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This is a directory of posters who think the sorcerer needs fixing
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<blockquote data-quote="Gradine" data-source="post: 7104888" data-attributes="member: 57112"><p>Part Three: Fixing the Sorcerer</p><p></p><p>Before I talk about how I would fix the Sorcerer, there's one other concept I want to discuss regarding Sorcerers. We've talked about Sorcerer as bloodline and Sorcerer as artist, which are the two concepts that the Sorcerer's archetype and sorcery point (metamagic & spell slots) mechanics lend themselves to quite well, for the most part. The archetypes have been mostly underwhelming but do a good enough job, I think at this point, that they aren't worth tweaking. And I think once one understands the Sorcerer as artist flavor, the mechanics associated with sorcery points make a great deal of sense, so that concept is fine. But there's a third concept too, one supported by the limited spells known mechanic. This is what has been called the "Sorcerers as X-Men" concept. This is the idea that because Sorcerers have so few spells known, they should be learning spells that stick to a specific theme, like a mutant from the X-men comics. I've actually kicked around the idea of building an "Aberrant Dragonmark" Sorcerer archetype for 5e Eberron for exactly that reason. The problem here isn't even the extremely small number of spells the Sorcerer gets to learn over their career.</p><p></p><p>The problem is their spell list.</p><p></p><p>For any given "theme" you might want to assign to your Sorcerer, there's going to at least be a handful of spells that would perfectly fit your theme that you don't have access to, because <s>WotC</s> <s>Mearls</s> reasons. There's seriously no rhyme or reason to the spells the Wizard gets that the Sorcerer doesn't. Sorcs get plenty of utility spells, just not all of them. And while they're supposed to be "blasters" there's some attack spells Sorcs don't get either.</p><p></p><p>So here's how I would fix the Sorcerer, as a base class:</p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Increase spell slots per day by 1 across the board. Let Sorcerers benefit from extra spells AND metamagic, rather than having to choose one or the other.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Broaden the spell list to include all Wizard spells AT THE LEAST.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">A mechanic to learn spells from other lists. This makes more sense for the Sorcerer than for the Bard, to be honest. If the Sorcerer is going to be relegated to sticking to a theme, let them at least stick to it.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">More metamagic. More interesting and more WEIRD. Change damage types. Cast Self-only spells on others. Transfer concentration. I don't know; but this is the Sorcerer's true defining trait and niche, it should be extremely creative.</li> </ul><p></p><p>I wouldn't want to tweak specific archetypes, but if I were to build a specific archetype around a signature ability, it would be the ability to cast spells to mimic the effects of other spells not on your spells known list. I wouldn't know how to build it seriously without hilariously breaking the game, but I have this image in my head of a Sorcerer using a Burning Hands spell as a limited short-range jetpack (an instantaneous Jump) and I want to make that a reality.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Gradine, post: 7104888, member: 57112"] Part Three: Fixing the Sorcerer Before I talk about how I would fix the Sorcerer, there's one other concept I want to discuss regarding Sorcerers. We've talked about Sorcerer as bloodline and Sorcerer as artist, which are the two concepts that the Sorcerer's archetype and sorcery point (metamagic & spell slots) mechanics lend themselves to quite well, for the most part. The archetypes have been mostly underwhelming but do a good enough job, I think at this point, that they aren't worth tweaking. And I think once one understands the Sorcerer as artist flavor, the mechanics associated with sorcery points make a great deal of sense, so that concept is fine. But there's a third concept too, one supported by the limited spells known mechanic. This is what has been called the "Sorcerers as X-Men" concept. This is the idea that because Sorcerers have so few spells known, they should be learning spells that stick to a specific theme, like a mutant from the X-men comics. I've actually kicked around the idea of building an "Aberrant Dragonmark" Sorcerer archetype for 5e Eberron for exactly that reason. The problem here isn't even the extremely small number of spells the Sorcerer gets to learn over their career. The problem is their spell list. For any given "theme" you might want to assign to your Sorcerer, there's going to at least be a handful of spells that would perfectly fit your theme that you don't have access to, because [s]WotC[/s] [s]Mearls[/s] reasons. There's seriously no rhyme or reason to the spells the Wizard gets that the Sorcerer doesn't. Sorcs get plenty of utility spells, just not all of them. And while they're supposed to be "blasters" there's some attack spells Sorcs don't get either. So here's how I would fix the Sorcerer, as a base class: [LIST] [*]Increase spell slots per day by 1 across the board. Let Sorcerers benefit from extra spells AND metamagic, rather than having to choose one or the other. [*]Broaden the spell list to include all Wizard spells AT THE LEAST. [*]A mechanic to learn spells from other lists. This makes more sense for the Sorcerer than for the Bard, to be honest. If the Sorcerer is going to be relegated to sticking to a theme, let them at least stick to it. [*]More metamagic. More interesting and more WEIRD. Change damage types. Cast Self-only spells on others. Transfer concentration. I don't know; but this is the Sorcerer's true defining trait and niche, it should be extremely creative. [/LIST] I wouldn't want to tweak specific archetypes, but if I were to build a specific archetype around a signature ability, it would be the ability to cast spells to mimic the effects of other spells not on your spells known list. I wouldn't know how to build it seriously without hilariously breaking the game, but I have this image in my head of a Sorcerer using a Burning Hands spell as a limited short-range jetpack (an instantaneous Jump) and I want to make that a reality. [/QUOTE]
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