Hedge Witch (feat for non-spellcasters)

[rferries]

Hedge Witch
Although the truly powerful spells are far beyond your abilities, you have learned a simpler magic.

Prerequisites
Wis 10, at least one level in a non-spellcasting class (barbarian, fighter, monk, or rogue).

Benefits
You gain the ability to cast spells as an adept. Your effective adept level for this purpose is equal to your total levels in non-spellcasting classes.

All adept class skills are always treated as class skills for you (regain one skill point for each cross-class skill rank you have invested in those skills when you select this feat).

Special
A fighter may select Hedge Witch as a bonus fighter feat.

If you select this feat, you may ignore the prerequisites of the Obtain Familiar feat. Your effective arcane spellcaster level for the purpose of that feat is equal to your effective adept level for the purpose of this feat.

[rferries]

So! Enough to bump the mentioned classes up a tier?

[noob]

It makes them of the same tier as the adept I think.
(I forgot if the adept was T3 or T4 because the adept had few spells but really solid spells)
The adept is probably T3 if you add in prcs to grab domains and you can now go barb1/that feat/a bunch more levels in mundane classes/sovereign speaker/contemplative to get as many domains as possible with no cl loss since it is your level which fix your adept progression and not casting progressing stuff.

[LibraryOgre]

I assume this is 3.5?

This is powerful enough that I'd be inclined to make it a feat chain... Hedge Witch 1 would let you cast either 1st level spells, or 1st and 2nd level spells. Hedge Witch 2 would let you cast the next group of levels, etc.

Consider, also, this single feat gives you up to 8 class skills, PLUS up to 5th level spells. Your fighter is now not too different than a Paladin or Ranger... which is obviously something that might usefully happen, but it's a single feat.

Basically, while I agree with what you're trying to do, it's simply too powerful for a feat.

[nonsi]

.

This definitely needs to be broken down to several feats.

I'd do it like this:
===========
1st feat: all Adept skills + zero level spells + familiar
2nd feat: 1st + 2nd level spells
3rd feat: 3rd + 4th level spell
4th feat: 5th level spells
Optional: upgrade to spontaneous caster anywhere along the way.

The Fighter definitely has the feat resources to spare (and I'd assume you'll be using an upgraded Fighter, so this is even more within a reasonable feat tax)
Rogues could swap special abilities (and again - I'm assuming an improved Rogue that gets more special abilities than core)
Same goes for the Monk.
Barbarian..... don't really give a damn. I've never found the concept worthy of a separate class.

[rferries]

Thanks for the input, everyone. It's probably better as a houserule for bumping the power levels of the lesser classes.

[nonsi]

Thanks for the input, everyone. It's probably better as a houserule for bumping the power levels of the lesser classes.

I suppose you're right on the balance PoV, but if everyone casts spells, then there's nothing special about spellcasting.
I personally prefer a solution that allows noncasters to keep up (even if they never gain those world-changing powers) than to make everybody a spellcaster.

[rferries]

I suppose you're right on the balance PoV, but if everyone casts spells, then there's nothing special about spellcasting.
I personally prefer a solution that allows noncasters to keep up (even if they never gain those world-changing powers) than to make everybody a spellcaster.

This is a very good point! The feat really does wreck the flavour of the game. Ah well, they can't all be winners. :D