Caster feats

[MoonSong]

Let me first make the argument for why these aren't needed. Casters in a point-buy game almost never consider anything other than a stat gain until 12th level unless they are human. And by 12th level, casters are, IME, already on the overpowered side. So not needed.


And... combat caster is really quite good. Spell sniper can be good, though mostly for Warlocks. Lucky is great for everyone.

All that said, I think there is a niche missing, the +1 stat caster feat so that those with a +2 bonus (and thus potentially a 17 stat in point buy) get some millage out of it.

Practiced caster:
+1 to Int or Wis or Chr. Gain an extra 1st level spell slot (regain with long rest). Can make a target reroll a save against a spell you cast once per long rest.

Maybe you should drop the +1, you could make the forced rerroll once per short rest

Focused caster:
+1 to Int or Wis or Chr. Pick a spell from your spell list that does damage to a target. You may freely change the the damage type three times per long rest, each time to any standard damage type you wish. Also, gain a +2 bonus to saving throws to maintain your concentration.

Again, drop the +1. And maybe make it apply to any damaging typed spell? or if it is a single spell make it to always be an option?

Flexible caster
+1 to Int or Wis or Chr. Each morning you may pick one spell from your classes spell list that is of a level you have a spell slot. Add it to your spells known for the day. (This is huge for classes that pick there spells and only change when they level up. It's also huge for multi-class casters to enable them to get to a high-level spell they might not be able to otherwise case. Might be a "must have" for some characters?)

This kind of defeats the point of having spontaneous casters. Further blurring the line to make them prepared-lite won't help a lot. On the other hand it is too much for half and third casters. My counter proposals.

Esoteric Savant
Requisites: Spells known class feature.
Benefit: Choose one spell of each spell level you can cast, that spell can be any spell that doesn't require an attack roll or saving throw to avoid or reduce damage. Add those spells to your class spell list. Add another spell each time you can learn spells known of a new spell level. You cannot prepare, write on your spellbook, or cast these spells as rituals.

Spontaneous ritualist
Requisites: The ability to cast spells without preparation.
When you cast a ritual spell you know using a spell slot, you can meditate for 1 minute to regain a spell slot of that spell level. You add a ritual spell to your spells known, and can learn ritual spells from ritual scrolls and add them to your spells known (Maximum 5 or your spellcasting ability modifier whichever is lower).

 

[bid]

In a way, tough and moderately armored are caster feat. Not the best, but sometimes what you need is outside the magic realm.

Stealing from another caster class is the best kind of bonus:
- somehow getting access to magical secrets, domain/circles spells, tomelock book.
- some martial adept equivalent, taking a single meta-magic with a few SP (twinning concentration, for instance).
- converting to prepared spells sorcerer et al.
- smite with 1st slots only.
- getting EK bond / bladelock swiss army knife
The problem is keeping them low-power enough.

 

[Li Shenron]

I would certainly like a feat that allowed to make a spell more permanent, probably not truly permanent but just lasting the whole day. Something along the following:

Persistent Spellcasting
Once a day, when you cast a spell with a duration of at least 1 minute, you can extend its duration to 24 hours. The resulting spell can be dispelled normally, and if the original spell required concentration, it still does until the end of the extended duration.

Then of course there could be some class-specific feats to help for example Sorcerers get a small boost on spells known or metamagic options.

In addition I would have also liked that they kept the whole Magic Initiate feats chain, but that's not for spellcasters but rather for non-casters to dabble in spells.

 

[CapnZapp]

Excellent discussion

 

[The Grassy Gnoll]

Also "caster level" is not a 5e term, so I'd avoid it

Yeah, I was trying to second guess anyone with MC levels in two or more caster classes (eg Druid/Ranger or EK/Warlock etc).

I like the simplified version, though perhaps:
- the second spell you cast automatically needs a Conc check every round
- disadvantage on Conc checks if take damage; fail, lose both

 

[feartheminotaur]

Elemental Admixture - Prerequisite: The ability to cast at least one spell. When you gain this feat, choose two of the following damage types: acid, cold, fire, lightning, poison or thunder. Spells you cast that deal damage with one of the chosen types can be changed to the other type. You can select this feat multiple times. Each time you do so, you must choose two different pairs of damage types.

...I wanted this one to avoid the "every spell becomes one damage type", which is a feat tax for non-fire dragon sorcerers, and would be pure gold (as in value and charop font color). Instead, this allows a smaller subset of spells to be affected. For example, if you choose "fire" and "cold" as your admixture, you may change the fireball spell to do cold, or cone of cold to do fire, but not make an acidball or cone of poison. If you took it twice and chose "fire/cold" and "fire/acid" then fireball could be coldball or acidball.

Spellbook Savant - Prerequisite: Pact Magic class feature. When you take a long rest you may choose one of the warlock spells you know and replace it with a spell from a wizard's spell book, which must be of a level for which you have spell slots. The spell uses your spellcasting ability. This feat does not allow you to replace a magical secret gained through the Mystic Arcanum class feature, nor can it increase the number of spells you know. You may only replace a spell learned via this feat when you gain a new level in the warlock class, and you may only replace it with a spell from the warlock list.

...Warlocks can only cast, at most, two spells/short rest, none higher than 5th level and don't have metamagic. I can't really think of a wizard only spell that would be game breaking with this. I'm sure someone here will...

Spell Penetration - Prerequisite: Spellcasting or Pact Magic class feature . Choose one spell that you know that deals half damage to a target on a successful saving throw. When you cast this spell, one target of the spell has disadvantage on their save made to halve the damage taken. You can select this feat multiple times. Each time you do so, you must choose a different spell.

Greater Spell Penetration - Prerequisite: Spellcasting or Pact Magic class feature, Spell Penetration feat . Choose one spell you know that you have previously applied the Spell Penetration feat to. When you cast that spell, all targets of the spell have disadvantage on their save made to halve the damage taken. You can select this feat multiple times. Each time you do so, you must choose a different spell.

...I'm thinking of making this "Choose one spell that you know that has a saving throw to negate the effect" instead. Not sure, since the "save negates" spells can be super nasty game-enders; save for half is just HP damage and I doubt it would be game breaking.

 

[transtemporal]

I love it

 

[Quickleaf]

I would certainly like a feat that allowed to make a spell more permanent, probably not truly permanent but just lasting the whole day. Something along the following:

Persistent Spellcasting
Once a day, when you cast a spell with a duration of at least 1 minute, you can extend its duration to 24 hours. The resulting spell can be dispelled normally, and if the original spell required concentration, it still does until the end of the extended duration.

Then of course there could be some class-specific feats to help for example Sorcerers get a small boost on spells known or metamagic options.

In addition I would have also liked that they kept the whole Magic Initiate feats chain, but that's not for spellcasters but rather for non-casters to dabble in spells.

I like that one. It feels balanced and has a clear identity that I can visualize translating to the narrative. "Remember when that young sorceress kept the storms at bay from sunrise to sunset? Poor lass collapsed after, but she saved us."

I'm actually thinking those Unearthed Arcana feats for tool proficiencies (e.g. Gourmand) might be an interesting model to apply to certain spell categories.

Covert Magic
For example, I have seen dozens examples of players wanting to cast a spell subtly; almost always these are Enchantment or Illusion spells. And I don't mean the sorcerer's Subtle Spell, I mean casting the spell so that it doesn't look like a spell. For example, whispering under one's cloak or disguising it as telling story / playing upon a harp. Usually DMs will ad lib this or call for a Deception or Sleight of Hand check, but some might not allow it outright. I'm thinking that could be a good basis for a feat I'm dubbing "covert magic," but you'd want to be careful to design it so that it wasn't excluding the "ad lib" or "make a skill check" model, but rather providing the player something even better.

Sense Spellcaster
Detect magic senses spell schools, but what about something akin to the Battle Master Fighter's 7th level class feature allowing them to glean information about a foe. Except this would be more strictly about the foe's spellcasting class (or what class list(s) their spells come from), the highest level of spell they can cast, and their "specialty" (aka "fire magic" or "enchantment"). Situational, but could be useful and apropos for an inquisitor-type PC or a strategic player.

Empowered Cantrip
Something that just came up in a game was expending a 1st-level slot to cast a cantrip in an unexpected way. It would need to be codified more, maybe even whittled down to very specific cantrips, but I think there's a lot of potential there. For example, a message send to multiple creatures at once with a single image transmitted to their minds as an added component could have a lot of flavor.

<Damage Type> Mastery
Probably a series of feats to encourage certain themes. For example, force magic. Three things I can think of for force magic:

• It could probably be about forced movement more than it is now, so you could have the feat add a push effect to spells (of 1st level and higher) inflicting force damage.
• Several force spells involve created forcefields with hit points and AC, so boosting those with this feat would help those forcefields last longer.
• Maybe gain resistance to force damage (possibly conditional).

 

[schnee]

Contrary opinion:

Nah, casters don't need 'em. The feats are one of the things that equalize the linear-martial quadratic-spellcaster, their equivalent feats at each level are things like 'well I can completely change reality yet again today', so we don't need to get into the 3.5/Pathfinder arms race to 'see how many splat books we can publish to make casters even more powerful' again.

 

[TallIan]

I certainly wouldn't want to see anything that improved spell attack or save DCs.

Two things that I would like to see are:

Essentially pact of the chain familiars for any caster capable of casting find familiar, I know DMs can optionally allow the extra familiars anyway, but I don't think that's fair to chain'locks but I would also like the extra abilities, I think a feet for that would be fair.

I would also like to see concentration enhancement, ie more than one concentration spell. I would make it have a high level requirement (11th or so), and limit the second spell to 3rd or below.

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