D&D 4E Re-examining 4e Wizard Class Features

[bert1000]

Given the other controllers that now exist (and the hybrid rules), I’ve been thinking about the Wizard’s class features. I think Wizards are certainly playable as is, but most of their shtick seems to come from their dailies. I’d like to make their class abilities more differentiated without totally changing them. What do people think of these house rules?

** You can perform one ritual with the Arcana key skill per day of your level or lower without expending components, although you must pay any other costs and use any focus required by the ritual. At 11th level, you can perform two such rituals per day of your level or lower without expending components; at 21st level, you can perform three per day.

Rational: This makes the Wizard the master of rituals again. Also, I think Wizards didn’t get free rituals simply by being in PHB1.

** Add Tomb of Readiness Implement Mastery and the effects of the Improved Tomb of Readiness feat to the Wizard’s class features (in addition to picking an additional Implement Mastery as normal)

Rational: This makes another class feature, the Wizard’s spell book, actually worth something again (and the expanded spell book feat as well). This also cements the wizard as one the most versatile classes. I think versatility is great, but I think it adds to the uniqueness of the class and player satisfaction more than a huge boost to raw power. [This feature could be once/day instead of once/encounter if too powerful though?]

In the end, this really isn’t about making the Wizard more “controllery” but I do think it makes the class more distinctive. I'm not a fan of hybrids, but for those that are, a side effect of these changes would be making single class Wizards more appealing (vs. hybrid just to get the great dailies).

 

[Hereticus]

You can perform one ritual with the Arcana key skill per day of your level or lower without expending components, although you must pay any other costs and use any focus required by the ritual. At 11th level, you can perform two such rituals per day of your level or lower without expending components; at 21st level, you can perform three per day.

My biggest complaint is the cost and time to cast rituals. In seeing that nobody was casting rituals, our group dropped the purchase and component cost to silver rather than gold.

Like magic, everyone wanted to cast rituals! It made the game better.

With the above rule, it would eliminate the need for that class feature.

 

[MarkB]

I think the implement specialisations could do with being revamped, especially Orbs which have become seriously nerfed over time. I've yet to see the Orb's ability to extend the duration of an At-Will spell come to any serious use, and I think with the general toning-down of the save-penalty effects, allowing the spell-duration-extension ability to be applicable to Encounter powers would be a suitable compensation.

Other than that, I'd add some extra flavourful utility effects to the implement choices, possibly involving rituals. For instance, it would seem fitting for Orb specialists to gain a skill bonus to Divination-type rituals (using it as a crystal ball), and for Staff specialists to gain a bonus to defensive and protection-related rituals.

 

[Plane Sailing]

moved to 4e house rules

 

[erf_beto]

Other than that, I'd add some extra flavourful utility effects to the implement choices, possibly involving rituals. For instance, it would seem fitting for Orb specialists to gain a skill bonus to Divination-type rituals (using it as a crystal ball), and for Staff specialists to gain a bonus to defensive and protection-related rituals.

How about the wizard spending a magic item daily use to cast an Arcana ritual with no cost and a bonus equal to his implement enhancement bonus, as long as the ritual is of a lower level than the implement in question? The type of ritual could be tied to the type of implement (like divination rituals: orbs), and the options could be expanded with feats (double the enhancement bonus for tomes, half casting time for wands, ignore healing surge cost for staffs, etc)