Capstone Fix

[kbob]

So I am writing up some house rules for our campaign. The players are hopeful to actually make it to 20 at some point. We'll see. I am not going to discuss the likeliness of such an endeavor. HA That said, some of them have shown some concern to about their class's capstone (most are not MC). I must admit, some of them appear to be lackluster for a level 20 capstone (the alleged pinnacle ability of a class and "reward" for not MC). So I have come up with what I think is fair for some of the not-so-optimal capstones but Im kind of not sure on 2: sorcerer and warlock (though I have some ideas). I will share my ideas and like to know what you think about them or if you have other ideas. Please don't get into a discussion on whether they should be changed or not from print. I'm just looking for honest feedback on the capstones presented or if you have other suggestions.

Sorcerer:
You gain access to 2 more metamagic (feats) upon reaching level 20.
Also, when you convert a spell slot into sorcerer points, you can choose to gain twice as many points as you would otherwise be entitled to. Once you use this ability you cannot use it again until you finish a long rest.

Warlock (I have 2):
You can spend 6 seconds or an entire round of combat less movement (no action, bonus action, or reaction) to entreat your patron to refill your spell slots. Once you use this ability you cannot use it again until you finish a long rest.
<OR>
You can regain your mystic arcanum spells with a short or long rest as you would your spell slots.

<<<This last one I admit is powerful but it IS level 20 and it may be a fitting reward for being hamstrung by not getting hardly any spell slots for the majority of the game. Most games I play don't get many short rests, especially if you're in a dungeon (regardless of what is suggested in DMG). I won't get into my thoughts on the short rest mechanic. Ha
Anyway, what do you all think?

[Nidgit]

I don't really care for any of these. The first two options are a bit weak and the last is far too strong.

More Metamagics for the Sorcerer is nice, but the second ability is basically a roundabout way of giving the Sorcerer 7 extra spell points. Spell point recovery is very much an issue Sorcerers care about but it's not flashy enough for a Capstone. I'd be more interested in something like:
"when you use a Metamagics, you can choose one of the following effects:
Double the effect of the Metamagic on the spell cast
OR
Apply the Metamagic effect to the next spell you cast as well, so long as it's applicable
You have CHA uses per long rest."

The first Warlock idea is okay, but I don't think it should require sacrificing the reaction and bonus action to do it. The fluff is difficult to make work though...

No class has access to regaining spell slots of level 6th and up. Warlock shouldn't either.

[WaroftheCrans]

I don't really care for any of these. The first two options are a bit weak and the last is far too strong.
SNIP
The first Warlock idea is okay, but I don't think it should require sacrificing the reaction and bonus action to do it. The fluff is difficult to make work though...

No class has access to regaining spell slots of level 6th and up. Warlock shouldn't either.

Honestly, considering that they aren't really spell slots (can't upcast), the other full casters get access to two 6th and 7th level spells, and honestly, the 9th level spells that a warlock has won't really break anything. Psychic scream is bad, imprisonment is a terrible arcanum choice, foresight cancels itself if cast again, power word: kill only works on the mooks at this level, which leaves true polymorph . It's good, but won't break anything if the warlock can cast it during multiple encounters.

The 8th level spells are honestly slightly more of a problem from balance POV. Power word: Stun > Power Word: Kill, and Dominate Monster can mess with things worse than True Polymorph. Glibness, maddening darkness, feeblemind and demiplane definitely have benefits for being cast multiple times a day, but probably won't make your Warlock so much better than everyone else. On the other hand, when you have entirely social days (interacting with important people), your warlock can be a god, with foresight, constantly active glibness (short rest=duration) and guidance. Never fail a charisma check again!

[Chaosmancer]

I rewrote capstones for pretty much every class a few months ago. So, I'll put those down and talk about why I did them.



Power Incarnate
By 20th level, you have fully embraced the forces of magic, becoming an embodiment of arcane power. As an action you can refill your entire Arcane Pool to maximum.

After doing this, any timers to cast higher level spells are nulled.

Once you use this feature, you cannot do so again until you have finished a long rest.

So, the Arcane Pool was my revision essentially doing spell points instead of spell slots and combining it with their sorcery points. This ability is clearly immensely powerful, you essentially get to refresh your entire spellcasting for the day.

I think it might be too powerful, but also, it is of limited usefulness. I mean, to be at maximum power you need to have already cast every single spell you can, and like WaroftheCrans said, getting a second most powerful spell in the game isn't as impactful as you might think.




Planar Power
At 20th level, you have become a player in the great games of ancient powers, either by serving your Patron or usurping them.

You can cast Plane Shift once per short rest to travel a plane aligned with your patron. Additionally, your continued
exposure to forces beyond the mundane world have left their mark upon you, giving you a +2 to Charisma and raising you ability score cap to 24.

Finally, drawing upon your wealth of connections and favors, you can auction off your health and power. As a bonus
action you can either expend a Pact Magic spell slot to gain 4 Hit Dice (which you may spend immediately), or 4 Hit dice to regain a Pact Magic Spell slot.

So, this I wanted to play into the Patron idea, the idea of trading souls and power. First thing was giving them Plane Shift, since by this level you might now be a Fey Lord or Duchess of Hell, it makes since you should be able to visit your domain. The Charisma is just a little buff.

The interesting part is the trading system I tried to create. 4 HD for a spell slot, or a spell slot for 4 HD of healing. I wouldn't say that 4d8+(con mod*4) is necessarily worth a 5th level spell slot, but I think it could be a nice little emergency button.

I also (as a note) increased the number of spell slots Warlocks get, so that by 20th level they have 6 pact magic slots to play with, instead of four.

The idea is, 20th level is the end of the game, generally, so being overpowered is less of an issue than you would think, so instead of doing something a little bit more than they used to, I wanted to give them something big that defines the archetypes.

Sorcerers are founts of magic. Warlocks make deals for power at their own expense.

I can share some other capstones if people are interested, but those are my ideas for those two classes.

[Damon_Tor]

I can't take credit for the idea (I'm pretty sure someone on this forum thought of it) but at level 20 warlocks at my table would get:


Eldritch Recruiter
During a long rest, you and a willing non-warlock humanoid can perform a binding ritual, recruiting that person into the service of your patron. That humanoid gains one class level as a warlock, as if they had just attained it via multi-classing, ignoring any charisma score requirements. They gain no hitpoints from this class level and their character level does not change. Their choice of Otherworldly Patron must be the same as yours.

So far nobody has taken me up on it.

Sorcerers get:


Dangerous Channeling
When you cast a spell, you can expend one hit die: you roll that hit die and gain a number of sorcery points to spend on that spell equal to the number rolled. As an additional metamagic option, you can spend 2 sorcery points to increase the level of the slot used to cast the spell by one level. There is no limit to the number of metamagic options you can apply to that spell, and you can apply the same metamagic option more than once. If you do not use these sorcery points on this spell, they vanish.

I've had two players get this so far. It's a very powerful ability, but it's supposed to be; this is the last feature they'll even gain, and it's usually shortly before the character is retired.

[Chaosmancer]

The recruiter is interesting, but I feel like it would fit better as a story boon than a capstone. I love warlocks getting that ability, but it would be best served by turning the party into warlocks, and if the warlock is against their patron I can't see it actually working.

The dangerous channeling is a fun looking option though, might yoink that concept if my other idea proves too untenable.

[Damon_Tor]

The recruiter is interesting, but I feel like it would fit better as a story boon than a capstone. I love warlocks getting that ability, but it would be best served by turning the party into warlocks, and if the warlock is against their patron I can't see it actually working.

If your relationship with your patron has soured, the ability can easily be refluffed as you being the patron.

[sithlordnergal]

Eldritch Recruiter
During a long rest, you and a willing non-warlock humanoid can perform a binding ritual, recruiting that person into the service of your patron. That humanoid gains one class level as a warlock, as if they had just attained it via multi-classing, ignoring any charisma score requirements. They gain no hitpoints from this class level and their character level does not change. Their choice of Otherworldly Patron must be the same as yours.


This isn't so much of a capstone as it is a story reward. Capstones should increase the class' power...this doesn't really do that. It does add a cool RPing thing, which is nice...but its useless as a major level 20 capstone. Being able to give yourself a level 1 ally at this level isn't useful, and by this time most builds are complete. One level of warlock isn't really needed, so making a level 20 ally level 21 isn't going to do much unless its a Sorcerer or Paladin. And even then its only a single level of Warlock, so you get one level 1 spell slot, not all that great.

Capstones shouldn't give classes the ability to gain a weak follower, because that wouldn't make a good capstone. They should instead strengthen the class as a whole. Look at the Druid, Paladin, and Barbarian capstones. They all increase the strength of the class. Even the Paladin class, which could be seen as similar to the Warlock in that they serve a higher power for their strength, have capstones that increase their own power. Their capstone doesn't have you recruit another Paladin that's the same subclass as your own.

Instead of having that as a capstone, make it a story reward. I think you'll find people actually use it then. I personally like the OP's idea of letting you regain Mystic Arcanum on a short rest. That seems like a proper capstone ability for a Warlock.





Dangerous Channeling
When you cast a spell, you can expend one hit die: you roll that hit die and gain a number of sorcery points to spend on that spell equal to the number rolled. As an additional metamagic option, you can spend 2 sorcery points to increase the level of the slot used to cast the spell by one level. There is no limit to the number of metamagic options you can apply to that spell, and you can apply the same metamagic option more than once. If you do not use these sorcery points on this spell, they vanish.

I've had two players get this so far. It's a very powerful ability, but it's supposed to be; this is the last feature they'll even gain, and it's usually shortly before the character is retired.

Ok, I like this one! This is a proper capstone feature right here! Its strong, and it fits with how the Sorcerer is able to change up how they cast things. It also reduces the strain on their Sorcery Points, which is a very good thing. I like this capstone a lot!

[kbob]

I concur. The eldritch recruiter seems to be more plot driven. There is no real power granted from your class. Perhaps if somehow you were entitled from your patron a follower like the old 3.5 leadership feat. But that would busted.
The Dangerous channeling I like though. It offers an interesting alternative to the use of hit dice and it certainly grants a significant power increase, one that fits the theme of the class I believe.

[NorthernPhoenix]

I think all "new" Capstones replacing the bad ones should be in the space between "gain a few resources" and "Archdruid".

For Sorcerer, giving them access to all Metamagics and halving the cost of using them (minimum 1) would very powerful but still significantly weaker than Archdruid, which should be the goal.