Help with aoe wizard build please

[Goodlad]

If you are set on blasting, you may wish to play a warmage instead. While it takes a massive hit in the utility aspect, it can be more fun as you get to spontaneously choose which spells to blast the foe with. Work with your Dm to see if you can swap out spells you don't want for damage spells you prefer to better customize it.

Alternative, the focused specialist and master specialist (complete mage) are likely what you want to consider as well.

I had looked at both the focused specialist and the master specialist. Both seem quite nice.

What book is the warmage in? Sometimes its a pain having every book in front of me, someone mentions something and i spend 30 mins trying to find it, lol

 

[Runestar]

Warmage - complete arcane. Guidelines for modifying their spell list is in the spell compendium.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

If you can modify their spell list with Spell Compendium, maybe they're ok. But IMO, Warmages aren't even as good at blasting as an Evoker. Getting spell levels 1 level later, the extremely limited types of spells, the very crappy sudden meta feats as opposed to the very useful wizard bonus feats, lack of splat book alternative options that the evoker has...

About the only thing they're better at is defense -- hp and AC by a bit -- but then again, they lack a lot of the defensive buff spells an evoker could use. At low levels the extra spell slots help, later on you don't run out either way anyway.

I'd reccommend a Warmage if youre still a beginner at playing casters since everything for them is tightly focused and controlled. But for powergaming purposes, I think Evoker is better.

 

[Goodlad]

If you can modify their spell list with Spell Compendium, maybe they're ok. But IMO, Warmages aren't even as good at blasting as an Evoker. Getting spell levels 1 level later, the extremely limited types of spells, the very crappy sudden meta feats as opposed to the very useful wizard bonus feats, lack of splat book alternative options that the evoker has...

About the only thing they're better at is defense -- hp and AC by a bit -- but then again, they lack a lot of the defensive buff spells an evoker could use. At low levels the extra spell slots help, later on you don't run out either way anyway.

I'd reccommend a Warmage if youre still a beginner at playing casters since everything for them is tightly focused and controlled. But for powergaming purposes, I think Evoker is better.

I tend to agree, i looked over the warmage and wasnt overly impressed.
It looks like i will be going with a focused specialist for evocation.

I will work in things like easy metamagic and some other funky stuff including sculpt spell.

By the way StreamOfTheSky, that other thread by dracimus about the druid. Thats my mate who will also be in the game im playing in.

He seems to be going melee with the druid so i will be the only caster.

Since im the only caster is one of te reasons im going for a powergamed blaster type. I find it fun and also i dont want the group only relying on melee damage, i want us to have a wizard to blow stuff up.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

The Warmage- like some of the other armored arcanist classes- are for those who want a one-stop gish shop. He's not supposed to out-blast "Tim the Enchanter", he's supposed to use his spells to accentuate his martial prowess.

Thus, unlike a standard Evoker, he may wear his armor and wade into battle or accompany the scout or rogue on a particularly dangerous recon mission without fear of simply taking a hard shot to the dome.

Think of them like pocket battleships. They can't stand up to standard battleships, but may be able to deliver nearly the same punch into places and in situations the battleship can't quite get to.

 

[Dandu]

The Warmage- like some of the other armored arcanist classes- are for those who want a one-stop gish shop. He's not supposed to out-blast "Tim the Enchanter", he's supposed to use his spells to accentuate his martial prowess.

What martial prowess? Warmages have 1/2 BAB last time I checked.

 

[Anton85]

What martial prowess? Warmages have 1/2 BAB last time I checked.

And a d6 hitdice. And they dont have access to transmutation spells. And they dont have martial weapons proficiency.

 

[Dandu]

To be fair, they do get Pyrotechnics, a 2nd level Transmutation spell...

 

[Andras]

For example, lightning has a nice level 5 spell in Spell Compendium to shoot d4 bolts for good damage each, Moonbow. With Empower Spell, you get 1.5x as many bolts for 1.5x as much damage.

Just a quick FYI, Moonbow has been errata'd to a fixed 3 orbs, not a d4.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Warmages can cast evocation spells while wearing armor and get an upgraded d6HD- nothing to sneeze at when trying to improve a PC's durability.

I'm not saying they're the best single-class gish, though. They're just one of the more sorcerer-ey examples of a spectrum of "gishy" classes that include the Battle Sorcerer*, Stalwart Sorcerer, Beguiler, Duskblade and a few others...not to mention those you can find in 3PPs.

* My personal favorite of the WotC gishes.