash... it's like a better version of boccob's blessed book (gree scribing, lots of space).

it's half the pages, half the cost, half the weight; basically, they just divided everything by two and refluffed. this makes it worse, because you get half as much overspill space if you don't manage your pages well.