New Campaign! Must pick Wizard School...

[Avista]

My group is going to be starting up a new campaign, and I have called dibs on playing the wizard :smallbiggrin: I've played other casting classes, but never actually played a proper wizard. My DM hasn't released much details, except that it will be 'political intrigue', and knowing my group, we will be doing combat, RP, and investigations. I need a wizard school that can satisfy these conditions favorably, and I've narrowed it down to 4 of the schools:

As a conjurer, you favor spells that produce objects and creatures out of thin air. You can conjure billowing clouds of killing fog or summon creatures from elsewhere to fight on your behalf. As your mastery grows, you learn spells of transportation and can teleport yourself across vast distances, even to other planes of existence, in an instant.
This one's probably my all around favorite...I might go with this, unless someone can point out a better bonus for the other schools.

As a member of the School of Enchantment, you have honed your ability to magically entrance and beguile other people and monsters. Some enchanters are peacemakers who bewitch the violent to lay down their arms and charm the cruel into showing mercy. Others are tyrants who magically bind the unwilling into their service. Most enchanters fall somewhere in between.
While I love this one, and it would definitely fit with the theme of the campaign, I don't think it will fit with the theme of the character I have in mind. I'm not playing a 'seductress' but a 'crafty apprentice politician'

You focus your study on magic that creates powerful elemental effects such as bitter cold, searing flame, rolling thunder, crackling lightning, and burning acid. Some evokers find employment in military forces, serving as artillery to blast enemy armies from afar. Others use their spectacular power to protect the weak, while some seek their own gain as bandits, adventurers, or aspiring tyrants.
This strikes me more for combat purposes, but I want more RP-assistance with spellcasting, like clever spell trickery while distracting a guard.

You focus your studies on magic that dazzles the senses, befuddles the mind, and tricks even the wisest folk. Your magic is subtle, but the illusions crafted by your keen mind make the impossible seem real. Some illusionists—including many gnome wizards—are benign tricksters who use their spells to entertain. Others are more sinister masters of deception, using their illusions to frighten and fool others for their personal gain.This seems like what I want from Conjuration + Enchantment, but while I was reading a guide, it came off as a bit lackluster.

Knowing the tiny details I've been given, what would you guys feel is the right pick?

Since the forums don't have a voting poll, I've created a separate one here: https://www.strawpoll.me/17477789

[Frozenstep]

Sorcerer. Use a subtle spell to quickly and quietly cause any sort of havoc you want, and avoid being blamed for it.

Jokes aside, Illusion and conjuration are going to depend on your creativity and your DM. Consider looking into the spells of those skills to find things that fit.

[Blood of Gaea]

Depending on how you want to handle social encounters, I would go for Enchantment, Divination, or Illusion.

Do you want to mind control people, and especially make them forget about it? There is no substitute for Enchantment.

Do you want a nice boost to you and your entire party on the most crucial rolls of the day, and also be affected less by casting divination out of combat? Take Divination.

Do you want to trick people by changing their environment, make them hear and see things that aren't real, have them perceive things only they can, and also change up those illusions constantly? Well, Illusion is about as good as it gets when it comes to magical mind games.

[ImproperJustice]

It’s highly GM dependent, but a Diviner in a political canpaign could be a great “Broker of Secrets”.
Make sure they are ok that you may unravel a few GM mysteries theough clever use of magic.

Although no more so than what a Cleric can do with Augery and Commune.

[Avista]

Sorcerer. Use a subtle spell to quickly and quietly cause any sort of havoc you want, and avoid being blamed for it. I played sorcerer in my last campaign, so I want to try something different. But I agree, subtle spell IS a big bonus. I'll put it back in my pot for consideration if I can't pick a school. I already have a sorcerer build anyway.



Do you want a nice boost to you and your entire party on the most crucial rolls of the day, and also be affected less by casting divination out of combat? Take Divination.



It’s highly GM dependent, but a Diviner in a political canpaign could be a great “Broker of Secrets”.
Make sure they are ok that you may unravel a few GM mysteries theough clever use of magic.


Sadly, I took divination out for a reason. Last time my group ran a one-shot I played a divination wizard, and I exploited it. My DM knows the tricks I've used, and they're pretty keen on clamping down on something I've exploited in the past.

Let's just say the Lucky Feat is now houserule banned.

[opaopajr]

Conjuration! :smallsmile: Conjuration! :smallcool: So much imagination fun...

[Azgeroth]

you don't have to seduce people to charm them. your just unusually charismatic suddenly!

otherwise illusion, but if your DM banned lucky due to your portent shenanigans, have a very good talk on intended use and viability of the various enchantment/illusion spells+ability before hand, before he brands your fun as BADWRONGFUN again.

[Rafaelfras]

Evoker is super fun, sculpt spell is one of the best features a wizard can have. And if you get to level 10 your magic missle will become a single target monster (and if your DM dont like the PHB errata scorching ray and some others too). I play as a evoker and it is realy fun for combats.
For politic intrigue i would go diviner or ilusionist, because both are very powerful subclasses (enchanter is weak, i would avoild it, but sure nothing crippling or anything).
Remember also, as a wizard there is nothing that bar you from casting any spell so you still can cast divinations enchantments and ilusions or that proverbial fireball when the situation call

[Tanarii]

I don't think it will fit with the theme of the character I have in mind. I'm not playing a 'seductress' but a 'crafty apprentice politician'
Crafty apprentice politician just screams enchantment! Followed closely by illusion.

[Throne12]

I'm starting a new campaign too and i was in your Position. Trying to pick a school. So I settled on a tiefling named Kalistra shes is a magic academy graduate with a Component in Conjuration and elemental planes and creatures. She is also a Registered member of the mage's guild.

Tiefling Conjuration wizard with guild Artisan background.


I picked Conjuration cause it one of my favorite schools and there minor Conjuration ability is great for my play style. I would carry around a bag of holding full of mundane stuff like paddles for a canoe. So with that ability I dont need to carry a lot of stuff and can make it on the fly. It also handy to make a key with or what ever you can think of.

[Man_Over_Game]

Enchantment works best if you lack a strong melee line, as a lot of the abilities are going to work best if you're adjacent to a target or if you expect to be attacked.
Conjuration works quite well with melee combatants to improve their mobility, and Evocation does well to keep your melee line safe while you blast away.
Illusion works best if your team has the least amount of out-of-combat utility. Most of what you'll be doing is manipulating people, and that's effective for the first 1-2 rounds of combat and social environments.

Based on your description of what you're looking for, I really recommend the Enchanter. Don't use it as a seductress, consider it as a last-ditch tool when negotiations fail. Maybe they want to be a politician, but they're frustrated that magic is better at convincing people than common sense and logic. Or maybe their ability to convince people and understand how they work is why they're so adept at Enchanting people.

Conjuration is solid as a versatile choice. Your focus is on teleportation, conjuring creatures and conjuring objects. It lacks subtlety, though, when compared to the other Wizard schools.

[Karnitis]

This is huge personal bias, but Illusionist.

My first 'caster class' was actually arcane illusionist (rogue). I did it because none of the other subclasses spoke to me, so I figured 'eh, cantrips are always useful I guess.'

I HAD A BLAST. As a rogue, my in-combat damage was still fine (as yours will be, regardless of college since any sub can still get Fireball, lightning, boring evoker stuff) but I found I could work some illusion into almost any social/RP moment. When you said political intrigue, illusion is great for:

illusioning an beastie for intimidation
faking a conversation between two politicians and have an NPC "accidentally overhear"
INVISIBLITY FOR EAVESDROPPING
other cool stuff I promise


Wizards aren't blasters, those are sorcs and warlocks more often than not. Bards are the charisma face, a good Illusionist is the 'face' when charisma just won't do.

[Avista]

Seems like the two top favorites are illusion or enchantment. I guess I'll settle on one of these two then. I'll see what my other party members pick and choose the school that has the most synergy.

[Gtdead]

Between the two, I'd go with illusionist.

The way I see enchanter abilities, he is more of an agent rather than a politician but the tricks are limited. I can see his abilities being used to foil an assassination, or sabotage a public speaker, or something along these lines.

Illusionist abilities are more abstract but can be used to influence crowds. Malleable Illusions is a great ability for crowd manipulation, foiling assassination attempts, misleading political enemies, providing visual information in a hearing for added dramatic or practical value. It adds amazing value to disguise self and I can't even imagine the sheer havoc a malleable simulacrum can cause in a social setting.

Of course, all these are up to the DM, but I think any DM would agree that a public speaker who can use vivid imagery to communicate to a crowd would have a serious advantage. For example, your country wants to go to war, and you can use illusions to show to the people what will happen to their city if the enemy decides to strike first, creating illusionary fires, broken houses, dead bodies, while delivering your speech.

[loki_ragnarock]

I'd also go with illusion, thematically.

Enchantment allows you to influence people, but it's a forceful influence; you literally remove their capacity for choice. This breeds resentments that no politician could weather, unless your skullduggery is such that people become genuinely expendable. Charm Person is not charming, so to speak.

Illusion allows you to influence people, but it's a gentle influence; you provide them with the options you want them to perceive, and then *they* choose them. There might be myriad other options available to them, but the people you influence have bought in to what you've carefully curated for them.


One is a slavemaster. The other is a politician. Play the politician.

EDIT:
Also, the material component for minor illusion is a piece of fleece. You can literally fleece people. That's got politician writ large.