Shadow Mage *New Class Idea, Just A Brainstorm*

[ArlEammon]

So this is a Shadow Mage, conceivably, Shadow Mages get less spells per day than normal spell casters but receive magic from The Adept and Illusion Spell lists, in addition to a lot of spells that represent shadows, such as Spider Spawn, Secret Page, Solid Fog, etcetera. They don't even get a bonus to spells resistances and power like specialist mages. They get fewer Meta Magic Feats but more powerful Meta Magic Feats in General, for exampel, at level 8, they have Shadow Evocation, and at Level 10 they've got Rebuke Undead. At level 13 they get Greater Any Spell once per day for free, and at level 20 tehey get Shadow Master, which finally gives them a +1 bonus resistance/-1 penalty for enemies, and duplication of all 0-4th level spells they know at will.

How powerful is this class in Ravenloft? I understand it's sort of like a Low Magic Setting.

[Daefos]

So this is a Shadow Mage, conceivably, Shadow Mages get less spells per day than normal spell casters but receive magic from The Adept and Illusion Spell lists, in addition to a lot of spells that represent shadows, such as Spider Spawn, Secret Page, Solid Fog, etcetera. They don't even get a bonus to spells resistances and power like specialist mages. They get fewer Meta Magic Feats but more powerful Meta Magic Feats in General, for exampel, at level 8, they have Shadow Evocation, and at Level 10 they've got Rebuke Undead. At level 13 they get Greater Any Spell once per day for free, and at level 20 tehey get Shadow Master, which finally gives them a +1 bonus resistance/-1 penalty for enemies, and duplication of all 0-4th level spells they know at will.

How powerful is this class in Ravenloft? I understand it's sort of like a Low Magic Setting.
Homebrew forum is this way. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?15-Homebrew-Design)

And the paragraph describing the "Shadow Mage" is a rambling mess. I can't even really tell what it's supposed to be, let alone how to whether or not it's too powerful. What is the "normal spell caster" you're comparing them to? I assume wizard based on the mention of specialization, but I'm not sure if I want to make any assumptions here. What does "fewer Meta Magic Feats but more powerful Meta Magic Feats in General" mean? You talk about it, and as your example you start talking about completely unrelated free spells. And their level 20 ability is worthless because it literally does nothing; you don't say what it's a bonus/penalty to. A +1/-1 is highly unlikely to mean anything at level 20 anyway; Clerics have been doing this since level 5. (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/p/prayer/) Getting all your level 0-4 spells at will is almost certainly unbalanced, but that depends entirely on the spell list in question; since we don't know what the spell list looks like beyond Adept list + Illusions + anything you define as vaguely shadowy/spooky, it's hard to judge. Speaking of which, the Adept list only goes up to 5th level spells. What does their spell list look like above that? Nothing but Illusions + random "shadow" spells (which are probably already Illusions)? Is there a spell list above that?

This needs a lot of clarification before there's even enough information to judge it.

[Florian]

How powerful is this class in Ravenloft? I understand it's sort of like a Low Magic Setting.

Its no "low-magic" setting, it just doesn't have "common magic" and some magic has the tendency to backfire due to setting traits - you just don't go over to the next shop, buy some scrolls and move scribe them into your spell book, things like that.

As for your "class": Horribly confusing write-up. I don't really get what it should be other than a bit "pimped" adept class.

[gorfnab]

I see your post has the Pathfinder tag. The Nightblade (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/3rd-party-classes/ascension-games-llc/nightblade/) is a decent option for a Shadow Mage like character. It might give you some more ideas to build upon your class design or it might just be a more finished option than what you’re trying to build. Also here's a handbook for it. Into the Darkness: a Guide to the Nightblade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?418529-Into-the-Darkness-a-Guide-to-the-Nightblade)

[ATHATH]

You know that the Shadowcaster class is already a thing (a 1st party one, at that), right? If you want a class with a default fluff of "shadow mage" and with a core concept of "as you advance in levels in this class, your lower-level 'spells' get better", the Shadowcaster should do you just fine.

Are you sure that you intended this class for 3.5e? It sounds more like something that would fit in in 1e or 2e.

[The Random NPC]

You know that the Shadowcaster class is already a thing (a 1st party one, at that), right? If you want a class with a default fluff of "shadow mage" and with a core concept of "as you advance in levels in this class, your lower-level 'spells' get better", the Shadowcaster should do you just fine.

Are you sure that you intended this class for 3.5e? It sounds more like something that would fit in in 1e or 2e.

Pathfinder does not have a first party Shadowcasting class that I'm aware of.

[ATHATH]

Pathfinder does not have a first party Shadowcasting class that I'm aware of.
Yeah, but it'd be first party in a 3.PF game.

[ArlEammon]

I'm sorry, I'm not trying to do a write up. As the OP says, it's just a brain storm. Like I'm asking. . . what do you think of a class with less spells per day, but greater versatility in spells + certain perks to balance it out?

[Florian]

I'm sorry, I'm not trying to do a write up. As the OP says, it's just a brain storm. Like I'm asking. . . what do you think of a class with less spells per day, but greater versatility in spells + certain perks to balance it out?

You mean something like the PF Shadowdancer PrC, which has a couple of uses of Shadow-type spells as SLA?

[Pyromancer999]

There is a Shadowcaster Archetype for the Wizard in Pathfinder, as well as the Shadow Scion Archetype for the Sorcerer. Do agree with the above post mentioning the 3.5 Shadowcaster seeming to best fit with what is being searched for in the original post, though.

[Psyren]

Like the Dread Necromancer or Hexblade, this kind of thing works better as an archetype rather than a base class on its own, at least imo.

[ericgrau]

I'm sorry, I'm not trying to do a write up. As the OP says, it's just a brain storm. Like I'm asking. . . what do you think of a class with less spells per day, but greater versatility in spells + certain perks to balance it out?

With enough books and/or magic items you can overcome the limited spell choices and/or spells per day, negating most of the drawback. Then you're left with mostly benefit. So that's always a bit of a problem.

Thematically it's cool. But it might be better as more of a character build than a class.

Yeah critiquing it like a fully made class is a bit harsh, but probably just a misunderstanding.

[Florian]

Do agree with the above post mentioning the 3.5 Shadowcaster seeming to best fit with what is being searched for in the original post, though.

The old Shadowcaster is a very, very cool class and I enjoyed playing one, but it doesn't transfer well to the Pathfinder paradigm for multiple reasons.

[Psyren]

Shadowcaster is different, I think that can be a class of its own in PF. A class that combines spells, SLAs and Su abilities would be fun, and the at-will stuff they get tends to be low level. I could see it working.

[Florian]

Shadowcaster is different, I think that can be a class of its own in PF. A class that combines spells, SLAs and Su abilities would be fun, and the at-will stuff they get tends to be low level. I could see it working.

I´ve played a female goblin child Shadowcaster / Swordsage build character in one of the longer 3.5E campaigns and it was one of my most favorite and memorable characters.

Mechanically, I´d say that the Occultist provides a better chassis and overall more "rounded" solution than the original Shadowcaster class. A port would need a new archetype and a rework of the old "paths" into implements, but that seems to be a manageable task.

[Psyren]

Well if we're making Shadowcaster a psychic archetype, the bonafide Psychic would probably work best. Make its top 3 levels of spells use somatic components instead of emotion ones and go to town.