Class creation: Spellbaker

[Ilgivan]

Okay, I've wanted to do this for a while, but I've never gotten around to it. I'm not going to do this all at once, but rather in little bits at a time, and if anybody feels like adding to it or making suggestions, they should feel free to do so.

The idea of this class is that it's primarily a buffer, although healing could be involved too, and it's possible that there could be offensive skills at higher levels.

The class would fight either unarmed or using kitchen implements; I haven't decided yet.

A spellbaker would have a spell list very similar to that of a cleric of equal level, with the major change that instead of actually casting spells, a spellbaker, well, bakes. Consuming one of these baked goods would either have an effect as though the spell had been cast on the subject, or allow the subject one casting of that spell, dependent on the spell in question.

For instance, eating a Cure Light Wounds Cookie would heal the person who ate it, but eating a Fireball Popper or Magic Missle Macaroon would allow the person who ate it to cast the spell in that round as though from a wand.

This class would rely on Wisdom for their spells, to reflect their knowledge of the magical recipes involved.

What do you all think?

[Thomar_of_Uointer]

The D&D Archive has a prestige class like that.

http://www.dndarchive.com/class_holistic_chef.shtml

[Peregrine]

What do you all think?

Somewhere around here, I have notes for a Chef class that's a lot like what you're doing here. So of course, I like the idea a lot.

Thomas, I get the feeling this is meant to be a base class, unlike the Holistic Chef.

And three words: hallucinatory terrain cookie. (Why isn't there a spell just called hallucination? *goes off to homebrew one*)

[Ilgivan]

Yeah, I'm trying to make a base class.

On top of which, the Holistic Chef needs a character level of 9 in order to cast one spell a day, and can't imbue foods with attack spells.

I'm looking to create a way to spellbake from level one.

Somebody helpful directed me towards the artificer class as something to work off of as a template.

I'll let you all know how that goes as soon as I read up on artificers.

[Kalir]

You could just have it as a feat like Brew Potion, since potions and foods work very similarly. Except not oils, because you don't spread food all over yourself. Don't be strange.

I think Complete Arcane had a section like that.

This reminds me of Kingdom of Loathing's Mysticality classes.

[Icewalker]

I love it. It'd be really great if they got both arcane and divine spells for baking into their foods, and the idea for being able to cast the spell after eating it's food is awesome, but you should also make it so it can just be set off if the baker wants to make it that way. Imagine, if you will, throwing a pie at someone...then it explodes as a 10d6 fireball. fun...

[Ilgivan]

Okay, favored weapon for the spellbaker is a rolling pin (club) and a wok turned into a shield.

Base attack and saves will be that of the Cleric with the exception that Ref and Will would be swapped.

Spells per day would either be restrained only by the fact that it takes an hour or so to bake, or would be that of the cleric, with the change that there would be no domain spells, all the numbers would be triple, and the spellbaker would only get their spells back every three days or so. This allows for the fact that the spellbaker would need to take time out to bake their spells, and logically would be unable to adventure as easily during this time.

The class would also come with a modified form of brew potion as a class feature, except it would be "bake spell" instead of "brew potion". The material components would be eggs, flour, sugar, and butter, and then a selections of herbs and spices whose total cost would be based upon the level of the spell being baked.

The cost would be set lower than that for a potion, but the cookies or slices of bread or whatever would go stale or moldy after a week or so, and while a casting of purify food would make it edible again, the efficacy of the spell embedded would be either severely reduced or nonexistant.

Now to work on the spell list, then I can start looking at more special abilities and class features, and after that I can start finalizing things.

[Sahegian]

You could just use the brew potion example that Kalir gave, except there is no reason you couldn't still make the oils. Flavored oils are a big thing in cooking. There is no reason you couldn't flavor them with a touch of the divine. Who wouldn't want a flaming sword that smells like maple and brown sugar. I mean it certainly beats fire and brimstone. Don't forget those frosting runes you can design.

The big weakness to the class would be getting an AoO against the fighter and wasting his actions to eat the cookie instead of the spellbaker casting it on him a safe distance from the pointed objects.

[Mewtarthio]

And three words: hallucinatory terrain cookie. (Why isn't there a spell just called hallucination? *goes off to homebrew one*)

Make it a brownie instead. And don't forget Rainbow Pattern as well!

[mabriss lethe]

You could maybe work it like an artificer's infusion ability. As I don't have the Eberron book on hand,I don't really know how it could be adapted to fit the class ideal.

[Ilgivan]

Okay, a friend and I brainstormed for a couple hours, and we have it pretty much done.

The results will be up as soon as I can get the tables working like they should be on the forum.

[Penguinizer]

You could just have it as a feat like Brew Potion, since potions and foods work very similarly. Except not oils, because you don't spread food all over yourself. Don't be strange.

I think Complete Arcane had a section like that.

This reminds me of Kingdom of Loathing's Mysticality classes.

Someone has to make a pastamancer or a sauceror.

[Iituem]

Funnily enough, you could accomplish a base class of this type by giving it sorcerer or cleric spell selection and general ability (with Ref as primary save instead of will) but with the following points of note:

Baked Spells: Rather than preparing and casting spells, the spellbaker bakes them into form and serves them. The spellbaker must choose what spells he wishes to bake in advance, then spend 1 hour baking his spells. The spellbaked goods remain potent for 24 hours, after which they become mundane baked goods. Spellbaked items with personal effects must be consumed by the target (forced down their throat in certain circumstances) and ranged effects must usually be thrown (these spells often take the form of pies). All spellbaked items are subject to spell resistance and saves, as per normal magic.

[mabriss lethe]

Funnily enough, you could accomplish a base class of this type by giving it sorcerer or cleric spell selection and general ability (with Ref as primary save instead of will) but with the following points of note:

Baked Spells: Rather than preparing and casting spells, the spellbaker bakes them into form and serves them. The spellbaker must choose what spells he wishes to bake in advance, then spend 1 hour baking his spells. The spellbaked goods remain potent for 24 hours, after which they become mundane baked goods. Spellbaked items with personal effects must be consumed by the target (forced down their throat in certain circumstances) and ranged effects must usually be thrown (these spells often take the form of pies). All spellbaked items are subject to spell resistance and saves, as per normal magic.

That is...fantastic. It might make things more comical if something else happens to the spellbaked goods once the 24 hours has passed...sort of like the Day olds you can pick up at the bagel shop. Maybe they work, they just might not work right.

[Iituem]

Hmm. Well, a napkin-scribble method you could use for this is that after 24 hours, the magic in the pastry decays slightly, turning into a random spell of one level lower. Every 6 hours thereafter, the spell becomes a different random spell of a level lower than that until the spell level is less than 0, after which the goods are completely stale.

That might prove unbalanced, however, as a spellbaker might keep baked goods from the day before and risk using them for their wild magic effects in addition to his normal allotment of spellbaked items.

[Mewtarthio]

I can just imagine somebody eating a Cookie of Nondetection, only to discover that it's decayed into a Cookie of Summon Swarm (I presume the eater gets targeted by the effect?). Or perhaps some Stoneskin Biscottis that now contain Fireballs?

[Iituem]

To really put this into context, smear some jam of true strike onto some magic scones and throw them.

(Magic scones operates as the spell magic stone, save with the obvious substitution.)

[mabriss lethe]

would that include things like Bananas Foster in lieu of Fireball? Or Devil's Food cake (or Angel's) for fiendish/celestial summonings?


If you bake it, they will come...

I realize the hour prep time to spellbake the goods is just a parallel to other spellcasters' meditation, memorization times. I'm down with that. Being something of an accomplished cook, I recognize that an hour prep time, IRL, is very little time indeed for baking. It's barely long enough to make a proper pastry dough, much less let it rise (depending on the type of pastery) and then bake it.

[Iituem]

Better idea, then. Requires only 4 hours of sleep, but takes 5 hours to bake!

Also, for the delayed blast fireball equivalent? Devilled egg.

[mabriss lethe]

Better idea, then. Requires only 4 hours of sleep, but takes 5 hours to bake!

Also, for the delayed blast fireball equivalent? Devilled egg.

Get up early and finish with a most of a day's work before anyone else is even awake? Sounds like a baker to me.

maybe the Filo dough of feather fall should be added to the list? Buffalo wings of fire resistance (come in mild, medium, and hot) also sound pretty entertaining.

[Collin152]

Hmm... Casta-roni....

Just one question- How does this support the followng spells:
Create food/drink
Hero's Feast

[Iituem]

Hmm. I'd have to say that for create food/drink it would allow him to bake without any materials (which would be a useful spell if he's baking on the run and doesn't want to carry a sack of lard and pastry with him) and that heroes' feast would essentially be a big feast with the usual benefits.

[Collin152]

So bascially create food and drink can let you bake a spell in the wild when you run out of flour? And sugar?
Maybe give it to em as a class feature usable a certain number of times a day.

[Ilgivan]

Level 0 Acid Splash; Cure Minor Wounds; Light; Resistance; Touch of Fatigue; Virtue
Level 1 Burning Touch; Cure Light Wounds; Disguise Self; Endure Elements; Expeditious Retreat; Feather Fall; Jump; Longstrider; Magic Fang; Magic Missile; Magic Scones; Protection From Chaos; Remove Fear; Sleep; Undetectable Alignment
Level 2 Aid; Barkskin; Bear’s Endurance; Blur; Bull’s Strength; Calm Emotions; Cat’s Grace; Communication, Humanoid; Cure Moderate Wounds; Darkness; Delay Poison; Eagle’s Splendor; Enlarge Person; Fox’s Cunning; Invisibility; Owl’s Wisdom; Rage; Reduce Person; Resist Energy; Restoration, Lesser; Spider Climb
Level 3 Communication, Animal; Cure Serious Wounds; Darkvision; Daylight; Deep Slumber; Deeper Darkness; Displacement; Fireball; Good Hope; Haste; Heroism; Magic Fang, Greater; Protection From Energy; Remove Blindness/Deafness; Remove Disease; Vampiric Touch; Water Breathing
Level 4 Communication, Monster; Cure Critical Wounds; Divine Power; Geas, Lesser; Invisibility, Greater; Neutralize Poison; Restoration
Level 5 Atonement; Dispel Chaos; Flame Strike; Insect Plague; Righteous Might; True Seeing; Wall of Fire
Level 6 Fire Crackers; Geas/Quest; Heal; Heroism, Greater; Stoneskin


Nearly done...

And for those wondering, Atonement is on there because Spellbakers who turn chaotic lack the organization to keep their kitchens in order and bake spells, meaning that ex-spellbakers lose their spells.

[Penguinizer]

I like the idea, and every campaign needs exploding pies for that random moment.

[Collin152]

Forget exploding pies- give me my Fizzy Lifting Drink!

[Dire Penguin]

I made a clas similar to this called the Culinaromancer earlier in the HomeBrew section =)

[Triaxx]

Pop-tarts, giving a single round haste effect. For that extra pop to finish the fight.

[Iituem]

What I'm worried about is the Chocolate Bombe.

[Collin152]

What about summoning spells? Deviled Egg sacrifices!