Master Specialists Rawk!

[cupkeyk]

I was helping a friend make a Red Wizard when I realized that Master Specialist is the easiest and best way to qualify for Archmage, since Archmage totally wastes a feat on Skill focus (Spellcraft) but Master Specialist gives this out for free. Master Specialist even lets you get Greater Spell Focus for free so you can blow another feat, not that it hurts at this point, on Spell Focus (any other School). This is aside from the fact that Master Specialist gives you awesome abilities. Since you can qualify for master Specialist at 3rd level and Archmage at 13 level, the ten levels in between is just super convenient.

That being said. Oh My God! I am loving Master SpecialistxArchmage!

The Red Wizard I made:

Enchanter(Social Proficiency Variant from UA) 3, Master Specialist10, Archmage2, Shadow Adept 1, Red Wizard 4
Racial/Regional: Tattoo Focus (Enchantment)
1 Able Learner
3 Spell Focus (Enchantment)
4 Skill Focus (Spellcraft) *free*
6 Empower Spell
6 Greater Spell Focus (Enchantment) *free*
9 Spell Focus (Illusion)
12 Shadow Weave Magic
15 Heighten Spell
16 Pernicious Magic *free*
16 Tenacious Magic *free*
16 Insidious Magic *free*
18 Metamagic School Focus

This caster has nearly irresistible enchantment spells; and his Illusion Spells are not at all bad either. He used easy qualification to Shadow Adept to gain easy qualification to Red Wizard. Though I am not sure which would benefit him better, more levels in Red Wizard or more levels as Shadow Adept. The Red Wizard level(s--> if I decide to give him more), is just there flavor but then the Shadow Adept Abilities seem weak past level 1.

Just sharing but if you have comments or suggestion I would love em.

[Caelestion]

Personally, if I was playing a Red Wizard nowadays, I would eventually be Wizard 5/Master Specialist 4/Red Wizard 10/Archmage X.

[ravenkith]

Abjurer 3/Master Specialist 10/Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil 7 = fun times.

[jjpickar]

What's a Master Specialist and where can I get one?

[Caelestion]

Anywhere you can get a Complete Mage.

[cupkeyk]

Uhm, what are the benefits of red wizard other than membership in a powerful guild?

[Caelestion]

Have you got the 3.5 DMG? The PrC is clearly listed in there.

[cupkeyk]

Yeah, I mean, the abilities are sort of mediocre. They used to get absurd DC's now they just boost their own caster levels and save against their own school. I don't see it as anything further than flavor. Circle magic is hard to pull off.

[Caelestion]

I take it you also don't have the Faerûn (Forgotten Realms) setting.

[Skyserpent]

I really like that combo... I wonder if Master Specialist can make Evokers good...?

[Nebo_]

No, they don't really make evokers good. The best abilities are for the Abjurer and the Conjurer.

[Jade_Tarem]

Yeah, I mean, the abilities are sort of mediocre. They used to get absurd DC's now they just boost their own caster levels and save against their own school. I don't see it as anything further than flavor. Circle magic is hard to pull off.

Circle magic hard to pull off? Don't make me laugh.

Combine with leadership. Or just slap the RM tattoo on your party's spellcasters, since that's all that's required for them to participate in circle magic. Now, let's say you're level 15 in a party that also sports, I dunno, a cleric and a bard. With leadership, you pick the cohort, your two casting party members, and a 5th, 2 4th, 3 3rd, and a 2nd level follower to join your circle. Each casts a max level spell. That's 7 + 8 + 6 + 3 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 spell levels, or 35 total levels. You can crank up your caster level to around 40 or so for things such as spell resistance, dispel checks, and level dependent spell variables, and slap maximize, empower, and hieghten on your disintegrate to make for a disintegrate that shatters even epic spell resistance and does 180 flat damage with a virtually unattainable DC. Or you can simply hieghten a bunch or your save-or-die spells to make them ungodly hard to save against. And as you said, there are permanent bonuses as well.

[Dhavaer]

No, they don't really make evokers good. The best abilities are for the Abjurer and the Conjurer.

Illusionists get some good stuff too.

[cupkeyk]

Tattoo focus is a regional focus so unless everyone gets it at first level and is Thayvian(human) or Thayvian(planetouched), they can't get it at all. Heighten spell, depending on the DM can only boost a spells level up to 9. Which is still pretty good. Unless you teleport home daily, having all your apprentices around is asking for a fireball/acid breathe/lightningbolt/cone of cold/resonating bolt wipe out.

I have both DMG and PGtF. FRCS is 3.0, we have that but it has mold and and mildew and pizza stains by now, I think.

[RaistlinandPals]

I wouldn't say its the most powerful ability of the prestige but some of the later evocation abilities are pretty cool... you set someone on fire they are gonna burn. :smallcool:

[Ramza00]

That bedroll in complete mage makes circle magic even better by reducing the 8 hours sleep/meditation for acane spells. Get 3 full arcane casters and do 3 circles and boost everybodies caster levels. It only takes 4 hours to do that now

[Ramza00]

Oh yeah, fear I mean fear the

Wizard 5/Red Wizard 3/Nar Demonbinder 1/Red Wizard 2/Ultimate Magus 9

Circle Magic+Blasphemy+Word of Chaos+Dictum+Holy Word=Dm throwing a book at you.

You are also a 19th lvl Wizard Caster with all 7 lvls of Nar Demonbinder.