Would an arcane spellcasting Archivist be a balanced class?

Wednesday Boy · Mar 11, 2008

I've been fiddling around making a scholarly wizard who focusses on knowing stuff, making ample use of the various Knowledge skills. Originally I was thinking of a Diviner/Loremaster but the Archivist from Heroes of Horror seems like a much more flavorful fit because of its Dark Knowledge ability which keys off of Knowledge checks. However, I like the idea of a Wizard for this character rather than a divine spellcaster. Would it still be a balanced class if spellwise it was treated just like a wizard? Thanks for the help!

smootrk · Mar 11, 2008

I think it would be balanced (at least roughly).

I had a similar thought myself, except around a nature oriented concept (see my signature for my own Biosoph class (nature archivist). Applying similar thoughts to arcane endeavors seems appropriate enough for me... especially for a Conjurer type mage.

Wednesday Boy · Mar 11, 2008

I was thinking of it more as a Diviner (the wizards who specialize in knowing stuff) but a Conjurer would work very well too (gaining their knowledge by being intimately familiar with the creatures they summon).

The Biosoph's a nice adaptation! I actually had overlooked the restriction in which types the Archivist can affect, that's a good thing to know!

Nifft · Mar 11, 2008

Compare an "arcane archivist" to a standard wizard.

Look what is lost and what is gained.

Seems a bit strong, don't you think?

Cheers, -- N

Wednesday Boy · Mar 11, 2008

That's something I'd considered, it does get more stuff than a flat wizard. On the other hand a divine Archivist seems to get the same amount of extras but instead of having access to Wizard spells they get access to all divine spells. Is access to Wizard spells sufficiently more potent than access to all divine spells to make an arcane Archivist overpowered compared to a Wizard where a divine Archivist is balanced to a Wizard? (Please don't take that as flippant, I've never played an arcane spellcaster so I'm really not sure.) Or is it that the Archivist class is too powerful of a class at all?

Nifft · Mar 11, 2008

Wednesday Boy said:
Or is it that the Archivist class is too powerful of a class at all?

This is the opinion of the WotC forum's CharOpt board, and I tend to agree with them on this issue.

I've only seen regular Wizards and Clerics in play, and the thought of even just giving a Cleric full access to all Divine spells makes me worry -- let alone all the other goodies they get!

What I'd do to a standard Wizard:
- Familiar (whatever)
- bonus feats
+ Dark Knowledge (as an Archivist)

So you wouldn't get the 4+Int skill points, two good saves, d6 HD, and all the other Archivist goodies, but you'd get Dark Knowledge (IMHO the coolest part) and you'd get a class that's closer to the core Wizard, and thus closer to balanced with it.

Cheers, -- N

Wednesday Boy · Mar 11, 2008

Nifft said:
This is the opinion of the WotC forum's CharOpt board, and I tend to agree with them on this issue.

I've only seen regular Wizards and Clerics in play, and the thought of even just giving a Cleric full access to all Divine spells makes me worry -- let alone all the other goodies they get!

What I'd do to a standard Wizard:
- Familiar (whatever)
- bonus feats
+ Dark Knowledge (as an Archivist)

So you wouldn't get the 4+Int skill points, two good saves, d6 HD, and all the other Archivist goodies, but you'd get Dark Knowledge (IMHO the coolest part) and you'd get a class that's closer to the core Wizard, and thus closer to balanced with it.

Cheers, -- N

That would actually work out pretty well since the Dark Knowledge is really what I would want for such a character. The higher skill points would be nice to cover your Knowledge skills but a high Intelligence would help out with that. Thanks for the insights!