Spell List

[olelia]

For the longest time I've played evoker wizards because the party was never the best at damage output. After reading these forums for a while now...thats been put to shame :smallfrown. What I'm looking for is a spell list for a 15th level wizard with a 26 int. The spell list has to be core only. If you have access to it you can also use the 3rd party arcanis setting rule books.

[valadil]

Search for the Logic Ninja's Guide to Being Batman. That has everything you need. Solo's SSSSSSSS Sorcerer Guide is good too, but TLN's is more wizard oriented.

[kamikasei]

TLN's guide has advice on good spells, but not an actual sample spell list.

However, what's best depends on your campaign, party mates, and DM's style as to whether some things will come up a lot and/or others not at all. In general, you want spells to target each save, to bypass SR, to buff your teammates, to alter the battlefield, and so on. I believe Saph had a "put together a spell list to cover all bases" thread a while back that went into considerable depth on this, I'll see if I can dig it out.

Is this wizard a specialist or generalist? What schools are specialized/banned, if any?

[Keld Denar]

This guide: http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=956548

is also good. All of the GOD style spell guides are good as well, with decent ratings of just about every spell in the game.

Are you a generalist? Specialist? What banned schools? Any Spell Focus feats? These are bits of info useful for helping us help you.

From core, my favorite spells include:
Solid Fog (4th)
Evards (4th)
Solid Fog (4th)
Fly (3rd)
Solid Fog (4th)
Scorching Ray (2nd) (decent damage scaling, low level so it can be Empowered well)
Solid Fog (4th)
Haste (3rd)
Solid Fog (4th)
Teleport and friends (5th+)
Solid Fog (4th)
Grease (1st)
Glitterdust (2nd)
Solid Fog (4th)
Wall of Force (5th)
Otto's (7th)
Resilient Sphere (6th)
Ray of Enfeeblement (1st)
Solid Fog (4th)

And last but not least
Solid Fog (4th)

Your mileage may vary....

[SamTheCleric]

I don't know if Lussman mentioned it yet...

But Solid Fog is a -great- spell.

[Keld Denar]

I don't know if Lussman mentioned it yet...

But Solid Fog is a -great- spell.

I really need to do something about my forum name. Having people refer to me by my last name makes me feel like I'm getting yelled at at work. Stupid forum migration.....

[Tempest Fennac]

When you get it, Mages Magnificent Mansion is a brilliant spell. Slow can also be useful.

[valadil]

I've got nothing to do at work so here's an actual list. This is based off a list I used as a sorcerer/incantatrix (I'm dropping evocation here), so it isn't quite what you're looking for but it is tried and tested. The character was big on metamagic and crowd control. It's also mostly core but not completely.

Ones
Ray of Enfeeblement
Shield
True Cast (CM, like true strike but for +10 to SR checks, I mostly used it with quicken/residual metamagic)
Grease
Silent Image

Twos
Glitterdust
Baleful Transposition
Web
False Life
Mirror Image or Blindness/Deafness

Threes
Melfs Unicorn Arrow
Stinky Cloud
Greater Mage Armor
Haste or Slow (I'd prefer slow, but you should coordinate with your other casters)

Fours
Enervation
Fear (amazing when sculpted)
Greater Mirror Image or Resilient Sphere (protection plus reflex based save or suck) or Wings of Flurry (if evocation is available) or Tentacles or Solid Fog
(I don't recommend taking tentacles and fog. You don't want too many spells that FoM can defeat. If you really want both, invest in some scrolls)

Fives
Teleport
Freezing Fog
Wall of Force (or Stone if no evo, it's battlefield control that FoM doesn't beat) or TK or Baleful Polymorph, or any number of good enchantments

Six
Greater Dispel
Antimagic Field
Something else

7
Limited Wish
Force Cage (if taking evocation)

[SamTheCleric]

I really need to do something about my forum name. Having people refer to me by my last name makes me feel like I'm getting yelled at at work. Stupid forum migration.....

That's ok.. I should've thought before making my forum name. My cleric died 3 sessions ago. I am no longer "sam the cleric"... I'm "Vikrum the Crusader" :P

[Sstoopidtallkid]

StoopidTallKid. It's an old nickname that goes back to high school. The misspelling was intentional. The double "s" was because my keyboard is junk and I didn't proofread my name. Yeah, I'm a bit annoyed.

[Keld Denar]

Commense thread-jacking in:
3
2
1
....

[Tempest Fennac]

Valadil, why would Shield be better then Mage Armour? I'm just wondering due to MA's significantly longer duration and the fact that it can be used on allies as well as yourself (protection from Magic Missiles doesn't seem that worthwhile considering how often enermies are likely to prepare the spell)

[Reel On, Love]

15th level?
Irresistible Dance.

Combine that with the Archmage's Arcane Reach ability, and you're disabling anything that isn't mind affecting, from 30' away, with no save. WTF.

Overland Flight and Phantom Steed. The Overland Flight is for when the Phantom Steed goes down (but cast it in the mornings, it lasts 15h).

(Empowered) Ray of Enfeeblement.

A couple of Baleful Polymorphs, and multiple Will-save-or-lose spells.

[SamTheCleric]

Maximized Escalating Enfeeblement.... 5th level spell, 15 strength drain. You can end fights with that if you're up against the Big Bad Evil Guy.

Of course, since Escalating Enfeeblement is only a 2nd level spell... Just have a Lesser rod of Maximize.

[valadil]

Valadil, why would Shield be better then Mage Armour? I'm just wondering due to MA's significantly longer duration and the fact that it can be used on allies as well as yourself (protection from Magic Missiles doesn't seem that worthwhile considering how often enermies are likely to prepare the spell)

Tempest, I still have Greater Mage Armor later on. I keep Shield and a Mage Armor on my mages since they stack.

[Tempest Fennac]

Sorry about that (I forgot that they both stacked). What exactly does Melf's Unicorn Arrow do? I'd also like to add a level 5 spell called Mass Fly to the recommended spells. Later on, Bears Endurance can be useful if you want Temporary HPs.

[Reel On, Love]

Sorry about that (I forgot that they both stacked). What exactly does Melf's Unicorn Arrow do? I'd also like to add a level 5 spell called Mass Fly to the recommended spells. Later on, Bears Endurance can be useful if you want Temporary HPs.

Screw Mass Fly, at level 15 they should be able to fly on their own, without an in-combat action from you.


Unicorn Arrow fires a phantom unicorn at your enemy, and it hits them with its horn (on a ranged touch attack). This is awesome. You get more unicorns as you go up in levels, up to 5 at CL... 17? Each arrow does 1d8+8.

There's also a bull-rush effect. I think it's a DC 20 + 2 per additional arrow that hit STR check for the person hit.

On its own, it's not so great, but when metamagicked, it's a good source of no-save, no-SR, untyped damage.

Edit: Greater Mage Armor is for suckers. That's two points of AC... for a 2-spell-level increase, compared to regular Mage Armor.

[valadil]

What exactly does Melf's Unicorn Arrow do?

The unicorn arrow is kinda like a beefier magic missile from PHB2. Each missile does d8+8 force damage and has a chance to bullrush. It does require ranged touch attacks, but there's no SR. I think you get all 5 missiles around level 17. d8 + 8 doesn't sound impressive, but all 5 will hit for 5d8 + 40. I think that works out to better potential damage than the orb spells (though I didn't factor in 5 separate attack rolls instead of 1 for the orbs, so this is hardly conclusive).

[Telonius]

OP required that the spells be Core Only.

There's a subtle but important difference between what spells a spellbook should contain, and which spells are prepared daily. Your spellbooks should contain as many spells as possible. Because you are a Wizard, your strength is in your versatility. More spells available for preparation = better-prepared wizard = more powerful wizard.

IMO, these are the key spells that every wizard should have in their spellbooks. Displayed in no particular order other than by spell level.

Level 1
Endure Elements
Protection from (X) - all of them.
Grease
Mage Armor
Comprehend Languages
Identify
Sleep
Magic Missile (Note: only because other wizards will laugh at you if you don't have it)
Disguise Self
Detect Secret Doors
Alarm
Feather Fall
Enlarge Person
Ray of Enfeeblement

Level 2
Protection from Arrows
Resist Energy
Glitterdust
Web
See Invisibility
Hideous Laughter
Blur
Invisibility
Mirror Image
Alter Self
(animal)'s (quality) - all of them
Knock
Spider Climb
Rope Trick

Level 3
Dispel Magic
Protection from Energy
Phantom Steed
Stinking Cloud
Tongues
Hold Person
Gentle Repose
Wind Wall
Blink
Fly
Haste
Gaseous Form

Level 4
Stoneskin
Black Tentacles
Dimension Door
Solid Fog
Greater Invisibility
Rainbow Pattern
Polymorph

Level 5
Break Enchantment
Dismissal
Cloudkill
Teleport
Telepathic Bond
Dominate Person
Baleful Polymorph
Fabricate
Passwall
Permanency

Level 6
Dispel Magic, Greater
Antimagic Field
Guards and Wards
Acid Fog
Analyze Dweomer
Legend Lore
True Seeing
Chain Lightning
Contingency
Flesh to Stone
Stone to Flesh
Mass (animal)'s (quality) - all of them

Level 7
Magnificent Mansion
Plane Shift
Greater Teleport
Forcecage
Mass Invisibility
Ethereal Jaunt

Level 8
Dimensional Lock
Prismatic Wall
Maze
Binding
Irresistable Dance
Polar Ray
Scintillating Pattern
Polymorph Any Object

Level 9
Freedom
Imprisonment
Prismatic Sphere
Gate
Shades
Weird
Power Word Kill
Wail of the Banshee
Etherealness
Time Stop
Wish

I may have missed a few, but I think these are the most important. Most of the time, you can plan out your day using only these spells.

[Animefunkmaster]

Acid fog... its like solid fog but with damage over time on an area. Combo it with slow.

And either Simulacrum or Animate dead, there is no reason to not have minions.

[Keld Denar]

I actually don't like any of the Mass "Animal" "Atribute" spells. By the time you are dropping 6th level spells, everyone who can benefit from an atribute already has an enhancement bonus item of equal or greater value to the +4 you get from the spell, or won't really benefit from the spell except under very rare and specific circumstances. And don't tell me that everone benefits from more Con. Just about any character past level 10 should have an item that gives at least a +2, if not a +4 to Con. Clerics, Druids, and Monks have it rough, because their main atribute (Wis) occupies the same slot as Con does, but there are other items (Iwin Stones, Belt of Dwarven Beards). I think any time you take the time to cast on of those spells, you are not doing something that could be more productive in combat.

[Telonius]

I agree, the Wizard should never, ever be casting that in combat. But it should be in the spellbook and available, for either scroll-making or for out-of-combat use. I've seen quite a few occasions where twenty minutes of Charisma boost would have gotten the PC's out of a nasty diplomatic situation, or where a little bit of extra strength or dexterity for everybody would have tipped the balance in the party's favor. An equivalent magic item costs 16,000 gp, and the average party might only have one person with a Cloak of Charisma +4 or better, or a couple with Gloves of Dex. Again, I'll stress that I think this is an important option to have available, in the spellbook. Not necessarily in the daily prepared spells.

[Chronos]

15th level?
Irresistible Dance.

Combine that with the Archmage's Arcane Reach ability, and you're disabling anything that isn't mind affecting, from 30' away, with no save. WTF.

Then again, by 15th level, a lot of enemies will have immunity to mind-affecting, spell resistance, or both. It's still great for those situations where it works, though.

I think that works out to better potential damage than the orb spells (though I didn't factor in 5 separate attack rolls instead of 1 for the orbs, so this is hardly conclusive).

That's actually a benefit, not a drawback, for most purposes. Sure, there's not as much chance of them all hitting, but there's also not as much chance of them all missing. Consistency is good for the player. The only drawback is that you can't True Strike all of them. Still, I kind of have to wonder just what kind of acid Melf was dealing with, to get the idea of shooting unicorns at people.

Telonius, to your list I would add (assuming they're not from banned schools) (spoilered for space):

Spoiler

Show

1:
Unseen Servant (good utility)
True Strike (quicken with a ray, when you just have to hit)
Charm Person (don't just eliminate an enemy; gain a friend)
Color Spray (better than Sleep, due the casting time, and can affect elves)
[Nystul's] Magic Aura (for when you don't want to look like a Christmas tree to anyone using Detect Magic)
Silent Image (the most versatility you can get from a 1st-level slot)
Reduce Person (what Enlarge does for a meatshield, Reduce does for a rogue)

2:
Detect Thoughts (the ultimate interrogation spell)
Continual Flame (you don't need to cast it often, but it's nice to be able to make a few permanent torches. Plus the coolness factor of casting it on the paladin's armor, or something)
Shatter (there are lots of nonmagical things that it's really convenient to destroy quickly)
Magic Mouth (if only to cast a bunch on yourself at various CL, as insurance against area dispels)
Minor Image (see Silent Image)
Levitate (great before you get Fly)

3:
Explosive Runes (fill up a book with them, and set them off with a Dispel)
Magic Circle against <alignment> (same reasons as the single-target ones, and necessary for proper use of the Planar Binding line)
Clairaudience/Clairvoyance (best scrying-type spell available at this level)
Heroism (general-purpose buff)
Major Image (yet another versatile illusion)
Greater Magic Weapon (your fighter will love you)
Shrink Item (remove obstructions, deal damage, carry useful items... Very versatile)
Slow (Will save but not mind-affecting)

4:
Lesser Planar Binding (if there's something you can't do, chances are some outsider can)
Scrying (plan well, and find out what spells you'll need)
[Otiluke's] Resilient Sphere (divide-and-conquer the enemies, or protect a weak ally)
Wall of Fire (great for taking on an army)
Shadow Conjuration (nearly a full school worth of versatility)
Enervation (very nice debuff, with no save, just attack roll)
Stone Shape (make useful items or go through dungeon walls)

5:
Wall of Stone (build your own castle, overnight!)
Sending (coordinate with party members, if you get split up)
Wall of Force (nothing can get through, and it's invisible)
Persistent Image (see Silent Image)
Shadow Evocation (see Shadow Conjuration; especially useful if you banned Evocation)
Waves of Fatigue (no save, area of effect)
Telekinesis (versatile)

6:
Planar Binding (see Lesser Planar Binding)
Wall of Iron (instantaneous, so it lasts forever. Use as raw material for Fabricate)
Greater Heroism (see Heroism)
Permanent Image
Programmed Image (yeah, you get the point, I like the Image spells)
Circle of Death (mass save-or-die)
Undeath to Death (one of your few spells which works well versus undead)
Disintegrate (usable in combat, also a utility spell for things like digging tunnels)

7:
Spell Turning (great if you're facing another spellcaster)
Greater Arcane Sight (Permanency it on yourself)
Project Image (do all your wizarding stuff from behind cover)
Greater Shadow Conjuration
Waves of Exhaustion (again, no save, area of effect)
Reverse Gravity (no save or SR; can be used to make perpetual motion machines)
Limited Wish (the ultimate in versatility, and 300 XP is low enough that it's sometimes even worthwhile)

8:
Mind Blank (makes you immune to a heck of a lot of things)
Greater Planar Binding
Trap the Soul (get someone to accept a gift, and you win)
Moment of Prescience (big bonus when it counts)
Demand (a save-or-suck, castable on anyone in the cosmos)
Sunburst (great vs. undead, very large area of effect)
[Otiluke's] Telekinetic Sphere (resilient, plus can be used for travel)
Greater Shadow Evocation
Iron Body (especially if you cast it on your familiar, so the spell failure isn't an issue)

9:
[Mordenkainen's] Disjunction (never cast it, but keep it for Mutually Assured Destruction)
Foresight (never be surprised)
Astral Projection (if your astral body gets killed, no big deal, you just wake up)
Shapechange (for the same reasons as Polymorph, and then some)

Yes, this is a lot of spells, and yes, it costs money to add spells to your book. As a wizard, it's worth it, since there's very little else you ever need to spend your money on. In general, if you ever have to ask yourself whether it's worth adding something to your book, the answer is "yes".

[olelia]

Thank you for the different advice and some spells to look into. Should keep me reading for a while and help improvise my wizard overall.

[Reel On, Love]

Then again, by 15th level, a lot of enemies will have immunity to mind-affecting, spell resistance, or both. It's still great for those situations where it works, though.

Mind immunity? Only undead, constructs, and vermin, really. Mind Blank might show up, but it's dispellable.

SR is a problem for almost anything. In core, take (Greater) spell penetration.

That's actually a benefit, not a drawback, for most purposes. Sure, there's not as much chance of them all hitting, but there's also not as much chance of them all missing. Consistency is good for the player. The only drawback is that you can't True Strike all of them. Still, I kind of have to wonder just what kind of acid Melf was dealing with, to get the idea of shooting unicorns at people.

Shooting unicorns at people is FREAKING AWESOME.

[Gorbash]

Since we're discussing wizards... What's your opinion on Tenser's Transformation? We're having a big fight with BBEG upcoming (and this one is buffed up half-dragon cleric), and since my Headband of Int +4 got destroyed in the last session, I'm feeling a little uncertain about my Save-or-suck/die spells, so I thought I'd just buff up myself like a maniac (enlarge person, false life, tenser, haste, greater heroism, greater blink, mirror image, hearth of earth, antidragon aura, maybe I missed a couple but you get the idea) giving me an obcscenely high AC (33 or something like that), I'd have about 135 hp, DR 10/adamantine and we have a pretty good magical greatsword which I could use (and even enchance it furthermore with Greater Magic Weapon). Thoughts?

[Keld Denar]

we have a pretty good magical greatsword which I could use (and even enchance it furthermore with Greater Magic Weapon). Thoughts?

Non-proficiency is an issue. Tensor's does not give you weapon proficiencies.

Also, HP are an issue.

And not casting spells.

Seriosly, even without your headband, you could cast spells that don't require saves, like Solid Fog, Evards Black Tentacles, Wall of Force/Stone, or a handful of other BC style spells that just plain ol suck to be around. Don't give it up for the slight ability to melee.

If you REALLY want to do it, check out the polymorph subschool of spells in PHBII and Complete Mage. Displacer Shape is decent, as is Nightstalker Shape or Dragon Shape if you are high enough level. Use those....they are better than Tensor's....

[Reel On, Love]

Since we're discussing wizards... What's your opinion on Tenser's Transformation? We're having a big fight with BBEG upcoming (and this one is buffed up half-dragon cleric), and since my Headband of Int +4 got destroyed in the last session, I'm feeling a little uncertain about my Save-or-suck/die spells, so I thought I'd just buff up myself like a maniac (enlarge person, false life, tenser, haste, greater heroism, greater blink, mirror image, hearth of earth, antidragon aura, maybe I missed a couple but you get the idea) giving me an obcscenely high AC (33 or something like that), I'd have about 135 hp, DR 10/adamantine and we have a pretty good magical greatsword which I could use (and even enchance it furthermore with Greater Magic Weapon). Thoughts?

No. Tenser's transformation is an awful idea. It's terrible.
If you cast all those buffs before the fight the rounds/level ones may well wear off. Good luck casting the rounds/level ones in combat.

Cast Fox's Cunning at the start of the fight if you're worried about DCs (the biggest loss is bonus spells)--but no. GMW and Haste and Enlarge Person and greater heroism are fine... for the fighter. Mirror Image and Greater Blink are good defenses for you.

Look into no-save spells like (Empowered) Ray of Enfeeblement, Solid Fog (to buy time to buff the group in combat). Against BBEGs, whose saves the DM boosts, the Orb spells (which do have a one-round effect on a failed save) aren't that bad an idea, especially metamagicked... just don't pick elements they're immune to.

Ray of Clumsiness followed by Empowered Escalating Enfeeblement is good stuff. Follow that up with a Ray of Exhaustion or two.


Edit: if you want extra melee, casting a bunch of those buffs on your familiar, and then hitting it with swift-action Form of the Threefold terror (or whatever that spell is called, in CMage) plus Bite of the Weretiger/bear is hardly a bad plan. At that point you might as well give it the Heart of Earth, False Life Mirror Image, etc, too. You give the party an extra melee character. A Chimera with Stoneskin, Bite of the were-X, etc should be pretty hardcore.
Then in combat, you drop Solid Fog (bonus points for making it Freezing Fog and/or combining it with black tentacles, entangle, etc) on the enemy, buff allies with rounds/level stuff (like Haste), and debuff the enemy when they get out. Debuffed enemy + buffed allies = win.

[Gorbash]

Ahhh... Didn't no about the proficiency. HPs are hardly an issue since I'd have 135 at lvl 11 (about twenty more than the party tank lol).

I didn't lose that much spells. Only 1 first and second lvl spells. Well I guess then, a bunch of rays and orbs will do nicely. Kinda pointless to take solid fog, tentacles and other movement impairing effects since he's a cleric, so chances of him having Freedom of Movement are around 110%...

I've found that the usual save or die approach doesn't work that well on BBEG, since in most cases the DM won't allow his precious BBEG to die by one spell (or even suck), so the best thing I can manage is to topple them down by using rays/orbs...

[Reel On, Love]

Ahhh... Didn't no about the proficiency. HPs are hardly an issue since I'd have 135 at lvl 11 (about twenty more than the party tank lol).

I didn't lose that much spells. Only 1 first and second lvl spells. Well I guess then, a bunch of rays and orbs will do nicely. Kinda pointless to take solid fog, tentacles and other movement impairing effects since he's a cleric, so chances of him having Freedom of Movement are around 110%...

I've found that the usual save or die approach doesn't work that well on BBEG, since in most cases the DM won't allow his precious BBEG to die by one spell (or even suck), so the best thing I can manage is to topple them down by using rays/orbs...

Check out Ray of Dizziness from the SpC. Amazing stuff.

Re: Freedom of Movement: dispel, dispel, dispel! Greater Dispel, even. That's what your own cleric should be doing anyway.

There's also throwing a Wall of Stone around him and making him bash his way out.