Dedicated Pyromancer [PrC]

[MandibleBones]

Dedicated Pyromancer

"O joy! that in our embers is something that doth live." - William Wordsworth, Ode

To the arcane student, fire is the most flashy and destructive of the elements, and the apprentice studies spells which shine brightly and burn out quickly. The master, with his knowledge of the world, shuns spells of fire because flame, that old help and hinderance, has been rendered less useful against enemies who have developed resistance or immunities. They prefer to tread the paths of versitility and knowledge, the better to meet all challenges. Very few love the flames enough to devote their studies toward breaking through the resistance of fire.

Entry Requirements:

Skills: Knowledge (Arcana): 8 ranks, Spellcraft 8
Feats: Energy Substitution (Fire), Spell Focus (Evocation)
Spellcasting: Ability to cast 3rd level arcane spells, two of which must be of the Evocation [Fire] school.
Special: A wizard specializing in Evocation waives the Spell Focus (Evocation) requirement.

THE DEDICATED PYROMANCER
Hit Dice: d4
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Spells

1st|

+0

|

+0

|

+0

|

+2

|Burning Kicker, Sanctity of the Unburnt Book, Fire Resistance 5|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

2nd|

+1

|

+0

|

+0

|

+3

|Ignore Resistance 5, Exploding Spell|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

3rd|

+1

|

+1

|

+1

|

+3

|Roaring Fire|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

4th|

+2

|

+1

|

+1

|

+4

|Ignore Resistance 10|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

5th|

+2

|

+1

|

+1

|

+4

|Fire Resistance 15, Price of Knowledge|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

6th|

+3

|

+2

|

+2

|

+5

|Blistering Spell|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

7th|

+3

|

+2

|

+2

|

+5

|Transdimensional Blaze|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

8th|

+4

|

+2

|

+2

|

+6

|Ignore Resistance 15|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

9th|

+4

|

+3

|

+3

|

+6

|Fire Immunity|+1 level of existing spellcasting class

10th|

+5

|

+3

|

+3

|

+7

|Ignore Immunity|+1 level of existing spellcasting class [/table]

Special Abilities

Burning Kicker (Su): At 1st level, a dedicated pyromancer adds fire damage equal to her Pyromancer level to all Evocation [Fire] spells she casts.

Sanctity of the Unburnt Book (Su): A dedicated pyromancer's spellbook is immune to damage caused by her Evocation [Fire] spells, or indeed any other fire damage originating from the dedicated pyromancer.

Fire Resistance (Su): At 1st level, a dedicated pyromancer gains fire resistance 5. This increases to 15 at 5th level.

Ignore Resistance (Su): At 2nd level, a dedicated pyromancer ignores up to 5 points of fire resistance from every creature effected by her Evocation [Fire] spells. This increases to 10 points at 4th level and 15 points at 8th. This does not bypass the dedicated pyromancer's own resistance.

Exploding Spell: At 2nd level, the dedicated pyromancer gains Exploding Spell as a bonus feat.

Roaring Fire (Su): At 3rd level, a dedicated pyromancer can choose to have half their burning kicker damage manifest as sonic damage rather than fire damage. All other damage remains fire damage.

Price of Knowledge: At 5th level, a dedicated pyromancer can no longer cast spells with the [Cold] descriptor.

Blistering Spell: At 6th level, a dedicated pyromancer gains Blistering Spell as a bonus feat.

Transdimensional Blaze (Su): At 7th level, a dedicated pyromancer's Evocation [Fire] spells deal full damage to ethereal creatures and do not suffer a miss chance.

Fire Immunity (Su): At 9th level, a dedicated pyromancer is immune to all damage caused by fire.

Ignore Immunity (Su): At 10th level, a dedicated pyromancer ignores any immunity or resistance to fire enjoyed by the targets of her spells. This ability does not bypass the dedicated pyromancer's own fire immunity.

---------

Dedicated Pyromancers in the World

"A dedicated pyromancer is the arcane hammer of our faith, and I would fight beside one any day... though maybe not too closely beside."
- Eros Serafiem, mage-priest of Agni

Alignment:

Dedicated pyromancers tend toward chaos over law, a result of fire's fickle nature. Good pyromancers are like unto Prometheus, bringing light to the darkness and turning their pure fire against the corrupted fires of Hell, or standing against winter's cold in organizations like the Order of Eternal Summer. Evil pyromancers are crazed forces of destruction, joining with hellfire cults or simply ravaging the countryside.

Views by Other Classes:

Non-evoker specialist Wizards look on dedicated pyromancers with derision, clinging to their ancient knowledge and hiding their books away where they are less likely to catch fire. Evokers wish they'd thought of dedicated pyromancy back when they were young. Druids both respect dedicated pyromancers for the role of fire in the cycle of life, and watch them closely to keep their flames from raging out of control. Experienced rogues enjoy fighting alongside a dedicated pyromancer, as they can dodge the flames while their opponents are burnt.

Religion:

Dedicated pyromancers usually worship Agni, god of fire. Pyromancers in Greyhawk tend toward worship of Boccob for his dedication to magic itself or Moradin for the fires of the forge. Good dedicated pyromancers in Eberron tend toward the worship of Onatar or the Silver Flame, while evil pyromancers may follow the path of the Dragon Below or the Devourer for fire's consuming nature. Faerunian Dedicated Pyromancers might worship Kossuth or Sune.

Path to Prestige Class:

Wizards specializing in Evocation qualify for the class most quickly, while warmages or sorcerors make better blasters overall. Wu Jen rarely become dedicated pyromancers; bards never do.

[MandibleBones]

I'm just curious - is it that there's nothing wrong with this PrC, or that there's too much wrong to list?

[Fax Celestis]

The former, I'd say. Though I still think it should get Blistering Spell and/or Explosive Spell somewhere in the mix.

[MandibleBones]

Where would you put them, and what might you replace?

[Fax Celestis]

I'd just tack them in at 4th and 8th levels. I don't think it'd need replacing at all. Maybe a caveat that if the person already has those feats, then they can either choose new ones or perhaps lower the adjustment for them.

Also, maybe a first or second level ability that prevents your own spellbook (should you have one) from igniting?

[MandibleBones]

Also, maybe a first or second level ability that prevents your own spellbook (should you have one) from igniting?

Probably a good idea. Where are Exposive Spell and Blistering Spell from?

[Zenos]

Probably a good idea. Where are Exposive Spell and Blistering Spell from?

Exploding spell is from Complete Arcane and throws enemies away from the blast.

What does blistering spell do?

[Fax Celestis]

Blistering Spell's from PHB-II. 2 extra damage per spell level, affected reatures take a -2 penalty to attacks and checks until your next turn. +1 level.

[MandibleBones]

Added those two as bonus feats, and added Sanctity of the Unburnt Book at 1st level.

What else needs to be done?

[Uncle Festy]

Looking good.
The "burning kicker" seems a tad... underwhelming... (whoop-de-doo, 1 extra damage. Next level, I get... 2 extra damage. Joy is me.[/sarcasm]). You should probably add that Ignore Immunity also bypasses all Resistance... unless it doesn't.

[MandibleBones]

You should probably add that Ignore Immunity also bypasses all Resistance... unless it doesn't.

Good call, I missed that bit. Will change.

The "burning kicker" seems a tad... underwhelming... (whoop-de-doo, 1 extra damage. Next level, I get... 2 extra damage. Joy is me.[/sarcasm]).

It's true, it is a little underwhelming, but it's a first-level PrC ability too. I'll think about changing it to twice the DP level in damage.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Maybe not as a low-level ability, but one suggestion, if you're looking to increase blaster damage, is to give +1/die damage, or increase the dice of damage the spells do (i.e. fropm D6 to D8).

[Icewalker]

Hmm...I very like this class. Mind if I use it in my campaign?

[Moribundus]

oh man, I love this PrC. . .

I've got an evoker specialist who would go nuts for this class. . . (and he already has fire res. 10 due to race )

kudos to you!


*yoinked*

[MandibleBones]

Hmm...I very like this class. Mind if I use it in my campaign?

Please do! Let me know how it goes?