NigelWalmsley
2020-11-28, 01:08 PM
Seer
Would you like to know a secret?
It is the nature of people to seek out knowledge. Seers are spellcasters whose magic is specialized towards supporting and continuing this search. They bend time and space to seek out the things that others have concealed. Some are driven to find a solution to a particular problem, while others simply seek knowledge for knowledge's sake. The tendency of ancient wizards to leave magical knowledge at the bottom of tombs filled with traps and monsters makes adventuring a common career choice for seers.
Hit Die: d6
Class Skills
The seer's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Knowledge (any) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight Of Hand (Dex), Speak Language, Spellcraft (Int), and Spot (Wis).
Skill Points: 6 + Int modifier (x4 at 1st level).
1+0+0+2+2Spells, Armored Mage, Sneak Attack +1d6
2+1+0+3+3Twist Fate
3+1+1+3+3Advanced Learning
4+2+1+4+4arcane sight, Sneak Attack +2d6
5+2+1+4+4Advanced Learning
6+3+2+5+5Additional Swift Action
7+3+2+5+5Advanced Learning, Sneak Attack +3d6
8+4+2+6+6Fade From View
9+4+3+6+6Advanced Learning
10+5+3+7+7Instant Magic, Sneak Attack +4d6
11+5+3+7+7Advanced Learning
12+6/+1+4+8+8Additional Swift Action
13+6/+1+4+8+8Advanced Learning, Sneak Attack +5d6
14+7/+2+4+9+9celerity
15+7/+2+5+9+9Advanced Learning
16+8/+3+5+10+10Outside Time, Sneak Attack +6d6
17+8/+3+5+10+10Advanced Learning
18+9/+4+6+11+11Additional Swift Action
19+9/+4+6+11+11Advanced Learning, Sneak Attack +7d6
20+10/+5+6+12+12Improved Instant Magic
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The seer is proficient with light armor, shields and simple weapons.
Spells: A seer casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the seer list. The seer automatically knows all the spells on the seer list, as well as a selection of additional spells from her Advanced Learning ability. If she gains access to new spells through effects such as Prestige Domains, she automatically knows those spells as well. She can cast any spell she knows without preparing it ahead of time. The seer's spell DCs and bonus spells are determined by her Wisdom score.
The seer recieves the same spells per day as a sorcerer of her level.
Unlike most spontaneous spellcasters, it does not take a seer any longer to cast a spell modified by a metamagic feat.
At the DM's discretion, the seer may exchange spells on the seer list for other divination spells of the same level from the sorcerer/wizard list.
The seer is treated as a wizard who has specialized in the school of divination for the purpose of meeting prerequisites.
Armored Mage (Ex): Seers recieve specialized training that allows them to cast more effectively in armor. A seer ignores the arcane spell failure chance of any armor with which she is proficient.
Sneak Attack: As the rogue ability, except that the seer gains additional damage dice at 4th level and every three levels thereafter.
Twist Fate (Sp): At 2nd level, the seer's precognitive abilities allow her to nudge the timeline away from outcomes that are disfavorable to her. Whenever a d20 is rolled within line of sight of the seer, she may elect to have two d20s be rolled instead and take the result of her choice. The seer may not use this ability more than once per roll, or a total number of times per day greater than her class level plus her Wisdom modifier. This ability is used before the outcome a roll is known.
Advanced Learning: At 3rd level and each odd-numbered level thereafter, the seer gains additional spell knowledege. She may select either one divination spell of any spell level which she can cast from any list, or one spell of any school of a level up to one less than the highest level she can cast from the sorcerer/wizard list. Divination spells are added to her list at the level they appear on the list she choose them from, other spells are added to her spell list at the level they appear on the sorcerer/wizard list.
arcane sight (Sp): At 4th level, the seer can see the auras of magic around her. She is under the effect of a permanent arcane sight (caster level equal to her caster level). If dispelled, this effect returns the next time she regains her spells. In addition, if she ever learns arcane sight she can cast it on others as if it had a range of touch and make it permanent with permanency.
Additional Swift Action: At 6th level, the seer can take an additional swift action each round. Like a normal swift action, this action can also be used as an immediate action. At 12th level, the seer can take a third swift action each round, and at 18th level they can take a fourth.
Fade From View: At 8th level, the seer can make Hide checks without cover or concealment and while being observed, and the penalty she takes for attempting to Hide while taking other actions is reduced by half (round down).
Instant Magic: At 10th level, the seer can draw on her lesser magics with only a moment's effort. She gains Quicken Spell as a bonus feat, and it is automatically applied to any eligible spell she casts without increasing the spell slot used to cast it, provided that the spell's adjusted level is not higher than the highest level of spell she can cast. At 20th level, this applies to any eligible spell she casts of 8th level or lower.
celerity (Sp): At 14th level, the seer can pull time into the present, enabling her to act at a moment's notice. She may use celerity (PHBII) as a spell-like ability at will, though not more than once per round.
Outside Time: At 16th level, the seer no longer ages and no longer has to make Will saves to avoid insanity from casting contact other plane.
Seer Spell List
0th Level: detect alignment, detect magic, omen of peril (SpC), read magic
1st Level: augury, benign transposition (SpC), comprehend languages, distract assailant (SpC), golemstrike (SpC), gravestrike (SpC), identify, nerveskitter (SpC), precognition*, snake's swiftness (SpC), sniper's shot (SpC), true casting (SpC), true strike, vinestrike (SpC)
2nd Level: baleful transposition (SpC), detect thoughts, dimension hop (PHBII), know vulnerabilities (SpC), locate object, mass snake's swiftness (SpC), object reading*, recall agony*, rope trick, status, see invisibility, swift fly (SpC), swift haste (SpC), swift invisibility (SpC), tongues
3rd Level: analyze dweomer, arcane sight, detect scrying, dispel magic, divination, greater precognition*, haste, hypercognition*, locate creature, scattering trap (PHBII), scrying, slow, speak with dead, unluck (SpC)
4th Level: arcane eye, assay spell resistance (SpC), dimension door, discern location, foresight, legend lore, maddening visions^, stasis field^
5th Level: arcane fusion (CM), commune, contact other plane, dimension jumper (CM), offensive timewarp^, permanency, prying eyes, telepathic bond, teleport, true seeing, word of recall
6th Level: contigency, curse of aeons^, greater arcane sight, greater dispel magic, legend lore, moment of prescience^, scry location, vision
7th Level: fracturing teleport^, greater scrying, greater teleport, magnficient mansion, stun ray (SpC), temporal acceleration*
8th Level: greater arcane fusion (CM), greater prying eyes, mass maddening visions^, recall death*, temporal stasis
9th Level: greater dimension jumper (CM), time stop, timeless body*, temporal echo^, prescience^
*: Originally a psionic power. If the power can be augmented, treat it as if it had been augmented by 1 point for every caster level above the level at which the spell is learned (so a 18th level seer would gain two rounds of time from temporal acceleration). For effects that care about spell school, these spells are treated as Divinations.
^: New or modified spell described below.
Sources Used
CM: Complete Mage
PHBII: Player's Handbook II
SpC: Spell Compendium
Curse of Aeons
Transmutation
Level: Seer 6, Sorcerer 6, Wizard 6
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will negates
Spell Resistance: Yes
You accelerate a creature's passage through time, causing its body to rapidly age and decay. Each round, the target takes 2 points of Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution damage. If one of these ability scores is reduced to 0 by this effect, the creature dies (this does not count as a death of old age, so it can still be restored to life by effects such as raise dead). The creature makes a save each round, and a successful save ends the effect (but does not remove damage that has already been accumulated).
Fracturing Teleport
Conjuration (Teleportation)
Level: Seer 7, Sorcerer 7, Wizard 7
Components: V
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level) and line of sight; see text
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You cast a creature through space, but fail to take the usual precautions required to ensure it survives the trip. On a failed save, the target takes 1d6 points of damage per caster level and moves to any location you have line of sight to (the creature must be able to occupy the new space). A successful save negates the teleportation and reduces the damage by half.
Maddening Visions [Fear, Mind-Affecting]
Divination
Level: Seer 4, Sorcerer 4, Wizard 4
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You assault the creature with a flurry of visions of horrible futures. The target is shaken for one round per caster level (no save). On a failed save, they are also stunned for the first round of the spell's duration.
Maddening Visions, Mass [Fear, Mind-Affecting]
Divination
Level: Seer 8, Sorcerer 8, Wizard 8
Target: One creature/level, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
This spell works like maddening visions, except that it effects multiple targets.
Moment of Prescience
Divination
Level: Luck 8, Seer 6, Sorcerer 8, Wizard 8
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Permanent until discharged
At any time, you may expend the effect of moment of prescience to gain an insight bonus equal to your caster level equal to a single d20 roll. You may not have multiple moment of prescience, greater precognition, precognition, or prescience effects active on you at once.
Offensive Timewarp
Transmutation
Level: Seer 5, Sorcerer 5, Wizard 5
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You slow the flow of time around a creature. The target is slowed for the spell's duration, and must make a save each round or be stunned for that round.
Prescience
Divination
Level: Seer 9
Duration: Until you regain spells
This spell works like moment of prescience, except that it can be activated once per round. You may not have multiple moment of prescience, greater precognition, precognition, or prescience effects active on you at once.
Stasis Field
Transmutation
Level: Seer 4, Sorcerer 4, Wizard 4
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Area: 40ft radius spread
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You alter the flow of time in an area, preventing creatures in it from moving. Each creature in the area must make a save at the start of its turn (creatures entering the area must make a save the first time they do so). On a failed save, the creature cannot move that turn. Flying creatures do not fall, and ranged attacks work normally.
Temporal Echo
Transmutation
Level: Seer 9
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round/level
By partially detacting yourself from the flow of time, you create an echo that mimics your actions. Each turn after the first, the echo takes whatever actions you took in the previous turn. You are still considered the caster of any spells, and you may change the targets of abilities the echo uses. The echo cannot itself cast temporal echo, and cannot act during accelerated time (such as the effect of a time stop or temporal acceleration).
This one was obnoxious. There are a couple of fundamental issues with a Warmage-style Divination caster:
1. Divination isn't really something you can hang a whole character on. There are Divination specialist Wizards, but that's because you can find one Divination you want at every level, then fill the rest of your slots with the spells every other Wizard casts (like Color Spray, Fear, and Planar Binding). There's I think one offensive divination spell (Unluck), and then a couple more things that are useful in combat but don't directly kill people (e.g. True Strike, Sniper's Shot).
2. Lots of Divination spells are really over-leveled. Foresight has no business being a 9th level spell. Moment of Prescience is not worth an 8th level spell slot (though it falls into the weird niche of spells that are basically class features).
3. There isn't that much high-level Divination out there. Even before you start down-leveling the Legend Lores and Analyze Dweomers of the world, high level Divination is a pretty sparse field. The Spell Compendium has a total of four (Sorcerer/Wizard) Divination spells that are 6th level or higher (compare Transmutation, which has four or more spells at every level).
From this, you can tell that whatever Warmage-equivalent you write for Divination is going to need to pick up some kind of side line, and probably more than one. Now, there are a lot of ways you could do that. Your Diviner could be like a Jedi, getting various "move stuff with your mind" powers, and a high-mobility combat style. You could staple Divination to another spell school (Evocation is the obvious choice, being as lacking outside combat as Divination is in it). I went with a combination of approaches, giving the Seer some time magic, a passable sneak attacking plan, borrowed some psionic powers, and wrote a couple new spells.
At low levels, the Seer is a Rogue-type. You're frailer than a standard Rogue, don't get as much Sneak Attack, and your skill list doesn't support the full range of Rogue skills (you can't be a trap-monkey or face, for example). But in exchange you have a bunch of magical tricks you can pull that let you do Rogue stuff better. You can pop Swift Haste to get extra Sneak Attack, Sniper's Shot to get better range, or the appropriate Strike for whatever Sneak Attack immune enemy you're fighting. You've also got the Divination suite to do out of combat stuff, plus a few party support options.
At mid levels, you start abusing the action economy. You get extra swift actions, which you can either use for more temporary buffs or (once you hit 10th level) to drop some extra offensive spells, particularly if you burn an Advanced Learning to get some kind of SA-eligible 1st or 2nd level spell. You also get some save-or-dies at these levels, though you're not as impressive in this department as a Beguiler or Dread Necromancer. Outside combat, you continue to scout and gather information magically.
At high levels, you break the action economy even more (though hopefully not to the degree that TO Psion builds can). You probably want to pick up Delay Spell to better abuse Temporal Aacceleration and Time Stop, allowing you to dump out even bigger novas.
That's the idea. The question is: does it play out that way? Is it balanced? I'm not sure. Action economy abuse is prone to pretty wild swings in effectiveness (for example, there was a draft that got Celerity, until I remember that the spell is stupid with Arcane Fusion). Frankly, it's quite possible that as a class that is A) basically telling you to scry-and-die and B) gets a bunch of ways to take extra actions, the Seer is inherently too strong and needs to be rebuild along some other lines.
Warden
A man's home is his castle.
A warden is a spellcaster that specializes in defensive and protective magics. While this makes them well suited to protecting and fortifying a single location, some wardens become adventurers and utilize their skills to defeat the magical defenses of others. Wardens are often employed by individuals or organizations with a mind to improving their security, and the longtime homes of powerful wardens are among the most secure locations in the world.
Hit Die: d10
Class Skills
The warden's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Disable Device (Int), Forgery (Int), Knowledge (Arcana, Architecture and engineering, Dungeoneering, The planes) (Int), Listen (Wis), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis), and Use Magic Device (Cha).
Skill Points: 4 + Int modifier (x4 at 1st level).
1+1+2+0+2Spells, Armored Mage, Trapfinding
2+2+3+0+3Enduring Magic
3+3+3+1+3Advanced Learning
4+4+4+1+4Wardsense
5+5+4+1+4Advanced Learning
6+6/+1+5+2+5Cooperative Wards
7+7/+2+5+2+5Advanced Learning
8+8/+3+6+2+6guards and wards
9+9/+4+6+3+6Advanced Learning
10+10/+5+7+3+7Transient Wards
11+11/+6/+1+7+3+7Advanced Learning
12+12/+7/+2+8+4+8permanency (weekly)
13+13/+8/+3+8+4+8Advanced Learning
14+14/+9/+4+9+4+9Maximum Force
15+15/+10/+5+9+5+9Advanced Learning
16+16/+11/+6/+1+10+5+10permanency (daily)
17+17/+12/+7/+2+10+5+10Advanced Learning
18+18/+13/+8/+3+11+6+11Unimpeachable Magic
19+19/+14/+9/+4+11+6+11Advanced Learning
20+20/+15/+10/+5+12+6+12Warding Mastery
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The warden is proficient with light, medium, and heavy armor, shields, and all simple and martial weapons.
Spells: A warden casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the warden list. The warden automatically knows all the spells on the warden list, as well as a selection of additional spells from his Advanced Learning ability. If he gains access to new spells through effects such as Prestige Domains, he automatically knows those spells as well. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time. The warden's spell DCs and bonus spells are determined by his Intelligence score.
The warden recieves the same spells per day as a sorcerer of his level.
At the DM's discretion, the warden may exchange spells on the warden list for other abjuration spells of the same level from the sorcerer/wizard list.
The warden is treated as a wizard who has specialized in the school of abjuration for the purpose of meeting prerequisites.
Armored Mage (Ex): Wardens recieve specialized training that allows them to cast more effectively in armor. A warden ignores the arcane spell failure chance of any armor with which he is proficient.
Trapfinding: As the rogue.
Enduring Magic: At 2nd level, the warden's spells become more difficult to remove. He adds a bonus equal to one half his class level (round down) to his caster level for the purpose of resisting his spells being dispelled.
Advanced Learning: At 3rd level and each odd-numbered level thereafter, the warden gains additional spell knowledege. He may select either one abjuration or [Force] spell of any spell level which he can cast from the sorcerer/wizard or cleric lists, or one spell of any school of a level up to one less than the highest level he can cast from the sorcerer/wizard list. This spell is added to his list of spells known at the level at which it appears on the sorcerer/wizard list if it appears there, or the level it appears on the cleric list if it does not.
Wardsense (Su): At 4th level, the warden becomes instinctively attuned to defensive magics. He is automatically aware of any magicial trap, gylph spell, symbol spell, or similar effect with 120ft. An opposed caster level check reveals what conditions will activate these effects (e.g. the location that triggers a trap, or the doorway protected by a symbol of pain), but not passwords that will disable or bypass them.
Cooperative Wards: At 6th level, the warden can store his allies magic in his defensive spells. When he casts gylph of warding or a similar spell, he may store spells known by any willing ally who is present when he casts the spell, rather than just spells he knows.
guards and wards (Sp): At 8th level, the warden can weave potent magics to protect his home. He can use guards and wards once per day as a spell-like ability. The duration of the effect is unlimited, but only one instance of it may be active at a time. The caster level of the effect is equal to the warden's caster level, and it benefits from his Enduring Magic and Unimpeachable Magic abilities. When the warden uses guards and wards (either from this ability, or by casting the spell normally), he may select an additional option off the list of choices the spell provides for every two caster levels above 8 he possesses (so a warden with caster level 10 could choose to have stinking cloud active in two locations and gust of wind in a corridor). He may choose the same ability multiple times.
Transient Wards (Su): At 10th level, when the warden casts a symbol spell or a spell with a duration of "permanent" or "permanent until discharged" and an expensive material component, he may elect not to use the relevant material component. If he does so, the spell fades when he next regains spells if its effect has not already been discharged. He may have only one such spell active at a time.
permanency (Sp): At 12th level, the warden can make spells permanent. Once per week, he can use permanency as a spell-like ability. If an effect he has made permanent in this way is dispelled, it is restored to functionality the next time he regains spells. An effect that is dispelled for three days in a row is removed permanently. At 16th level, he can use this ability once per day instead of once per week.
Maximum Force: At 14th level, the warden gains perfect control over force magic. Any [Force] spell he casts is Maximized. This does not increase either the spell slot used to cast the spell or the spell's casting time.
Unimpeachable Magic: At 18th level, the warden's magics are protected from the meddling of lesser mages. Any attempt to dispel one of his spells (or his guards and wards ability) by a character with a caster level lower than his own (factoring in the bonus from Enduring Magic) automatically fails.
Warding Mastery: At 20th level, the warden casts symbol spells and all spells with a duration of "permanent" or "permanent until discharged" as supernatural abilities.
Spell List
0th Level: alarm, arcane mark, detect magic, dispel ward (Spc), mage hand, protection from alignment, read magic, resistance
1st Level: abjurant armor*, arcane lock, endure elements, floating disk, greater dispel magic, lesser deflect (PHBII), magic missile, sanctuary, shield, shield of faith, undetectable alignment, unseen servant
2nd Level: anticipate teleportation (SpC), avoid planar effects (SpC), battering ram (SpC), chain missile, deflect (PHBII), dissonant chant (SpC), fire trap, lesser spell immunity (SpC), obscure object, protection from arrows, resist energy, shield other, spiritual weapon, unseen crafter (RoE)
3rd Level: explosive runes, greater abjurant armor*, greater resistance (SpC), glyph of warding, magic circle against alignment, manyjaws (SpC), nondetection, protection from energy, remove curse, sepia sanke sigil, servant horde (SpC), spirit jaws (SpC)
4th Level: break enchantment, death ward, dimensional anchor, freedom of movement, lesser globe of invulnerability, mass resist energy, orb of force, spell immunity, symbol of confusion^, symbol of pain, transcribe symbol (SpC)
5th Level: area ward^, forbiddance, greater anticipate teleportation (SpC), guards and wards, private sanctum, spell resistance, symbol of fear, symbol of sleep, wall of force, wall of greater dispel magic (SpC)
6th Level: antimagic field, energy immunity (SpC), globe of invulnerability, greater gylph of warding, repulsion, superior resistance (SpC), symbol of death, symbol of persuasion, symbol of weakness
7th Level: forcecage, greater symbol of fear^, greater symbol of sleep^, spell turning, symbol of stunning
8th Level: greater area ward^, dimensional lock, mind blank, prismatic wall, reaving dispel (SpC), symbol of insanity
9th Level: disjunction, freedom, greater symbol of death^, prismatic sphere, supreme gylph of warding^, imprisonment
*: As (greater) mage armor, but school is Abjuration.
^: New spell described below.
Sources Used
PHBII: Player's Handbook II
RoE: Races of Eberron
SpC: Spell Compendium
Area Ward
Abjuration
Level: Sorcerer 6, Warden 5, Wizard 6
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Range: Touch
Area: 40-ft. or smaller radius
Target: Location or object touched
Duration: Permanent
Saving Throw: See text
Spell Resistance: See text
You construct a mystical diagram that imposes a permanent spell effect on either an area or any creature which enters it. Possible effects include alarm, anticipate teleportation, avoid planar effects, clairaudience/clairvoyance, detect magic, detect scrying, death ward, dimensional anchor, dispel magic, endure elements, freedom of movement, gentle repose, greater resistance, gust of wind, hallucinatory terrain, magic circle (against an alignment of your choice), nondetection, obscuring mist, protection from energy, resist energy, scrying, and silence. You must know the spell which you charge an area ward with. You can set conditions, such as particular alignments, that determine how creatures are effected by the spell. For example, you could create an area ward with an alarm that triggers only when Lawful creatures enter.
When casting the spell, you may have it effect an area with a radius of up to 40ft. Once the spell is cast, its area cannot be modified. If the spell targets a location, it is centered on that location. If it targets an object, it moves with the object. Only one area ward may be in effect in a given area. If multiple wards overlap, the one with the lower caster level is supressed. If their caster level is equal, the one that became active later is supressed. If area ward targets an object, its effect is centered on that object and moves with it.
Material Component: The ward requires arcane reagents worth 1,000 GP plus an additional 1,000 GP for every level of the spell to be included in its area.
Area Ward, Greater
Abjuration
Level: Warden 8
Area: 1 mile or smaller radius
This spell works like area ward, except that it effects a larger area and can incorporate more powerful spell effects. In addition to the spells that can be tied to a normal area ward a greater area ward can provide the effects of spells such as dimensional lock, energy immunity, forbiddance, globe of invulnerability, greater anticipate teleportation, greater dispel magic, greater scrying, guards and wards, lesser globe of invulnerability, mind blank, mirage arcana, private sanctum, planar bubble (plane of the caster's choice), repulsion, solid fog, spell turning, superior resistance, spell resistance, and true seeing.
Material Component: The ward requires arcane reagents worth 10,000 GP plus an additional 10,000 GP for every level of the spell to be included in its area.
Glyph of Warding, Supreme
Abjuration
Level: Warden 9
This spell works like glyph of warding, except that a supreme blast glyph deals 1d8 points of damage per caster level (no cap) and a supreme spell gylph can contain a spell of up to 9th level.
Material Component: You trace the glyph with incense, which must first be sprinkled with powdered diamond worth at least 800 gp.
Symbol of Death, Greater
Necromancy [Death]
Level: Warden 9
This spell works like symbol of death, except that it has no hit point limit; once triggered, a greater symbol of death simply remains active for 10 minutes per caster level.
Symbol of Confusion
Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Warden 4
This spell works like symbol of death, except that creatures that fail their save are confused (as the confusion spell), and that it has no hit point limit; once triggered, a symbol of confusion simply remains active for 10 minutes per caster level.
Symbol of Sleep, Greater
Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Warden 7
This spell works like symbol of sleep, except that there is no hit die limit for its effect. Any creature that fails their save falls asleep.
Symbol of Fear, Greater
Necromancy [Fear, Mind-Affecting]
Level: Warden 7
This spell works like symbol of fear, except that it has no hit point limit; once triggered, a greater symbol of fear simply remains active for 10 minutes per caster level.
Abjuration is another tough one. Unlike Divination, there are at least a decent suite of Abjurations that you'd cast during combat, or to make your side better at combat. Showing up as the guy who can provide Mind Blank and Dispel Magic is a lot more useful than as the guy who can cast Prying Eyes and Vision. But the school is still offensively lacking. To fix this, the Warden gets some Force magic (giving it decent enough blasting at low levels, and some lockdown) and the various Gylphs and Symbols to round out the "magic security measures" provided by Arcane Lock and Explosive Runes.
At low levels, the Warden is supposed to justify itself by being a dude in heavy armor who can occasionally cast a useful spell in combat and who handles trapfinding like a Rogue. You don't have the kind of offensive firepower that a Beguiler does at 1st level, but that's okay because you can get up in melee with orcs and goblins and not die to basically the same degree a Fighter or Cleric does. Your 2nd and 3rd level spells provide you with some offensive spells, and the ability to buff up your allies against various things.
At mid levels, you have a bit of an awkward spot where you've gotten past the point where Full Plate and a Greatsword make a viable character, but haven't yet gotten your symbols online. Hopefully things like Explosive Runes, Manyjaws, Orb of Force and defensive buffs carry you through this bit (possibly the Guards and Wards ability goes to 10th and Transient Wards to 8th?). But then you get your key tools: Area Ward and Transient Wards. The former allows you to provide a suite of buffs to your fellow party members for cheap, while the latter lets you open every fight with a Symbol in addition to whatever else you're doing without lighting money on fire.
At high levels, you get better Symbols, bigger area wards, and the ability to make Permanent Symbols. Those really break the action economy, because they stack. You can eventually open every fight by having Symbols of Persuasion, Insanity, Fear, and Sleep go off while your party sits under a Mind Blank ward. That's potentially pretty busted, but it's also a strategy for a 16th level character, so I'm not sure how concerned I am.
Again, that's the idea. Does it work? I hope so. I definitely like a lot of what the class does as a dungeon owner, but it's quite possible I've over- or undertuned it in the hands of dungeon delvers.
Would you like to know a secret?
It is the nature of people to seek out knowledge. Seers are spellcasters whose magic is specialized towards supporting and continuing this search. They bend time and space to seek out the things that others have concealed. Some are driven to find a solution to a particular problem, while others simply seek knowledge for knowledge's sake. The tendency of ancient wizards to leave magical knowledge at the bottom of tombs filled with traps and monsters makes adventuring a common career choice for seers.
Hit Die: d6
Class Skills
The seer's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Knowledge (any) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight Of Hand (Dex), Speak Language, Spellcraft (Int), and Spot (Wis).
Skill Points: 6 + Int modifier (x4 at 1st level).
1+0+0+2+2Spells, Armored Mage, Sneak Attack +1d6
2+1+0+3+3Twist Fate
3+1+1+3+3Advanced Learning
4+2+1+4+4arcane sight, Sneak Attack +2d6
5+2+1+4+4Advanced Learning
6+3+2+5+5Additional Swift Action
7+3+2+5+5Advanced Learning, Sneak Attack +3d6
8+4+2+6+6Fade From View
9+4+3+6+6Advanced Learning
10+5+3+7+7Instant Magic, Sneak Attack +4d6
11+5+3+7+7Advanced Learning
12+6/+1+4+8+8Additional Swift Action
13+6/+1+4+8+8Advanced Learning, Sneak Attack +5d6
14+7/+2+4+9+9celerity
15+7/+2+5+9+9Advanced Learning
16+8/+3+5+10+10Outside Time, Sneak Attack +6d6
17+8/+3+5+10+10Advanced Learning
18+9/+4+6+11+11Additional Swift Action
19+9/+4+6+11+11Advanced Learning, Sneak Attack +7d6
20+10/+5+6+12+12Improved Instant Magic
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The seer is proficient with light armor, shields and simple weapons.
Spells: A seer casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the seer list. The seer automatically knows all the spells on the seer list, as well as a selection of additional spells from her Advanced Learning ability. If she gains access to new spells through effects such as Prestige Domains, she automatically knows those spells as well. She can cast any spell she knows without preparing it ahead of time. The seer's spell DCs and bonus spells are determined by her Wisdom score.
The seer recieves the same spells per day as a sorcerer of her level.
Unlike most spontaneous spellcasters, it does not take a seer any longer to cast a spell modified by a metamagic feat.
At the DM's discretion, the seer may exchange spells on the seer list for other divination spells of the same level from the sorcerer/wizard list.
The seer is treated as a wizard who has specialized in the school of divination for the purpose of meeting prerequisites.
Armored Mage (Ex): Seers recieve specialized training that allows them to cast more effectively in armor. A seer ignores the arcane spell failure chance of any armor with which she is proficient.
Sneak Attack: As the rogue ability, except that the seer gains additional damage dice at 4th level and every three levels thereafter.
Twist Fate (Sp): At 2nd level, the seer's precognitive abilities allow her to nudge the timeline away from outcomes that are disfavorable to her. Whenever a d20 is rolled within line of sight of the seer, she may elect to have two d20s be rolled instead and take the result of her choice. The seer may not use this ability more than once per roll, or a total number of times per day greater than her class level plus her Wisdom modifier. This ability is used before the outcome a roll is known.
Advanced Learning: At 3rd level and each odd-numbered level thereafter, the seer gains additional spell knowledege. She may select either one divination spell of any spell level which she can cast from any list, or one spell of any school of a level up to one less than the highest level she can cast from the sorcerer/wizard list. Divination spells are added to her list at the level they appear on the list she choose them from, other spells are added to her spell list at the level they appear on the sorcerer/wizard list.
arcane sight (Sp): At 4th level, the seer can see the auras of magic around her. She is under the effect of a permanent arcane sight (caster level equal to her caster level). If dispelled, this effect returns the next time she regains her spells. In addition, if she ever learns arcane sight she can cast it on others as if it had a range of touch and make it permanent with permanency.
Additional Swift Action: At 6th level, the seer can take an additional swift action each round. Like a normal swift action, this action can also be used as an immediate action. At 12th level, the seer can take a third swift action each round, and at 18th level they can take a fourth.
Fade From View: At 8th level, the seer can make Hide checks without cover or concealment and while being observed, and the penalty she takes for attempting to Hide while taking other actions is reduced by half (round down).
Instant Magic: At 10th level, the seer can draw on her lesser magics with only a moment's effort. She gains Quicken Spell as a bonus feat, and it is automatically applied to any eligible spell she casts without increasing the spell slot used to cast it, provided that the spell's adjusted level is not higher than the highest level of spell she can cast. At 20th level, this applies to any eligible spell she casts of 8th level or lower.
celerity (Sp): At 14th level, the seer can pull time into the present, enabling her to act at a moment's notice. She may use celerity (PHBII) as a spell-like ability at will, though not more than once per round.
Outside Time: At 16th level, the seer no longer ages and no longer has to make Will saves to avoid insanity from casting contact other plane.
Seer Spell List
0th Level: detect alignment, detect magic, omen of peril (SpC), read magic
1st Level: augury, benign transposition (SpC), comprehend languages, distract assailant (SpC), golemstrike (SpC), gravestrike (SpC), identify, nerveskitter (SpC), precognition*, snake's swiftness (SpC), sniper's shot (SpC), true casting (SpC), true strike, vinestrike (SpC)
2nd Level: baleful transposition (SpC), detect thoughts, dimension hop (PHBII), know vulnerabilities (SpC), locate object, mass snake's swiftness (SpC), object reading*, recall agony*, rope trick, status, see invisibility, swift fly (SpC), swift haste (SpC), swift invisibility (SpC), tongues
3rd Level: analyze dweomer, arcane sight, detect scrying, dispel magic, divination, greater precognition*, haste, hypercognition*, locate creature, scattering trap (PHBII), scrying, slow, speak with dead, unluck (SpC)
4th Level: arcane eye, assay spell resistance (SpC), dimension door, discern location, foresight, legend lore, maddening visions^, stasis field^
5th Level: arcane fusion (CM), commune, contact other plane, dimension jumper (CM), offensive timewarp^, permanency, prying eyes, telepathic bond, teleport, true seeing, word of recall
6th Level: contigency, curse of aeons^, greater arcane sight, greater dispel magic, legend lore, moment of prescience^, scry location, vision
7th Level: fracturing teleport^, greater scrying, greater teleport, magnficient mansion, stun ray (SpC), temporal acceleration*
8th Level: greater arcane fusion (CM), greater prying eyes, mass maddening visions^, recall death*, temporal stasis
9th Level: greater dimension jumper (CM), time stop, timeless body*, temporal echo^, prescience^
*: Originally a psionic power. If the power can be augmented, treat it as if it had been augmented by 1 point for every caster level above the level at which the spell is learned (so a 18th level seer would gain two rounds of time from temporal acceleration). For effects that care about spell school, these spells are treated as Divinations.
^: New or modified spell described below.
Sources Used
CM: Complete Mage
PHBII: Player's Handbook II
SpC: Spell Compendium
Curse of Aeons
Transmutation
Level: Seer 6, Sorcerer 6, Wizard 6
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will negates
Spell Resistance: Yes
You accelerate a creature's passage through time, causing its body to rapidly age and decay. Each round, the target takes 2 points of Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution damage. If one of these ability scores is reduced to 0 by this effect, the creature dies (this does not count as a death of old age, so it can still be restored to life by effects such as raise dead). The creature makes a save each round, and a successful save ends the effect (but does not remove damage that has already been accumulated).
Fracturing Teleport
Conjuration (Teleportation)
Level: Seer 7, Sorcerer 7, Wizard 7
Components: V
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level) and line of sight; see text
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You cast a creature through space, but fail to take the usual precautions required to ensure it survives the trip. On a failed save, the target takes 1d6 points of damage per caster level and moves to any location you have line of sight to (the creature must be able to occupy the new space). A successful save negates the teleportation and reduces the damage by half.
Maddening Visions [Fear, Mind-Affecting]
Divination
Level: Seer 4, Sorcerer 4, Wizard 4
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You assault the creature with a flurry of visions of horrible futures. The target is shaken for one round per caster level (no save). On a failed save, they are also stunned for the first round of the spell's duration.
Maddening Visions, Mass [Fear, Mind-Affecting]
Divination
Level: Seer 8, Sorcerer 8, Wizard 8
Target: One creature/level, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
This spell works like maddening visions, except that it effects multiple targets.
Moment of Prescience
Divination
Level: Luck 8, Seer 6, Sorcerer 8, Wizard 8
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Permanent until discharged
At any time, you may expend the effect of moment of prescience to gain an insight bonus equal to your caster level equal to a single d20 roll. You may not have multiple moment of prescience, greater precognition, precognition, or prescience effects active on you at once.
Offensive Timewarp
Transmutation
Level: Seer 5, Sorcerer 5, Wizard 5
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You slow the flow of time around a creature. The target is slowed for the spell's duration, and must make a save each round or be stunned for that round.
Prescience
Divination
Level: Seer 9
Duration: Until you regain spells
This spell works like moment of prescience, except that it can be activated once per round. You may not have multiple moment of prescience, greater precognition, precognition, or prescience effects active on you at once.
Stasis Field
Transmutation
Level: Seer 4, Sorcerer 4, Wizard 4
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Area: 40ft radius spread
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Will partial
Spell Resistance: Yes
You alter the flow of time in an area, preventing creatures in it from moving. Each creature in the area must make a save at the start of its turn (creatures entering the area must make a save the first time they do so). On a failed save, the creature cannot move that turn. Flying creatures do not fall, and ranged attacks work normally.
Temporal Echo
Transmutation
Level: Seer 9
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round/level
By partially detacting yourself from the flow of time, you create an echo that mimics your actions. Each turn after the first, the echo takes whatever actions you took in the previous turn. You are still considered the caster of any spells, and you may change the targets of abilities the echo uses. The echo cannot itself cast temporal echo, and cannot act during accelerated time (such as the effect of a time stop or temporal acceleration).
This one was obnoxious. There are a couple of fundamental issues with a Warmage-style Divination caster:
1. Divination isn't really something you can hang a whole character on. There are Divination specialist Wizards, but that's because you can find one Divination you want at every level, then fill the rest of your slots with the spells every other Wizard casts (like Color Spray, Fear, and Planar Binding). There's I think one offensive divination spell (Unluck), and then a couple more things that are useful in combat but don't directly kill people (e.g. True Strike, Sniper's Shot).
2. Lots of Divination spells are really over-leveled. Foresight has no business being a 9th level spell. Moment of Prescience is not worth an 8th level spell slot (though it falls into the weird niche of spells that are basically class features).
3. There isn't that much high-level Divination out there. Even before you start down-leveling the Legend Lores and Analyze Dweomers of the world, high level Divination is a pretty sparse field. The Spell Compendium has a total of four (Sorcerer/Wizard) Divination spells that are 6th level or higher (compare Transmutation, which has four or more spells at every level).
From this, you can tell that whatever Warmage-equivalent you write for Divination is going to need to pick up some kind of side line, and probably more than one. Now, there are a lot of ways you could do that. Your Diviner could be like a Jedi, getting various "move stuff with your mind" powers, and a high-mobility combat style. You could staple Divination to another spell school (Evocation is the obvious choice, being as lacking outside combat as Divination is in it). I went with a combination of approaches, giving the Seer some time magic, a passable sneak attacking plan, borrowed some psionic powers, and wrote a couple new spells.
At low levels, the Seer is a Rogue-type. You're frailer than a standard Rogue, don't get as much Sneak Attack, and your skill list doesn't support the full range of Rogue skills (you can't be a trap-monkey or face, for example). But in exchange you have a bunch of magical tricks you can pull that let you do Rogue stuff better. You can pop Swift Haste to get extra Sneak Attack, Sniper's Shot to get better range, or the appropriate Strike for whatever Sneak Attack immune enemy you're fighting. You've also got the Divination suite to do out of combat stuff, plus a few party support options.
At mid levels, you start abusing the action economy. You get extra swift actions, which you can either use for more temporary buffs or (once you hit 10th level) to drop some extra offensive spells, particularly if you burn an Advanced Learning to get some kind of SA-eligible 1st or 2nd level spell. You also get some save-or-dies at these levels, though you're not as impressive in this department as a Beguiler or Dread Necromancer. Outside combat, you continue to scout and gather information magically.
At high levels, you break the action economy even more (though hopefully not to the degree that TO Psion builds can). You probably want to pick up Delay Spell to better abuse Temporal Aacceleration and Time Stop, allowing you to dump out even bigger novas.
That's the idea. The question is: does it play out that way? Is it balanced? I'm not sure. Action economy abuse is prone to pretty wild swings in effectiveness (for example, there was a draft that got Celerity, until I remember that the spell is stupid with Arcane Fusion). Frankly, it's quite possible that as a class that is A) basically telling you to scry-and-die and B) gets a bunch of ways to take extra actions, the Seer is inherently too strong and needs to be rebuild along some other lines.
Warden
A man's home is his castle.
A warden is a spellcaster that specializes in defensive and protective magics. While this makes them well suited to protecting and fortifying a single location, some wardens become adventurers and utilize their skills to defeat the magical defenses of others. Wardens are often employed by individuals or organizations with a mind to improving their security, and the longtime homes of powerful wardens are among the most secure locations in the world.
Hit Die: d10
Class Skills
The warden's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Disable Device (Int), Forgery (Int), Knowledge (Arcana, Architecture and engineering, Dungeoneering, The planes) (Int), Listen (Wis), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis), and Use Magic Device (Cha).
Skill Points: 4 + Int modifier (x4 at 1st level).
1+1+2+0+2Spells, Armored Mage, Trapfinding
2+2+3+0+3Enduring Magic
3+3+3+1+3Advanced Learning
4+4+4+1+4Wardsense
5+5+4+1+4Advanced Learning
6+6/+1+5+2+5Cooperative Wards
7+7/+2+5+2+5Advanced Learning
8+8/+3+6+2+6guards and wards
9+9/+4+6+3+6Advanced Learning
10+10/+5+7+3+7Transient Wards
11+11/+6/+1+7+3+7Advanced Learning
12+12/+7/+2+8+4+8permanency (weekly)
13+13/+8/+3+8+4+8Advanced Learning
14+14/+9/+4+9+4+9Maximum Force
15+15/+10/+5+9+5+9Advanced Learning
16+16/+11/+6/+1+10+5+10permanency (daily)
17+17/+12/+7/+2+10+5+10Advanced Learning
18+18/+13/+8/+3+11+6+11Unimpeachable Magic
19+19/+14/+9/+4+11+6+11Advanced Learning
20+20/+15/+10/+5+12+6+12Warding Mastery
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The warden is proficient with light, medium, and heavy armor, shields, and all simple and martial weapons.
Spells: A warden casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the warden list. The warden automatically knows all the spells on the warden list, as well as a selection of additional spells from his Advanced Learning ability. If he gains access to new spells through effects such as Prestige Domains, he automatically knows those spells as well. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time. The warden's spell DCs and bonus spells are determined by his Intelligence score.
The warden recieves the same spells per day as a sorcerer of his level.
At the DM's discretion, the warden may exchange spells on the warden list for other abjuration spells of the same level from the sorcerer/wizard list.
The warden is treated as a wizard who has specialized in the school of abjuration for the purpose of meeting prerequisites.
Armored Mage (Ex): Wardens recieve specialized training that allows them to cast more effectively in armor. A warden ignores the arcane spell failure chance of any armor with which he is proficient.
Trapfinding: As the rogue.
Enduring Magic: At 2nd level, the warden's spells become more difficult to remove. He adds a bonus equal to one half his class level (round down) to his caster level for the purpose of resisting his spells being dispelled.
Advanced Learning: At 3rd level and each odd-numbered level thereafter, the warden gains additional spell knowledege. He may select either one abjuration or [Force] spell of any spell level which he can cast from the sorcerer/wizard or cleric lists, or one spell of any school of a level up to one less than the highest level he can cast from the sorcerer/wizard list. This spell is added to his list of spells known at the level at which it appears on the sorcerer/wizard list if it appears there, or the level it appears on the cleric list if it does not.
Wardsense (Su): At 4th level, the warden becomes instinctively attuned to defensive magics. He is automatically aware of any magicial trap, gylph spell, symbol spell, or similar effect with 120ft. An opposed caster level check reveals what conditions will activate these effects (e.g. the location that triggers a trap, or the doorway protected by a symbol of pain), but not passwords that will disable or bypass them.
Cooperative Wards: At 6th level, the warden can store his allies magic in his defensive spells. When he casts gylph of warding or a similar spell, he may store spells known by any willing ally who is present when he casts the spell, rather than just spells he knows.
guards and wards (Sp): At 8th level, the warden can weave potent magics to protect his home. He can use guards and wards once per day as a spell-like ability. The duration of the effect is unlimited, but only one instance of it may be active at a time. The caster level of the effect is equal to the warden's caster level, and it benefits from his Enduring Magic and Unimpeachable Magic abilities. When the warden uses guards and wards (either from this ability, or by casting the spell normally), he may select an additional option off the list of choices the spell provides for every two caster levels above 8 he possesses (so a warden with caster level 10 could choose to have stinking cloud active in two locations and gust of wind in a corridor). He may choose the same ability multiple times.
Transient Wards (Su): At 10th level, when the warden casts a symbol spell or a spell with a duration of "permanent" or "permanent until discharged" and an expensive material component, he may elect not to use the relevant material component. If he does so, the spell fades when he next regains spells if its effect has not already been discharged. He may have only one such spell active at a time.
permanency (Sp): At 12th level, the warden can make spells permanent. Once per week, he can use permanency as a spell-like ability. If an effect he has made permanent in this way is dispelled, it is restored to functionality the next time he regains spells. An effect that is dispelled for three days in a row is removed permanently. At 16th level, he can use this ability once per day instead of once per week.
Maximum Force: At 14th level, the warden gains perfect control over force magic. Any [Force] spell he casts is Maximized. This does not increase either the spell slot used to cast the spell or the spell's casting time.
Unimpeachable Magic: At 18th level, the warden's magics are protected from the meddling of lesser mages. Any attempt to dispel one of his spells (or his guards and wards ability) by a character with a caster level lower than his own (factoring in the bonus from Enduring Magic) automatically fails.
Warding Mastery: At 20th level, the warden casts symbol spells and all spells with a duration of "permanent" or "permanent until discharged" as supernatural abilities.
Spell List
0th Level: alarm, arcane mark, detect magic, dispel ward (Spc), mage hand, protection from alignment, read magic, resistance
1st Level: abjurant armor*, arcane lock, endure elements, floating disk, greater dispel magic, lesser deflect (PHBII), magic missile, sanctuary, shield, shield of faith, undetectable alignment, unseen servant
2nd Level: anticipate teleportation (SpC), avoid planar effects (SpC), battering ram (SpC), chain missile, deflect (PHBII), dissonant chant (SpC), fire trap, lesser spell immunity (SpC), obscure object, protection from arrows, resist energy, shield other, spiritual weapon, unseen crafter (RoE)
3rd Level: explosive runes, greater abjurant armor*, greater resistance (SpC), glyph of warding, magic circle against alignment, manyjaws (SpC), nondetection, protection from energy, remove curse, sepia sanke sigil, servant horde (SpC), spirit jaws (SpC)
4th Level: break enchantment, death ward, dimensional anchor, freedom of movement, lesser globe of invulnerability, mass resist energy, orb of force, spell immunity, symbol of confusion^, symbol of pain, transcribe symbol (SpC)
5th Level: area ward^, forbiddance, greater anticipate teleportation (SpC), guards and wards, private sanctum, spell resistance, symbol of fear, symbol of sleep, wall of force, wall of greater dispel magic (SpC)
6th Level: antimagic field, energy immunity (SpC), globe of invulnerability, greater gylph of warding, repulsion, superior resistance (SpC), symbol of death, symbol of persuasion, symbol of weakness
7th Level: forcecage, greater symbol of fear^, greater symbol of sleep^, spell turning, symbol of stunning
8th Level: greater area ward^, dimensional lock, mind blank, prismatic wall, reaving dispel (SpC), symbol of insanity
9th Level: disjunction, freedom, greater symbol of death^, prismatic sphere, supreme gylph of warding^, imprisonment
*: As (greater) mage armor, but school is Abjuration.
^: New spell described below.
Sources Used
PHBII: Player's Handbook II
RoE: Races of Eberron
SpC: Spell Compendium
Area Ward
Abjuration
Level: Sorcerer 6, Warden 5, Wizard 6
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Range: Touch
Area: 40-ft. or smaller radius
Target: Location or object touched
Duration: Permanent
Saving Throw: See text
Spell Resistance: See text
You construct a mystical diagram that imposes a permanent spell effect on either an area or any creature which enters it. Possible effects include alarm, anticipate teleportation, avoid planar effects, clairaudience/clairvoyance, detect magic, detect scrying, death ward, dimensional anchor, dispel magic, endure elements, freedom of movement, gentle repose, greater resistance, gust of wind, hallucinatory terrain, magic circle (against an alignment of your choice), nondetection, obscuring mist, protection from energy, resist energy, scrying, and silence. You must know the spell which you charge an area ward with. You can set conditions, such as particular alignments, that determine how creatures are effected by the spell. For example, you could create an area ward with an alarm that triggers only when Lawful creatures enter.
When casting the spell, you may have it effect an area with a radius of up to 40ft. Once the spell is cast, its area cannot be modified. If the spell targets a location, it is centered on that location. If it targets an object, it moves with the object. Only one area ward may be in effect in a given area. If multiple wards overlap, the one with the lower caster level is supressed. If their caster level is equal, the one that became active later is supressed. If area ward targets an object, its effect is centered on that object and moves with it.
Material Component: The ward requires arcane reagents worth 1,000 GP plus an additional 1,000 GP for every level of the spell to be included in its area.
Area Ward, Greater
Abjuration
Level: Warden 8
Area: 1 mile or smaller radius
This spell works like area ward, except that it effects a larger area and can incorporate more powerful spell effects. In addition to the spells that can be tied to a normal area ward a greater area ward can provide the effects of spells such as dimensional lock, energy immunity, forbiddance, globe of invulnerability, greater anticipate teleportation, greater dispel magic, greater scrying, guards and wards, lesser globe of invulnerability, mind blank, mirage arcana, private sanctum, planar bubble (plane of the caster's choice), repulsion, solid fog, spell turning, superior resistance, spell resistance, and true seeing.
Material Component: The ward requires arcane reagents worth 10,000 GP plus an additional 10,000 GP for every level of the spell to be included in its area.
Glyph of Warding, Supreme
Abjuration
Level: Warden 9
This spell works like glyph of warding, except that a supreme blast glyph deals 1d8 points of damage per caster level (no cap) and a supreme spell gylph can contain a spell of up to 9th level.
Material Component: You trace the glyph with incense, which must first be sprinkled with powdered diamond worth at least 800 gp.
Symbol of Death, Greater
Necromancy [Death]
Level: Warden 9
This spell works like symbol of death, except that it has no hit point limit; once triggered, a greater symbol of death simply remains active for 10 minutes per caster level.
Symbol of Confusion
Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Warden 4
This spell works like symbol of death, except that creatures that fail their save are confused (as the confusion spell), and that it has no hit point limit; once triggered, a symbol of confusion simply remains active for 10 minutes per caster level.
Symbol of Sleep, Greater
Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Warden 7
This spell works like symbol of sleep, except that there is no hit die limit for its effect. Any creature that fails their save falls asleep.
Symbol of Fear, Greater
Necromancy [Fear, Mind-Affecting]
Level: Warden 7
This spell works like symbol of fear, except that it has no hit point limit; once triggered, a greater symbol of fear simply remains active for 10 minutes per caster level.
Abjuration is another tough one. Unlike Divination, there are at least a decent suite of Abjurations that you'd cast during combat, or to make your side better at combat. Showing up as the guy who can provide Mind Blank and Dispel Magic is a lot more useful than as the guy who can cast Prying Eyes and Vision. But the school is still offensively lacking. To fix this, the Warden gets some Force magic (giving it decent enough blasting at low levels, and some lockdown) and the various Gylphs and Symbols to round out the "magic security measures" provided by Arcane Lock and Explosive Runes.
At low levels, the Warden is supposed to justify itself by being a dude in heavy armor who can occasionally cast a useful spell in combat and who handles trapfinding like a Rogue. You don't have the kind of offensive firepower that a Beguiler does at 1st level, but that's okay because you can get up in melee with orcs and goblins and not die to basically the same degree a Fighter or Cleric does. Your 2nd and 3rd level spells provide you with some offensive spells, and the ability to buff up your allies against various things.
At mid levels, you have a bit of an awkward spot where you've gotten past the point where Full Plate and a Greatsword make a viable character, but haven't yet gotten your symbols online. Hopefully things like Explosive Runes, Manyjaws, Orb of Force and defensive buffs carry you through this bit (possibly the Guards and Wards ability goes to 10th and Transient Wards to 8th?). But then you get your key tools: Area Ward and Transient Wards. The former allows you to provide a suite of buffs to your fellow party members for cheap, while the latter lets you open every fight with a Symbol in addition to whatever else you're doing without lighting money on fire.
At high levels, you get better Symbols, bigger area wards, and the ability to make Permanent Symbols. Those really break the action economy, because they stack. You can eventually open every fight by having Symbols of Persuasion, Insanity, Fear, and Sleep go off while your party sits under a Mind Blank ward. That's potentially pretty busted, but it's also a strategy for a 16th level character, so I'm not sure how concerned I am.
Again, that's the idea. Does it work? I hope so. I definitely like a lot of what the class does as a dungeon owner, but it's quite possible I've over- or undertuned it in the hands of dungeon delvers.