Greywander
2017-12-09, 12:00 AM
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HLVM65il2nqs4bpEWNtt-azytjrfQaMg7ZaZJqLKXF8/edit?usp=sharing
As the title says, I'm looking for some advice on balancing this class. For one thing, I can't see why most people would ever play a wizard if this was allowed as-is.
Short version: the sophomore is kind of like a bard, a wizard, and a warlock all had a baby. The point was to have a one-stop class for all your utility needs (hey, isn't that what the bard is for?).
The sophomore gets avocations, an idea shamelessly ripped off of the warlock. I mention them first because some of them affect the sophomore's other core features.
The sophomore's main schtick is that he's a spellbook caster, like a wizard, but can record spells from the cleric, druid, and bard spell lists in addition to wizard spells. There are two caveats: he uses that class's spellcasting ability to cast those spells (so quite MAD), and he's technically a half-caster, only getting up to 5th level spell slots. That said, the sophomore does learn up to 9th level spells and has two class features that allow him to cast them.
Recitation allows the sophomore to cast a prepared "low level" spell without expending a spell slot, or a prepared "high level" spell by expending a lower level spell slot. For example, at 17th level a sophomore can recite a prepared 9th level spell by expending a 4th level spell slot. Vanilla sophomores get up to two recitations per long rest, three with an avocation. You can't recite more than one "high level" spell at a particular level, e.g. even if you have two recitations you can still only recite one 9th level spell.
Lecture allows a sophomore to cast a spell out of their spellbook (doesn't need to be prepared) as a ritual, even if it doesn't have the ritual tag. As above, "low level" spells don't use a spell slot, while "high level" spells use a lower level spell slot. Vanilla sophomores get up to three lectures per long rest, five with an avocation. You can't lecture the same "high level" spell more than once between long rests.
At 14th level, the sophomore gets some minor boosts to spellcasting based the three mental attributes, so how much you get out of that feature depends on how you spread your ability score points.
At 20th level, the sophomore can learn every spell and cantrip by observing it (Naruto sharingon/Final Fantasy blue mage style), and can substitute INT mod + WIS mod for their proficiency bonus for ability checks. Perhaps a bit OP, but it is the capstone.
TL;DR, the sophomore is more limited in their casting than the wizard, but quite a bit more versatile due to having access to more spell lists. I'd say that the sophomore is to the wizard about what the wizard is to the sorcerer in terms of raw power vs. versatility.
As the title says, I'm looking for some advice on balancing this class. For one thing, I can't see why most people would ever play a wizard if this was allowed as-is.
Short version: the sophomore is kind of like a bard, a wizard, and a warlock all had a baby. The point was to have a one-stop class for all your utility needs (hey, isn't that what the bard is for?).
The sophomore gets avocations, an idea shamelessly ripped off of the warlock. I mention them first because some of them affect the sophomore's other core features.
The sophomore's main schtick is that he's a spellbook caster, like a wizard, but can record spells from the cleric, druid, and bard spell lists in addition to wizard spells. There are two caveats: he uses that class's spellcasting ability to cast those spells (so quite MAD), and he's technically a half-caster, only getting up to 5th level spell slots. That said, the sophomore does learn up to 9th level spells and has two class features that allow him to cast them.
Recitation allows the sophomore to cast a prepared "low level" spell without expending a spell slot, or a prepared "high level" spell by expending a lower level spell slot. For example, at 17th level a sophomore can recite a prepared 9th level spell by expending a 4th level spell slot. Vanilla sophomores get up to two recitations per long rest, three with an avocation. You can't recite more than one "high level" spell at a particular level, e.g. even if you have two recitations you can still only recite one 9th level spell.
Lecture allows a sophomore to cast a spell out of their spellbook (doesn't need to be prepared) as a ritual, even if it doesn't have the ritual tag. As above, "low level" spells don't use a spell slot, while "high level" spells use a lower level spell slot. Vanilla sophomores get up to three lectures per long rest, five with an avocation. You can't lecture the same "high level" spell more than once between long rests.
At 14th level, the sophomore gets some minor boosts to spellcasting based the three mental attributes, so how much you get out of that feature depends on how you spread your ability score points.
At 20th level, the sophomore can learn every spell and cantrip by observing it (Naruto sharingon/Final Fantasy blue mage style), and can substitute INT mod + WIS mod for their proficiency bonus for ability checks. Perhaps a bit OP, but it is the capstone.
TL;DR, the sophomore is more limited in their casting than the wizard, but quite a bit more versatile due to having access to more spell lists. I'd say that the sophomore is to the wizard about what the wizard is to the sorcerer in terms of raw power vs. versatility.