Specialist Wizards - a new perspective of an old hat.

[0mniscience]

Greetings to all,

I still play add 1e/2e meld, and for my group I have been toying with the idea of spicing up the Specialist Wizards.

As it stands the 8sub classes of wizard, all share a blanket of bonuses, penalties and a extra spell of each spell level per day, and if you allow signature spells from the PO:spells and magic, a reduced learning cost for their signatures.
Our group has been allowing and playing specialty priests from the Demihuman Deities and the Faiths and Avatars for quite some time, and they actually sparked the idea for the wizard reworking idea.

I will post here as I finish each one for those interested, constructive feedback is always a plus.

[0mniscience]

Diviner

Loses all current players handbook specialist wizard benefits and penalties, and instead would use the following rules.

Racial Restrictions: Human, HalfElf, Elf, others at DM’s Discretion
Multiclass Options: only if a Kit or DM allows
Suggested Kits: DM’s discretion
Requirements: Int 16, Wis 16
Prime Req.: Int, Wis
Alignment: Any
Weapons: as per Magic-User
Armor: as per Magic-User
Magic Items: as per magic-user except none that produce conjuration/summoning spells or effects
Recommended Proficiencies: Alertness, Observation, Direction Sense, Distance Sense, Knowledge (any), Water Divining, Appraising, Astrology, Fortune Telling, History, Information Gathering, Quickness, Slieght of Hand, Ceremony, Concentration, Investigation, Lore(any), Omen Reading, Prophecy, Religion, Soothsaying, Spell Craft, Arcanology, Dowsing, Mental Resistance, Research, Tactics/Strategy of Magic, Thaumaturgy, Ambush, Blindfigting, Body Language, Herbalism.
Required Proficiencies:
Bonus Proficiencies:

Specialized School: Greater Divination
Allied Schools: Alteration, Invocation/Evocation
Additional Schools: Necromancy, Illusion/Phantasm
Opposing Schools: Abjuration, Enchantment/Charm
Barred School: Conjuration/Summoning

*Diviners never need roll learn spell checks to learn divination spells, unless they are researching brand new spell creation.
They do however roll to learn spells From the following schools (Alteration, Illusion/Phantasm, Invocation/Evocation and Necromancy) with a penalty of -20% and are all cast at level -1 until level 7 Diviner. Spells from Abjuration and Enchantment/Charm are learned at a penalty of -35% and suffer a casting penalty of level -2 until 7th level Diviner, spells from the school of Conjuration/Sumoning May never be learned or employed through scrolls or magical items.

*Diviners enjoy casting all divination spells as though they were 2 levels higher than actual level.

*Diviners enjoy a Scrying/Detection “magic resistance” versus spells and items that employ similar magics of 3%/per Diviner level

*Diviners recieve a bonus of +1 or +/-5%/level to employ spells and items that Detect/scry locations, objects, spirits and beings.

*Level 1: Diviners may use the following power to gain a flash of insight, allowing them to detect for one of the following things. (Alignment, Disease, Poison, Scrying, Snares&Pits, Spirits, Undead) this requires a complete round of uninterrupted concentration, and then lasts for a single round. Additional uses per day gained at 6, 11, 16, etc

*level 3: as long as the Diviner has at least one spell still memorized, the magic defence adjustment from a high wisdom score can be added to armor class, additionally no penalty due to being surprised is subtracted. Backstabs/assassination attempts may also be countered in this way, unless the thief/assassin is 4 or more levels higher than the Diviner.

*level 5: Identify by touch this ability will reveal to the Diviner the properties of magic items, spell effects, and the like this however will not work on artifacts or intelligent items and does not reveal if an item has a curse or not, and will not protect the Diviner from effects and curses when they touch and handle the item to identify it. The Diviner must fully concentrate on this power, and may not take any other actions while doing so, the amount of time needed is based on the power level of the aura or item and DM’s discretion.

*level 7: no longer suffers level casting penalties on the non barred non divination spells. The learn spell penalty is reduced down to only two schools (Abjuration, Enchantment Charm) which is a penalty of -20%

*level 7: once per day Find traps or Augury as per the priest spells of those names. Additional uses per day at levels, 12, 18, 24, etc

*level 10: the Diviner through repeated magical contact with planar beings and powerful magics, May increase the Int or Wis ability score by one point to a maximum of 20.

*level 13: the Diviners scry/detection bonus may now be applied to Detect the previously hidden, concealed and previously undetectable.

*level 15: Ture Seeing as per the Wizard spell. Must fully concentrate without other actions or interruptions, may not be used in areas of wild magic or anti magic, and only on the prime material plane unless nwp are spent for additional planes.

*level 20: as level 10, Int or Wis is increased by one point, and in this fashion.

[LibraryOgre]

One thing I've played with is Specialists consider all spells of their specialty to be 1 level lower (so, a 1st level Diviner can learn and cast 2nd level Divination spells), and all spells of their opposition schools are 1 level higher (so, they'd cast 1st level Conjurations as if they were 2nd level). I feel it better emulates the 1e illusionist.

[Lord Torath]

One thing I've played with is Specialists consider all spells of their specialty to be 1 level lower (so, a 1st level Diviner can learn and cast 2nd level Divination spells), and all spells of their opposition schools are 1 level higher (so, they'd cast 1st level Conjurations as if they were 2nd level). I feel it better emulates the 1e illusionist.

OK, I'm having a hard time parsing the last parenthetical of your first sentence (I think it's the abiguity of the second "they" and multiple definitions of level. Spell levels should be called "circles" or something: Fireball is a 3rd Circle Evocation, for example. On first read through, I think I confused effective caster level with spell level). Are you saying that, say a 5th-level Illusionist could cast a 4th level illusion (taking up his 3rd-level spell slot), but could only cast 2nd level Necromantic, Invocation/Evocation, or Abjuration spells (which would also take up his/her 3rd-level spell slot), while being able to cast 3rd level spells from all the other schools?

To restate what I think you're saying: For a specialist, all spells in their specialized school count as being one "circle" lower than normal, and all spells in their opposition school count as being one "circle" higher, instead of being completely unavailable.

I presume this puts 9th "circle" opposition spells permanently out of reach. Do 1st level specialization spells become cantrips? Or do they remain 1st level?

Is this in addition to or in place the extra specialist spell per level and the bonus/penalties to learning chances and saving throws?

[HexusZiggurat]

Would love to see it playtested!