3.x ed.--While Playing My 15th Level Wizard Last Night, I Realized Something...

[joethelawyer]

His spells sucked. he has a decent spellbook. but 99% of the spells in it have to do with combat, or gaining an advantage in primarily in a combat situation, or a dungeon crawl, in one way or another.

Here's the situation that put it into sharp focus last night: Our group intercepted a note, and it was about us. so of course we wanted to find out who wrote it. i figure, no problem, i must have a spell to handle that. i'm a 15th level wizard, right?

the more i looked, the more i realized i could basically blast the note to smithereens in 56 different ways, but i had no spell to find out a damn thing about it. Even legend lore, one of the few non-combat/non dungeoneering spells out there, wouldn't help me. i couldn't believe a 6th level spell that can find out mysteries about 4000 year old ruins, cant help me find out a single clue about a note written 10 minutes earlier. there isn't even a 2nd level ghetto version of the spell.

so i looked thru my collection of wotc and d20 books and pdf's for the kinds of non-combat/non-dungeoneering spells that i know must be out there, and came up basically with nothing.

you have to figure, in a fantasy world, with wizards being the academic type/relative weaklings that they are, there would be a heck of a lot more spells dealing with non-combat/non-dungeoneering.

there ought to be an 18th level wizard out there who has never cast a spell in combat or ever been in a combat situation. there ought to be many such higher level wizards who gain experience through using their spellcasting to overcome situations, such as:

researching ancient information,
retrieving lost items,
gathering information on the planes,
understanding monster ecology,
integrating aspects of herbalism or alchemy into spells,
figuring out more effective spell components for certain spells,
crafting magical poisons,

etc...

where are those spells? are there any books/resources out there with those types of spells? something beyond the basic cantrip to clean up dirt off the floor, comprehend languages, tongues and charm person?

why does the day-to-day "in-between adventures memorized spells list" of a 15th level wizard, who lives in a small village where nothing ever happens, look like i am prepared for an invasion from the abyss, simply because i have no other spells to choose from?



thx

 

[malraux]

I'm pretty sure arcane evolved has a cantrip or 1st level spell to ID stuff in that way.

 

[joethelawyer]

I'm pretty sure arcane evolved has a cantrip or 1st level spell to ID stuff in that way.

i'm not looking for just that particular spell.

my overall question is, what does a spellbook of an 18th level wizard who has never been in combat, doesn't plan to be in combat, dungeon delve, or adventure in any way, shape, or form, look like?

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

I figure no wizard would ever go without some defensive spells, if only to avoid random bandits.

WotC doesn't have a lot of "solve work" or divination spells, since the former can be abusive and the latter can wreck plots. That leaves wizards with very few non-combat spells.

I managed to draw up a "loremaster" once who used lots of divination spells, but he did occasionally adventure (specifically accompany combat adventurers into dangerous locales to study old forbidden magic). However, he did have some combat spells, in case he got chased into a corner, etc.

 

[Herremann the Wise]

i'm not looking for just that particular spell.

my overall question is, what does a spellbook of an 18th level wizard who has never been in combat, doesn't plan to be in combat, dungeon delve, or adventure in any way, shape, or form, look like?

I think an excellent question?

To achieve such a level, a wizard must have seen, researched and been part of an awful lot of events and happenings. However, what is it that separates the high level wizard from the master scholar? In essence, I think it is to be able to do things that the scholar simply cannot.

For a few ideas:
- Communication spells: be it communicating with scholars, other wizards, the fey, spirits of the dead, deities or other diverse entities of the multiverse, the high level wizard should know no bounds when it comes to discovering knowledge in all its forms.
- The creation of Magical Items: be they small devices that achieve a specific task or items of almost artifact power, these are the tools the high wizard uses to achieve their various purposes.
- Defensive spells: where the wizard treads, danger is surely imminent, and so protective wards of the highest order should be at their immediate access and disposal.
- Divinations: While even the highest level wizard can never be sure of the symbols and information that divinations provide, they should at the same time be able to work out several possible meanings for such things. Nothing should be more suspicious to a wizard than a divination that provides a definitive answer.
- Transporting Spells: Any corner of the multiverse (be it in space, or perhaps even time) should be a valid destination for the high level wizard. Daring to travel right under the nose of the enemy would be the pinnacle of such travel. Trickery and daring are perhaps synonymous with such difficult destinations.
- Environmental spells: The high level wizard should be able to choose and alter their environment to suit. Inclement conditions, be it weather, planar or infernal in origin should not affect the wizard.
- And of course, we have the list of spells under the heading of "Power No Mortal should ever Trifle With" - except of course the wizard, who dares deal with such things either cautiously or with caprice - as suits the personality of the wizard. The ability to research such things, even if hidden by the pantheon of deities themselves is not a barrier for the high level wizard.
- And perhaps, just in case something untowards happens, a small selection of scrolls of fireball, meteorswarm or other dire offensive magic might be found in the wizard's haversack. Of course, such a high level wizard would never really need to use such things, they are way too good for that.

Just some ideas.

Best Regards
Herremann the Wise

PS: My character Lucifus Cray (see sig.) perhaps embodies this, although at 19th level, he's still not quite good enough to leave the offensive spells alone. He's getting there though.

 

[markkat]

i'm not looking for just that particular spell.

my overall question is, what does a spellbook of an 18th level wizard who has never been in combat, doesn't plan to be in combat, dungeon delve, or adventure in any way, shape, or form, look like?

They have those?!

Yes, I think a sense of naturalism has always been lacking in D&D PCs or NPCs. -Every edition. But that goes for most games, so I am not picking on D&D in particular, and I have had much fun playing it.

For me, the ideal system enables construction of such characters. A sage shouldn't always be able to blast you just because he's been around a long time or is really good at divining.

 

[IceFractal]

Just looking in the SRD here, and excluding even defensive spells that any Wizard might prepare just in case, or non-violent combat stuff to deal with bar fights/angry mobs:

8th Level:
Greater Planar Binding - Extraplanar creatures can serve as a source of information or useful powers, not just combat aids.
Discern Location - Find where anything is, no matter what.
Prying Eyes - Allows you not only to scout faster, but also research faster and/or observe an experiment from multiple directions.
Telekinetic Sphere - Easily move large objects, contain dangerous materials, etc.
Polymorph any Object - Too many uses to even count.

7th Level:
Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion - Live large, even in the most crowded city or the most desolate wasteland, for one spell slot a day.
Greater Teleport - Travel safely in seconds.
Greater Scrying - Watch what's going on whenever you want.
Simulacrum - Get a single sample of a rare creature, and you can have a near perfect duplicate that cooperates with you completely.
Control Weather - Don't feel like rain? No problem!
Reverse Gravity - Many uses, both practical, experimental, and comedic.

6th Level:
Planar Binding - Same reason as Greater Planar Binding.
Wall of Iron - Instant raw materials, especially when combined with Fabricate.
Legend Lore - For obvious reasons.
Freezing Sphere - Ice was hard to get before refrigeration, but not for you.
Permanent / Programmed Image - With a month or so to kill, you could build a whole illusory town. At the very least, you can spruce up your tower with this.
Shadow Walk - If you need to transport a larger group than Teleport does.
Control Water / Disintegrate / Move Earth - A great aid in construction projects.
Mass Stat Buffs - Need your assistants to be a lot more capable, without extra training or expensive items?

 

[Vegepygmy]

my overall question is, what does a spellbook of an 18th level wizard who has never been in combat, doesn't plan to be in combat, dungeon delve, or adventure in any way, shape, or form, look like?

I'm not sure I accept your premise that there should be 18th level wizards who have never been in combat. Nor do I understand why you couldn't have used scrying, vision, discern location, or some other such spell to identify the writer of the note.

I do agree, though, that the kinds of spells you seem to want would exist in a D&D world; they just aren't statted up because they wouldn't see a lot of use in most games, so they aren't worth the book-space. But any time you need one, you can use the existing spells to figure out what level they should be, how they should work, etc.

So...that's how I would handle it, I guess.

 

[Runestar]

I am not sure I like the idea of a spell which can accurately tell me who wrote a particular note anyways. Seems like it would kill a lot of plot hooks. No need to bother ferreting out who the kidnapper is. Simply cast said spell on the ransom note and you are done.

 

[Vascant]

This is where stepping into OGL is very handy, there have been hundreds of pdf's released with many spells in them. Now most will require a little editing or modification to make sure balance or flavor is right for your world but in my opinion has been well worth it.

Other sources:
2e Spell Compendium (many spells just waiting to be converted)
Dragon Magazine
Dungeon Magazine

A good example for your 18th level wizard who never goes in combat, take a look at Bastion Press pdf "Ink & Quill", it has a few spells dealing with books and such (If I recall this was free).