My Squrrel can cast Fireball

[Bhu]

My friend InnaBinder asked me to cross post this here form the BG boards to see peoples reactions. This is a little something we co-wrote.

THE SPELL DONOR


"I have something for you... Oh, and a little something for you... and you..."

Spell Donors came about as Wu Jens and a few other casting types who specialized in summoning critters got darn sick and tired of watching them get mowed down. That was hardly fair to the critters, who so selflessly defended the mage. So they decided to figure out some way of sharing their spells with their summoned minions in order to help them out, so that they could live through possible fights, and go back to their home once the summoning spell ran out.

BECOMING A SPELL DONOR
All Spell Donors have at least a few levels of the Wu Jen class. Some have spent time as Bards, Marshals, or Dragon Shamans, as they fulfill a similar role. Rarely, prospective Spell Donors dabble in divine magic, usually as a Spirit Shaman, Shugenja, or Druid, where the role of a summoner is typical.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
Race: Any
Class Abilities: Spell Secret, must have summoned at least three creatures in the last level
Feats: Spell Focus (Conjuration), Rapid Spell
Skills: Concentration 8 ranks, Handle Animal 4 ranks, Heal 4 ranks, Knowledge (nature) 8 ranks


Class Skills
The Spell Donor’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are: Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (All), Swim (Str), and Survival (Wis)
Skills Points at Each Level: 2 + int

Hit Dice: d8

  BAB  Fort    Ref    Will  Abilities[/b]
1. +0    +0     +0     +2    Yes that Platypus Did Just Cast Explosive Runes
2. +1    +0     +0     +3    +1 existing arcane spellcasting class
3. +1    +1     +1     +3    +1 existing arcane spellcasting class
4. +2    +1     +1     +4    Yes that Koi Fish Did Just Cast Fire Wings
5. +2    +1     +1     +4    +1 existing arcane spellcasting class
6. +3    +2     +2     +5    +1 existing arcane spellcasting class
7. +3    +2     +2     +5    Yes that Squirrel Did Just Pull A Morningstar Out Of Thin Air
8. +4    +2     +2     +6    +1 existing arcane spellcasting class
9. +4    +3     +3     +6    +1 existing arcane spellcasting class
10.+5    +3     +3     +7   That Badger Just Made Another Badger...

Weapon Proficiencies: Spell Donors gain no new armor or weapon proficiencies.

Spellcasting: At each indicated level, you gain new spells per day and an increase in caster level (and spells known, if applicable) as if you had also gained a level in a spellcasting class to which you belonged before adding the prestige class level. You do not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained. If you had more than one spellcasting class before becoming a Spell Donor, you must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining spells per day, caster level, and spells known.

Yes That Platypus Did Just Cast Explosive Runes (Su): Beginning at first level, any Abjuration spell that you can cast that has a Target of ‘Personal’ or ‘Creature Touched’ that you cast on yourself is shared by up to one Summoned creature per Spell Donor level. These creatures can have been Summoned already, or at any point up until the spell wears off. As long as the spell affects you it affects them as well. You may also ‘lose’ any spell of the Evocation school, and designate one Summoned creature which then may use that spell three times as a Spell-Like Ability. Its Caster Level is equal to its HD (so the spell may have a weaker effect than having been cast by the Spell Donor, but it can be used more often), while the Save DC is the same as the Spell Donor’s.

Yes That Koi Fish Did Just Cast Fire Wings (Su): Beginning at 4th Level, any Transmutation spell that you cast that has a Target of ‘Personal’ or ‘Creature Touched’ that you cast on yourself is shared by up to one Summoned creature per Spell Donor level. These creatures can have been Summoned already, or at any point up until the spell wears off. As long as the spell affects you it effects them as well. You may also ‘lose’ any spell of the Divination school, and designate one Summoned creature which may then use that spell as a Spell-Like Ability. Its Caster Level is equal to its HD, while the Save DC is the same as the Spell Donor’s.

Yes That Squirrel Did Just Pull A Morningstar Out Of Thin Air (Su): Beginning at 7th Level, you can ‘lose’ any spell of the Illusion and Conjuration schools, and designate one Summoned creature which may then use that spell as a Spell-Like Ability. Again, its Caster Level is equal to its HD, while the Save DC is the same as the Spell Donor’s.

That Badger Just Made Another Badger (Su): Beginning at 10th Level, when a creature you have Summoned uses “Yes That Squirrel Did Just Pull A Morningstar Out of Thin Air” to cast a Summon spell itself, all spells that apply to your Summoned creatures also apply to creatures they Summon. Also, you may also ‘lose’ a spell of one of the schools mentioned in previous abilities to grant it to a creature Summoned by one of your Summoned creatures.

PLAYING A SPELL DONOR
Spell Donors tend to be oddly more benevolent than most casters. I mean let’s face it, who else cares about summoned mooks? Most mages figure if they get gacked they can summon more of them. Not exactly fair for the critters is it? So, oddly enough, there are few truly Evil Spell Donors, because even though the idea of buffing summoned minions seems cool, few of them really trust their minions...
Combat: Spell Donors specialize in Summoning, and to that extent they let critters do their fighting for them. Critters they tend to spruce up with a few surprises for the ignorant grunting melee fighters they have to fend off in the Donor’s name. Nothing says “what the heck?” like a nice touch spell delivered by a cheesed-off Kodiak bear as it paws your face off.
Advancement: With no real enforced structure to their training, once a Spell Donor ‘graduates’, she is pretty much on her own as to how she continues her education. Many concentrate on defensive spells to help protect their favorite fuzzies, but this is not guaranteed. A substantial minority believe the best defense is a good offense, and buff their critters with surprise offensive spells. Because a Celestial Platypus busting out the Fire Wings spell is pure gold.
Resources: Spell Donors usually had to learn their art from someone, and they can sometimes call on their school or their old classmates for help - if they can find them. Wu Jen are usually hermits, after all, and schools tend to not be held in the same place all the time. Being able to find one is part of the qualifications to enter.

SPELL DONORS IN THE WORLD
“How is it fair we call up friends to help us without protecting and aiding them in turn? This is something everyone should think on.”

What goes around comes around, and when you help the world, the world helps you. By helping those that everyone else takes for granted you work off karmic debt. Plus the reverse is true. If you cause the world trouble, it comes back to you eventually. You let a summoned companion die, maybe one day squirrels die, become zombies, and poop in your oatmeal before killing you. A little extreme, yes, but you get the idea.
Daily Life: Your daily life tends to depend a great deal on what you were before becoming a Spell Donor. Since most have levels in Wu Jen they go back to their studies out in the wildernesses. Sadly this leads to the art of the Spell Donor becoming less common as some die alone in the woods before passing on what they know.
Notables: Bob the Hermit (CN Male Human Wu Jen 6/Spell Donor 6) is a local madman living somewhere up in the hills all alone. Many people journey to him to find wisdom or knowledge. Their tales upon returning are...disheartening.
Organizations: The Spell Donors are a loose organization at best. They don’t hold formal meetings more than once a year or so, they have no real hard and fast rules, and few responsibilities besides ensuring the art survives, and helping one another in times of need.

NPC Reaction
Because Spell Donors spend more time and energy on the creatures that they summon, they tend to be perceived as distant from most sentient beings. At best, folks call them aloof; at worst, people find them arrogant and uncaring about the concerns of everyday life.

SPELL DONORS IN THE GAME
At some point the PC’s will need to know some obscure secret, or just need a decent summoner. In parties with few members a Spell Donor is a great summoner/buffer, and can potentially make up for the lack of party members (at least until he runs out of spells for the day).
Adaptation: Spell Donors can sometimes be brought into urban campaigns because something in the city is interfering in their life and they need to take care of it, or they need supplies, or perhaps they’ve just had threats and they’ve tracked the source down to the local slum.
Encounters: Spell Donors can sometimes be encountered in battles as a few do work for military organizations or in defense of a town/city/country. This is rare though as many are loners and hermits, so as with most Wu Jen the usual way to encounter a Spell Donor is somewhere out in the middle of nowhere. This also means that many of them will be a little...twitchy...

Sample Encounter
As many Spell Donors are typically Wu Jen, they can be found far from civilization doing whatever they are currently obsessing over. Some might be protecting a forest, or simply living there furthering their studies. Others may have gone insane from the loneliness and spend their time running naked with the squirrels. Generally the party needs to hope they meet the first category.

EL 12: The PC’s have been hired to find a legendary wise man who lives on a nearby mountain top, as he is rumored to be the only one capable of solving a recent problem linked to an artifact. When they arrive at the mountain top they find a naked, unshaven man with plugs in his ears, ritual scars, and a pigeon in his ___. In other words the isolation has made him batty. He’s also forgotten how to talk properly, and may need the PC’s to re-educate him before he can be of help. Obviously due to the Fiendish Weasels now infesting your pantaloons he still remembers spells....


Bob the Hermit
CN Male Human Wu Jen 6/Spell Donor 6
Init: +2, Senses: Listen +1, Spot +1
Languages Common, Elven, Gnome, Sylvan
___________________________
AC: , touch , flat-footed , (+2 Dex, )
Hp: 66, (12 HD)
Fort: +6, Ref: +6, Will: +11
____________________________
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Melee:
Base Atk: +6, Grp: +5
Atk Options:
Combat Gear:
Spells per Day: 0: 4 (DC 13)
1st: 5 (DC 14)
2nd: 5 (DC 15)
3rd: 4 (DC 16)
4th: 3 (DC 17)
5th: 2 (DC 18)
____________________________________
Abilities: Str 8, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 17, Wis12, Cha 10
SQ: Watchful Spirit, Elemental mastery (Earth), Spell Secret (Summon Monster III, Extend Spell), Taboos (Cant wear white or drink alcohol), Yes That Platypus Did just Cast Mage Armor, Yes That Koi Fish Did Just Cast Fire Wings.
Feats: Augmented Summoning, Extend Spell, Rapid Spell, Silent Spell, Still Spell, Spell Focus (Conjuration), Empower Spell (B)
Skills: Concentrate +14, Handle Animal +8, Heal +9, Knowledge (Nature) +15, Knowledge (Geography) +4, Spellcraft +15, Survival +13
Possessions: Bob’s a hermit. He has a wooden bowl, a spork carved from a porcupine’s clavicle, and a loincloth that he received for his 16th birthday. Yeah.

EPIC SPELL DONOR

Hit Die: d6
Skill Points at each Level: 2+int
Spells: Epic Spell Donors continue to increase their Caster Level with Epic Levels, but do not gain extra spells per day.
Bonus Feats: The Epic Spell Donor gains a Bonus Feat every 3 levels higher than 20th.

[Xefas]

Yes That Platypus Did Just Cast Mage Armor (Su): Beginning at first level, any Abjuration spell that you can cast that has a Target of ‘Personal’ or ‘Creature Touched’ that you cast on yourself is shared by up to one Summoned creature per Spell Donor level. These creatures can have been Summoned already, or at any point up until the spell wears off. As long as the spell affects you it affects them as well. You may also ‘lose’ any spell of the Evocation school, and designate one Summoned creature which then may use that spell three times as a Spell-Like Ability. Its Caster Level is equal to its HD (so the spell may have a weaker effect than having been cast by the Spell Donor, but it can be used more often), while the Save DC is the same as the Spell Donor’s.

This seems like a strange name for an ability that utilizes Abjuration spells, considering Mage Armor is a Conjuration (Creation) [Force] spell. As it is now, the name is very misleading, as you cannot actually use it to share Mage Armor with a platypus.

Pretty much the only critique that comes to mind.

[Bhu]

I used that cause it sounded funny, but it's the second criticism I've had on it. So perhaps tis time for a name change...

[DracoDei]

Summoned creatures can't "really" have anything happen to them. They aren't "really there". The pain is real, they might expend spells for real, but they could have every horrible thing happen to them, and be just fine at the end of that spell. Which isn't to say that getting called in just for a flanking bonus, and suffering Mummy Rot (turns out that TutenUnCommon3 had the Cleave feat...) for a few rounds isn't somethingthat is worth some pity. Thus you should be able to tweak the fluff easily.

CALLED creatures are another cauldron of sahaugin entirely...

[DracoDei]

Ok, have now read the whole thing... think there must be a way of cheesing the x3 evocations, but the lost caster levels probably keep that under control, even if they just dip for that one ability.

Also, I would put some sort of a footnote or parenthetical note next to Bob's languages, for people who haven't read the paragraph describing him as an encounter.

[Ranger Mattos]

I saw the word 'bhu' and had to check this out. It looks funny, even if it wouldn't be particulary powerful from the lost spell levels.

[Zom B]

The lost spell levels kill it for me. A summoner cannot have any setback in spell level if they want any hope of their summons being relevant. It's something I'm feeling with my Necropolitan summoner (our DM decided that lower-level PCs don't get extra experience), and that's just one level behind.

As for the mage armor thing, put "Abjuration spells and Conjuration spells that provide an armor bonus to AC", so that way you include Greater Mage Armor in there too.

[Bhu]

They get Conjuration at level 7,


At 1st glance it seems underpowered, but some of the combos possible with it can be exploitative. For example at 4th Level if you have Polymorph or Shapechange on your spell list ...

[absolmorph]

They get Conjuration at level 7,


At 1st glance it seems underpowered, but some of the combos possible with it can be exploitative. For example at 4th Level if you have Polymorph or Shapechange on your spell list ...

...
If you lived somewhere I could reach you, I would give you such a huge hug you have no idea.
My players will be extremely confused by the encounter that will use this.

[Lev]

I think there's a spell that grants spell slots to familiars-- infinite duration.

[DracoDei]

I think there's a spell that grants spell slots to familiars-- infinite duration.

Relevant in a vague sort of way, but hardly central to the issue since summon =/= familiar.

[Bhu]

So if we increase the caster levels would everyone be okay with it?

[Starbuck_II]

Yes That Platypus Did Just Cast Mage Armor (Su): Beginning at first level, any Abjuration spell that you can cast that has a Target of ‘Personal’ or ‘Creature Touched’ that you cast on yourself is shared by up to one Summoned creature per Spell Donor level. These creatures can have been Summoned already, or at any point up until the spell wears off. As long as the spell affects you it affects them as well. You may also ‘lose’ any spell of the Evocation school, and designate one Summoned creature which then may use that spell three times as a Spell-Like Ability. Its Caster Level is equal to its HD (so the spell may have a weaker effect than having been cast by the Spell Donor, but it can be used more often), while the Save DC is the same as the Spell Donor’s.

Currently, it doesn't work. If you make it abjuration and conjuration than you can use Mage armor. Or make Mage armor as an exception to adjuration spells.

I like idea though.

What goes around comes around, and when you help the world, the world helps you. By helping those that everyone else takes for granted you work off karmic debt. Plus the reverse is true. If you cause the world trouble, it comes back to you eventually. You let a summoned companion die, maybe one day squirrels die, become zombies, and poop in your oatmeal before killing you.

Calls die, summons are reborn if they would "die" (24 hours but still no death incurred).

[SamsDisciple]

I absolutely love the idea but mostly because of a past campaign where one of the main bad guys was a squirrel archmage who was the rival of our pc arcane trickster monkey. Long story

[Bhu]

Currently, it doesn't work. If you make it abjuration and conjuration than you can use Mage armor. Or make Mage armor as an exception to adjuration spells.

I like idea though.

Mage Armor was meant as a joke. Geeze i need to change that title...

Calls die, summons are reborn if they would "die" (24 hours but still no death incurred).

That was just fluff, again meant to be somewhhat fun or unusual.

[Drolyt]

Couple of questions: What kind of action is losing a spell? Also, it doesn't say how often the summons can use their spell like abilities.

Ok, have now read the whole thing... think there must be a way of cheesing the x3 evocations, but the lost caster levels probably keep that under control, even if they just dip for that one ability.

Also, I would put some sort of a footnote or parenthetical note next to Bob's languages, for people who haven't read the paragraph describing him as an encounter.

Only thing I can think of is contingency, and I don't remember if Wu Jens get that.

[Bhu]

Losing a spell is a free action, Ill get back to you on the other.

[DracoDei]

Well, it DOES sorta kinda triple your spell slots.... Mage's Mage’s Lucubration, but perhaps better.

[Cieyrin]

To resolve the name issue of the first ability, just swap out Mage Armor for Shield. There, problem solved.

Also, while the PrC's special features are fun to have, it's all it gets. If it had more features, it could justify being 10 levels. Personally, I'd push for this being shrunk to 5 levels and being 3/5 or 4/5 casting, dropping either 1st level or 2nd and 4th, though that leaves either 3rd or 4th level empty.

Something like this:
Spell Donor
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Spells per Day/Spells Known

1st|

+0

|

+0

|

+0

|

+2

|Yes, That Platypus Did Just Cast Shield|-

2nd|

+1

|

+0

|

+0

|

+3

|Yes, That Koi Fish Did Just Cast Fire Wings|+1 existing arcane spellcasting class

3rd|

+1

|

+1

|

+1

|

+3

|Yes, That Squirrel Did Just Pull A Morningstar Out Of Thin Air|+1 existing arcane spellcasting class

4th|

+2

|

+1

|

+1

|

+4

|-|+1 existing arcane spellcasting class

5th|

+2

|

+1

|

+1

|

+4

|That Badger Just Made Another Badger|+1 existing arcane spellcasting class[/table]

That, to me, looks way more palatable for what we're going for here. Yeah, you can only mass buff 5 of your summons at the end of the day but, barring Empowering your summon spells, that's the max number you'll get out with one spell and the capstone ability transfers the rest to what those summon.

Them's my 2 coppers. Take as you will.

[absolmorph]

... This is going to be the rest of the progression of a villain in my campaign.
And the names of the abilities are all hilarious.

[Bhu]

... This is going to be the rest of the progression of a villain in my campaign.
And the names of the abilities are all hilarious.

Thank you I try to go for the funny

[Bhu]

Let me chat with Innabinder and see what direction he wants to go.

[The Antigamer]

Seems like a fun concept, and I like the abilities, but I agree with Cieyrin on the progression. Although I do hate dead levels. Why not have the 4th level ability let you buff a couple more summons, or maybe increase the summon's duration by an extra round for every Spell Donor level?

[Drolyt]

Two more things: 1. Why can't the class advance divine casting? It otherwise seems perfect for a druid. 2. What's a squrrel? I'm not positive whether you meant squirrel.

[Bhu]

Two more things: 1. Why can't the class advance divine casting? It otherwise seems perfect for a druid.

I think that might be a typo...lemme check with IB to make sure thats what he wanted.