Brokenness Check: Sorcerers with Mnemonic Enhancer?

[Pyrex]

Mnemonic Enhancer
[sblock]
Transmutation
Level: Wiz 4
Components: V, S, M, F
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous
Casting this spell allows you to prepare additional spells or retain spells recently cast. Pick one of these two versions when the spell is cast.
Prepare: You prepare up to three additional levels of spells. A cantrip counts as 1/2 level for this purpose. You prepare and cast these spells normally.
Retain: You retain any spell of 3rd level or lower that you had cast up to 1 round before you started casting the mnemonic enhancer. This restores the previously cast spell to your mind.
In either event, the spell or spells prepared or retained fade after 24 hours (if not cast).
Material Component: A piece of string, and ink consisting of squid secretion with black dragon’s blood.
Focus: An ivory plaque of at least 50 gp value.
[/sblock]

I'm pondering allowing an NPC sorcerer in my game to learn and use Mnemonic Enhancer to prepare a small number of spells outside his repertoire.

Once my players figure out what's happening they're almost certianly going to ask how they could do the same thing.

As house rules go, how broken would the following be?

House Rule:
Any spontaneous caster that draws spells from the Sor/Wiz list (Sorcerers, Spellthieves, etc) who has taken the Arcane Preperation feat can take the Extra Spell feat to learn Mnemonic Enhancer.

Giving spontaneous casters this level of versatility is pretty strong, but I'm thinking that a cost of two feats is a pretty hefty balancing factor.

Thoughts?

 

[Cheiromancer]

When you say "outside his repetoire" you mean spells not on his list of spells known, right? And the spells would have to be available from a spellbook that the sorcerer has deciphered (e.g. by read magic).

Two feats, 1 spell known, the material components, trading 1 4th level spell for 3 spell levels.... I don't see any abuses. Unless there is something I am missing. Like having an 8th level sorcerer cast mnemonic enhancer 3 times in order to prepare meteor swarm from a captured spellbook.

What would your NPC sorcerer use mnemonic enhancer to prepare?

 

[Pyrex]

Yes. The intent is to allow preperation of a few spells that are on his class list but not on his spells known list. Since Sorcerers don't maintain spellbooks this would require (at least temporary) acquisition/use of a spellbook.

And it doesn't cost a spell known, just the two feats (the spell known is provided by the second feat).

No, you can't use it multiple times to memorize higher level spells; and I don't plan to allow introduction higher level versions of Mnemonic Enhancer.

The idea is to give the Sorcerer improved access to a few of the more narrow-use low-level spells that he wouldn't need to cast every day (generally Divinations & long-term infrequently-cast spells like Arcane Lock & Continual Flame)

 

[ZuulMoG]

Well, it does say 'prepare', and that does require a spell book, and I suppose it's a reasonable interpretation of the spell's effects that if any class cast this spell they'd be empowered to memorize a spell as a wizard does because the spell's effect is a mental enhance of their existing capabilities. If a fighter got it from a Ring of Spell Storing, I ought to work for him too, assuming his Int is high enough...

Still, letting Sorcerers have useful spell just makes me ill. They're supposed to be loser Evokers/walking fireball wands.

 

[Thanee]

Give the NPC a ring of theurgy [CA] and a scroll organizer with a few wizard scrolls to fill it instead.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Thanee]

Or give him access to the spell pool (Mage of the Arcane Order PrC).

Bye
Thanee

 

[Thanee]

What you need to watch out for...

Sorcerers have lots of spell slots. At the end of the day, a sorcerer could use all of those from 4th level or higher, which havn't been used yet, to cast Mnemonic Enhancer, each time gaining an additional 3rd level slot or one 1st and one 2nd level slot for the next day (or the next two days with Extend Spell).

Bye
Thanee

 

[Cheiromancer]

What you need to watch out for...

Sorcerers have lots of spell slots. At the end of the day, a sorcerer could use all of those from 4th level or higher, which havn't been used yet, to cast Mnemonic Enhancer, each time gaining an additional 3rd level slot or one 1st and one 2nd level slot for the next day (or the next two days with Extend Spell).

Bye
Thanee

Wow! That's a good exploit. I was thinking that being able to prepare spells that were not on the sorcerer's list of known spells was kind of a modest benefit, considering the cost, but this might put it over the top.

 

[Pyrex]

At the end of the day, a sorcerer could use all of those from 4th level or higher, which havn't been used yet, to cast Mnemonic Enhancer, ...

Eek. That could be a problem if my PC's chose to go this route.

Although there's still nothing preventing a Wiz with Signature Spell (Mnemonic Enhancer) from doing the same thing already.

Of course, it only works if the Sor in question is willing to have fewer/no higher-level slots available for any encounters that may occur before he prepares spells again.

Also, with a 10-minute casting time the Sor in question may not have enough *time* to abuse it and still get his 8hrs of rest before preparing spells again.

Also, depending on how you choose to rule it, you couldn't Extend it anyway, as Mnemonic Enhancer has a listed duration if Instantaneous...

 

[Thanee]

Also, with a 10-minute casting time the Sor in question may not have enough *time* to abuse it and still get his 8hrs of rest before preparing spells again.

That could be a serious problem...

Also, depending on how you choose to rule it, you couldn't Extend it anyway, as Mnemonic Enhancer has a listed duration if Instantaneous...

Right. My bad. I didn't look it up and thought it says 24h there.

Bye
Thanee