Best feats for a Wizard

[Thanee]

Combat Casting can save your life as well, and I prefer it over Improved Initiative.

Spell Focus: Concentration is better than Combat Casting. It's only +3, but at least works with all Concentration checks (especially Ready actions to disrupt casting).

I don't really like either, tho, as you quickly get high enough in Concentration even without the feat, if you have a decent Con. On the lower levels, it's pretty useful, tho.

Bye
Thanee

 

[ghettognome]

I am guessing all you people that are suggesting craft and brew have dm's that give you enough time to do that sort of thing. I have discovered that those feats are virtually useless unless you know before you start the game that your DM will allow plenty of time in between levels to utilize these feats.
I do have to say point blank shot and precise shot are nice to have, that crossbow for a wizard helps him/her stay far enough out of battle. Imp Init can be pretty useful, but if you are anything like me and always roll bad on the dice when it comes to initiative time, then imp init is pointless, though that is from a meta gaming standpoint.

 

[Shard O'Glase]

You make 1000gp value a day(max 1 item) many items can be made in a single day or just 2-4 days.(gauntlets of ogre power +2 str cost 4,000 or 4 days) if your DM doesn't give you 4 days here and there yes don't take these feats. Of course I'd have a hard time believing any campaign world that didn't give you these 4 days here and there, unless you're soldiers in a war or something a new crisis wont plausibly pop up next to you every day.

 

[Shard O'Glase]

also want to add I'd never take point blank shot or whatever.

1. you are not a crossbow monkey, sure at low levels you will pluck away with it, but soon you will be a spell monkey and even with point blank shot you will be a bad enough shot that a crossbow will be a wasted action.

2. there just aren't enough ray spells to make this worth while for most casters. If you are planing on focusing on ray spells it may be worth it for the + to hit part though weapon focus rays is probably a better idea. The + to damage is useless because +1 to damage on a whatever d6 blast is nothing.

You are a spellcaster focus on that strength, don't shore up a huge weakness in fighting ability to make it a still crappy fighting ability just a bit less crappy. Point blank shot just doesn't help spells as much as most other options unless you're a ray casting fiend who hangs out in short range all day.

 

[molonel]

If your DM is foolish enough to allow feats from any book, take a gander at the Primer of Practical Magic. There are six feats in it, and each of them is tied to one stat. You make choose a feat that adds, for example, your strength stat modifier to the DCs of your spells on TOP of the modifier for your primary stat (Intelligence for a wizard). It is truly, truly broken in the worst possible way.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

also want to add I'd never take point blank shot or whatever.

1. you are not a crossbow monkey, sure at low levels you will pluck away with it, but soon you will be a spell monkey and even with point blank shot you will be a bad enough shot that a crossbow will be a wasted action.

2. there just aren't enough ray spells to make this worth while for most casters. If you are planing on focusing on ray spells it may be worth it for the + to hit part though weapon focus rays is probably a better idea. The + to damage is useless because +1 to damage on a whatever d6 blast is nothing.

You are a spellcaster focus on that strength, don't shore up a huge weakness in fighting ability to make it a still crappy fighting ability just a bit less crappy. Point blank shot just doesn't help spells as much as most other options unless you're a ray casting fiend who hangs out in short range all day.

Weapon focus ray is a trap--and a bad one at that. It doesn't lead anywhere. Point Blank shot is a much better feat for two reasons:

1. It applies the the wizard's bow or crossbow as well. This is a significant factor until level 8 or so when running out of spells is less of a concern than running out of good spells.

2. It's the prerequisite for Precise Shot. Precise shot is a very valuable feat for any wizard who wants to make good use of ray spells. It also happens to be very good for a low-level wizard plinking away with a crossbow. By itself, Point Blank shot is not so impressive, but as the prereq for Precise Shot, it makes a big difference.

The number of ray spells in 3.5 makes them very good feats--even for characters who are focussing on magic. A sample from the core rules:

0. Acid Splesh, Disrupt Undead, Ray of Frost
1. Ray of Enfeeblement
2. Scorching Ray
3. Ray of Exhaustion
4. Enervation
6. Disintegrate
8. Polar Ray
9. Energy Drain, Meteor Swarm

However, a wizard with a few metamagic feats can add these to the list:
3. Empowered Ray of Enfeeblement
4. Empowered Scorching Ray
5. Maximized Scorching Ray, Quickened Ray of Enfeeblement
6. Quickened Scorching Ray, Empowered Enervation
7. Empowered and Maximized Scorching Ray, Maximized Enervation, Quickened Ray of Exhaustion, Quickened and empowered ray of enfeeblement
8. Quickened, Empowered Scorching Ray, Empowered Disintegrate
9. maximized and empowered enervation, maximized disintegrate, quickened and maximized scorching ray.

A little bit of non-core material expands this even further and negates the primary weakness of focussing on rays in core 3.5--over-reliance upon fire damage and scorching ray:
1. Lesser energy orbs
4. Energy orb spells

 

[Sunderstone]

BTW, someone (s) mentioned Point Blank Shot and Precise Shot being helpfull later with Ray attacks.
According to the 3.5 PH for Precise Shot...

You are skilled at timing and aiming ranged ATTACKS.

According to the 3.5 PH for Point Blank Shot...

You are skilled at making well-placed shots with Ranged WEAPONS at close range.

I dont think Point Blank Shot helps Rays according to the above, its specifically states WEAPONS as opposed to the broader wording of ATTACKS. The +1 to damage really doesnt fit well either with Rays like Enfeeblement and Enervation.

 

[Tuzenbach]

Toughness is a fine feat for a first level Wizard for players who actually roleplay a character that wants to live. Toughness and Improved Initiative are the best choices for a 1st level Wizard.

Unless you have a DM who's really *nice* with starting hit points for Wizards, i.e., "since you're a 1st level Wizard, you get all 4 hit points", or some such. This is always good, for the Wizard is then free to focus upon taking a feat which bolsters his magic, not his life-expectancy.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

It helps to read the whole PHB in this case. p. 175:

"Ray: Some effects are rays (for example, ray of enfeeblement), you aim a ray as if using a ranged weapo, though typically you make a ranged touch attack rather than a normal ranged attack. As with a ranged weapon, you can fire into the dark or at an invisible creature and hope you hit something...Intervening creatures and obstacles, however, can block your line of site and provide cover for the creature you're aiming at.
If a ray spell has a duration it's the duration of the effect that the ray causes, not the length of the time that the ray itself persists.
If a ray spell deals damage, you can score a critical hit just as if it were a weapon. A ray spell threatens on a natural roll of 20 and deals double damage on a successful critical hit."

It seems fairly clear from that passage that ray spells are treated as ranged weapons. (And even if it weren't, indications of intent could be garnered from things like Tome and Blood and Complete Arcane).

You're right that the +1 to damage only applies to spells that actually deal damage (scorching ray or acid arrow but not ray of enfeeblement) but the real benefit is the +1 to hit and the elimination of the -4 firing into melee penalty. It's that penalty that is the most painful to wizards trying to use ray spells.

BTW, someone (s) mentioned Point Blank Shot and Precise Shot being helpfull later with Ray attacks.
According to the 3.5 PH for Precise Shot...

According to the 3.5 PH for Point Blank Shot...

I dont think Point Blank Shot helps Rays according to the above, its specifically states WEAPONS as opposed to the broader wording of ATTACKS. The +1 to damage really doesnt fit well either with Rays like Enfeeblement and Enervation.

 

[Sunderstone]

It helps to read the whole PHB in this case. p. 175:

"Ray: Some effects are rays (for example, ray of enfeeblement), you aim a ray as if using a ranged weapo, though typically you make a ranged touch attack rather than a normal ranged attack. As with a ranged weapon, you can fire into the dark or at an invisible creature and hope you hit something...Intervening creatures and obstacles, however, can block your line of site and provide cover for the creature you're aiming at.
If a ray spell has a duration it's the duration of the effect that the ray causes, not the length of the time that the ray itself persists.
If a ray spell deals damage, you can score a critical hit just as if it were a weapon. A ray spell threatens on a natural roll of 20 and deals double damage on a successful critical hit."

It seems fairly clear from that passage that ray spells are treated as ranged weapons. (And even if it weren't, indications of intent could be garnered from things like Tome and Blood and Complete Arcane).

You're right that the +1 to damage only applies to spells that actually deal damage (scorching ray or acid arrow but not ray of enfeeblement) but the real benefit is the +1 to hit and the elimination of the -4 firing into melee penalty. It's that penalty that is the most painful to wizards trying to use ray spells.

I still disagree. Weapon Focus (Rays) already gives you the +1 to hit without being limited to 30' or less, and Precise shot eliminates the -4 firing into melee.
For that matter PBS should have used the word "ATTACKS" just like Precise Shot.