Best Playable Races

[LordAsreil]

I'm getting ready to play in a new campaign and i've been looking at playing a wizard of some sort, probably going along a summoning/binding route, maybe taking a few levels in malconvoker.

So my question is what are you guys favorite/best races to play when doing a wizard, preferably without level adjustment

When i've play wizards before i've gone with sun elf for the +2 Int rather than Dex but i suspect there are some better ones out there

[Karnith]

Humans, Strongheart Halflings, Azurin, etc. are all good choices, because they're good at pretty much everything with their bonus feat.

All of the +Int elves (Gray Elves, Fire Elves, etc.) are good choices, both because they have a bonus to a wizard's primary casting stat and because of Elven Generalist.

Deep Imaskari (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20031003b) make good wizards, especially at low-levels when their Spell Clutch ability matters.

A venerable Dragonwrought Kobold makes a fine wizard (though better-suited to be a sorcerer), and also is ripe for all kinds of cheese, DM-permitting.

[Emperor Tippy]

Gray Elf.

+2 Int/+2 Dex and qualifies for Faerie Mysteries Initiate for Int to HP instead of Con along with getting 4 bonus feats and qualifying for Elf Generalist.

[Talderas]

getting 4 bonus feats

The weapon proficiencies for chaos shuffle, right?

[Emperor Tippy]

The weapon proficiencies for chaos shuffle, right?

Yep.

Elves: Making humans look like chumps.

[Ruethgar]

It may also be noted that Deep Imaskari spell clutch functions off spell level, not spell slot. Still not great, but it allows you to metamagic a 1st level spell with anything except sanctum and heighten and cast it again next round or a second level spell as long as you sanctum it and stay away from the sanctum.

[Maginomicon]

Primordial Menta Cyclopean (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=301651).

[ZamielVanWeber]

The (very large number of) lesser planetouched contained plenty who are good, depending on what you are looking to do.

[Story]

Be sure to become Necropolitan if you can and dump Con into the ground.

[Phelix-Mu]

Be sure to become Necropolitan if you can and dump Con into the ground.

Ick. I have yet to find one of my character concepts where my character would substantially benefit from being a necropolitan. There are the immunities of course, and not needing to sleep, but those are pretty piffling next to the might of magic itself. If an elven wizard can't get it done in five centuries, then the following eternity probably isn't going to see it accomplished either. After all, if cosmic power is the goal, the longer the incubation time of the plan, the more chance there is for some adventurer miscreant to show up and ruin things.

If you google planetouched, there is a nice handbook on some other gaming site that has a nice index of the names of each planetouched race published, along with the adjustments. With the names in hand, one can move to searching for a more complete list of a particular planetouched's full list of racial features.

My favorite at the moment is lesser wispling, a cute little demonic halfling concept. Very interesting, nice mods, and retains the halfling subtype and traits. It would be very cool if you could swing your DM on a lesser strongheart wispling (trading the bonuses to saves for the bonus feat).:smallwink:

[Jergmo]

What's the greatest threat to a wizard? Another wizard.

Deep Dwarf: usual dwarf bonuses to Con and penalty to Cha, but with +3 vs saves vs. spells and spell-like abilities and poisons, Darkvision 90 ft. Sundark goggles (10 gp) takes care of light sensitivity..

[Fax Celestis]

I'm a big fan of most of the above, but Illumians, Changelings, Raptorans, and Warforged deserve special mention. Illumians get a bunch of neat things they can do with their sigils. Changelings qualify for some very stellar PrCs and make terrific spies. Raptorans get EX flight, which is useful to save yourself a spell slot (or use the spell's faster speed and then stay airborne when someone inevitably tries to dispel magic you). Warforged get a ton of immunities (including humanoid-type specific effects like dominate person) and the repair spells are on the wizard list (so you can heal yourself without UMD, if you really want); plus, they get components (including docent components, which are basically undispellable, unremovable intelligent items) and qualify for the Spellcarved Soldier PrC (which doesn't progress spellcasting but has some pretty cool abilities in its first four levels and you can recoup CL loss with Practiced Spellcaster). Sure, your plating gives you 5% ASF, but you can either suck that up, get your body enchanted with twilight, take the Unarmored Body feat, dip into Spellsword, or a variety of other options.

[Rubik]

Warforged get a ton of immunities (including humanoid-type specific effects like dominate person) and the repair spells are on the wizard list (so you can heal yourself without UMD, if you really want); plus, they get components (including docent components, which are basically undispellable, unremovable intelligent items) and qualify for the Spellcarved Soldier PrC (which doesn't progress spellcasting but has some pretty cool abilities in its first four levels and you can recoup CL loss with Practiced Spellcaster). Sure, your plating gives you 5% ASF, but you can either suck that up, get your body enchanted with twilight, take the Unarmored Body feat, dip into Spellsword, or a variety of other options.Don't waste a feat on Unarmored Body. It's a waste. Go for dragonborn, instead. The only things you lose are your warforged plating (which you're getting rid of, anyway) and your slam attack (which you likely won't be using, since you probably won't be making melee attacks, and if you are, a simple gauntlet replaces it handily, for cheap).