Augmented Healing? (White Mage PrC)

[Brasswatchman]

Your opinion of the following class? An attempted fusion between the Final Fantasy games, D&D, and my own sensibilities. Note on the below: the White Citadel is a particular magical academy in the campaign world - a very selective magical academy.

WHITE MAGE
Trained at the famed White Citadel, these extraordinary healers are the best in their profession.

Requirements:
Alignment: Lawful good or lawful neutral.
Skills: Heal 7 ranks, Knowledge (religion) 7 ranks.
Spells: Able to cast 3rd-level spells.
Special: Must have been accepted into the White Citadel. Must have taken the Healer’s Oath.

Hit Dice: d4
Class Skills: Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Point at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier

Base Attack Bonus: Poor
Good Saves: Will

Level 1: Spontaneous healer, divine spell power, healer’s oath.
Level 2: Damage reduction 1/evil; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 3: Healing focus +1.
Level 4: Damage reduction 2/evil; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 5: Divine health; spells per day - +1 of existing class.
Level 6: Damage reduction 3/evil; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 7: Healing focus +2.
Level 8: Damage reduction 4/evil; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 9: Healing focus +3.
Level 10: Damage reduction 5/evil; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.

Spontaneous Healer: At first level, a white mage is able to sacrifice prepared spells to spontaneously cast cure spells, much like a cleric’s ability. A white mage can use this ability regardless of whether or not he or she used arcane or divine magic before joining the White Citadel. This ability may be used a number of times per day equal to the white mage’s Wisdom modifier.

Divine Spell Power: A white mage able to turn or rebuke undead gains the Divine Spell Power feat at 1st level, as described in the Complete Divine, page 80. A white mage learns early on to make better use of his energies.

Healer’s Oath: The white mage’s profession requires major sacrifices on the part of its adherence. A white mage who takes the Oath is unable to cast any spell that harms another living being (undead are an exception). In game terms, this means that a white mage is incapable of casting any spell that causes damage (in terms of hit points or ability damage) or results in death. Furthermore, white mages are prohibited from casting spells from the Necromancy school. The white mage must also swear an oath of chastity.
This vow is not merely a social convention. It is instead the cornerstone of the White Citadel’s training scheme, which takes various energies throughout the student’s body and concentrates them on healing. A white mage who violates his oath immediately suffers a loss of magical power, losing all prepared spells for that day. The mage can cast spells afterwards, but otherwise loses access all other special class abilities. A white mage may or may not be able to recover his abilities after breaking his oath; in some cases, a third-order white mage serving at the White Citadel might be able to restore the abilities by casting an atonement spell. However, this doesn’t always work; a white mage who breaks his or her oath of chastity, for example, may never return to the fold.

Damage Reduction: At 2nd level, and every two levels thereafter, a white mage’s body becomes so attuned to healing energies that she becomes able to immediately regenerate damage. In game terms, the white mage gains a point of damage reduction, overcome only by evil spells and weapons. Evil, in this case, also includes corrupt or vile damage (see BVD).

Healing Focus: At 3rd level, 7th level and 9th level, a white mage becomes even more adept with healing magic. The white mage adds a bonus to her caster level when casting Conjuration (Healing) spells. The bonus affects all spell variables affected or determined by caster level, including duration, range and effect. At 3rd level, a white mage gains a +1 bonus to caster level when casting Conjuration (Healing) spells; at 7th, a +2 bonus; and at 9th level, a +3 bonus.

Divine health: At 5th level, a white mage becomes immune to all diseases, including magical diseases such as mummy rot and lycanthropy.

Right - comments appreciated!

 

[Brasswatchman]

Re:

Well, I sure do like typing. And moving my post to the top of the forum. Mmm-yep.

 

[the Jester]

It is rare that I say this- I'm a balance nazi when it comes to prestige classes- but I'd say you could give these guys more caster levels. I'd go so far as to say every level but 1st and maybe one other.

Compared to a cleric, you lose all kinds of hp and gain very little. Compared to a wizard, you gain the ability to heal (that's the biggun!) and DR. The best class to get into this prc from seems to be a sorcerer with no necromancy, damage-dealing or death magic. Take one level of cleric for skill needs & have a good int and you could get in after 7th level (sor 6/clr 1). Earlier entry is possible- heck, a straight cleric could get in after 5 levels or a wizard after 7 (wiz 5/clr 1), but the right sorc build seems to lose the least from this class. So what would he gain?

*Spontaneous healing- this is huge for a sorcerer!
*DR 5/evil by 10th level. Good but not great; a d4 HD means even a little damage goes a long away against her.
*Healing focus- this, frankly, is nearly useless until you get heal (because the healing spells all have level-based caps).
*Divine health- really, in most campaigns this ability is pretty mediocre. It rarely comes up. (Though I confess that not too long ago in my halfling campaign, the pcs went through a nasty disease teeming with disease- "Jungle fever"- and the paladin loved having this ability!)
*Divine spell power- hang on, let me look this up- hmm, this needs further definition. If the white mage can't use it on his sorcerer spells it's very nearly useless, though a cleric level and a high charisma mean some 1st-level buffs are available that wouldn't otherwise be, so it's not entirely without virtue. Also, if the intent is to further buff healing, remember that the white mage is almost certainly hitting a level cap.
*Our hypothetical sorcerer also gains, on average, 2 hp from taking a cleric level and gets his skill requirements a little more easily.

In return he loses 4 caster levels (plus one for taking a cleric level). So a sorc 9/clr 1/white mage 10 casts sorcerer spells as a 15th level sorcerer- he only has 7th level spells. Yeah, I'd give the class more spellcasting- prolly 8 levels overall, that way at least he has 8th level spells by 20th level (and could have 9th immediately upon becoming epic).

 

[Brasswatchman]

Re:

Understood. I'm trying to make this prestige class appealing to both clerics and arcane casters; that's why divine spell power is there. It's more or less a gimme for the cleric.

So, taking your comments and those of others into consideration, what do you think of the following changes (with everything as previously posted remaining, unless specifically contradicted):

Hit Dice: d6.

Level 1: Spontaneous healer, divine spell power, healer’s regimen.
Level 2: Divine health; fast healing 1; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 3: Divine reach 10 ft.; spell focus +1; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 4: Fast healing 2; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 5: Mana’s strength; spells per day - +1 of existing class.
Level 6: Divine reach 20 ft.; fast healing 3; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 7: Spell focus +2; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 8: Fast healing 4; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 9: Divine reach 30 ft.; spell focus +3; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 10: Timelessness; fast healing 5; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.

Healer’s regimen: The path of the white mage is fraught with sacrifice. White mages cannot cast any spell from the Necromancy school. They cannot cast any spells (other than Conjurations) which cause damage or death to any humanoid, monstrous humanoid, or giant. They must take (and keep) an oath of chastity.
The order’s claims to the contrary, these requirements are not out of any particular ethical code or sense of prudishness. Rather, it is a specific regimen of training that a white mage undertakes in order to completely focus himself on the conjuration and manipulation of life energy. Since a white mage taps so completely into the power of positive energy, he cannot manipulate negative energy – thus the prohibition on Necromancy spells and damaging spells that do not belong to the Conjuration school, which all involve negative energy to some degree. On the other hand, there’s nothing to stop a white mage from calling a celestial from Overworld to destroy his foes; nor is there anything to stop a white mage from weaving spells from mana that damage and even kill individuals around them (cloudkill is a popular choice).
Even the oath of chastity is intended for practical reasons. White mages learn to take the reproductive, life-giving energies within their own bodies and use it to heal around them – though at a terrible cost. It should be noted, however, that nothing says a white mage has to be virginal. First-year students at the White Citadel – who have yet to undertake the healer’s regimen – are thus somewhat infamous for their promiscuity.

Divine Reach: At 3rd level, a white mage learns how to cast touch-only spells at a distance. The white mage is able to cast spells with a range of touch from a distance of 10 feet. In order to do this, the white mage must succeed on a ranged touch attack. The white mage’s range increases as she grows more experienced; at 6th level, it increases to 20 feet. At 9th level, it increases to 30 feet.

Spell focus: at 2nd, 7th and 9th level, a white mage learns how to better manipulate the mana within the world around her and within herself. A white mage gains, at these levels, a +1 bonus to their caster level when casting Conjurations and Abjurations. The total bonus is +1, at 2nd level; +2, at 7th level; and +3 at 9th level.

Mana’s strength: At 5th level, a white mage learns to pull mana from the world around her to increase her own strength. This spell-like ability manifests as a permanently cast bull’s strength on the white mage, providing a +4 magical bonus to Strength.

Timelessness: At 10th level, a white mage stops aging. This ability is similar to the timeless body ability of the druid.

 

[Nyaricus]

i just took a gander at this post, but now your new White Mage appears to be over-powered, and infact you pretty much switched all the abilities for different ones. I think you were much closer to a good, balanced PrC with your first incarnation.

I say, give them the d6 HP, the new +spells per day aquisition rate, and drop the originals healing focus for the divine reach (if i were to choose anything).

fast healing makes more sense than DR, so i like that. Spell Focus is way overpowered. and what do abjurations have to do with ehaling, anyways? Focus on the healing; thats the purpose of this PrC, isnt it?

The mana strength makes no sense (they are healers, and Str is basically a combat thing that makes belts of giants strenght useless items for your cleric/white mage [speaking of which, althoguh the cannot cast harmful spells, can they engage in melee? i'd call it a big no-no, because they are healers, not fighters]). Timeless body also doesnt make much sense; whast its purpose in all of this?? Also, id make the White Mage immune to Poisons (you could call it Divine Resistance or something like that . . . ).

Other than that, it looks okay . . . .i really liked v1 as opposed to your new one though.

 

[the Jester]

Now it's too powerful imho. Giving a d6 HD and fast healing are both going too far. Fast healing 5 by itself is a crazy powerful ability- I can't recall seeing anything on par with that in a published prestige class. And increasing the HD turns up the wizard's benefits a lot.

I dunno, I'll mull and see what kind of suggestions I can come up with...

 

[Eloi]

Modification suggestions:

Fast healing 1, fine, and get a second point at 8th level. Not seeing a reason for granting more than that - healers aren't being bred for this end.

No to spell focus until level 6, where they get a flat +2. Alter Mana's Strength hugely: instead of adding Str points per se, say that the Mage is magically able to hoist and move the bodies of dead, unconscious, or otherwise afflicted creatures about, assuming no active interference. This gives you your "drag the bodies to safety" ability without granting an unintended combat advantage.

Add a fourth level ability, such that a White Mage can (spending a prior round focusing and achieving a 20 Concentration check and 20 Heal check) cast any Cure spell they have memorized as a full round action, affecting all desired creatures (but not the White Mage) within Divine Reach of the White Mage separately and individually, for the cost of only the Cure spell or five points per spell level of non-lethal, stun damage for the White Mage.
This lets the White Mage glue the party back together after dragging the bodies clear, after a catastrophe, even if it means taking an involuntary nap in the process.

Might be tempted to bump them to 4+Int per level, due to the variety of skills a Healer-type needs.

 

[Brasswatchman]

Once more with feeling.

Yes, the last version of the class was overpowered; sorry about that. Some of the people on another forum wanted more in return for the inability to cast damaging spells.

Here's what I have this time around:

Hit Dice: d4

Level 1: Spontaneous healer, divine spell power, healer’s regimen.
Level 2: Fast healing 1; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 3: Augmented healing I; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 4: Fast healing 2; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 5: Divine health; spells per day - +1 of existing class.
Level 6: Augmented healing II; fast healing 3; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 7: Divine reach; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 8: Fast healing 4; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 9: Augmented healing III; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.
Level 10: Timeless body; fast healing 5; spells per day - +1 level of existing class.

Spontaneous Healer: At first level, a white mage is able to sacrifice prepared spells to spontaneously cast cure spells, much like a cleric’s ability. A white mage can use this ability regardless of whether or not he or she used arcane or divine magic before joining the White Citadel. This ability may be used a number of times per day equal to the white mage’s Wisdom modifier.

Divine Spell Power: A white mage able to turn or rebuke undead gains the Divine Spell Power feat at 1st level, as described in the Complete Divine, page 80. A white mage learns early on to make better use of his energies.

Healer’s Regimen: The path of the white mage is fraught with sacrifice. White mages cannot cast any spell from the Necromancy school. They cannot cast any spells which cause damage or death to any living creature (constructs and undead are exceptions).
The order’s claims to the contrary, these requirements are not out of any particular ethical code or sense of prudishness. Rather, it is a specific regimen of training that a white mage undertakes in order to completely focus himself on the conjuration and manipulation of life energy. Since a white mage taps so completely into the power of positive energy, he cannot manipulate negative energy – thus the prohibition on Necromancy spells, since all of these spells involve negative energy to some degree. As for the prohibition against magical violence, harming living creatures through magic can cause negative energy to accumulate within a white mage’s body, like the blood of enemies staining a sword; it can therefore interfere with the healing ability of a white mage over time.
On the other hand, a white mage does not have to be physically non-violent (though they are not trained for such endeavors). They also do not have to prevent others from being violent. Furthermore, a white mage can still harm enemies through a third party; they can therefore still summon monsters, for example, or cast spells that make fighters more effective, like bull’s strength.
A white mage who violates the healer’s regimen suffers a sudden loss of magical power. He loses all other spells he had prepared for that day; after 8 hours’ rest, he can prepare and cast spells normally, but loses access to the white mage’s class abilities. A white mage’s abilities can be restored only once, via an atonement spell cast by a high-level white mage within the White Citadel; if he violates the regimen again, or does so twice within twenty-four hours at any given time, the abilities cannot be restored, and he cannot advance as a white mage.

Fast Healing: At 2nd level, and every two levels thereafter, a white mage’s body becomes so attuned to healing energies that she becomes able to immediately regenerate damage. In game terms, the white mage gains a point of fast healing. This ability works as described in the Monster Manual, with the following exceptions: a white mage who is reduced to negative hit points does not heal damage from this ability. However, she does automatically stabilize at her current level. The fast healing ability resumes as normal once the white mage is raised to 0 hp, through magical or natural healing.
A white mage’s fast healing cannot heal vile or corrupt damage.

Augmented healing: At 3rd level, and every three levels thereafter, a white mage becomes even more adept with healing magic. The white mage adds a bonus per spell level to the amount of damage healed when casting any Conjuration (Healing) spell. At 3rd level, a white mage adds a +2 bonus per spell level to total damaged healed; at 6th, a +3 bonus per spell level; and at 9th level, a +4 bonus per spell level. For further explanation, see the augment healing feat, page 79, Complete Divine. The augment healing feat does not stack with this ability.

Divine health: At 5th level, a white mage becomes immune to all diseases, including magical diseases such as mummy rot.

Divine reach: At 7th level, a white mage gains the ability to cast Conjuration (healing) spells without touching the spell’s subject. He can cast any Conjuration (healing) spell that normally has a range of touch at any distance up to 15 feet. The white mage must succeed on a ranged touch attack for the attempt to work. A white mage can use this ability a number of times per day equal to his Wisdom modifier.

Timeless body: At 10th level, a white mage becomes adept with healing energies to the point that she stops aging. This ability is the exact same as the druid’s ability at 15th level; see page 37, PHB.

 

[Brasswatchman]

Yep. Here I go with th' typing again. Watch me go. Whoo.

 

[magic_gathering2001]

Maybe you could have ann ability to increase the level cap on healing spells