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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Edena_of_Neith" data-source="post: 2418412" data-attributes="member: 2020">The position of the mage is one full of angst and want.  The mage has heard of all these incredible spells, and she wants copies of them for herself.  Yet the world is not a giving place.  Such spells cannot be bought or bartered for.  Even henchmen will not cooperate in spell trades.  Enemies overcome might or might not have spells, which might or might not be possible to locate, and once located might or might not be guarded and trapped with horrible monsters and dweomers.  And the poor mage who somehow acquires the potent secret, gives that secret away the moment she uses the spell, and then everyone else wants to share in her good luck with her.  In the old days, the mage gained one free spell everytime she gained a level.  This spell could be any spell of her choice.  One, and only one, spell, was granted freely.  (And the cleric, with his large spell repetoire, envies her?)  The mage must keep those spells in fragile spellbooks, which are easily stolen, lost, or destroyed.  And once that happens, the spells are gone for good!  The sorcerer knows spells innately, so she does not have to depend on spellbooks.  But the sorcerer can never know more than a few spells of each level, whereas the mage can (theoretically) find and copy any number of spells.  The bard has all the drawbacks of the mage, but she has far fewer spells to cast, and the higher level spells will never be accessible to her.  And of course, trying to wear protective armor interferes with spellcasting, so the mage must confront the monsters in her gown.  And of course, mages are as apt to swords, bows, and melee in general as a Krynnish kender is to Solamnic Knighthood.  Unless, of course, they wish to spend precious and irreplaceable time studying such things, when they need to spend ALL their time in magical research and finding spells.  Some would have everything, of course.  Spellswords do exist.  Elves have long practiced the arts of spells and swords simultaneously.  It didn't get them very far, though, as the current state of elvish affairs shows.  Not even the infamous Bladesingers could turn things around for the elves.  She that multitasks, has just that much harder a time trying to do any one task correctly.  Evitably, she will run into the foe who dedicated her life to the sword or the spell, and that will be the end of her, the multi-class character.  Ah, the joys of the wizardly pursuit ...</blockquote>

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