A Wizard taking an Archivist Dip

[RUMBLETiGER]

I'm toying with a single level dip into the Archivist class for Roleplaying reasons for a Wizard character of mine (see This Post for the background on the specialist Transmutation Wizard/War Weaver build).

The character is primarily a curious academic by personality and after having completed his education by a senior Wizard, he's looking to expand his horizons into religious studies. However he's trained as a Wizard, so Archivist is the natural choice over a level in Cleric. His role has been Party Buff and he's pretty gosh darn good at it. I want him to add the collection of Divine scrolls as a hobby to be written into his prayer book.

My question: What level 1 Cleric/Druid/Ranger/Paladin spells do you happen to think are awesome, and would be useful at higher levels (10+)? His caster level in these spells will be 1, so the spell would have to be pretty good as is. Spells like Embrace The Wild, Weildskill and Speak with Animals seem like appealing choices.

 

[Empirate]

Longstrider, Lesser Restoration, Entangle, Resist Energy, Pass Without Trace, Deathwatch, Hide from Undead, Remove Fear, Sanctuary, Bless Weapon, Animal Messenger, Delay Poison, Hide from Animals.

Those are some good, albeit situational ones from Core. I haven't looked through domains to pick more lower-than-usual-level ones.

 

[Wyvernhand]

Why not expand your studies into religion (take the Skill Focus: Knowledge Religion feat) and then take a few levels in Divine Oracle anywhere in the 6th+ level range? You pick up some additional spells (off the Oracle domain list, notably COMMUNE), get the flavor you want, and you aren't required to light a perfectly good character level on fire for the sake of a little flavor. Or, alternatively, assuming you are 7th level or higher, copy the spell Dismissal into your spellbook (it's on your list), and then take a few levels of Sacred Exorcist.

I'm playing a Conjurer/DivineOracle/Archmage character, and he derives most of his RPness from the fact that he's a high oracle of Pelor. Sure, he's not a cleric of Pelor, but he is a divine agent of Pelor's will on the Prime.

I know it's not what you asked for, but it is related.

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

Longstrider, Lesser Restoration, Entangle, Resist Energy, Pass Without Trace, Deathwatch, Hide from Undead, Remove Fear, Sanctuary, Bless Weapon, Animal Messenger, Delay Poison, Hide from Animals.

Those are some good, albeit situational ones from Core. I haven't looked through domains to pick more lower-than-usual-level ones.

Excellent suggestions, thank you! I'll check into each of them in the near future.

Why not expand your studies into religion (take the Skill Focus: Knowledge Religion feat) and then take a few levels in Divine Oracle anywhere in the 6th+ level range? You pick up some additional spells (off the Oracle domain list, notably COMMUNE), get the flavor you want, and you aren't required to light a perfectly good character level on fire for the sake of a little flavor. Or, alternatively, assuming you are 7th level or higher, copy the spell Dismissal into your spellbook (it's on your list), and then take a few levels of Sacred Exorcist.

I'm playing a Conjurer/DivineOracle/Archmage character, and he derives most of his RPness from the fact that he's a high oracle of Pelor. Sure, he's not a cleric of Pelor, but he is a divine agent of Pelor's will on the Prime.

I know it's not what you asked for, but it is related.

I'm toying with the idea of taking all 5 levels of Combat Medic PrC afterward, meeting the requirements with Cure Light Wounds. The PrC will progress me just like as if I was going Wizard, Plus Mobility, Evasion, better defensive casting, and the pretty capstone ability of spontaneously converting any 6+ level spell to Heal.

 

[nijineko]

i don't have much to add, but that sounds like a neat themed build. especially the conquering new domains of knowledge bit. (pun intended).

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

i don't have much to add, but that sounds like a neat themed build. especially the conquering new domains of knowledge bit. (pun intended).

He's been fun. Backstory actually has him a member of a village that had been rescued by some of our former PC's from another campaign. when my character was an 8 year old NPC, the Favored Soul picked up a pebble, used the level 0 Light spell upon it, and with a wink tossed the pebble to the kid. The illumination lasted briefly, but that moment changed his life. I used the DM's NPC from that campaign to be my PC choice in the next.

So his family, father a Thatcher and mother a Weaver by trade, send him off to find schooling. He's got all the characteristics to make a great Paladin- Noble determination, a strong desire to help others and defeat evil, etc, etc. On his journey, he's instead found by a member of the Mages of the Arcane Order (Complete Arcane), a rather roguish (by personality, not class) professor from Mathghamhna (Complete Arcane, AD&D College of Wizardy) who was looking to win a bet with some of his colleagues- Find an apprentice with no prior magical experience to train as a specialist Wizard in the classroom of the wide world. The professor would train him from afar using "Magical Email" and the student would learn the Wizarding ways as his teacher saw fit.

And so, Terrance Thatcher, the Wizard with the soul of a Paladin, was forged. After 5 levels of Transmutation specialist (his mentor's specialty), his upbrining of learning some of his parents' trade lead to a natural affinity for the Weave of Magic and made the War Weaver PrC an easy choice.

After mastering as far as his teacher could take him, he has graduated out and is, for the first time at level 10, the master of his own leveling destiny. While he's no longer interested in pursuing Paladinhood, he does want to explore Divine magic, thus the Archivist dip. He's pretty hardwired to think and learn like a Wizard, so the class makes sense. He's committed to furthering Arcane magic, so the Divine thing will be a hobby. Picking up scrolls here and there, whatever I can convince my DM to pass my way, but I can make suggestions of what he'd want to find, and in large cities my PC can shop reasonably easily for what I'm looking for.

I'm trying to convince my DM to allow him to encounter a group of Combat Medics to inspire him to want to pursue that path, but that's a little down the road.

 

[Wyvernhand]

Ewww, combat medic? Talk about dead prereq feats.

Also, if all you wanted was CLW on your list, a feat spent on Arcane Disciple for the Healing domain would cover that. You need an 11 wisdom at least, with each point of wisdom giving you the next higher tier of spells from it.

Take a look at Sacred Exorcist from Complete Divine. It has a bit more of a Paladiny feel. You get favored enemy against either undead or evil outsiders, consecration aura, some good themed SLAs, turn undead, and a few other things. Full casting, 3/4 BAB, d8 HD. Prereqs are easy as well. Use turn undead to pick up Law Devotion for the +7 sacred bonus to AC to be protected by your conviction.

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

Ewww, combat medic? Talk about dead prereq feats.

Also, if all you wanted was CLW on your list, a feat spent on Arcane Disciple for the Healing domain would cover that. You need an 11 wisdom at least, with each point of wisdom giving you the next higher tier of spells from it.

Take a look at Sacred Exorcist from Complete Divine. It has a bit more of a Paladiny feel. You get favored enemy against either undead or evil outsiders, consecration aura, some good themed SLAs, turn undead, and a few other things. Full casting, 3/4 BAB, d8 HD. Prereqs are easy as well. Use turn undead to pick up Law Devotion for the +7 sacred bonus to AC to be protected by your conviction.

I feel you on the urge to be efficient in the character build, I really do. It's one of the reasons I participate in the forums here.

But you need to understand, this PC is so ridiculously good at what he does, that he can seriously afford to lose a caster level. Designed as a Party Buff character, he's dropping all the buffs the others need as a Move action, casting another spell as a Standard action, and ever since hitting level 10 with the Enlarged Tapestry, he's sitting pretty away from the fighting most of the time. He's running out of things to do.

And so, I'm making character build designs based upon Roleplaying intentions, something I often don't do.

Combat Medic is worth it for the ability to cast Heal as a Wizard.

 

[VariSami]

If you really intend to go with Combat Medic and advance as a Wizard, you'll need Arcane Disciple with Healing Domain. I know someone pointed it out as an alternative to dipping in Archivist but this is a different matter: Combat Medic only advances the spellcasting class which provides you with Cure Light Wounds. As such, it would advance you as an Archivist, not as a Wizard.

I really like the concept of the character, however, and I like the Archivist dip. I know Mystic Theurge is far from optimal but I've had some fun with a Wizard/Archivist Theurge in the past. It might be worth some looking into, although Mystic Theurge is not an optimal way to advance in multiple spellcasting classes.

 

[ksbsnowowl]

I really like the concept of the character, however, and I like the Archivist dip. I know Mystic Theurge is far from optimal but I've had some fun with a Wizard/Archivist Theurge in the past. It might be worth some looking into, although Mystic Theurge is not an optimal way to advance in multiple spellcasting classes.

It actually wouldn't be too bad if he went with the Precocious Apprentice Focused Specialist for his first wizard level.

Precocious Apprentice gives you a single 2nd level spell slot (with contingent activation), and then Focused Specialist transforms that spell slot into two spell slots of your specialist school. Plus you have your normal specialist extra slot.

So, you can then go Wizard 1/Archivist 3/Mystic Theurge 10.

This generally works better with a Druid, as you can go with both Mystic Theurge and then into Arcane Hierophant, ending up casting as a Wiz 17 and Druid 19.