How useful do sorcerers find the extra spell feat to be?

[Dash Dannigan]

I was considering playing a sorcerer for my next character 10-12 lvl range, and I was looking at spending 2 or 3 feats on gaining extra spells to improve on my Sorcerer's flexibility. Has anyone else had experience with this? Was it useful, or is it wiser to spend my feats elsewhere? It looks good, I mean, how can more spells for my sorcerer be bad?

Other feats I'm already considering are energy substitution:sonic, silent spell, and spell-casting prodigy.

 

[Celtavian]

Re

I have found that the only truly useful feats at higher level are Spell Penetration and Greater Spell Penetration. Practically the only way you will have a chance against the big creatures with their immunities and high spell resistance.

Extra spells just isn't that great because you will most likely use the same few spells over and over again. For example, I use Disintegrate and Hold Monster more often than other spells because they are super effective.

I generally pick utility spells with other slots such as Knock and See Invisibility. You don't need extra spells to round out your sorceror.

 

[Caliber]

Well, the later you take the feat, the better it is 'cause then you can pick a higher level spell.

I would think it would be useful to take once or twice, to get that one spell you couldn't really fit in there (for me 3rd level is HELL level because there are so many good spells. Fly, Haste, Slow, Greater Magic Weapon, Fireball, etc ... the list just seems to stretch to infinity)

But any more than one or two instances of Extra Spell would probably be too big an investment of feats, especially for a Sorceror, who isn't known for getting a lot of feats.

Plus the other feats you listed all sounded pretty good to me.

 

[Jondor_Battlehammer]

I'd hold off as long as you can, and be sure that the spell you pick is really one you'll love. I might take it for a second level slot so I could have all the buff spells, but if your not playing that kind of Sorcerer...

In the end, you might be better off saving the feat, and sacrificing the higher level spell slot. The feat itself is fine for low to mid levels, but beyond that you will wish you could change things. I don't think you'd do wrong taking it, though.

 

[gfunk]

Re: Re

I have found that the only truly useful feats at higher level are Spell Penetration and Greater Spell Penetration. Practically the only way you will have a chance against the big creatures with their immunities and high spell resistance.

I agree with this entirely. My Sor is about to hit 18th level and I was seriously thinking of Extra Spell to pick up one more 8th level spell. Over the course of 17th level though, I saw that we were facing really powerful baddies with insane SR. To really have a chance against them (we don't use PrC with Spell Power) you really need both Spell Penetration feats.

Oh and I agree with Caliber too. Picking only 4 3rd level spells is a painful decision. So painful, in fact, that I convinced my DM to let me to pick up an extra 3rd level spell in place of a new 4th level one.

<added>

Energy Sub: Sonic is a good feat that I've gotten a lot of mileage out of. It is particularly potent against creatures with multiple elemental resistances (Demons, Devils). Very few things in the MM have sonic immunity. At the same time, don't neglect Fire and Cold spells because they are very useful in inflicting double damage on creatures of the opposing element.

 

[Archer]

If extra spell gave you an extra spell of every level it might be worth considering but only one spell for a feat is weak when you only get 7-8 total.

 

[Crothian]

Extra Spell is really good as long as the spell you choose is very useful.

 

[AuraSeer]

I haven't come up with any good reasons to use that feat. At low levels, each spell is weak enough that a single additional one won't give you much benefit. At high levels, if you want one more spell you should just invest in a wand or a staff, and save your feats for stuff that items can't duplicate.

 

[Pax]

If each Extra Spell gave you an additional known spell of each level you can cast ... and was updated as you went up levels ... it owuld be, IMO, worth it at any Sorceror level.

Or perhaps if it allowed you to (with your DM's approval, ofc) add a single spell form a DIFFERENT class' spell list. Maybe.

As it is, though ... I'm all to easily able to come up with alternate lists of feats I'd much rather get. For example, if going for the archtypal "artillery sorceror":

Ch-1 Empower Spell
Ch-3 Elem Substitute, Fire
Ch-6 Elem Substitute, Ice
Ch-9 Elem Substitute, Acid
Ch-12 Elem Substitute, Electric
Ch-15 Elem Substitute, Sonic
Ch-18 Maximise Spell

Combined with knowing the 1st level spell (form MoF) "Know Protections", or similar, you can know "which element are you weak to, today" ... and use it. The spell list for the above would be very heavy on elemental-tagged damaging spells (Burning hands in preference to Magic Missile, for example).

But Extra Spell?

Not even for THE most-useful-spell-I-haven't-already-picked. Ever. Under any circumstances, as the feat is currently written. Its a neat idea, and parallelled the Wizard-oriented Extra Casting, but parallelled it TOO closely, making for an over-weak feat.

IMO, of course.

 

[Lucius Foxhound]

I just want to give a plug to Silent Spell. I can't tell you how many times this has saved my character's arse. My character always memorizes a silent Dimension Door (verbal only components). If you're Sor has Dimension Door and can cast 5th level spells, this rocks. It's gotten me out of situations such as being underwater, being held, trapped in a dragon's claw, tied up and bound in a jail cell, etc. It sucks to burn a 5th level slot, but it's so worth it.

Extra Spell seems like you get very little for using up a valuable Feat.