Level 5 Wizard Help

[Shnigda]

Hey guys,

I am currently in the process of making a new wizard character. However, I have never played a wizard before.

I would love some help to point me towards some good feats, spells, items, races and templates that I should consider to get good stats for a Wizard.

I understand that INT is the most important stat for a wizard, followed (I think) by WIS, so any suggestions for Templates and races that would boost this would be great (this can include aging the character, but I'm not sure whether this would be too detrimental to the character...).

The maximum total for Level Adjust and Class Levels is 5 and the character cannot be evil (DM didnt like it when we had an evil guy in the party last time and some rocks fell on him...)

We are running a couple of house rules, but the most pertinent to this character creation is that we get Feats at odd levels (1,3,5,7......)

Any help would be great!

[Troacctid]

I'd go with a Gray Elf (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/elf.htm#grayElf), and become a Dragonborn (see Races of the Dragon) to cancel out the Constitution penalty. As an elf, you can take the racial substitution levels from Races of the Wild; the 1st and 3rd levels are pretty great.

The Collegiate Wizard feat from Complete Arcane (page 181) may interest you. It expands your spellbook pretty significantly, so you can try out more spells and see which ones you like. You might also pick up a reserve feat (from Complete Mage) as your 5th level bonus feat, to give you an at-will attack that you can use when you're not sure what spell to cast.

Generally, Wizards are very good at controlling the battlefield--throwing up walls of stone or clouds of fog or whatnot to divide the enemies so your party can enjoy a temporary numbers advantage, dropping area attacks or debuffs on any enemies that group too close together, and so on. They can do direct damage, too, although predicting exactly how many fireballs you'll need on a given day is a tricky prospect, so it's safer to keep that as a secondary role (if you bother with it at all) and save it for when you can hit several enemies at once.

You may find it helpful to specialize, or be a domain wizard (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#wizardVariantDomainWiz ard), rather than take the Elf substitution level, because it gives your character some extra guidance and thematic cohesion. (You could also ask your DM if you can be a domain wizard and still take the elf substitution levels.) The extra spells per day help a little bit, but IMO the main advantage is carving out an identity for your character.

[denthor]

Choose your spells wisely:

What type of beings are you fighting?

Undead look at necromancy spells halt undead is always a good one. This is 3rd level top of your power list

big bad hairy and strong get rid of the opponents strength 1st level ray of enfeeblement.

Evocation spells make you a fighter type

1st Magic missile hit every time 1d4+1 of damage at your level three of them per casting
2nd scorching ray fire based spell does great damage
3rd fireball

Illusion

2nd Invisibility escape spell

Many DM's will let you summon things and keep the experience that your summoned things kill. Be prepared for long casting time(stay safe) and have the stat block for to hit, hit points movement ready before you bring them on the field.

a good utility spell is a 1st level spell that is overlooked floating disk allows you to carry thing out of the looting area without making you or your party carry it.

What type of mage do you want to be?

When I run mages they are specialist to pick up the extra spell and limit what type of spells I can cast so some are automatic in my rejection list.

You will get a lot of advice like the one above how to min/max or tweak for the most power. Not my style run straight from the core book until you understand what you are running and your mages thinking starts to run the character

[GilesTheCleric]

Are you looking to be The Best and Most Powerful Character Ever (TM), or just to play some dnd and not overthink things?

In terms of stats, wis will help your will save, but you already have a good will save. If you're going for an untouchable beast-of-a-wizard, then raising con for your fort save or wis for your will save makes sense as a secondary stat; otherwise, dex and con are more useful. A general rule for all characters is to try to have at least 14 con, and an 18 in your primary stat. In terms of dex, you shouldn't need too much if you're making (ranged) touch attacks (assume all creatures have a touch AC of 10, and then stat yourself so that you can hit that on a 2 or better). Con will help you when the going gets tough, since hp is the primary thing between your character and death until level 9.

Wizards give you the freedom to build your character however you please, so if you have a character/rp concept you'd like to build toward, then let us know and we can work to make it happen.

Generally, good feats are things like metamagic feats and item creation feats.

Good spells are ones that either 1: affect multiple targets in terms of their battlefield presence (BFC, battlefield control), 2: remove enemies from the fight efficiently (SoL/SoD/SoS, save-or-lose/die/suck), 3: buff yourself and your allies, 4: don't allow the targets saves against the effects (NSjD, no-save-just-die). Popular examples are things like Glitterdust, Grease, Nerveskitter, and Orb of X (acid).

Good races are ones that don't negatively impact your primary casting stat, and either increase it, or give you a bonus feat. Silverbrow Humans, Strongheart Halflings, and Gray Elves are typical picks.

Templates are a colossal-sized can of purple worms you probably don't want to open. Basically, it's possible to just add stats and things to your character for free, but it also turns you into a detestable mutant that no civilized nation is going to want within their borders. Good thing glamer spells exist (and you can cast them, because you didn't pick illusion as a banned school, right?). Anyway, templates will probably get rocks dropped on your character. Maybe grab one if it fits your character concept.

In short, spend your WBL adding more spells to your spellbook, cast your spells, and the rest of the character can be whatever you please. Check out the handbook (http://dictummortuum.blogspot.com/2011/09/wizards-handbook-part-one-attributes.html) for very specific suggestions for things.

[Shnigda]

I was thinking of being some sort of illusion and buff type wizard who can cast offensive spells when the party are in dire straits.
I don't know if that's possible, but that's what I'd like the character to be if possible :P
This is really helpful so far, thanks guys!

[denthor]

I was thinking of being some sort of illusion and buff type wizard who can cast offensive spells when the party are in dire straits.
I don't know if that's possible, but that's what I'd like the character to be if possible :P
This is really helpful so far, thanks guys!


Ok run a general mage

Spells

1st level
shield
mage armor
magic missile

2nd

invisiblity
scroching ray
flaming sphere

sleet storm hampers opponents movements let you escape

3rd
Vampiric touch give you hit points

dispel magic

fly

[Shnigda]

Is magic missile actually worth it? I have seen people saying that there are much better first level spells out there... :/

[GilesTheCleric]

Your spell selection changes based on what books you have access to.

Magic missile can be good, but it requires focusing your entire build on. Even at level 5, it's probably much more efficient for you to drop a Grease on two or more enemies, then let the party fighter/ranger/rogue deal more than 2d4 damage to them. Beyond level 5, blasting spells start to get a little better, but if you're going to try blasting, the Orb of X line are your best pick. Use a low-leveled orb spell that is sure to hit (SR: no and is a ranged touch attack), then add metamagic to make it more potent. Doing things like draining the foes' ability points, giving them negative levels, or the like can be much more efficient than trying to blast them down with 5d6 fireballs every round.

Remember that even if you're a wizard, you have a whole party with you. You dealing 5d6 damage isn't as efficient as giving three extra people on your team more attacks with Haste, or giving them free sneak attacks and preventing foes from hitting them back with Grease.

[Shnigda]

That makes sense, it makes me realise just how awful the previous wizard in our party was... Dropping magic missile after magic missile and then insisting the party rest after 1 encounter... :P

[ryu]

That makes sense, it makes me realise just how awful the previous wizard in our party was... Dropping magic missile after magic missile and then insisting the party rest after 1 encounter... :P

Yes that is below par. As general rule of thumb it's easier to make other people in the party have an easier time killing instead of doing it yourself. At levels where you use those lowbee slots for serious work stuff like color spray, grease, web, and other similar stuff is good. If you still want to hurt people directly at level one and aren't specializing there's a lovely little symbol of pain spell that works wonders.

If you specialize conjuration we have a wonderful alternative class feature called abrupt jaunt which essentially lets you say no to an enemy attack aimed at you several times per day. Combine with fiery burst for all of the low level staying power you could ever want.

[JDL]

Here's my two copper pieces of advice for your character

Race: Human (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/races.htm#humans), Dragonborn (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/iw/20060105b) Gray Elf (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/elf.htm#grayElf), Deep Imaskari (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20031003b), Tiefling (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/planetouched.htm#tiefling)

As mentioned, either Human, Elf, or an Elf template work best. Avoid anything with a Level Adjustment, it's typically not worth the cost (with a few notable exceptions). One of the most overpowered combinations in 3.5e is the polymorphing Wizard with the Outsider type. Gaining the Outsider type can be accomplished in a few different ways. First is to play an Outsider race such as a Tiefling, which means you give up your first level for this. Obviously this puts you behind the group in your advancement, so alternatives are preferable. The next way is to acquire the type. The Regional Feat Otherworldly from the Player's Guide to Faerûn can be taken at 1st level if you're an Elf or Deep Imaskari and converts you from Humanoid to Outsider with no Level Adjustment. If your DM allows you to take this feat, I strongly suggest it. This means you're immune to a variety of spells that target Humanoids such as Hold Person, and can use Alter Self and Polymorph to assume Outsider type forms.

Human's biggest advantage is the lack of weaknesses and extra feat. Since your DM's houserules give you more feats this race isn't as attractive as normal.

Elf's biggest advantage is the racial substitution levels as a generalist wizard (more on that below). The downside with Elf is that the Con penalty hurts you in your second most important stat. Adding the Dragonborn template cancels out the the Dex bonus and the Con penalty for Elf. Grey Elf adds -2 Str and +2 Int, perfect for a Wizard. The only hiccup is if you wanted to add the Otherworldly feat, since the fluff for the Dragonborn template says the Rite of Rebirth occurs after the character is generated and coverts them to a Humanoid with the dragonblood subtype. If your DM lets you keep the Outsider type from Otherworldly after performing the Rite of Rebirth, take this option. If not, go with Deep Imaskari for an Outsider Wizard.

Deep Imaskari is inferior to a Dragonborn Gray Elf only if the Outsider type is retained after the Rite of Rebirth. Their race gets a +2 bonus to Int at the cost of a -2 Dex, and a racial ability equal to a 1,000 gp wonderous item. Use them if you can't get away with the Dragonborn Gray Elf Outsider. Don't bother if Otherworldly isn't available. Either take the LA +1 for Tiefling Outsider or go for LA +0 Dragonborn Gray Elf Generalist Humanoid.

Stats: Int, Con, Dex, Wis, Cha, Str in that order

Intelligence is your most important stat. Make sure you start with at least a 16 here before racial modifiers. After that, Con is essential both for hit points and also for Fort saves. A 16 here minimum is also highly recommended. Assuming you spend the rest of your adventuring career one spell away from being polymorphed into a different form, your Dex will only help with initiative in the first round, after which you will get the polymorphed form's Dex score instead for AC, ranged touch attacks and Reflex saves. Still, it's more important than Wis, which will only affect you for Will saves (which you're strong in anyway) and Cha, which is almost useless except for Use Magic Device and social skill rolls (and let's face it, the Wizard probably isn't likely to be the party face anyhow). Str is dead last. Enough to carry your stuff until you get a Handy Haversack, no more.

Class: Wizard, Elven Generalist Wizard

If you have the Elf subtype (Dragonborn retain their subtype after their transformation), go with the racial substitution for an Elven Generalist Wizard found in Races of the Wild. This means you can't specialize in a school, but grants you a slew of bonuses in compensation. It's a win-win situation. If you can't take this option or don't qualify due to your race, vanilla wizard is still a fine choice.

Specialization: Generalist, Domain Wizard (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#wizardVariantDomainWiz ard), Specialist Wizard Variants (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/specialistWizardVariants.htm)

Elven Generalist Wizard is a strong contender for the best choice in terms of choosing a wizard school specialization. However the other option is to look at the Domain Wizard option in Unearthed Arcana. No schools lost and bonus spells gained mean the only downside to this route is the lack of ability to enter certain prestige classes that require you specialize. The Specialist Wizard Variants get a mention only for their utility in qualifying for prestige classes that require specialization. In almost all cases, banning a school of magic is a bad choice. The benefits need to weigh up against the downsides.

If you decide to specialize, which school is best? Conjuration and/or Transmutation are considered the two strongest schools. Both have spells you would never want to ban yourself from using, and both have such a broad variety of effects that you'd likely not fare too badly if you focused your efforts here. Which schools should you ban? Enchantment, Evocation and Necromancy are the three best options. Evocation rarely provides enough potency to be worth using at later levels, Enchantment has too few effects and many monsters are immune to them, and Necromancy, while filled with quite a few good spells, is often ill favoured due to the negative effects on roleplay.

Familiar: Hummingbird, Improved Familiar (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#improvedFamiliar)

Presented in Dragon #323 page 98, the Hummingbird familiar grants the master a +4 bonus on initiative. Winning initiative means you get to go first. Going first often means you win the fight. If you can have this familiar, take it. If not, pick the option that suits you best and trade it out later for an Improved Familiar. Imps are a solid choice here, since they can cast wands and improve your action economy per round.

Skills: Concentration, Knowledge, Spellcraft and Prerequisites

Start the game by putting one rank in each Knowledge skill to let you attempt any check. After that point, focus only on Arcana, Dungeoneering, Nature, Religion and The Planes, since these are used most to identify creatures. Nature is likely the least useful if you wanted to skip it, since many DMs will outright state what the creature is if it's a naturally occurring animal, and if not you'll probably guess it anyhow (metagame FTW!). Knowledge: Local is intended to require ranks for each individual area, so either ask if your DM will houserule it to let your ranks cover all checks required, or just skip it completely. Always keep Concentration and Spellcraft as high as possible to let you identify spells cast at you and avoid losing a spell when you take a hit.

Other notable mentions for skills are Use Magic Device, especially if you intend to pick up an Improved Familiar. Because your familiar shares your skill ranks, this means they can attempt to use this skill to activate wands and staffs if they have grasping limbs and can speak. Also remember the Aid Other rules for familiars. This means you can use your familiar to aid your checks on any skill the DM lets it attempt. Common uses are Knowledge skills, Spot and Listen checks.

Finally, know which prestige class you plan to enter and spend your skill ranks accordingly. For example, if you want to prestige into a Malconvoker, make sure you're spending full ranks in Bluff each level.

Prestige Classes: Incantatrix (http://realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/prestige2.pl?class=Incantatrix), Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil (http://realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/prestige2.pl?class=Initiate_of_the_Sevenfold_Veil) , Malconvoker, Loremaster (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/prestigeClasses/loremaster.htm), Archmage (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/prestigeClasses/archmage.htm)

This area is simply too big to cover, and many guides with dozens of pages have been written about the benefits of each. I'll simply recommend to do your research on the first three of these classes that I've listed and check whether your DM will allow them. They each have a lot to offer in boosting your character's utility. Loremaster and Archmage get mentions as core rulebook options if your DM is particularly strict, as taking both is quite possible with a bit of planning, and their benefits are worth the cost. Of these, Malconvoker is the only that doesn't advance your caster level fully, so exercise caution here, though in my personal opinion the benefits are worth the cost, unlike most prestige classes that sacrifice caster level advancement.

Feats: Otherworldly (http://realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/featbox.pl?feat=Otherworldly)/Improved Initiative (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#improvedInitiative), Spell Focus (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#spellFocus) (Conjuration), Augment Summoning (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#augmentSummoning), Extend Spell (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#extendSpell), Quicken Spell (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#quickenSpell), Persistent Spell (http://www.realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/featbox.pl?feat=Persistent_Spell), Prestige Prerequisites

Winning initiative is always worth the cost of a feat and I strongly recommend taking Improved Initiative as quickly as possible. On the other hand, it's not as powerful as gaining the Outsider type with Otherworldly, so pick one or the other. Beyond this, Augment Summoning beefs up your Summon Monster spells and the boost to your Conjuration spell DCs is a nice side-effect of the prerequisite feat for this. I'd make these your 1st, 3rd and 5th level feat choices, in that order. At 5th level, assuming you don't take the 5th level Elven Generalist Wizard instead (I'd recommend skipping this one personally) then you get your choice of a bonus metamagic or item creation feat. I'd suggest Extend Spell here, since you're reaching the stage where the spells are starting to be worth extending. Past this point and prior if you're aiming for earliest entry possible into a prestige class, focus on the feats you'll need to get yourself the entry prerequisites for your prestige. Quicken spell should be taken around the level 12-13 mark, and Persistent Spell is a mandatory choice for an Incantatrix. If you took Otherworldly at level 1 in lieu of Improved Initiative, try fitting it in at a later stage. Given your DM's houserules about feats, you shouldn't have trouble.

Avoid the trap of item creation feats if you can. You're selling your feats and experience for gold, and that's a damned poor trade. If your DM isn't letting you keep your characters equipped with the appropriate wealth by level he's doing it wrong, and if you're trying to increase your wealth by level past the standard for your character, remember who controls the loot list.

Spells:

I'll list the spells I'd choose as a new wizard freshly created at level 5. Thus, 3+Int mod for level 1 equal to 8 spells with a 20 Int, then 2 spells of the highest available level each other level. Note that if you get Elven Generalist, you can also add an additional spell known each level.

At level 0, good spells to prepare are few. Detect magic will usually suffice for most days, with honorable mentions going to Daze and Flare. In most cases though, you're better off using your standard action for something else.

Level 1

Combat:
Grease - Conjuration. Save or fall down, denies enemy their Dexterity to AC, grants your rogue sneak attack. Must have. Benefits from Spell Focus (Conjuration).
Mage Armor - Conjuration. At 1 hr/level, this is a spell that will last the entire dungeon. If you have a monk in your party, he'll love you for giving this to him too. You also have my pity if you do.
Mount - Conjuration. You see a pattern emerging? Also known as "Wall of Horse." Block the enemy from moving down a 10 ft. hallway, or use for soft cover from ranged attacks. If you can find a way to drop one on your opponent, you'll be dealing massive amounts of damage too.
Unseen Servant - Conjuration. Having one of these means you get a free move action per round. Have it reload your crossbow. Have it draw items from your pack. Get it to aid on skill rolls. Have it open that strange door. It lasts long enough to survive most of the day's adventuring unless it's slain.
Colour Spray - Illusion. Arguably better than Sleep, this spell keeps its utility well past the point where other stuff is immune to the Sleep spell. It's harder to target, but worth the cost.
Enlarge Person - Transmutation. Make your big dumb fighter into a bigger dumb(er) fighter. Your allies will love you for using this at the start of combat.

Out of Combat:
Alarm - Abjuration. Ward your campsite to avoid ambush. Ward the dungeon entrance to avoid others sneaking up from behind.
Identify - Divination. Because someone has to do it.
Charm Person - Enchantment. You won't get much use out of this spell in combat, but it's handy to have for interacting with NPCs that aren't homicidal, simply grouchy and surly. Get better discounts from a merchant, convince an innkeeper to let you stay the night, talk a guard down from arresting you.
Silent Image - Illusion. Yes, this spell is great in combat too, though most DMs will hate the complex rules about use. However, out of combat it serves a huge amount of purposes. Create a Powerpoint presentation in thin air to sell your idea to a group of nobles. Summon up a perfect replica of the castle to plan your attack routes. Make your cleric look like he's wearing a giant chicken suit. It's fun and a great spell.

Level 2

Combat:
Glitterdust - Conjuration. Save or blind, which at this level means save or die. 20 ft. radius to catch multiple enemies, and as a bonus it outlines invisible creatures. Must have. Benefits from Spell Focus (Conjuration).
Invisibility - Illusion. Live to fight another day. Exercise the better part of valour. Or just cast it and then use Summon Monster spells.
Alter Self - Transmutation. Oh boy. The cheese is strong with this one. At level 5, with the Outsider type as an Otherworldly Elf/Deep Imaskari, you can turn yourself into a Minor Xorn (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/xorn.htm) for 50 minutes! That's +12 natural AC,+1 size AC, and a natural attack that deal 2d8+2 damage. With one spell, you have more AC and better damage than a fighter in fullplate and a tower shield. Add Mage Armor for extra ridiculousness, and nothing will touch you on anything less than a natural 20 roll. If you put big numbers into Con, you should have enough hit points to survive a few blows too. Save this for when you run out of spells for the day and need to go into melee form, and your allies will be shocked to discover you're giving them flanking bonuses and tanking the BBEG.

Out of Combat:
Rope Trick - Transmutation. No late night ambush for you! Camp anywhere, even in a dungeon. Combine with Alarm to alert you if something is nearby when you're ready to leave. Best to combine with Extend Spell to last 10 hours at level 5.

Level 3

Summon Monster III - Conjuration. You've just got Augment Summoning if you followed my advice earlier, and now you can use it to full potential. Save this for the boss fight and summon up a Huge Fiendish Centipede. Tell it to grapple, and with its +17 grapple mod and 10 ft. reach whatever you're targeting is gonna stay grappled. Outdoors, have a Celestial Hippogriff grapple with a +13 mod, then fly up 200 ft. and break the grapple. Wile E. Coyote, eat your heart out.
Haste - Transmutation. Everyone moves faster, everyone hits more. Better damage than a Fireball overall, though depending on how effectively your party uses it maybe not. Still retains its value even through mid to late game. Must have.

[Shnigda]

Wow! This is all hugely helpful and that last point pretty much answerved all of the outstanding questions I had in a lot of detail.
For this I am hugely grateful and I will endeavour to create an interesting character from this information!

[JDL]

Finally, since you asked about items, here's a quick run-down of the loot you should try to pick up. As a level 5 character, your wealth by level should see you begin with approximately 9,000 gp of gear. I'd strongly suggest the two items below as part of your investment:

2,000 gp: Handy Haversack - Since you dumped Str, this is a given. Buy one, remember not to put anything sharp and pointy inside, and forget about encumbrance.
3,000 gp: Rod of Metamagic, Extend, lesser - Free Extend on Rope Trick per day plus an two more extends on either Haste or Summon Monster. Well worth the cost.

After this, it comes down to individual choice. I'd probably stock up on a few potions or partially charged wands. If you've taken my advice and invested in Use Magic Device, a few wands of Cure Light Wounds or Lesser Vigor give you the option to self heal outside of combat. A potion or two of Remove Blindness or Neutralize Poison can mean the difference in combat between living or dying. Finally, if you want some real cheese abuse, Dust of Sneezing and Choking is a single use, 2,400 gp item that guarantees whatever you throw it at will die. Seriously, a level 5 party could take out a CR 15 Adult Red Dragon with this item. Most DMs ban it out of principle.

[GilesTheCleric]

Silent Image - Illusion. Yes, this spell is great in combat too, though most DMs will hate the complex rules about use. However, out of combat it serves a huge amount of purposes. Create a Powerpoint presentation in thin air to sell your idea to a group of nobles. Summon up a perfect replica of the castle to plan your attack routes. Make your cleric look like he's wearing a giant chicken suit. It's fun and a great spell.

Joke's on you; I worship Manethak and therefore wearing a giant chicken suit can only increase my connection to my deity and my ability to sneak up on unsuspecting giant chickens in my holy hunt!

All of JDL's advice is spot-on. I had begun to make a big list of other useful wiz spells, then stopped when I realized I had 400+ level 2 spells to go through, many of which I had never seen before (having played only divine casters, and making only limited use of UMD/anyspell).

In regards to item choices, see my sig for the maths on Wands of Lesser Vigour to see the maximum you ought to need per level. I only have one additional suggestion for items, and that's the Anklet of Translocation. It's just another Abrupt Jaunt, essentially, but it's cheap and uses the oft-unused boots slot. MIC has a whole bunch of other cheap, fun items as well.

[Mystral]

Magic Missle has its uses, but those aren't "main dps output". You can dispell Mirror Image with it. You can hit Ghosts and similiar things. You can ready it against spellcasting and damage enemy casters. You can deal the last few HP to kill something that is reeling, or trying to escape.

It's not that good at low levels, but at higher levels, it is one of the best level 1 spells because it still keeps a lot of utility.

[GilesTheCleric]

Magic Missle has its uses, but those aren't "main dps output". You can dispell Mirror Image with it. You can hit Ghosts and similiar things. You can ready it against spellcasting and damage enemy casters. You can deal the last few HP to kill something that is reeling, or trying to escape.

It's not that good at low levels, but at higher levels, it is one of the best level 1 spells because it still keeps a lot of utility.

Depending on the application, Kelgore's Fire Bolt, Orb of X, Shelgarn's Persistent Blade, or Mordenkainen's Buzzing Bee can also be good picks; all but MBB are also just as versatile. It's a very good point, though. Sometimes you just need to turn a mountain sideways and ping something with Magic Missile.

[Mystral]

Depending on the application, Kelgore's Fire Bolt, Orb of X, Shelgarn's Persistent Blade, or Mordenkainen's Buzzing Bee can also be good picks; all but MBB are also just as versatile. It's a very good point, though. Sometimes you just need to turn a mountain sideways and ping something with Magic Missile.

Well, they all lack things that magic missle can do because it is more versatile.

Kelgore's fire bolt can't knock of mirror images and deals less damage because of reflex save for half. Lesser orbs aren't autohits and have low range. Neither is force damage. Persistent blade doesn't deal it's damage all at once. Buzzing bee forces a concentration check, but a rather low one (at 22 Int and a level 5 spell cast, 22). A magic missle at that level does 13 damage, which is a 23 check, and you do some damage to boot.

If you have all of them at the ready, they are better at most of the things MM does, but with MM, you can prepare it 4 times and have a nifty tool for a lot of situations, freeing up your higher level spell preps for more specialised stuff.

[GilesTheCleric]

Well, they all lack things that magic missle can do because it is more versatile.

Kelgore's fire bolt can't knock of mirror images and deals less damage because of reflex save for half. Lesser orbs aren't autohits and have low range. Neither is force damage. Persistent blade doesn't deal it's damage all at once. Buzzing bee forces a concentration check, but a rather low one (at 22 Int and a level 5 spell cast, 22). A magic missle at that level does 13 damage, which is a 23 check, and you do some damage to boot.

If you have all of them at the ready, they are better at most of the things MM does, but with MM, you can prepare it 4 times and have a nifty tool for a lot of situations, freeing up your higher level spell preps for more specialised stuff.

I agree with all of this. In most games, Magic Missile is probably the superior choice. However, it's also a very well-known spell, with several (low-level) spells that explicitly counter it. It seemed worthwhile to note that there's other options, for the sake of budding optimizers.

[Mystral]

True, shield does counter it. And there's always the shield brooch, although it's rare to run into someone with that piece of equipment. (And people won't go out of their way to get it and use it if you don't use mm as anything but utility) Anything else?

[GilesTheCleric]

True, shield does counter it. And there's always the shield brooch, although it's rare to run into someone with that piece of equipment. (And people won't go out of their way to get it and use it if you don't use mm as anything but utility) Anything else?

Well, it's SR: yes, which can be a big problem (the big benefit to Kelgore's/Orbs). There's also Nightshield, and I think one other night-something-or-other.

[Mystral]

Point well made, a wizard should always have tools to deal with SR (Either assay spell resistance et. al. or spells that don't target it).

[GilesTheCleric]

Yup, that too; thank you for pointing out the cracks in some of the options. I'm not very well-versed with wizards, so it's useful to bounce options off of someone who is.

[A non-exhaustive search nets Dragonmark Shield as another counter, this one available as an immediate action. If only the new mirror listed more than 25 results, but oh well.]

So, OP, as you can tell from this exchange, spellcasting is a lot like chess. The batman/god-wizard doesn't get there without a lot of planning ahead, and perhaps a little help from Craft/Contingency.

[Mystral]

Many of these moves don't really matter at level 5, though. At that level, SR enemies are rare and can usually be dealt with by buffing the fighter, or there are other SR-less enemies in the mix.

And you don't have to be a batman or god wizard to play a fun and viable wizard. Depending on the campaign and optimisation level, a damage based evocation wizard with a few utility spells (on this forum, these are considered the lowest of the low) can be just as good, if not better in the metagame.

[Janthkin]

A little bit of a tangent, but if you're new to D&D spellcasting (not just wizards), the full Wizard experience is extremely daunting, and usually involves a silly amount of paperwork.

If you're happy doing some buffing and some battlefield control, you might consider the Beguiler (base class from PHB 2). It's a full arcane caster with a bit of a rogue theme, has more spells/day than a standard Wizard, and has 100% access to its entire spell list - no memorizing spells like a wizard, no choosing a small subset of spells like a Sorcerer.

What it doesn't have is much in the way of blasting, so if you're looking to throw a lot of d6's, that's not the way to go.

[Sith_Happens]

I was thinking of being some sort of illusion and buff type wizard who can cast offensive spells when the party are in dire straits.

If you want to do a lot of buffing you can't do much better than the War Weaver PrC from Heroes of Battle. It not only lets you modify most buff spells to affect the entire party, you can "store" multiple buff spells to cast all at once as a move action when the fighting starts. Just ask your DM if your familiar can fly around touching multiple teammates with the same spell so they don't have to clump around you at the start of every fight to benefit from your touch-range buffs (which most of the best ones are). Otherwise convince the party to all chip in for a wand of Spectral Hand and get used to using it whenever you think there's going to be combat soon.

If you have access to Complete Champion you want to trade your Wizard 5 bonus feat for the Spontaneous Divination feature, which does exactly what it sounds like it does.

Other good items besides the ones that JDL mentioned:

1000 gp: Pearl of Power I - So you can keep Mage Armor up all day without spending an Extend Rod charge.
1400 gp: Anklet of Translocation - Teleport ten feet as a swift action twice per day, a.k.a. Get Out of Grapple Free Card.
2300 gp: Bracers of Arcane Freedom - Twice per day as a swift action the next spell you cast is Stilled. You never know when that might come in handy.
3000 gp: Rod of Metamagic, Shaped, Lesser - Change the areas of Grease, Glitterdust, etc. to any of four options. The "four ten-foot cubes" option is an all-star any time your enemies are spread-out.
5000 gp: Circlet of Mages - Starts each day with three charges, any time you cast a spell you can spend charges equal to its level to not expend it. This one's probably too pricy to be worth starting with a 5th level, but keep it in mind for later.

[Petrocorus]

Mandatory Treantmonk's Handbook (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=394.0).


Here's my two copper pieces of advice for your character
Race:
...
...
Still retains its value even through mid to late game. Must have.
This is awesome. And big. Please tell me you have this in a ready-to-post file.

May i add that Elven Generalist and Domain Wizard can be combined. Of course, it's borderline cheesy. Focused Specialist Wizard can be cheesy too, anyway.

However, be careful with the Dragonborn template. People drool over it on this board, but let me remind you that you lose most of racial features with it. In the case of the Grey Elf, that might not be a big problem, but the loss of the racial proficiencies and the bonus to perception skills is still a loss you need to take into account. I personally prefer the Dragonic template from Races of the Dragon if the LA buy-off is possible. There is also less problem with the fluff.



Prestige Classes: Incantatrix (http://realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/prestige2.pl?class=Incantatrix), Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil (http://realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/prestige2.pl?class=Initiate_of_the_Sevenfold_Veil)

As a rule of thumb, i advise against this two PrC. They are too much cheese for many DM and for many parties.


If you want to do a lot of buffing you can't do much better than the War Weaver PrC from Heroes of Battle.

If you have access to Complete Champion you want to trade your Wizard 5 bonus feat for the Spontaneous Divination feature, which does exactly what it sounds like it does.

I totally second this two ideas. I was going to suggest Spontaneous Divination.

[Troacctid]

However, be careful with the Dragonborn template. People drool over it on this board, but let me remind you that you lose most of racial features with it. In the case of the Grey Elf, that might not be a big problem, but the loss of the racial proficiencies and the bonus to perception skills is still a loss you need to take into account. I personally prefer the Dragonic template from Races of the Dragon if the LA buy-off is possible. There is also less problem with the fluff.

Elves have no racial traits worth noting. Wizards don't need the weapon proficiencies, and Dragonborn gives you the perception bonuses right back and then some if you take the Mind aspect.

[Lerondiel]

Hey guys,

I am currently in the process of making a new wizard character. However, I have never played a wizard before.

I would love some help to point me towards some good feats, spells, items, races and templates that I should consider to get good stats for a Wizard.

Any help would be great!


At the risk of adding to the mountain of help to your illusionist/buffer, my best advice is the mindset of a party wizard - very intelligent preparation for a range of difficulties.

Wizards are expected to have the answers the rest of the party can't provide. Sorcerers, warmages, beguilers etc are the specialists, but you're the 'go to' man with the diversity to deal with any crisis. (hopefully)

Have a read through the monster manual and base character classes and begin to group types of opponents with weaknesses...

- Eg you can have a group of giants/dire animals too strong and with too many hit points but your mass enchantments/illusions like Slow beat their weak Will saves and instantly turn the tide or allow retreat.

- Against rogues/mages/bards your Necromancies/Transmutations target weak Fort saves etc

- If you have a capable cleric you may only prepare spells effective against undead rarely. Think about what the other PCs are strong at and try to avoid duplication.

- For an incorporeal enemy, or a tough opponent with AC or damage reduction driving your fighters crazy, the repeated force damage of Manyjaws is brilliant

- As countless threads attest, if your party has numerous archers/meleers Haste is not only the best 3rd level spell in 90+% of encounters, it beats many other unchained buffs of higher level. (I currently have an 8th level wizard in a party of 9 PCs...the DM has stopped asking what i want to do in the 1st round of combat :)

- For other problem solving its always good to have Invisibility, Fly and at 7th level Polymorph

And as Troacctid mentioned, a reserve feat from Complete Mage makes sure you always have pew-pew power when you want to save spells.

[Petrocorus]

Elves have no racial traits worth noting. Wizards don't need the weapon proficiencies, and Dragonborn gives you the perception bonuses right back and then some if you take the Mind aspect.

I did say "not a big problem" and just "take into account". I don't mean that he should not do it. Just that if he do it, he must just remember that he also lost a few things.

[JDL]

Mandatory Treantmonk's Handbook (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=394.0).


This is awesome. And big. Please tell me you have this in a ready-to-post file.

May i add that Elven Generalist and Domain Wizard can be combined. Of course, it's borderline cheesy. Focused Specialist Wizard can be cheesy too, anyway.

However, be careful with the Dragonborn template. People drool over it on this board, but let me remind you that you lose most of racial features with it. In the case of the Grey Elf, that might not be a big problem, but the loss of the racial proficiencies and the bonus to perception skills is still a loss you need to take into account. I personally prefer the Dragonic template from Races of the Dragon if the LA buy-off is possible. There is also less problem with the fluff.


As a rule of thumb, i advise against this two PrC. They are too much cheese for many DM and for many parties.


I totally second this two ideas. I was going to suggest Spontaneous Divination.

As has been said, between level 1-5 having the bow proficiencies saves an Elf wizard a move action to reload their crossbow when they're forced to use this instead of casting spells, but if you've dumped Str the penalty will apply to damage with a bow, so often you'll want a crossbow anyhow. Plus the fact you have no call being in melee with anything other than a polymorphed form using natural attacks means you don't suffer much for giving up the weapon proficiencies. The racial bonuses to Spot and Listen don't scale like they do in Pathfinder due to cross class penalties, so it's not a huge loss, especially since you get the bonus Alertness feat from having a familiar. The biggest loss I'd say would be the immunity to Sleep, but you've got a decent Will save to compensate.

As for the post, the write-up was done on the spot and is my own work, but of course is influenced by the input of the many who've written similar guides, to whom we all owe our thanks.

[Sith_Happens]

Elves have no racial traits worth noting. Wizards don't need the weapon proficiencies, and Dragonborn gives you the perception bonuses right back and then some if you take the Mind aspect.

The problem with that is that you'd have to not take the Wings aspect.:smalltongue:

Oh yeah, looking back at my previous post, one caveat about the Rod of Shaped Spell: If you're going to be using area spells a lot you probably want Shaped Spell as a feat anyways and it only increases slot level by one, so the rod isn't all that necessary (though still nice to have if you have money to burn and nothing else you want to buy).

[Auron3991]

I guess I'll chuck my hat in the ring on this one. This will be slightly more play advice and less build advice, but it should help a little

1. Get the spells a Sorcerer would pick. They're limited in spell picks, so look at the number they have, and get the ones you would use if you only had that many known. Usual rule is one blast, one battlefield control, one lock-out, and one utility. You'll get most of the spells on the list eventually anyways, but this gives a solid base level of ability.

2. Never underestimate the power of divinations. Knowledge is power, quite literally in this case. Knowing what is coming can be the difference between your team breezing through fights and getting a TPK as not only do you have to prepare spells, but your divine caster and (depending on party composition) your other teammates will have to as well.

3. Always have an out (learned this from Tales of Maj'Eyal). Try to never go into a situation where you are not holding an escape option (preferably that saves the rest of the party). You can always prep better for another shot after tactically withdrawing (in other words: there is no shame in running like a rooster that interrupted the farmer's nap).

4. Metamagic is your friend. Silent Spell is extremely good early, with Still Spell being another great option as both will allow you to bypass normal methods of shutting down a mage without dedicating a combatant to it. Quicken is pretty much the ultimate metamagic in core, as it essentially gives you a free action, uninterruptable spell cast to use at any time. Widen can actually be of some use for Wall or Fog spells latter on, but the three lv increase means it does need to be saved for latter. Twinned and Repeating Spell get absolutely brutal if you have access to metamagic lv modifier decreasing feats, but I'm not a huge fan otherwise. And always spend bonus feats here (save normal lv feats for build centric feats).

5. Grab every arcane scroll/wand/staff you can. You don't need to prepare them and they don't take spell slots

6. Disable enemy ranged physical attackers. They're pretty much uninterruptable Gatling guns with you in their sights. The big meatwall can get in the way of melee enemies, secondary physical attackers can shut down arcane casters, and getting between two divine caster style characters is a recipe for disaster (there's a reason for the term CoDzilla), but you need those ranged attackers gone so your hp (or lack thereof) doesn't even come into play. Take care of the rest in order of danger.

7. Extra cash goes towards learning spells. Remember, knowledge is power.

8. Domain specializing is fine, but there are a couple of schools not to ban both at the same time. Conjuration-Transmutation (these will be your fill in the gaps schools), Abjuration-Necromancy (these are your way of mitigating damage that does manage to get through), and Illusion-Enchantment (these are pretty much your ability to lock down specific enemies). Most people say to specialize in Divination, but I've found the others work fine as well.

9. PrCs without full casting, or at least extremely close to it, tend to be less useful than going straight wizard.

10. Finally, while it may be more of a sorcerer thing, just for fun, drop some skill points into intimidate (that Int score means you'll have plenty), and ask your DM for bonuses to intimidate checks when pulling out your arcane might. It may not be great for straight power, but it's certainly good fun.

[Shnigda]

Hey, sorry to resurrect this thread, but I have finished making the character (I think), but have 650gp left to play with and I'm unsure what to do with it...

The current build is:
Race: Grey Elf with Dragonborn (Wings Aspect)
Level: 5
STR: 6 DEX: 12 CON: 12 INT: 21 WIS: 10 CHA: 10
Feats and Flaws: Inattentive (flaw), Noncombatant (flaw), Generalist Wizardry (substitution), Scribe Scroll, Collegiate Wizard, Otherworldly, Extend Spell, Firey Burst [Reserve], Spell Focus (Conjuration), Iron Will (Otyugh Hole), Spontaneous Divination. (Homebrew rule that we get feats at odd levels; 1,3,5,7,9...)
Familiar: Rhamphorhynchus (For +3 Initiative :smallsmile: and +9 to touch attacks :smallsmile: )
Items: 2x Spellbooks, Rod of Metamagic Shaped (lesser), Handy Haversack, Wand of Lesser Vigour, Wand of Cure Light Wounds, 2x Component Pouch
Next level: Incantrix (Prerequisites met)

Any suggestions for changes, comments on mistakes or future feats/spells/items would be much appreciated!

(I am limited to playing non-evil characters)

[dextercorvia]

You might switch your wand of CLW for a Healing Belt (MIC).

For that last 650gp, some considerations: Arcanist's Gloves (MIC) 500 gp, 2/day boost CL for 1st level spells by 2. The other one I use some is Chronocharm of the Uncaring Archmage (MIC) 500gp, 1/day cast 1 round spell as standard action -useful for Summon Monster.

Of course, you can't go wrong just adding some extra spells to your book, either.

[Andion Isurand]

If you want to make wisdom a dump stat, Keen Intellect (Oriental Adventures 3.5 update in Dragon Magazine 318) can be taken as a first-level only feat.

Keen Intellect allows you to use your Intelligence modifier instead of your Wisdom modifier, for Will saves, as well as for Heal, Sense Motive, Spot and Survival checks.

[dextercorvia]

If you want to make wisdom a dump stat, Keen Intellect (Oriental Adventures 3.5 update in Dragon Magazine 318) can be taken as a first-level only feat.

Keen Intellect allows you to use your Intelligence modifier instead of your Wisdom modifier, for Will saves, as well as for Heal, Sense Motive, Spot and Survival checks.

That isn't what it says in Oriental Adventures. Did the feat get an entire rewrite in DM318?

[Shnigda]

If you want to make wisdom a dump stat, Keen Intellect (Oriental Adventures 3.5 update in Dragon Magazine 318) can be taken as a first-level only feat.

Keen Intellect allows you to use your Intelligence modifier instead of your Wisdom modifier, for Will saves, as well as for Heal, Sense Motive, Spot and Survival checks.

I don't think I can take another level one feat (replace one), unless you can think of another flaw to take... (DM allows up to 3 flaws, but I didn't know any other ones that wouldnt gimp necessary stats too much...)

[dextercorvia]

I don't think I can take another level one feat (replace one), unless you can think of another flaw to take... (DM allows up to 3 flaws, but I didn't know any other ones that wouldnt gimp necessary stats too much...)

Vulnerable is usually pretty safe. You can boost AC through other means, and have non-AC methods of protection as well.

[Yael]

That isn't what it says in Oriental Adventures. Did the feat get an entire rewrite in DM318?

Yes, it did.

[dextercorvia]

Yes, it did.

So it did. That is a fun little feat. I often roll up low level wizards that need to fill some of those roles, but I do so like to dump Wis.