Malapterus
2023-05-07, 01:10 PM
For years, myself and all players like myself have pondered combining the fire-and-ice opposites of Sorcerer and Wizard into a prestige class. Up until now, my ideas have been pretty unbalanced. I think I've finally hit on something, but it's not perfect.
Below are some concepts of the class, but not the complete class. It needs some tuning and balancing - things to make it fair, but still worthwhile. Please chime in with whatever features would put this in the right direction.
Class name:
I don't know. 'Mage' has always been my go-to, but it doesn't work here. Mage. I'll fix it later.
Prereqs:
X levels of Wizard, X levels of Sorcerer*
*Technically it should be 'X levels of prepared arcane caster & X levels of spontaneous arcane caster**; I'll hash that out later. I'll be using the terms 'Wizard' and 'Sorcerer' for now.
**Technically technically it should be 'ability to cast X level prepared arcane spells & blah blah & I'll fix it later
Other prereqs should exist; I'm open to suggestion.
Note: As I was writing the very next section, 'X' became a very difficult number to pin down. It went from 5 & 5 to 2 & 2 to 'I don't know'. Help me solve for X.
Skills: I don't know. This could be a good place to do some balancing.
Weapon proficiency: None.
Modified Caster Level:
This one is a bit of a sticking point for me. You add up your Sorcerer, Wizard, and 'Mage' levels to determine your total spellcasting potential. For example (if the numbers work out that way) you have 2 levels of Wizard and 2 of Sorcerer and your first level of Mage, you cast spells on the level of a 2+2+1=5 dedicated spellcasting character. Part of the problem here is that this would take you straight from knowing 1st to 3rd level spells, which is a jump I am trying to avoid. Maybe the prerequisite levels don't need to be the same? I think I should err toward needing more Wizard levels.
Spellcasting:
The character learns spells in the same way as a Wizard. Upon taking this class, they add extra spells to their book as if their Modified Caster Level was their Wizard level.
Special: any spells known as a Sorcerer are automatically added to the spell book when this class is taken.
Note: The character forgoes the ability to learn "unusual spells that the sorcerer has gained some understanding of" upon taking this class.
The character's Spells per Day are that of a Sorcerer of their Modified Caster level.
The character's Prepareable Spells are based on the Spells per Day of a Wizard of their Modified Caster Level. (This will make sense momentarily).
The character's ability to cast spells as a Sorcerer or Wizard is overridden by the spellcasting rules of the Prestige class; they can no longer cast the spells from their pre-Mage levels using the rules of Sorcerer and Wizard.
The character must prepare a list of spells from their spellbook each morning as a Wizard.
The Mage can then cast these spells (and only these spells) spontaneously, as a Sorcerer.
Caster level for these spells = Modified Caster level.
The maximum spell level that the character can cast is based on Intelligence.
The DC of saves against these spells & bonus spells per day are based on Charisma.
Read Magic:
The Mage can cast Read Magic without having prepared it.
Familiar:
The level of any familiar is based on the Modified Caster Level.
School Specialization:
If the character had a School Specialization as a Wizard, they continue to have it as a Mage of his Modified Caster level. If any of their Sorcerer spells were from a forbidden school, they lose access to those spells.
Spontaneous Metamagic:
The Mage can apply any metamagic feat he knows to a spell he is casting under the same rules as a Sorcerer.
Prepared Metamagic:
As an exception of the above, the Mage may choose to prepare a Metamagic version of a spell. The Mage can cast such a spell as though it were an unmodified Sorcerer spell of the modified level, with no increase in casting time. They cannot, however, cast a non-metamagic version of the spell unless the non-metamagic version was prepared separately in another slot.
True Spontaneity:
Once per day, the mage can cast any spell from their spell book without having prepared it. They cast this spell as a Sorcerer of their level. This costs them one HP per the level of the spell.
The useages of this may increase as the character levels up.
True Preparation:
The character can prepare a spell outside their daily list. The spell remains prepared until they cast it or replace it. They may cast the spell as a Wizard of their level without expending a spell slot.
This ability is cool to me, but it needs some limits.
Bonus Feats:
I'd like some bonus metamagic feats, but so far this class does almost nothing that a vanilla Wizard can't do. I worry that I'm turning this class into a 'Super Wizard' & that is not what I want. I think I should skip the bonus feats.
--
I think that's it. So far the drawbacks to not staying as a Wizard are:
-Having to struggle for a small number of early levels picking up those Sorcerer levels.
-Having two important stats for casting instead of one.
-no Bonus Feats.
Is that enough?
My main concerns are:
-The sudden jump in casting ability at the first level of this class.
-'Super Wizard' that outclasses a dedicated Wizard.
-Needs a better name.
In case my attempt at explaining the spellcasting has not gone well, here's an example:
Joe Sniverflivblemebm is a Gnome with 2 levels of Wizard, two levels of Sorcerer, and one level of 'Mage'.
Each day he can prepare 4 cantrips, 3 1st-level spells, 2 2nd-level spells, and 1 3rd-level spell, as a 5th-level Wizard could.
Each day he can cast 6 cantrips, 6 1st level spells, and 4 2nd level spells.-
-It's at this point I realize a major flaw in my concept. I forgot that a Sorcerer is a spell level behind a Wizard, so his Wizard side will gain access to spells before this Mage could actually cast them. I suppose that could be another drawback? The Mage could probably cast that spell if his Cha bonus gave him a slot for it. The True Preparation ability, depending how it works out, could let the Mage cast that spell once per day. Over all it seems like the Mage can ready more spells than he can actually cast, but that is probably OK since he casts them spontaneously.
This whole thing may have fallen apart, but I am going to post it anyway. As always, I appreciate anyone who contributes. Thank you in advance!
Below are some concepts of the class, but not the complete class. It needs some tuning and balancing - things to make it fair, but still worthwhile. Please chime in with whatever features would put this in the right direction.
Class name:
I don't know. 'Mage' has always been my go-to, but it doesn't work here. Mage. I'll fix it later.
Prereqs:
X levels of Wizard, X levels of Sorcerer*
*Technically it should be 'X levels of prepared arcane caster & X levels of spontaneous arcane caster**; I'll hash that out later. I'll be using the terms 'Wizard' and 'Sorcerer' for now.
**Technically technically it should be 'ability to cast X level prepared arcane spells & blah blah & I'll fix it later
Other prereqs should exist; I'm open to suggestion.
Note: As I was writing the very next section, 'X' became a very difficult number to pin down. It went from 5 & 5 to 2 & 2 to 'I don't know'. Help me solve for X.
Skills: I don't know. This could be a good place to do some balancing.
Weapon proficiency: None.
Modified Caster Level:
This one is a bit of a sticking point for me. You add up your Sorcerer, Wizard, and 'Mage' levels to determine your total spellcasting potential. For example (if the numbers work out that way) you have 2 levels of Wizard and 2 of Sorcerer and your first level of Mage, you cast spells on the level of a 2+2+1=5 dedicated spellcasting character. Part of the problem here is that this would take you straight from knowing 1st to 3rd level spells, which is a jump I am trying to avoid. Maybe the prerequisite levels don't need to be the same? I think I should err toward needing more Wizard levels.
Spellcasting:
The character learns spells in the same way as a Wizard. Upon taking this class, they add extra spells to their book as if their Modified Caster Level was their Wizard level.
Special: any spells known as a Sorcerer are automatically added to the spell book when this class is taken.
Note: The character forgoes the ability to learn "unusual spells that the sorcerer has gained some understanding of" upon taking this class.
The character's Spells per Day are that of a Sorcerer of their Modified Caster level.
The character's Prepareable Spells are based on the Spells per Day of a Wizard of their Modified Caster Level. (This will make sense momentarily).
The character's ability to cast spells as a Sorcerer or Wizard is overridden by the spellcasting rules of the Prestige class; they can no longer cast the spells from their pre-Mage levels using the rules of Sorcerer and Wizard.
The character must prepare a list of spells from their spellbook each morning as a Wizard.
The Mage can then cast these spells (and only these spells) spontaneously, as a Sorcerer.
Caster level for these spells = Modified Caster level.
The maximum spell level that the character can cast is based on Intelligence.
The DC of saves against these spells & bonus spells per day are based on Charisma.
Read Magic:
The Mage can cast Read Magic without having prepared it.
Familiar:
The level of any familiar is based on the Modified Caster Level.
School Specialization:
If the character had a School Specialization as a Wizard, they continue to have it as a Mage of his Modified Caster level. If any of their Sorcerer spells were from a forbidden school, they lose access to those spells.
Spontaneous Metamagic:
The Mage can apply any metamagic feat he knows to a spell he is casting under the same rules as a Sorcerer.
Prepared Metamagic:
As an exception of the above, the Mage may choose to prepare a Metamagic version of a spell. The Mage can cast such a spell as though it were an unmodified Sorcerer spell of the modified level, with no increase in casting time. They cannot, however, cast a non-metamagic version of the spell unless the non-metamagic version was prepared separately in another slot.
True Spontaneity:
Once per day, the mage can cast any spell from their spell book without having prepared it. They cast this spell as a Sorcerer of their level. This costs them one HP per the level of the spell.
The useages of this may increase as the character levels up.
True Preparation:
The character can prepare a spell outside their daily list. The spell remains prepared until they cast it or replace it. They may cast the spell as a Wizard of their level without expending a spell slot.
This ability is cool to me, but it needs some limits.
Bonus Feats:
I'd like some bonus metamagic feats, but so far this class does almost nothing that a vanilla Wizard can't do. I worry that I'm turning this class into a 'Super Wizard' & that is not what I want. I think I should skip the bonus feats.
--
I think that's it. So far the drawbacks to not staying as a Wizard are:
-Having to struggle for a small number of early levels picking up those Sorcerer levels.
-Having two important stats for casting instead of one.
-no Bonus Feats.
Is that enough?
My main concerns are:
-The sudden jump in casting ability at the first level of this class.
-'Super Wizard' that outclasses a dedicated Wizard.
-Needs a better name.
In case my attempt at explaining the spellcasting has not gone well, here's an example:
Joe Sniverflivblemebm is a Gnome with 2 levels of Wizard, two levels of Sorcerer, and one level of 'Mage'.
Each day he can prepare 4 cantrips, 3 1st-level spells, 2 2nd-level spells, and 1 3rd-level spell, as a 5th-level Wizard could.
Each day he can cast 6 cantrips, 6 1st level spells, and 4 2nd level spells.-
-It's at this point I realize a major flaw in my concept. I forgot that a Sorcerer is a spell level behind a Wizard, so his Wizard side will gain access to spells before this Mage could actually cast them. I suppose that could be another drawback? The Mage could probably cast that spell if his Cha bonus gave him a slot for it. The True Preparation ability, depending how it works out, could let the Mage cast that spell once per day. Over all it seems like the Mage can ready more spells than he can actually cast, but that is probably OK since he casts them spontaneously.
This whole thing may have fallen apart, but I am going to post it anyway. As always, I appreciate anyone who contributes. Thank you in advance!