Buffing Wizards?

[Siberys]

Its not such a big cange, the character has been using a sword and close powers a lot.

I think this is the main problem he's having with the Wizard class. He's been wanting to play a Swordmage the whole time. Getting in the thick of things and mixing it up is not the wizard's strong point.

 

[Tuft]

Related thread:

http://www.enworld.org/forum/4e-fan...ons-what-extra-should-i-give-controllers.html

 

[Kzach]

I am going to have to try those meta magics of yours out some time... I really like the idea of Wizards manipulating there own magics...

Thanks

The main idea with the two replacement class features was to give wizards more of a controller element which I feel they really lack through their class abilities and powers.

 

[Starfox]

I think this is the main problem he's having with the Wizard class. He's been wanting to play a Swordmage the whole time. Getting in the thick of things and mixing it up is not the wizard's strong point.

Yes, quite so. The player was aching to get into the heat of things. Actually, I was trying to dissuade him from playing a wizard, as he came with preconceptions from earlier editions. I think a Sorcerer would be a much better fit, or in this case, the Swordmage.

Still, I still feel the wizard feels kind of weak. Not really goig to do much now, except gather ideas.

 

[Starfox]

I play a bard in the OP's campaign, so we have two ritual casters in it. In addition, Starfox has written something like twice as many rituals as those listed in the PH as house-rules, so there are rituals available aplenty. I love non-combat magic, and would like nothing more than use all those rituals I've learned, and so would the wizard in question...

...and there is almost never any opportunity or "camera time" for the rituals, and definitively no "awesome". "Yay! I've just spent 20 hours replenishing the healing potions that were spent the last battle...".

I think there is something basically wrong with the ritual mechanics.

The main flaw is time, and the unwillingness to take the rather moderate cost to cast them. Next to learning rituals, casting is pretty cheap, since rituals see so little use.

The previed wirual from PH2 had a casting time of 1 minute. I wonder if that's a trend? Maybe I should make all rituals that now take 10 minutes take 1 minute instead?

 

[Tuft]

The previed wirual from PH2 had a casting time of 1 minute. I wonder if that's a trend? Maybe I should make all rituals that now take 10 minutes take 1 minute instead?

I'm feeling very pessimistic about the possibility that tweaking is going to help it... it's in the very base mechanics...

 

[keterys]

Was messing around with a Wizard redesign recently... a bit more extensive than just this, but the features section:

Spell Focus
Saves made against a wizards' spells suffer a -1 penalty. This penalty becomes -2 at 11th level, and -3 at 21st level. ((This replaces the Spell Focus feat and also is not intended to stack with other penalties))

Choose one of the following two benefits:
Control Wizard - You may increase the distance of any forced movement (push, pull, or slide) inflicted by your spells by 1 square.
War Wizard - You may increase the burst or blast radius of any close spell you cast by 1 square.

Implement Mastery
Once per encounter you may use any one of the following powers, based on the implement you are wielding:
Staff - 1/enc interrupt to gain 1+Con all defenses
Orb - 1/enc sustain a spell as a free action instead of its normally required action
Wand - 1/enc Increase range of an area or ranged spell by 1+Wis squares

 

[Psikus]

Not adding features or rewriting anything, but I've done some feats that expand Wizard at-wills and give additional bonuses here.