Siva had battled fiends before, but never one of this variety. His eyes glowing with magical fire, he gazed into the magical essence that bound the spirit of evil to the material plane.
"Hmm," Siva thought, "it appears to favor fire attacks, though it is very careful to remain outside the flames. And my lightning has no effect." As if suddenly finding the final piece to a jigsaw puzzle, "Why didn't I see it earlier! It is Polymorphed and quite weak against the fire. Unfortunately I have no fire magics of my own. I will have to make due with what I have."
Attuning himself to the magics that the fiend used to prepare itself for the mortal combat, he Dispels the myriad spells that protect the cunning demon. Seeing at the last moment before completing his spell that the demon has girded its elemental protections with a Nondetection spell, Siva bypasses it and goes right for the true threat.
Seeing that the mortal has found its true weakness despite all subterfuge, the demon panics and begins to fortify itself oncemore. Satisfied of his own deductive ability, Siva is nonetheless outmatched in terms of destructive power. Probing the intense magical field of the demon, Siva finally finds the correct thread that holds the demon here. Setting the brunt of his banishment effect purely against the binding spell, Siva manages to overcome the demon and send it back to the Abyss.
"That was a tough fight. It was truly amazing how the demon had evoked such controlled bursts of elemental fire. I would never have devised such an ingenious formula on my own. I must make sure to record this spell before it fades from my memory."
Much magic is called "arcane" for a reason. It is mysterious and subtle in appearance and effect. Even powerful archmages are frequently clueless as to the true structure of magic. As many know, however, knowledge is power. Thus Seers study magic itself, and how it manifests in the world. Their strange glowing eyes set them apart from the majority of spellcasters, but their heightened perceptions are worth the distinction. While not truly specialists of Abjuration magic, their ability to single out specific magical auras make Seers unusually capable of disrupting magical effects when they can focus on the individual components of magic.
Prerequisites:
Skills: Spellcraft 8 ranks, Knowledge (Arcana) 5 ranks
Feats: Spell Penetration
Spells: Must both know and be able to cast Detect Magic and Dispel Magic
Special: Must have used magic to defeat a foe with spell resistance. Also must not have a familiar.
Class Benefits:
HD: d4
BAB: Poor (as Wizard)
Saves: Good Will/Bad Fort and Reflex (as Wizard)
Skill Points: 2+Int bonus
Class Skills: Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Knowledge (any) (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis)
Special abilities per level:
1: Spellcraft
2: Arcane Sight
3: Improved Counterspelling
4: Gaze/blind imm.
5: Spell Learning
6: Dispel Mastery
7: Greater Arcane Sight
8: Analyze Dweomer
9: Abjuration Mastery
10: Spell Resistance
Spellcasting - At each level, the Seer gains spellcasting ability as if he advanced in a previous spellcasting class. If he has more than one spellcasting class, he chooses one each level to advance. He gains spells known and spells per day as if advancing, but does not improve other class abilities (such as Turn Undead, or improving a Familiar).
Spellcraft Mastery(Ex) - At first level, the Seer gains a +4 Insight bonus to identify any spell being cast, identify a spell effect already in place, or identify a magical aura.
Arcane Sight (Sp) - At second level, the Seer gains an improved ability to detect magical auras by sight. He gains a continuous Arcane Sight ability, always active. This effect may be dispelled, but the Seer may restore it as a free action on his own turn. The caster level is equal to his character level.
Improved Counterspelling - At third level, the Seer's ability to almost precognitively discern precise magical auras grants him the Improved Counterspell feat, but only usable when he is able to see the magical aura of the caster with his Arcane Sight.
Gaze/Blind immunity (Su) - At fourth level, the Seer's sight is discerning enough to ignore all gaze attacks. He reflexively breaks them down into their magical components before their effects take place upon him. His sight is also supernaturally enhanced to the point that his magic makes him immune to any effect that would blind him, including physical damage to his eyes. Concealment and invisibility still function against him, though magical auras may make such a defense moot.
Spell Learning (Ex) - At fifth level, the Seer is so adept at analyzing magical auras that he may learn a spell just by seeing its casting. The Seer makes a spellcraft roll (DC 20 + spell level, Spellcraft Mastery applies) as the spell is cast to decipher the spell. For days equal to his Intelligence modifier thereafter the Seer may scribe the deciphered spell to his spellbook as if he had access to a scroll with the spell on it. Casters who do not use spellbooks instead gain a bonus Metamagic or Item Creation feat.
Dispel Mastery (Ex) - At level 6, the Seer's ability to distinguish between magical effects gives him a more precise ability to Dispel Magic. He gains a +2 Insight bonus to his opposed Dispel check, and may choose which effects to Dispel. He may voluntarily fail any dispel roll, or may automatically Dispel any effect he created himself. Additionally, he knows precisely which spells he Dispels after any Dispel Magic.
Greater Arcane Sight (Sp) - At 7th level, the Seer's Arcane Sight improves and is replaced by the spell Greater Arcane Sight. As the original ability, it is always active and if suppressed may be resumed as a free action.
Analyze Dweomer (Sp) - At 8th level, the Seer's Arcane Sight gains an additional level of sophistication. As a standard action, he may identify the specific properties of any magical item he can see with his Greater Arcane Sight, as if he used the Analyze Dweomer spell.
Abjuration Mastery (Ex) - At 9th level, the Seer is able to make minor changes to spells that alter other magical effects, to counteract anomalies in their targets. Any abjuration spell he casts with an instantaneous duration has any applicable DC or opposed roll increased by 2. This stacks with the Dispel Mastery ability in the case of Dispel Magic.
Spell Resistance (Ex) - At 10th level, the Seer is not only a master of identifying magic, but also subtly changing his own aura to resist magic. He gains SR of 5 + his caster level. If he has SR from another source, instead add 5 to its value.
"Hmm," Siva thought, "it appears to favor fire attacks, though it is very careful to remain outside the flames. And my lightning has no effect." As if suddenly finding the final piece to a jigsaw puzzle, "Why didn't I see it earlier! It is Polymorphed and quite weak against the fire. Unfortunately I have no fire magics of my own. I will have to make due with what I have."
Attuning himself to the magics that the fiend used to prepare itself for the mortal combat, he Dispels the myriad spells that protect the cunning demon. Seeing at the last moment before completing his spell that the demon has girded its elemental protections with a Nondetection spell, Siva bypasses it and goes right for the true threat.
Seeing that the mortal has found its true weakness despite all subterfuge, the demon panics and begins to fortify itself oncemore. Satisfied of his own deductive ability, Siva is nonetheless outmatched in terms of destructive power. Probing the intense magical field of the demon, Siva finally finds the correct thread that holds the demon here. Setting the brunt of his banishment effect purely against the binding spell, Siva manages to overcome the demon and send it back to the Abyss.
"That was a tough fight. It was truly amazing how the demon had evoked such controlled bursts of elemental fire. I would never have devised such an ingenious formula on my own. I must make sure to record this spell before it fades from my memory."
Much magic is called "arcane" for a reason. It is mysterious and subtle in appearance and effect. Even powerful archmages are frequently clueless as to the true structure of magic. As many know, however, knowledge is power. Thus Seers study magic itself, and how it manifests in the world. Their strange glowing eyes set them apart from the majority of spellcasters, but their heightened perceptions are worth the distinction. While not truly specialists of Abjuration magic, their ability to single out specific magical auras make Seers unusually capable of disrupting magical effects when they can focus on the individual components of magic.
Prerequisites:
Skills: Spellcraft 8 ranks, Knowledge (Arcana) 5 ranks
Feats: Spell Penetration
Spells: Must both know and be able to cast Detect Magic and Dispel Magic
Special: Must have used magic to defeat a foe with spell resistance. Also must not have a familiar.
Class Benefits:
HD: d4
BAB: Poor (as Wizard)
Saves: Good Will/Bad Fort and Reflex (as Wizard)
Skill Points: 2+Int bonus
Class Skills: Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Knowledge (any) (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis)
Special abilities per level:
1: Spellcraft
2: Arcane Sight
3: Improved Counterspelling
4: Gaze/blind imm.
5: Spell Learning
6: Dispel Mastery
7: Greater Arcane Sight
8: Analyze Dweomer
9: Abjuration Mastery
10: Spell Resistance
Spellcasting - At each level, the Seer gains spellcasting ability as if he advanced in a previous spellcasting class. If he has more than one spellcasting class, he chooses one each level to advance. He gains spells known and spells per day as if advancing, but does not improve other class abilities (such as Turn Undead, or improving a Familiar).
Spellcraft Mastery(Ex) - At first level, the Seer gains a +4 Insight bonus to identify any spell being cast, identify a spell effect already in place, or identify a magical aura.
Arcane Sight (Sp) - At second level, the Seer gains an improved ability to detect magical auras by sight. He gains a continuous Arcane Sight ability, always active. This effect may be dispelled, but the Seer may restore it as a free action on his own turn. The caster level is equal to his character level.
Improved Counterspelling - At third level, the Seer's ability to almost precognitively discern precise magical auras grants him the Improved Counterspell feat, but only usable when he is able to see the magical aura of the caster with his Arcane Sight.
Gaze/Blind immunity (Su) - At fourth level, the Seer's sight is discerning enough to ignore all gaze attacks. He reflexively breaks them down into their magical components before their effects take place upon him. His sight is also supernaturally enhanced to the point that his magic makes him immune to any effect that would blind him, including physical damage to his eyes. Concealment and invisibility still function against him, though magical auras may make such a defense moot.
Spell Learning (Ex) - At fifth level, the Seer is so adept at analyzing magical auras that he may learn a spell just by seeing its casting. The Seer makes a spellcraft roll (DC 20 + spell level, Spellcraft Mastery applies) as the spell is cast to decipher the spell. For days equal to his Intelligence modifier thereafter the Seer may scribe the deciphered spell to his spellbook as if he had access to a scroll with the spell on it. Casters who do not use spellbooks instead gain a bonus Metamagic or Item Creation feat.
Dispel Mastery (Ex) - At level 6, the Seer's ability to distinguish between magical effects gives him a more precise ability to Dispel Magic. He gains a +2 Insight bonus to his opposed Dispel check, and may choose which effects to Dispel. He may voluntarily fail any dispel roll, or may automatically Dispel any effect he created himself. Additionally, he knows precisely which spells he Dispels after any Dispel Magic.
Greater Arcane Sight (Sp) - At 7th level, the Seer's Arcane Sight improves and is replaced by the spell Greater Arcane Sight. As the original ability, it is always active and if suppressed may be resumed as a free action.
Analyze Dweomer (Sp) - At 8th level, the Seer's Arcane Sight gains an additional level of sophistication. As a standard action, he may identify the specific properties of any magical item he can see with his Greater Arcane Sight, as if he used the Analyze Dweomer spell.
Abjuration Mastery (Ex) - At 9th level, the Seer is able to make minor changes to spells that alter other magical effects, to counteract anomalies in their targets. Any abjuration spell he casts with an instantaneous duration has any applicable DC or opposed roll increased by 2. This stacks with the Dispel Mastery ability in the case of Dispel Magic.
Spell Resistance (Ex) - At 10th level, the Seer is not only a master of identifying magic, but also subtly changing his own aura to resist magic. He gains SR of 5 + his caster level. If he has SR from another source, instead add 5 to its value.
