Archivist

[Baldin]

Hi there,

In my group we never had the Archivist played due to not using the Heroes of Horror book so far.

I have one question about its power though.

Is the archivist "Stronger" or "Weaker" then a cleric or are they on about the same strength?

Cheers
Baldin

[hymer]

They are both considered 'tier 1', and as such, among the potentially most powerful classes in the game. So they are about on par.

The archivist is more dependent on specifics in the campaign, though, since his spell list must be built up gradually. Under a liberal GM, the archivist is potentially extremely versatile, with potential access to every spell in the game. The cleric has a far more restricted number of spells known, but he has immediate access to the whole bunch as soon as he has level and wis enough to cast them, and so would fare relatively better under a restrictive GM.

[kardar233]

In a game where a Wizard can buy scrolls enough to fill out his entire spell list, the Archivist can do the same (and scoop spells from the Druid, Divine Bard, Domain and some other lists).

In a game where a Wizard is mostly stuck with his spells per level, the Cleric wins by being more of a Tier 1, in that they have a wider total spell access.

[NOhara24]

In a game where a Wizard is mostly stuck with his spells per level, the Cleric wins by being more of a Tier 1, in that they have a wider total spell access.

>Cleric has wider access to spells than Wizard.

Wait, what?

[dextercorvia]

>Cleric has wider access to spells than Wizard.

Wait, what?

Meaning that in a campaign without scroll (or other spellbook) access, the wizard is stuck with the 2/level unless he spends feats and stuff, while the cleric automatically knows every spell on his list, and can pick a whole new batch tomorrow.

[Darth Stabber]

Archivist's power is entirely dependant on the how many non-cleric divine spells are available. If you don't have divine bards, and druids/rangers/paladins eschew scroll writing and you keep non-core divine casters out of the picture, you end up with a sub-par wannabe cleric. If you allow full access to magicmart, they make cleric's cry. The key to making them fit in with existing classes is the same as with wizard, make a few basic things available, and make access to non-clerical scrolls require a bit of work. Ranger and Paladin are weird because of their retarded spell progression they are given certain spells at lower than normal level, but it is entirely reasonable for there to be almost no scrolls of them (because honestly how many rangers and paladins would even bother taking scribe scroll). Shugenja and Druid are prime picking grounds for spells Archivists can't gain through level up. Shugenja seem likely candidates for heavy scroll scribing (it fits in with their concept), but if shugenja are unused, it's not a problem, and if they are rare it affords a gm unique opportunities to utilize those scrolls as a motivating factor. Druids don't seem like big time scribes, making their scrolls also a very nice tool of motivation.

[Rejusu]

Their power level is relative to how much material is allowed in the game and how liberal the DM is with allowing them access to it. So they can be better or worse than a straight up Cleric, depending on your DM. The Cleric is more consistent so it's a safer bet if you've got a stingy DM or you don't know what's going to be allowed. But the Archivist can outshine it under the right circumstances. Talk it over with your DM before playing one.