rferries
2017-05-02, 06:19 PM
I had 2 aims for this class (I kept the 'wizard' name since it was easier when copy-pasting everything from the SRD :smallbiggrin:):
1) Make a Tier 1 spellcaster that pays the price for being Tier 1 (in this case by being MAD, gaining level adjustment, and more), yet encourages brief dips in it when multiclassing, so that you could end up with a fighter-wizard a la the Witch King from Lord of the Rings or the old AD&D.
2) Make one holistic "magic" class to subsume all others. I've always been fond of the mystic theurge for breaking down the barriers between arcane and divine magic, and this class takes it much further. It uses the spellpoint mechanic because that appeals to me too- this wizard can spend magic points freely, it's the other restrictions she has to worry about. Clerics, druids, specialist wizards, etc will all still exist, you just have to take the appropriate feats as listed below.
Before we start, a brief note:
Spellcasting Bonus: This type of bonus is usually applied to a character's mental ability scores. It improves ability scores solely for the purposes of spellcasting (typically spells memorised, magic points per day and save DCs) but provides no other benefits (nor does it worsen any of a character's Curses of the Magi). Spellcasting bonuses stack with each other.
Wizard
Alignment
Any.
Hit Die
d4.
Class Skills
The wizard’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Points at 1st Level
(4 + Int modifier) ×4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level
4 + Int modifier.
Diplomacy, Heal, and Sense Motive to represent the subtler aspects of wizardry, and more skill points than 3.5 to encourage use of those skills.
Table: The Wizard
Saves
Level
BAB
Fort
Ref
Will
Special
Magic Points/Day
Maximum Spell Level Known
1st
+0
+0
+0
+0
Curses of the Magi
2
1st
2nd
+1
+0
+0
+0
—
6
1st
3rd
+1
+1
+1
+1
—
11
1st
4th
+2
+1
+1
+1
—
17
2nd
5th
+2
+1
+1
+1
—
25
2nd
6th
+3
+2
+2
+2
—
35
3rd
7th
+3
+2
+2
+2
—
46
3rd
8th
+4
+2
+2
+2
—
58
4th
9th
+4
+3
+3
+3
Wages of Power (+2 bonus, LA+1)
72
4th
10th
+5
+3
+3
+3
—
88
5th
11th
+5
+3
+3
+3
—
106
5th
12th
+6/+1
+4
+4
+4
—
126
6th
13th
+6/+1
+4
+4
+4
—
147
6th
14th
+7/+2
+4
+4
+4
—
170
7th
15th
+7/+2
+5
+5
+5
—
195
7th
16th
+8/+3
+5
+5
+5
—
221
8th
17th
+8/+3
+5
+5
+5
—
250
8th
18th
+9/+4
+6
+6
+6
Wages of Power (+4 bonus, LA+2)
280
9th
19th
+9/+4
+6
+6
+6
—
311
9th
20th
+10/+5
+6
+6
+6
—
343
9th
Note that the wizard has poor saves across the board. Fiction is replete with wizards who were corrupted by power (either their own or from some malign entity); if you want a good Will save you'll have to invest in Wisdom.
As you can surmise from the table, wizards are a hybrid of 3.5 wizards and psions. The figures given for spell points are by no means set in stone; if the consensus is that the class is too powerful/weak they can be easily adjusted.
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the wizard.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency
Wizards are proficient with the club, dagger, heavy crossbow, light crossbow, and quarterstaff, but not with any type of armor or shield.
Armor no longer interferes with spellcasting.
Spells
A wizard casts spells which are drawn from the master spell list. She can cast any spell she has memorised, and may also cast ritual spells (see Spellbook and Spells Known, below).
The master spell list is all 3.5. spell lists combined. If a spell appears at different levels on different 3.5 spell lists, use the sorcerer/wizard versions. If the spell in question is not a sorcerer/wizard spell, then default to cleric, druid, bard, paladin, and ranger, in that order. If a spell requires a divine focus the wizard must provide one but need not use one of a particular deity unless thay have the Cleric feat.
Note also that wizards don't have to prepare spells in advance.
To learn or cast a spell, the wizard must have an Intelligence score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a wizard’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the wizard’s Charisma modifier.
To cast a spell a wizard must spend magic points equal to the minimum wizard level needed to know that spell (e.g. 6 magic points for a 3rd-level spell), minus their Wisdom modifier. This may reduce the magic point cost of a spell to 1 but not below. Cantrips cost 0 magic points.
A wizard's caster level is equal to their class level plus one-half their levels in all other classes plus their Charisma modifier.
Magic Points/Day
A wizard’s ability to cast spells is limited by the magic points he has available. His base daily allotment of magic points is given on Table: The Wizard, above. In addition, he receives bonus magic points per day if he has a high Wisdom score (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Magic Points, below). His race may also provide bonus magic points per day, as may certain feats and items.
A wizard automatically regains magic points equal to their Wisdom modifier every hour, and completely regains their total magic points after 8 hours of rest.
Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Magic Points (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/classes/index.htm#tableAbilityModifiersandBonusPowerPoints )
Yes I know it's for power points, just play along. I couldn't figure out how to import the table here :D
Spellbook and Spells Known
All of a wizard's spells known must be inscribed in their spellbook. Thereafter they are divided into memorised spells and ritual spells.
Spellbook: A wizard begins play with a spellbook containing all 0-level spells plus three 1st-level spells of your choice. For each point of Intelligence bonus the wizard has, the spellbook holds one additional 1st-level spell of your choice. At any time, a wizard can also add spells found in other wizards’ spellbooks to her own, or research her own spells. There is no limit to how many spellbooks (and corresponding inscribed spells) a wizard may accumulate.
Wizards do NOT gain any new spells when they level up. They must rely on the DM to be generous with scrolls found in hoards/shops or otherwise research their own spells.
Memorised Spells: These are spells that a wizard has committed to memory. A wizard may memorise a number of spells of each level she can cast equal to her Intelligence modifier, and thereafter may cast them freely without referring to her spellbook. She may replace a memorised spell with a different one from her spellbook by studying her spellbook for one hour per level of the spells to be exchanged.
Ritual Spell: Wizards can cast spells directly from their spellbooks without having them memorised, but the process is a lengthy and painstaking ritual. For spells with a base casting time of less than one hour, a ritual to cast that spell requires one hour per spell level. For spells with a base casting time greater than one hour, multiply the casting time by the spell level instead to see how long the ritual will take. A wizard must spend twice the usual number of magic points when casting a spell as a ritual, and their spellbook becomes an additional focus component required by the spell during the ritual. All other requirements and effects of a spell cast as a ritual are unchanged.
Curses of the Magi
Wizards are an eccentric lot, on the whole; magic and the pursuit of knowledge can often twist the minds of those who are unprepared to pay the price. At first level a wizard gains the three curses listed below.
Brightest Candle: A wizard's supernatural might risks overwhelming their mortal frame. A wizard subtracts their Wisdom bonus (to a limit of their class level) from their Constitution modifier when determining hit points per die. An undead wizard has an effective Constitution modifier of 0 for this purpose.
Sagacious Hermit: A wizard's arcane studies stunt their other skills, social and otherwise. A wizard gains a penalty equal to their Intelligence bonus (to a limit of their class level) on all non-Int-based skill checks other than Concentration.
May be kind of a weak curse depending on how you play your character, so the penalty could apply to Concentration too.
Power Corrupts: In their drive to exert their wills on the universe, wizards overreach and become vulnerable to other influences. A wizard gains a penalty equal to their Charisma bonus (to a limit of their class level) on all saves.
Wages of Power
As a wizard grows in magical ability they find it harder and harder to progress further. At 9th level a wizard gains a +2 spellcasting bonus to each of their mental ability scores and a level adjustment of +1. At 18th level this increases to a +4 spellcasting bonus and a level adjustment of +2.
Unless you are a lich with the Phylactery Focus feat, your 9th-level spells will be the capstone for your effectively-20th-level character. And if you ARE a lich, LA+4 says hello.
1) Make a Tier 1 spellcaster that pays the price for being Tier 1 (in this case by being MAD, gaining level adjustment, and more), yet encourages brief dips in it when multiclassing, so that you could end up with a fighter-wizard a la the Witch King from Lord of the Rings or the old AD&D.
2) Make one holistic "magic" class to subsume all others. I've always been fond of the mystic theurge for breaking down the barriers between arcane and divine magic, and this class takes it much further. It uses the spellpoint mechanic because that appeals to me too- this wizard can spend magic points freely, it's the other restrictions she has to worry about. Clerics, druids, specialist wizards, etc will all still exist, you just have to take the appropriate feats as listed below.
Before we start, a brief note:
Spellcasting Bonus: This type of bonus is usually applied to a character's mental ability scores. It improves ability scores solely for the purposes of spellcasting (typically spells memorised, magic points per day and save DCs) but provides no other benefits (nor does it worsen any of a character's Curses of the Magi). Spellcasting bonuses stack with each other.
Wizard
Alignment
Any.
Hit Die
d4.
Class Skills
The wizard’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Points at 1st Level
(4 + Int modifier) ×4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level
4 + Int modifier.
Diplomacy, Heal, and Sense Motive to represent the subtler aspects of wizardry, and more skill points than 3.5 to encourage use of those skills.
Table: The Wizard
Saves
Level
BAB
Fort
Ref
Will
Special
Magic Points/Day
Maximum Spell Level Known
1st
+0
+0
+0
+0
Curses of the Magi
2
1st
2nd
+1
+0
+0
+0
—
6
1st
3rd
+1
+1
+1
+1
—
11
1st
4th
+2
+1
+1
+1
—
17
2nd
5th
+2
+1
+1
+1
—
25
2nd
6th
+3
+2
+2
+2
—
35
3rd
7th
+3
+2
+2
+2
—
46
3rd
8th
+4
+2
+2
+2
—
58
4th
9th
+4
+3
+3
+3
Wages of Power (+2 bonus, LA+1)
72
4th
10th
+5
+3
+3
+3
—
88
5th
11th
+5
+3
+3
+3
—
106
5th
12th
+6/+1
+4
+4
+4
—
126
6th
13th
+6/+1
+4
+4
+4
—
147
6th
14th
+7/+2
+4
+4
+4
—
170
7th
15th
+7/+2
+5
+5
+5
—
195
7th
16th
+8/+3
+5
+5
+5
—
221
8th
17th
+8/+3
+5
+5
+5
—
250
8th
18th
+9/+4
+6
+6
+6
Wages of Power (+4 bonus, LA+2)
280
9th
19th
+9/+4
+6
+6
+6
—
311
9th
20th
+10/+5
+6
+6
+6
—
343
9th
Note that the wizard has poor saves across the board. Fiction is replete with wizards who were corrupted by power (either their own or from some malign entity); if you want a good Will save you'll have to invest in Wisdom.
As you can surmise from the table, wizards are a hybrid of 3.5 wizards and psions. The figures given for spell points are by no means set in stone; if the consensus is that the class is too powerful/weak they can be easily adjusted.
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the wizard.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency
Wizards are proficient with the club, dagger, heavy crossbow, light crossbow, and quarterstaff, but not with any type of armor or shield.
Armor no longer interferes with spellcasting.
Spells
A wizard casts spells which are drawn from the master spell list. She can cast any spell she has memorised, and may also cast ritual spells (see Spellbook and Spells Known, below).
The master spell list is all 3.5. spell lists combined. If a spell appears at different levels on different 3.5 spell lists, use the sorcerer/wizard versions. If the spell in question is not a sorcerer/wizard spell, then default to cleric, druid, bard, paladin, and ranger, in that order. If a spell requires a divine focus the wizard must provide one but need not use one of a particular deity unless thay have the Cleric feat.
Note also that wizards don't have to prepare spells in advance.
To learn or cast a spell, the wizard must have an Intelligence score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a wizard’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the wizard’s Charisma modifier.
To cast a spell a wizard must spend magic points equal to the minimum wizard level needed to know that spell (e.g. 6 magic points for a 3rd-level spell), minus their Wisdom modifier. This may reduce the magic point cost of a spell to 1 but not below. Cantrips cost 0 magic points.
A wizard's caster level is equal to their class level plus one-half their levels in all other classes plus their Charisma modifier.
Magic Points/Day
A wizard’s ability to cast spells is limited by the magic points he has available. His base daily allotment of magic points is given on Table: The Wizard, above. In addition, he receives bonus magic points per day if he has a high Wisdom score (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Magic Points, below). His race may also provide bonus magic points per day, as may certain feats and items.
A wizard automatically regains magic points equal to their Wisdom modifier every hour, and completely regains their total magic points after 8 hours of rest.
Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Magic Points (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/classes/index.htm#tableAbilityModifiersandBonusPowerPoints )
Yes I know it's for power points, just play along. I couldn't figure out how to import the table here :D
Spellbook and Spells Known
All of a wizard's spells known must be inscribed in their spellbook. Thereafter they are divided into memorised spells and ritual spells.
Spellbook: A wizard begins play with a spellbook containing all 0-level spells plus three 1st-level spells of your choice. For each point of Intelligence bonus the wizard has, the spellbook holds one additional 1st-level spell of your choice. At any time, a wizard can also add spells found in other wizards’ spellbooks to her own, or research her own spells. There is no limit to how many spellbooks (and corresponding inscribed spells) a wizard may accumulate.
Wizards do NOT gain any new spells when they level up. They must rely on the DM to be generous with scrolls found in hoards/shops or otherwise research their own spells.
Memorised Spells: These are spells that a wizard has committed to memory. A wizard may memorise a number of spells of each level she can cast equal to her Intelligence modifier, and thereafter may cast them freely without referring to her spellbook. She may replace a memorised spell with a different one from her spellbook by studying her spellbook for one hour per level of the spells to be exchanged.
Ritual Spell: Wizards can cast spells directly from their spellbooks without having them memorised, but the process is a lengthy and painstaking ritual. For spells with a base casting time of less than one hour, a ritual to cast that spell requires one hour per spell level. For spells with a base casting time greater than one hour, multiply the casting time by the spell level instead to see how long the ritual will take. A wizard must spend twice the usual number of magic points when casting a spell as a ritual, and their spellbook becomes an additional focus component required by the spell during the ritual. All other requirements and effects of a spell cast as a ritual are unchanged.
Curses of the Magi
Wizards are an eccentric lot, on the whole; magic and the pursuit of knowledge can often twist the minds of those who are unprepared to pay the price. At first level a wizard gains the three curses listed below.
Brightest Candle: A wizard's supernatural might risks overwhelming their mortal frame. A wizard subtracts their Wisdom bonus (to a limit of their class level) from their Constitution modifier when determining hit points per die. An undead wizard has an effective Constitution modifier of 0 for this purpose.
Sagacious Hermit: A wizard's arcane studies stunt their other skills, social and otherwise. A wizard gains a penalty equal to their Intelligence bonus (to a limit of their class level) on all non-Int-based skill checks other than Concentration.
May be kind of a weak curse depending on how you play your character, so the penalty could apply to Concentration too.
Power Corrupts: In their drive to exert their wills on the universe, wizards overreach and become vulnerable to other influences. A wizard gains a penalty equal to their Charisma bonus (to a limit of their class level) on all saves.
Wages of Power
As a wizard grows in magical ability they find it harder and harder to progress further. At 9th level a wizard gains a +2 spellcasting bonus to each of their mental ability scores and a level adjustment of +1. At 18th level this increases to a +4 spellcasting bonus and a level adjustment of +2.
Unless you are a lich with the Phylactery Focus feat, your 9th-level spells will be the capstone for your effectively-20th-level character. And if you ARE a lich, LA+4 says hello.