How to Eliminate Vancian Magic & Put a Real Price on Spells [New Core Class + 5 PrCs]

[Zeta Kai]

Still, i highly surrggest you get rid of the loss of one life point per day if they don't cast spells
from,
EE

I'm sorry, EE. I wasn't trying to ignore your suggestion. It's just that I have a number of reasons to not include it into this class:

1) Flavor: such a small but significant change to the class would remove the notion of “use it or lose it” from bio-magic, undermining the conceptual premise of “powerful spellcasters in a race against the clock to make a difference”

2) Mechanics: removing the 1LP/day burn would shift the balance of the class significantly, making them even more powerful than they already are; they are full spellcasters with no dead levels, no true daily limit on casting & many potent class features, so the elimination of one of the classes most obvious drawbacks would make them broken in more people’s eyes

3) Deathless Body: at 19th level, a bio-mage becomes immune to death from old age, so without an automatic LP burn, bio-mages can easily become theoretically immortal, which is the exact opposite of the class’s root concept

4) Prestige Classes: the Vampire Mage depends on daily LP burn heavily as a key motivator, & in fact their burn increases dramatically as they progress in levels; all of the other PrC’s are power-balanced against a daily LP burn as well (although I’ve considered reducing or eliminating the burn for the Fonts of Life, for mostly flavor reasons)

5) Multiclassing: without an inherent cost, players could multiclass with a few bio-mage levels & always have a powerful magical reserve; they would have no incentive to take the class full-time (why play a dedicated bio-mage when all the spells/abilities cost so much?), but would be foolish not to take a level or two in (why not be a monk or a wizard & just use bio-magic in an emergency?)

If you wanted to make the removal of daily LP burn a house rule, then I’m not going to try & stop you, EE. But just keep in mind that if you allow it, you’re going to see the issues that I’ve stated above come up at your table. Bio-magic is quite powerful, as are the bio-mages who wield it; you might not want to see what happens when you loosen the chains that bind it.

[Reinboom]

Rather interesting class thus far. However, I have qualms against Bio Bomb.
You die without any chance of resurrection, you just die, and your opponents get a save to take half... except it's reflex save... what if they have evasion?
"He died in a glorious blast, a destructive way, truly noble, to bad it did nothing."
I would either recommend modifying that somehow or just having it drain you to 1 LP, making the ability feel not a waste of a last level.
I mean, what if someone is evil but doesn't wish to become vampiric or the sort? Most evil, and self-centered folk will not ever wish to detonate themselves if they are taking this class all the way. A very unattractive way to end it.

I also do not like playing the idea of doomed for just playing. Having to make new characters, especially if I particularly like specific characters, is meh. Encouraging to be evil in order to keep on enjoying a specific character is more meh. Perhaps being able to be rewarded, "deitically" (look! a new word!), in LP for quests would solve this.

With that aside:

Balanced Spirit [Special]
• You are a particularly neutral & balanced being.
• Prerequisite: Bio-mage only, N alignment
• Benefit: You can cast spells with the Lawful descriptor, from the Law domain (such as protection from chaos or dictum), the Chaotic descriptor, or from the Chaos domain (such as magic circle against law or shatter) for 50% of the LP cost, rounded up. Also, spells cast against you with the Lawful or Chaotic descriptor or from the Law domain (such as protection from chaos, dictum, magic circle against law or shatter) only function if you fail a Will save (DC20 + the level of the spell).

The true neutral alignment is already rather, uhm, powerful. They already get resistance to most alignment protection, choice of the widest variety of options, and a few other benefits. This enhances them over the other options even more so, very non tasty.

Regeneration [Special] [Epic]
• You regain some of the LP that you have lost.
• Prerequisite: Bio-mage only, Bio-Bomb ability
• Benefit: After resting for a full day, you can regain your class level × your Constitution modifier. This can be done as often as you wish, but it must be a full day’s rest. You may engage in light, non-strenuous travel or activity, but any combat or spellcasting prevents you from regaining LP that day. If you undergo complete bed rest (doing nothing for an entire day), you recover LP equal to (1.5 × your class level × your Constitution bonus, minimum 1). You cannot gain more LP than you started with at 1st level (your starting Constitution score × 5,000).

After resting for a full day, you can regain your class level × your Constitution modifier in LP.*

Also, a possible feature or feat:
Something to be able to not feel as though your base of your class isn't going to waste at higher levels. IE: Spells you cast that are 6 levels (or 7 levels) lower than your max level cost no LP.
This doesn't 'break' the class (even more so if it is already, haven't read it too closely in) and allows them to at least a bit of usability of class features at higher levels without insane "oh my gawd I can't do anything, even cast magic missle without the threat of impending doom anymore and I'm now practically useless I should just quit" aspect that will eventually occur.

[Zeta Kai]

Epic Bio-Mages
Bio-mages progress into epic levels in much the same way that other classes do (with the notable exception that their LP is probably rather low). They have the standard save bonuses, attack bonuses, HD, skill ranks, skill points, feats, & ability score progressions as any other class.

Once a bio-mage reaches epic levels, unless he is rather frugal with his bio-magic, he is probably running low on LP. To help with this, a good idea would be to take one or more of the exclusive epic feats available to bio-mages: Greater Vigor, Improved Slow Burn, & Regeneration. The first 2 have a number of prerequisites, & the last requires long periods of inactivity to utilize, but they can all slow the downward spiral of LP loss, prolonging the life of the bio-mage.

Hit Die: d6

Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Spells: The bio-mage’s caster level is equal to his class level. The bio-mage’s number of spells known does not increase after 20th level unless he selects the Spell Knowledge feat.

Bio-Boost: The duration of this effect does not increase after 20th level; the maximum duration of the enhancement bonus remains at 20 rounds.

Bio-Blast: The damage of this attack does not increase after 20th level; the maximum damage of this attack remains at 20d6. The number of times per day that it can be used also does increase with additional levels; the number of attacks remains at 20 per day.

Bonus Feats: The epic bio-mage gains a bonus feat (selected from the list of epic bio-mage bonus feats) every three levels after 20th.

Epic Bio-Mage Bonus Feat List:

• Augmented Alchemy
• Automatic Quicken Spell
• Automatic Silent Spell
• Automatic Still Spell
• Energy Resistance
• Enhance Spell
• Epic Spell Focus
• Epic Spell Penetration
• Epic Spellcasting
• Familiar Spell
• Greater Vigor*
• Ignore Material Components
• Improved Combat Casting
• Improved Heighten Spell
• Improved Metamagic
• Improved Slow Burn*
• Improved Spell Capacity
• Intensify Spell
• Master Staff
• Master Wand
• Multispell
• Permanent Emanation
• Regeneration*
• Spell Knowledge
• Spell Stowaway
• Spell Opportunity

* = Epic bio-magical feat

[Zeta Kai]

Table 4-1: The Epic Bio-Mage
{table=head]Level|BAB|Fort Save|Reflex Save|Will Save|Special
21st|+1|+0|+0|+0
22nd|+1|+1|+1|+1
23rd|+2|+1|+1|+1|Bonus Feat
24th|+2|+2|+2|+2
25th|+3|+2|+2|+2
26th|+3|+3|+3|+3|Bonus Feat
27th|+4|+3|+3|+3
28th|+4|+4|+4|+4
29th|+5|+4|+4|+4|Bonus Feat
30th|+5|+5|+5|+5[/table]

[Zeta Kai]

DM’s Guide: Assigning LP to Higher-Level Characters
The character creation rules detailed above are geared towards making bio-mages from the 1st level on up. But what about making a bio-mage for a higher-level campaign? What if a player (or the DM) wants to make a bio-mage NPC above 1st level? Obviously they can’t have the maximum LP. A high-level bio-mage is assumed to have spent an appropriate amount of LP to get to those levels.

So to assist with this type of character creation, the chart below, Table 4-2: Average LP Spent per Level, is provided. To create a bio-mage above 1st level, simply determine the starting Constitution score (the score they would have had at 1st level), & the level at which you wish to start him. Then subtract the appropriate amount of LP from their beginning Life Point total, as per the chart.

For example, Gozam the bio-mage is at 3rd level. He has a Constitution of 16, so he would have spent 300LP to get to his current level. He merely subtracts 300 from his beginning Life Point total (80,000LP) & he’s ready to begin play with a starting Life Point total of 79,700LP.

[Zeta Kai]

Table 4-2: Average LP Spent per Level
{table=head]Level|Con 3-6|Con 7-10|Con 11-14|Con 15-18|Con 19-22
1st|0|0|0|0|0
2nd|12|25|37|50|62
3rd|75|150|225|300|525
4th|175|350|525|700|875
5th|325|650|975|1,300|1,625
6th|450|900|1,350|1,800|2,250
7th|625|1,250|1,875|2,500|3,125
8th|875|1,750|2,625|3,500|4,375
9th|1,200|2,400|3,600|4,800|6,000
10th|1,650|3,300|4,950|6,600|8,250
11th|2,250|4,500|6,750|9,000|11,250
12th|3,000|6,000|9,000|12,000|15,000
13th|4,000|8,000|12,000|16,000|20,000
14th|5,250|10,500|15,750|21,000|26,250
15th|6,750|13,500|20,250|27,000|33,750
16th|8,500|17,000|25,500|34,000|42,500
17th|10,500|21,000|31,500|42,000|52,500
18th|12,750|25,500|38,250|51,000|63,750
19th|15,000|30,000|45,000|60,000|75,000
20th|17,500|35,000|52,500|70,000|87,500
21st|20,000|40,000|60,000|80,000|100,000[/table]

[brian c]

Hm, this adds another level of strategizing, for what your starting Con score is. Minor complaint though, the way it's set up right now sometimes you'd be (a lot) better off having a lower Con score.

Level 20 bio-mage, 10 con: 50,000-35,000 = 15,000 LP remaining
Level 20 bio-mage, 11 con: 55,000 - 52,500= 2,500 LP remaining

but for lower levels it seems to work fine.

Level 10 bio-mage, 18 con: 90,000-6,600 = 83,400 LP remaining
Level 10 bio-mage, 19 con: 95,000-8,250 = 87,750 LP remaining

Level 20 bio-mage, 18 con: 90,000 - 70,000 = 20,000 LP remaining
Level 20 bio-mage, 19 con: 95,000 - 87,500 = 7,500 LP remaining


Basically, it sucks to have your Con right at the bottom of one of those categories, heck, a bio-mage with 3 con is dead by 19th level, although realistically they probably should be.

Survivability: first level that you can't start at with a certain Con

3 Con level 19 (exactly)
4 Con level 21 (exactly)
5 Con >21
6 Con >21
7 Con level 20 (exactly)
8 Con level 21 (exactly)
9 Con >21
10 Con >21
11 Con level 21
12 Con level 21 (exactly)
13 Con >21
14 Con >21
15 Con level 21
16 Con level 21 (exactly)
17, 18 Con >21
19 Con level 21
20 Con level 21 (exactly)
20+ Con >20


Also, it seems kinda strange that a character with 6 Con and a character with 22 Con should have the same amount of LP left at level 21 (10,000). I think the best way to fix all of this would be to make the categories smaller in terms of Con score, 3 scores instead of 4. Of course, then you get a problem that your Con modifier might go up but you'd have less LP... perhaps you lose a certain percent of your starting LP per level, modified by Con? Like 3% or 4% per level, minus 0.025*Con modifier % ?

[EvilElitest]

Counter

I'm sorry, EE. I wasn't trying to ignore your suggestion. It's just that I have a number of reasons to not include it into this class:

1) Flavor: such a small but significant change to the class would remove the notion of “use it or lose it” from bio-magic, undermining the conceptual premise of “powerful spellcasters in a race against the clock to make a difference”

2) Mechanics: removing the 1LP/day burn would shift the balance of the class significantly, making them even more powerful than they already are; they are full spellcasters with no dead levels, no true daily limit on casting & many potent class features, so the elimination of one of the classes most obvious drawbacks would make them broken in more people’s eyes

3) Deathless Body: at 19th level, a bio-mage becomes immune to death from old age, so without an automatic LP burn, bio-mages can easily become theoretically immortal, which is the exact opposite of the class’s root concept

4) Prestige Classes: the Vampire Mage depends on daily LP burn heavily as a key motivator, & in fact their burn increases dramatically as they progress in levels; all of the other PrC’s are power-balanced against a daily LP burn as well (although I’ve considered reducing or eliminating the burn for the Fonts of Life, for mostly flavor reasons)

5) Multiclassing: without an inherent cost, players could multiclass with a few bio-mage levels & always have a powerful magical reserve; they would have no incentive to take the class full-time (why play a dedicated bio-mage when all the spells/abilities cost so much?), but would be foolish not to take a level or two in (why not be a monk or a wizard & just use bio-magic in an emergency?)

If you wanted to make the removal of daily LP burn a house rule, then I’m going to try & stop you, EE. But just keep in mind that if you allow it, you’re going to see the issues that I’ve stated above come up at your table. Bio-magic is quite powerful, as are the bio-mages who wield it; you might not want to see what happens when you loosen the chains that bind it.

1. It also promotes "Well i'll just make a Bio mage for this one fight then let myself die and make a new character" idea. Also would anyone even live long enough to get to be an epic? I mean, look how long it takes to get a wizard to that level, even min maxing. Throw in loss life from spells and what you get to level 19?
2. The spells drain of life if nasty enough. As for immunity to age, whoopy do, what are you gonna do when you get into a fight. Whoops, there goes your life. As it is, life drain per spells is pretty nasty, and even more so when nasty fights occur. If only spells drain life, then the Bio mage is going to be stingy by nature, i mean really stingy, no casting spells on whim. If he is going to die anyways, well screw it, just blast away. He over shadows the soccer, even to a slight extent the wizard.
3. Other classes grant immortality, it not overwhelming if every spell drains life
4. The vampire mage looks like it would only be worth it if there were a lot of Bio mages about, and considering the life drain i would find that rather doubtful. You can still drain life points
5. Make it unable to muti class. And even if they use it as emergancy abilties, that is still live they are wasting
from,
EE

[Zeta Kai]

NPC Class: The Tyro (AKA the Bio-Adept)
A tyro (pronounced TAI-roh) is a beginner or novice at some skill (from the original Latin). In a campaign world that uses bio-magic, a good option for NPCs is a special class for characters who can manipulate bio-magic, but are not skilled/trained enough to be full bio-mages. These NPCs are roughly analogous to the Adept NPC class in their relationship to spellcasting classes, such as the cleric, the druid, the sorcerer or the wizard.

Mostly found in small villages, rural hamlets, nomadic camps, tribal communities & other semi-civilized lands, tyros are individuals who have released the bio-magic within themselves, but lack the discipline, time or training to become bio-mages. While they still have the raw power, their lesser knowledge bars them from reach highest (& most deadly) pinnacles of bio-magical power.

These spellcasters are much like adepts, & fulfill many of the same roles. In their home communities, they are often serve the role of the local shaman, the aloof prophet, the mystical elder, the mysterious protector, or the feared witch. They can be found in populations of almost any race, but are most common among smaller, less cultured societies.

[Zeta Kai]

Table 5-1: The Tyro
{table=head]Level|BAB|Fort Save|Reflex Save|Will Save|Special
1st|+0|+0|+0|+2|Life Points, Bio-Magic
2nd|+1|+0|+0|+3|Sense of Life
3rd|+1|+1|+1|+3
4th|+2|+1|+1|+4
5th|+2|+1|+1|+4|Infusion
6th|+3|+2|+2|+5
7th|+3|+2|+2|+5
8th|+4|+2|+2|+6|Bio-Boost (self)
9th|+4|+3|+3|+6
10th|+5|+3|+3|+7
11th|+5|+3|+3|+7|Bio-Healing (self)
12th|+6/+1|+4|+4|+8
13th|+6/+1|+4|+4|+8
14th|+7/+2|+4|+4|+9|Bio-Boost (+4)
15th|+7/+2|+5|+5|+9
16th|+8/+3|+5|+5|+10
17th|+8/+3|+5|+5|+10|Bio-Boost (other)
18th|+9/+4|+6|+6|+11
19th|+9/+4|+6|+6|+11
20th|+10/+5|+6|+6|+12|Bio-Healing (other)[/table]

[Zeta Kai]

Table 5-2: Spells Known
{table=head]0SL|1SL|2SL|3SL|4SL|5SL
2|1|-|-|-|-
2|1|-|-|-|-
2|1|-|-|-|-
3|2|1|-|-|-
3|2|1|-|-|-
3|2|1|-|-|-
3|3|2|1|-|-
3|3|2|1|-|-
3|3|2|1|-|-
3|3|3|2|1|-
3|3|3|2|1|-
3|3|3|2|1|-
3|3|3|3|2|1
3|3|3|3|2|1
3|3|3|3|2|1
3|3|3|3|3|2
3|3|3|3|3|2
3|3|3|3|3|2
3|3|3|3|3|3
3|3|3|3|3|3[/table]

[Zeta Kai]

Game Rule Information
Tyros have the following game statistics.

Abilities: Wisdom determines how powerful a spell a tyro can cast, how many spells a tyro can learn, & how hard those spells are to resist. To cast a spell, a tyro must have a Wisdom score of 10 + the spell’s level. A tyro gets bonus spell based on Wisdom. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a tyro’s spell is 10 + the spell’s level + the bio-mage’s Wisdom modifier.

Constitution governs not only his hit points, but also how many spells he can cast before becoming fatigued, & even the total number of Life Points he has. Dexterity is always beneficial, especially for a class that has relatively low hit points & usually wears light or no armor.

Alignment: Any; usually lawful neutral (LN), neutral (N), or chaotic neutral (CN).
Hit Die: d6.
Class Skills: The tyro’s class skills (& the key ability for each skill) are Alchemy (Int), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Scry (Int, exclusive skill), Spellcraft (Int), & Survival (Wis).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (2 + Int modifier) × 4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier.
Starting Gear: 2d4 × 10gp worth of equipment (50gp)

[Zeta Kai]

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Tyro. See level progression on Table 5-1: The Tyro for more information.

Weapon & Armor Proficiency: same as a bio-mage

Life Points (Su): same as a bio-mage, except that each tyro begins their career with Life Points equal to your starting Constitution score × 2,500

Bio-Magic (Sp): same as a bio-mage, except that a tyro begins play knowing two (2) 0-level spells and one (1) 1-level spells of your choice. At each new tyro level, he gains one or more new spells, as indicated on Table 5-2: Spells Known.

Sense of Life (Ex): same as a bio-mage, but at 2nd level

Infusion (Su): same as a bio-mage, but at 5th level

Bio-Boost (Sp): same as a bio-mage, but at 8th level (self), at 14th level (+4), & at 17th level (other)

Bio-Healing (Sp): same as a bio-mage, but at 11th level (self) & at 20th level (other)

[Zeta Kai]

Design Notes

Spoiler

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The bio-mage class was inspired by a couple of races that I’ve been working on for my campaign world. These two races use bio-magic, & are the only races who can do so. This presented a problem when I decided to stat out their abilities. I could have given then a vast array of spell-like abilities, but that would have driven their level adjustment into the stratosphere (somewhere around LA+15). So I decided that the best bet would be to make bio-magic a standardized class, & then house-rule a restriction for race. That way, the bio-mage is technically usable by anyone, but they still can work for my own personal purposes as a DM.

The idea for a magic system that slowly drains the life force of the caster is an idea I’ve been kicking around for a long time. Implementing it in a non-broken way, though, was a serious design challenge. Bio-mages had to be versatile, powerful, appealing to players, but not broken, all while carrying a significant price tag.

The idea evolved from my dislike of forcing spellcasters to spend XP to power their abilities. I’m a big fan of putting a price tag on superpowers (which are essentially what most class features are), but I find it difficult to justify XP as an expendable resource. Experience points are a numerical quantification of the abstract concept of learning. If a character encounters a challenge, & overcomes that challenge, they learn something from the experience, & are that much more formidable an opponent for their next encounter. This mechanic, at its, core, is one of the keystones of all roleplaying systems, & is found in nearly all true RPG’s (and many games with progressive character development, AKA “RPG elements”).

What I find bothersome is how, in D&D, spellcasters are required to spend their accumulated XP to cast powerful spells or create magic items, as if it were some commodity like gold or land. I understand very well that these abilities need to come at some cost; I just don’t think that XP is a logical or desirable resource to use in this manner.

Think of it this way: a spellcaster goes on adventures, learns a few things, gets more powerful, & then want to make a magic item of some sort. He has to basically relinquish some of his memories & knowledge (which are basically what XP is supposed to represent) in order to do this. I know that we are speaking of magic here (Vancian magic, at that), but this makes no sense to me. Spellcasters are essentially forgetting that what they have learned in the past in order to use magic in the present.

Needing a way to avoid the expenditure of XP, so as to return the experience mechanic to its original purpose (tallying a quantifiable growth in abstract learning), I need to look elsewhere for putting costs & limits on spellcasting power

The mechanic of using Life Points for powering spells quickly became the most difficult nut to crack balance-wise. Any magic system is open to abuse, & so the rules have to be precisely written, otherwise loopholes allow for munchkinism & power-gaming, which can destroy a campaign & force the DM to make numerous house rules banning certain methods of game-breaking. Since this essentially an extreme revision of the current Vancian magic system, it took a while to make it functional, yet free of the most egregious abuse opportunities.

I purposefully made it very difficult to actually gain LP. The only ways to do that are: you can steal it from others, which is akin to assault/rape; you can be given some by another bio-mage with the Font of Life PrC (good luck convincing one to do that very often); or you can go epic & take a feat which leaves you bed-ridden while you recuperate LP.

I detest dead levels, so I wanted a bio-mage to gain something new at each level. This also helped to make the class more appealing to those who would perhaps be turned off by the idea of dying because they ran out LP. These abilities make a bio-mage very versatile at all levels, while not stepping on the other classes’ toes (except for the arcane spellcasters; they might not like having a caster around who can still keep casting later in the day). Also, they allow the player to do more with their LP other than just casting spells with it. Now it is similar to the various magic systems in the World of Darkness, like a vampire’s blood in Vampire: the Masquerade or a werewolf’s gnosis in Werewolf: the Apocalypse.

I’ve never really liked spells-per-day. I mean, it works for prepared casters. The wizard studies in his book in the morning, while the cleric goes off to pray. Once they’re done, they’ve gained all the spells they can prepare. When the spells are gone, they’re gone, & then they have to prepare them again. But spontaneous casters don’t make sense in this way. What’s the explanation for their restrictions? Why does a sorcerer “run out” of magic? He didn’t study in a book to get it, & he didn’t pray to get it either. He just woke up, got out of bed, started breaking the laws of physics for the express purpose of slaughtering orcs to take their stuff, & by sundown, he’s just spent. Why? I know that it’s magic, & reasoning doesn’t get anywhere, but it’s irksome that prepared casting has a rationale, while spontaneous casting does not. This is why I conceived of the fatigue/exhaustion aspect of bio-magic. Tapping into the energies of your very life force can wear you out, & it acts as a logical breaking mechanism for slowing down the bio-mage to sub-broken casting-reload speed, for balance’s sake.

The feats are all very bio-mage specific, so as to give the player options for customization & allow them to change some aspects of spending LP. They are not recommended for non-bio-mages, & most of them would be useless to a character that does not use bio-magic anyway.

The prestige classes came from a number of different sources. The Vampire Mage came from D&D vampires & WoD vampires. Infusionists were inspired by artificers. Sources of Life came from D&D paladins, Final Fantasy white mages, & the Positive Energy Plane’s planar traits. Bio-Shapers came from D&D’s lycanthropy rules & WoD’s Tzimisce vampires. Bio-Blades had no real direct inspiration, but I wanted a prestige class that required both bio-magic abilities & martial prowess.

As far as conversion of the bio-mage class to a non-LP/traditional/Vancian magic system, I would recommend against it. The flavor & the mechanics are both rather heavily tied to the LP-burn system, & removing that would essentially cripple the class, as I see it. However, converting some of the prestige classes for use by non-bio-mages shouldn’t be terrible difficult. The Vampire Mage, the Bio-Shaper, & the Bio-Blade could all be altered to as to use “normal” magic, using a sorcerer or other arcane caster instead of a bio-mage as the base class. The Infusionist & the Font of Life may be convertible, but it would take more effort, as they both use the LP system more extensively.

[Zeta Kai]

LP Calculation
In order to determine how much LP to assign the bio-mage, I decided that I would calculate how much LP would be required for the average character to reach epic levels, base the figure on that. With this idea in mind, I calculated the amount based on the following assumptions:

1. The LP for the average bio-mage should allow them (if they use their magic efficiently) to reach 21st level, if not much more than that
2. 13.33 encounters per class level; this is the recommended number in the DMG, so I would run the average character through 13 encounters per level, & at every third level, there would be a 14th encounter
3. 4 encounters per day; I think that this is also in the DMG, & it’s a reasonable number for adventures, so why not
4. At least 1 healing spell used after each encounter; this is more of a logical supposition, based on my own experience as a player & as a DM; we always healed after encounters
5. The average bio-mage will not be the primary healer of the party; this is also a reason-based assumption, as bio-mage can’t do any real healing of other party members until 7th level; they can heal themselves at 2nd level, & do Breath of Life at 5th, but healing other people doesn’t happen until mid-levels
6. The average bio-mage will have a Constitution modifier of +0; I realize that this is actually unlikely, as most smart players would choose Constitution as a key ability, on par with Wisdom, but it is a good average for determining a fair baseline
7. The average bio-mage will not use the Bio-Bomb or create magic items; these are excluded from the calculations for different reasons; Bio-Bomb is a character-annihilating maneuver, making previous usage of LP (& the calculations involved) fairly irrelevant; item creation should be considered in the calculations, but is simply far too variable to quantify in a meaningful way, it would be far better to merely round up the results to a nice round number (something I was planning on doing anyway) & assume that players would spend their LP according to their tastes

All of the above pertains to calculation the LP for the core bio-mage class. For the prestige classes, I needed to assess their abilities & the costs assigned to them, using most of the same assumptions enumerated above. There are, however, a few notable exceptions to the calculation that should be stated:

• The LP for the average prestige class should allow them (if they use their magic efficiently) to reach 10th level, if not much more than that
• Prestige classes should be taken as soon as possible; taking a prestige class much later than the first would result in more LP spent prior to become a PrC character; as I would round up slightly anyway, it is important to scale the LP cost of the abilities so as to maintain some limits to their exploits (this applies less to the Vampire Mage, who gains LP, & more to the Font of Life, who bleeds LP)

An interesting side effect of the fatigue/exhaustion mechanic is that at low levels, the threshold for becoming tired is somewhat low. This eases up during the mid-levels, & then becomes somewhat restrictive again at the higher levels, as the spell slots start to fill up toward maximum after 16th level.

All of this extraneous calculating has led me to believe that the system that I’m currently using is the simplest, most effective solution. Alternate systems are by all means possible, but most tend to underestimate the required LP for a bio-mage to effective for a long campaign. More rarely, some formulas overestimate to the point where they are essentially immortal; too much LP quickly leads to bio-mages being far too overpowered, if not completely broken. Limitations on LP are the primary drawback of the bio-mage, both thematically & mechanically, so they need to be carefully balanced & precisely worded to avoid abuse.

[Earthstar_Fungus]

(I hope I'm not thread necromancing, but this is too cool to be buried under mountains of posts)

All of your projects are so detailed! I had an idea: would being in certain areas cause one to drain LP faster? The negative energy plane would "cancel out" some LP while the positive energy plane could cause it to drain slower. I realize that this might cause balance problems, but it would have an interesting flavor.

[Zeta Kai]

You know, I figured that an interesting variant on the life-draining effect of the Negative Energy Plane would be an LP-drain (1LP/hour for the minor negative areas, 1LP/round for the major negative areas). This would really only work if everyone in the party were a Bio-Mage, though, which is unlikely (albeit cool).

Also, maybe something like the Mournlands of Eberron would be neat, where LP costs double & methods for regaining LP don't work. It would be a subtle effect, as it would take a while for someone to really notice such as thing.

[blue_fenix]

Wow, this is amazingly awesome. As a response to all the naysayers in the thread, I have this to say: This is a special class which requires a particular type of player and a particular type of DM to respect and follow through on the class's intentions and keep it balanced and interesting. You can force good mechanics on a player, but you can't force good playing on a mechanic.

[Durin_Deathless]

have you ever thought of using the concentration skill with a HIGH DC with each casting. On failed check the caster loses that many LP. That way the upper level characters don't get blown out of the water. Something like 10+(Spell level x 3). that way upper level characters can cast low level spells but not the high ones more often. Maybe add a feat like Combat Casting for this check(+4 bonus).

[Randel]

I have to say that this class seems like a really interesting idea, if only because it helps to tie a characters 'role-playing' self in with their class powers.

When I read the part about having life-points it read to me that basically all people in this sort of world have LP to measure their life span. Sort of a more advanced version of the age system. (so you know exactly what it means by people who die of old age)

Though I have a few questions... I understand the 1 LP drain per day as basically the natural process of aging. Would it be possible for other creatures besides bio-mages to have LP?

I'm getting some thoughts about this, one involves that each bio-mage basically gets as LP their exact normal life span in days.

Using the tables on page 109 of the Players handbook, you could calculate their maximum age in years, subtract their years lived until the point the player starts and then multiply by 365 to get their starting LP.

So a human wizard gets ( (70 + 2d20) - (15 + 2d6) )* 365 LP at birth.
or an average of 25,185 LP at the start of play assuming their char didn't spend any until that point.

This is about half of what a person with constitution of 10 would have (50,000 LP).


Anyway, I suppose a bio-mage if they have such a low LP pool to start with would be motivated to try extending their 'life span'.

Evil ones might try draining life from other people of creatures, would give a reason for evil sorcerers to be capturing young virgins to sacrifice. Or for others to desire a persons first-born as part of a deal (might not have to kill the person, just find a way to drain off some of the excess life-energy to gain their own LP).

Good ones would be motivated to look to Alchemy or other ways, perhaps an elixer that absorbs the life energy of certain plants or minerals they can use to replenish their pool.


Anyway, another thought is what happens to a Bio-mage if they try to become a Lich? I suppose one way to handle it is that as long as their phylactory is around they don't die when their LP hits zero. However, they can't cast their bio-spells without LP and when their Phylactory is destroyed they instantly die of old age. Their phylactory is literally the only thing keeping them around.


Anyway, this is still a great class idea. Sorry if my suggestions seem a bit off.

[Joltz]

I thought about age based LP as well. I think bio mages should get some extra "buffer" LP in addition to their normal LP. Maybe bio mages should get an extra 10-50% LP? Maybe all characters should have more LP than their maximum age indicates? I think I'd prefer that bio mages gain small amounts of LP as they level based on their constitution and level...

Speaking of level scaling benefits, I don't think enough of their benefits increase with level, and there are too many static saving throws for my taste.

I really like this class. I think I'm gonna yoink it, tinker with it, and use it in my campaigns.

[The Mormegil]

Scaaaaa-ryyyyy!

[Zeta Kai]

To Randel & Joltz: A lifespan-based system was what I originally envisioned for this class, actually. I think it is an excellent way to go with the class, outside of the d20 ruleset. The current Constitution-based version was done for design reasons specific to d20 v3.5, namely spell balance & intuitive power scaling.

Also, the rules I initially wrote for determining LP based on lifespan (which I unfortunately cannot find, otherwise I would share them with you all) depended on randomly generating the exact number of days left in one's life, & as such were needlessly complicated. But in the fiction that I write, the spellcasters which are equivalent to bio-mages do indeed use lifespan as their finite source for magical power (i.e. LP).



To Mormegil: Huh?

[merge]

The class is really interesting, and I agree that the Vancian mechanics are in many ways broken and unconvincing.

But I think you still haven't dealt with the "reckless bio-mage" problem. To be clear: this isn't just a problem of bad role-playing (which is always a problem): it could as easily be a problem of GOOD role-playing. If I were playing a bio-mage, I'd be tempted to make my character a young, reckless, self-destructive, choice-of-Achilles, live-fast-die-young type, always trying crazy stunts and getting needlessly into fights. So I'd be willing to spend my LP prodigally, and die relatively early in the campaign. Thing is, while I was alive, I could dominate every encounter, being able to do more than everyone else. And I (the player, not the character) wouldn't really pay a price for that: once my bio-mage was dead, I'd just make a new character, whose power would be about the same as everyone else's (or even, why not, another reckless bio-mage). So all the non-bio-mages (or cautious bio-mages) get shoved to the background.

Some ideas to fix this:
1. Only allow bio-mages in what look to be long-running-campaigns. This is only a partial fix at best, but I think it's necessary; otherwise, b-ms pay no practical price at all for their power.

2. Don't allow your players to make the kind of b-m character I've described. This seems to me the worst of all possible fixes; the b-m class is suddenly pretty boring if you don't, in practice, have the option of sacrificing your life recklessly (or nobly).

3. Apply some penalty to second-characters In its most severe form, the penalty would be, "they're not allowed": once your character dies permanently, you're out of the game. That way, you could still be Achilles-the-bio-mage, and you'd dominate the game for a while, then be unable to participate at all, letting other players take center stage. Or second-characters could just be a little lower-level, lower-ability-scores, something like that.

4. Have some intermediate penalties for spending a lot of LP. Someone above suggested aging as you spend more LP, but you could have other effects too.

Unfortunately, none of these work on the flip side of the same problem, which is NPC b-ms. Of course, a good DM won't have his NPCs act reckless just because he knows they're only appearing in one encounter, but bio-mages in general are going to be most dangerous when they're desperate, about to die, and so not worried about saving LP; and NPCs will be in that situation a lot more than PCs (unless the campaign goes horribly wrong). Still, a good DM might be able to work around that.

[MMad]

I would either recommend modifying [the Bio-Bomb] somehow or just having it drain you to 1 LP

I agree with SweetRein on this point, if perhaps for a different reason - I think it would be fun to play out the remainder of a character's life after using the Bio-Bomb. You'd blow away your entire life force, almost, and then collapse, naturally exhausted, with a single, precious LP left.

I think it would be much more dramatic if you got the chance to talk to the guy who sacrificed himself for you than if he just unexpectedly exploded in the middle of a loosing battle. No good chance of real closure there, I feel. Plus, it would be interesting to roleplay a bio mage who had truly reached the end of the line, someone who wouldn't see the next sun set - and knew it.

Pretty small change, gameplay-wise, but huge dramatical difference imo. :)

[merge]

Oh, and an unrelated question about the class: If a bio-mage dies with LP still in him, and is later resurrected, does he lose 1 LP a day while dead? I think I'd prefer the answer to be "no," though there might be ways to abuse that; those ways, in fact, could be pretty cool in themselves -- a powerful good/evil bio-mage, foreseeing great danger/opportunity at a future time, deliberately kills himself, to be raised from his tomb in a thousand years, when he will be able to save/destroy the world. Bringing about/preventing his resurrection could be a cool adventure.

[Randel]

You can find the general rules for determining a characters age and lifespan here

[Joltz]

Hmm, I did some major tweaking with this class. I dislike the fact that this class is almost guaranteed to kill themselves before epic levels by using their primary class features even sparingly.

The biggest changes I made were to make LP based on maximum theoretical age and you lose max LP as time passes. Someone who goes and wastes LP will still run out after a little while, but a cautious character can use his class abilities (interspersed with periods of rest) and still live to a ripe old age. I also converted the LP to a point based system like the point based casting variant in Unearthed Arcana (also here). I did a lot of tweaking to their other class features to make them more customizable and useful. If you'd like me to post it here just ask for it...

[Grko]

Well I've been looking at this class for quite some time, really enjoying the flavor and all. My friends and I are running a game that is D&D 3.5 converted with the Star Wars Saga Edition rules. I converted the class to fit, adding Talent trees and more feats to the list. I wanted to give it a psionic feel however, so I looked over Erudite (XPH, I believe) As WoC have someting as Spell to Power as an option for the Erudite. I reversed it and Basically made a Power to Spell kinda thing. Gave them a way to become Psoinicly Focused and allowed them to expend thier focus (and a little LP....which is called Life essence in my game) to augment the ability. Changed the name of the class to Biopsionicist. If played responsibly Bio-mage (or my Biopsionicist) is an awesome class for fun and roleplaying oppurtunities. The funnist character I have played to date. All the characters had thier moments to Shine and everybody enjoyed my character and the game.


Saving your Kingdom, in the name of your Lord, makes you a Hero.
But when Your friends stand beside you knowing what you must do, believing in you, waiting by your side, for you to erupt and destroy the apposing force,yourself, and them included. Not for honor, not for fame and riches, but for love and Friendship......makes all of you Legends.

I'm really gonna hate when my character Dies (ahh well guess thats half the fun with a doomed character)

[Zeta Kai]

Alternate LP Calculation
Here's the original LP calculation system; I just found it & had to post it before I forgot.

LP Calculation for Bio-Mages (version 0.5)
Total Life Points = Maximum + 1d10 Months + 1d6-1 Weeks (minimum 1) + 1d6 days

Life Points
To determine the number of Life Points a character has, calculate the following. Roll to determine a character’s maximum age (Venerable Age + the Maximum Age modifier). Then add 1d12 months, as well as 1d6-1 weeks (minimum 1) & 1d6 days. Then subtract the character’s current age, in years only (bio-mages are considered equivalent to sorcerers for this value). This is the character’s remaining lifetime. Calculate the number of days that this is; for ease of calculation, assume that 1 Year = 360 Days, 1 Month = 30 Days (or 5 Weeks), & 1 Week = 6 Days. This final total is that character’s Life Point pool.

Example: Olric is a 1st level bio-mage. His maximum age is determined to be 93 years, 3 months, 4 weeks, & 2 days. His current age is 19 years, giving his a remaining lifetime of 74 years, 3 months, 4 weeks, & 2 days. This is calculated to be 26,756LP (26,756 = (74 x 360) + (3 x 30) + (4 x 6) + 2).

• Starting LP - 25% = Middle Age
• Starting LP - 50% = Old
• Starting LP - 75% = Venerable
• Starting LP - 100% = Maximum/Dead