[PF] Mistborn Home Brew - Need Balance Advice

[NightbringerGGZ]

I'm working on a home-brew Allomancer for one of my players in an upcoming Pathfinder game. We've decided to use the Magus as a baseline for the class rather than build an entire class from scratch. I'd like some advice on how to emulate the manner in which Mistborn power their magic.

In case you haven't ready the books, an Allomancer consumes small amounts of metal and converts the metal into energy to power his magic. He's able to use this magic is small amounts throughout the day or can "Flare" burning away all his power for a short duration but extremely potent effect. I'm thinking of some changes to how spell-preparation works and a custom Arcana for the Flare ability.

For spell preparation, the Allomancer still spends an hour each morning prepping the metals he'll consume each day. He is allowed to leave a number of spell slots equal to half his level plus his Intelligence modifier open. He can prepare a spell in one of these open slots as a swift action.

For the burn ability I'd like an ability where you consume all prepared spells in order to cast a single spell that you know and apply reduce cost meta magic to it. Where I'm stuck is on the numbers here. The rough idea I have is that I'll provide a list of meta magic that can be applied, scaling it up as you level. The player has a choice as too how many spells he'll prepare in advance and how he wants to manage burns. Would a +1 Spell Level per spell sacrificed work out?

[Winds]

Well, for one thing, I wonder how accurate you want to be with this. Will the character have to spend all his spells per day to avoid being poisoned? Do you plan on accounting for the damage to the body done by overuse? Will the player have to track how much metal they have?

(Not that I need to hear your answers-just a few setting details that might come up between you and the player later.)

As to an add-hock Flare mechanic...I think choice of increase spell level or reduced cost metamagic would work. However, I would suggest some form of scaling. As an example. a level 7 magus spending every spell he gets on one 3rd-level spell wound have at least +12. I would suggest a 1:1 ratio if you sacrifice a same level spell slot, but require two of a lower level, or three; then scale the other way with having a higher lever spell slot sacrificed give more charge at a similar rate.

[Seerow]

Honestly spell slots aren't a good analogue for allomancers. In the books, if you have enough metal you can literally keep your metals flared all day every day. One character does exactly that and ends up with heightened abilities as a result of it.

Of course this breaks down in a game with extradimensional storage, where an allomancer could just carry around a half a ton of various metals without breaking a sweat or even putting a minor dent in their expected wealth.


That said, if I were going to try to adapt it to a D&D/PF style, rather than basing it off of the Magus, I'd go off a mix of Psionics and Alchemist instead. Mind you I say this having never looked too closely at the PF Alchemist, but know that it generally involves preparing potions ahead of time that only you can drink/use to cause special effects. Sounds like an Allomancer to me. So I'd probably start with the Alchemist, and have each potion or whatever they make grant a pool of PP that can be used on an associated allomantic power.



I think the more interesting question is are you making the class for a full Mistborn? Or for Mistings? It's been a while since I read Alloy of Law, but in that couldn't some individuals have two Allomantic abilities, or was it 1 allomancy and 1 feruchemy? How do you plan on handling things like Steel/Iron? Just generalize them to telekinesis or keep the push/pull theme to it?

[Amechra]

I think it was 1 Allomantic power and 1 Feruchemic power.

No love for "ALWAYS EVIL" Haemolurgy?

[Seerow]

I think it was 1 Allomantic power and 1 Feruchemic power.

No love for "ALWAYS EVIL" Haemolurgy?

Hemalurgy actually strikes me as having a lot in common with the various grafts, except for super powers instead of extra appendages.

[Amechra]

Well, it (spoilers)

does require human sacrifice for each spike, hence the Always Evil bit.

[NightbringerGGZ]

The class is for a full Mistborn but for my own sanity I'm restricting powers to the eight basic metals. I'm toying with the idea of of dividing up the spell list based on these metals. I agree with the idea of adapting the spell casting of the character to be a bit more like an alchemist as well. I know this won't be a perfect adaptation of a Mistborn, more of a character concept with some homebrew to make it work. So how about something like this:

You have 8 metals, replacing spell schools used by standard spell casters. This means I have to reorganize the spells a bit. Any spells that targets an "object" should be assumed to only target metal objects. I'll have to come up with some custom spells for Iron & Steel or adapt existing ones. I can borrow from the Kineticist in Occult Adventures as a framework for balancing the abilities.

The limited spell slots of a Magus will represent the limitations of the Mistborn's body to handle all these metals that are being consumed and then magically erased. Each day the Mistborn prepares a number of "portions" of certain metals in amounts that correspond to spell levels. Cantrips are assumed to require so little metal that the Mistborn can restore the magical energies needed at will. The class now works as a hybrid of Prepared and Spontaneous casting. You prepare a number of metals, your choices restricting you to certain schools. When you expend the energy from a "portion" you can cast any spell linked to that type of metal.

I also like the idea of a Burn mechanic expending all metal that is currently consumed. This would let the player cast a single spell he knows, restricted to the metal types he's already consumed. The additional consumed spells could be used to:


Boost the spells DC
Boost his effective caster level
Reduce the cost of meta magic applied to the spell


As an example, I've created a custom spell which mirrors Burning Hands called Scatter Shot. This is a Steel spell which lets you fling metal pellets in a cone to deal damage. A level 1 Mistborn has consumed two portions of Steel and has learned this spell. He has the option to cast it twice per day, cast it once while boosting either the CL/DC of the spell, or he could apply meta magic.