quick question: how many spells should a wizard have?

[newbie4life]

ok, im creating a wizard at level 6. how many spells should he begin with in his spellbook?

some considerations: magic item compendium says that when generating a character of level X, give him 2 level X items, +2 level X-1 items, etc...
a level 6 item is in the 1800-2300 gp range.

does this mean that he could have the 'base' (all level 0's, 5 level 1's, 4 level 2's, and 4 level 3's, assuming he grabbed the highest level free spells since level 1), +23 pages worth of inscribed spells? does this deserve to take up one of his level 6 item slots?

thanks

ps, try not to rant about how broken wizards of any level can be, im making an evoker, so there

[gbprime]

The base spells (2 per caster level, or more if you're using elf generalist or Collegiate Wizard feat) are included in your build and should cost nothing. You want more, buy scrolls. IMO of course.

[icefractal]

You can also copy spells directly from other Wizards' spellbooks. The usual cost is 50 * spell level (so for 1st level spells a scroll is cheaper). Of course, you also have to pay the scribing costs as normal.

To see how many you can afford, I would take the average cost of whatever level magic item you're giving up, and get that many gold worth.

[holywhippet]

Ask your DM what advanced level generation rules they are using. Generally you'd expect a certain wealth by level ruling which you can spend as you wish - in your case on arcane scrolls. I think there is some rule about not spending more than half your WBL on any given item but that shouldn't be a problem with spells.

For the "copy from other wizards spellbook rule" technically the cost should be doubled depending on how you view things. WBL applies to items moreso than coin. If you want to convert it to cash to pay for something you have to sell it at half it's value.

[WinWin]

I think the WBL limit was around 20%, but that is a guideline for PC's above first level. It may even be a 3.0 rule...

Ask your DM if you can purchase spells, as another poster suggested. There are also rules for researching spells. This takes time, but you can assume it has already been done if you are starting at lvl 6. You can research spells that already exist if you can't find a wizard to buy them from. Consult with your DM, but don't go overboard.

Scrolls can also be used for spells. They are fairly cheap. Even a level 4 spell only costs around 700gp. Lower level spell scrolls are much cheaper.

Boccob's Blessed Book may be a decent investment for you character, though you won't be able to afford one for a few levels.