confusing level 1 wizard dilemna
- Thread starter doosler
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Vegepygmy
First Post
That works 95% of the time, but occasionally you get hit with a fireball or get caught flat-footed in a surprise round or...doosler said:
That 5% of the time, you're dead.
I, too, would switch Str and Con. And I'd eschew the toad familiar for one that boosts your saving throws (rat or weasel). +3 hp ain't nuthin compared to making a Fortitude or Reflex save that you would have otherwise failed, especially at higher levels.
I'm also a big proponent of Point Blank Shot and Precise Shot for 1st level human wizards. It makes your crossbow a viable option when you run out of spells at lower levels, and is pretty dang sweet for your rays at middle and upper levels.
I like the idea of a gnome illusionist. I don't think I would specialize in illusion, because I don't want to give up any schools of magic (although I am not exactly attached to abjuration or transmutation).
If you specialize, do you get 1 additional spell per level per day from your school of specialization, ON TOP of your other bonus spells per day (from int) which can be used to prepare any spell from a non-barred school?
The only problem is that I'd be giving up on an extra feat, I'd suddenly have a very physically weak character (8 str -- but a 19 con!).
Decisions, decisions.
If you specialize, do you get 1 additional spell per level per day from your school of specialization, ON TOP of your other bonus spells per day (from int) which can be used to prepare any spell from a non-barred school?
The only problem is that I'd be giving up on an extra feat, I'd suddenly have a very physically weak character (8 str -- but a 19 con!).
Decisions, decisions.
Gloombunny
First Post
Consider specializing in divination. An extra divination spell per day isn't as attractive as other schools, but you only have to drop one school in exchange for it.doosler said:
That's correct. Note that you aren't required to prepare more than that one spell per level from your specialized school. Even if you're, say, a conjuration specialist, you can still fill the rest of your slots with illusions or transmutations or whatever. For this reason it's best to specialize in a school that can do lots of different things, so that even with one of your slots restricted you can still adapt your preparation to meet different situations. Conjuration and transmutation are good choices for specialization, if you're not doing the divination thing. (They're also bad schools to take as barred, because you lose out on such a wide variety of spells by barring them.)
Don't worry about having a low strength as a wizard. Your crossbow doesn't care how strong you are, and if you're ever in the situation of needing to hit someone in melee then you're probably already screwed. In which case you'll really be wanting those extra hitpoints.
IamTheTest
First Post
I wouldnt stress too much about a STR penalty. Then again my first big purchase is usually a Handy Haversack.
My $0.02.
It all depends upon what your vision for the PC is.
1) I'd strongly consider the 17 Int. While you can use your PC's stat bonus every 4 levels to boost that 15 up to that and beyond, in the interim, you're giving up a resource you'll never replace: lost skill points. That may not sound like much, but missing a crucial Knowledge (or any Skill) check by 1 sucks- especially if you didn't have the skill points to max out that skill.
It also gives you a bonus language. Whether that matters or not depends upon the campaign & your DM.
2) I personally prefer Dex to Con. Bonus HP only help you when you get hit, and then only once- they are an ablative benefit- and besides that, Con doesn't help as much at low levels. In contrast, bonuses to your AC due to Dex almost never go away, and keep you from taking damage in the first place- it is a non-ablative benefit. Furthermore, higher Dex means better reflex saves, and the offensive benefits of higher initiative rolls and better chances at hitting with your Crossbow and ranged touch spells cannot be understated.
However, as you advance in levels, Con benefits to HP & certain saves versus spells and other supernatural attacks become more important, balancing out with Dex's early benefits.
Still, I'd rather improve my chances of getting to high levels and let surviving at those levels be addressed then.
3) Combat Casting is one of those feats that most players of my acquaintence avoid unless they need it as a prerequisite for another Feat or a prestige class. On occasion, it does get chosen as a flavor element.
4) Similarly, unless you're playing an Elf who is going to be using the longbow a lot and/or using a lot of ranged touch attack spells, you probably don't need Point Blank Shot.
5) Personally, I'd rather make my PC a Specialist Evoker than take Spell Focus: Evocation. You get the bonus spell for being a Specialist, and many of the Feats that have Spell Focus as a prereq also allow specialization in that school to satisfy their requirements. In addition, you can then take Focused Specialist (an alternative class feature from CompMage) to get even more spells. It does come with a cost- choosing another restricted school and the loss of a base wizard spell- but adds 2 more specialist spells. You'll be less flexible, but you'll be able to blast all day.
6) Re: Specializing in other schools: personally, I prefer Transmuters for their flexibility. #2 on my list of Specialists is the Diviner (for the above stated reasons)- I'm playing one now, as a matter of fact. But they're not as flashy as Evokers, Conjurors or any other specialist. This can lead to the perception that you're not carrying your own weight in some way, leading to some players resenting your PC whose 2nd level bonus spell is...*GASP!*....Locate Object.
It all depends upon what your vision for the PC is.
1) I'd strongly consider the 17 Int. While you can use your PC's stat bonus every 4 levels to boost that 15 up to that and beyond, in the interim, you're giving up a resource you'll never replace: lost skill points. That may not sound like much, but missing a crucial Knowledge (or any Skill) check by 1 sucks- especially if you didn't have the skill points to max out that skill.
It also gives you a bonus language. Whether that matters or not depends upon the campaign & your DM.
2) I personally prefer Dex to Con. Bonus HP only help you when you get hit, and then only once- they are an ablative benefit- and besides that, Con doesn't help as much at low levels. In contrast, bonuses to your AC due to Dex almost never go away, and keep you from taking damage in the first place- it is a non-ablative benefit. Furthermore, higher Dex means better reflex saves, and the offensive benefits of higher initiative rolls and better chances at hitting with your Crossbow and ranged touch spells cannot be understated.
However, as you advance in levels, Con benefits to HP & certain saves versus spells and other supernatural attacks become more important, balancing out with Dex's early benefits.
Still, I'd rather improve my chances of getting to high levels and let surviving at those levels be addressed then.
3) Combat Casting is one of those feats that most players of my acquaintence avoid unless they need it as a prerequisite for another Feat or a prestige class. On occasion, it does get chosen as a flavor element.
4) Similarly, unless you're playing an Elf who is going to be using the longbow a lot and/or using a lot of ranged touch attack spells, you probably don't need Point Blank Shot.
5) Personally, I'd rather make my PC a Specialist Evoker than take Spell Focus: Evocation. You get the bonus spell for being a Specialist, and many of the Feats that have Spell Focus as a prereq also allow specialization in that school to satisfy their requirements. In addition, you can then take Focused Specialist (an alternative class feature from CompMage) to get even more spells. It does come with a cost- choosing another restricted school and the loss of a base wizard spell- but adds 2 more specialist spells. You'll be less flexible, but you'll be able to blast all day.
6) Re: Specializing in other schools: personally, I prefer Transmuters for their flexibility. #2 on my list of Specialists is the Diviner (for the above stated reasons)- I'm playing one now, as a matter of fact. But they're not as flashy as Evokers, Conjurors or any other specialist. This can lead to the perception that you're not carrying your own weight in some way, leading to some players resenting your PC whose 2nd level bonus spell is...*GASP!*....Locate Object.
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Re: Con v Dex
AC is actually pretty hard for a wizard to raise, unless he spends magical resources (and rounds of spellcasting) to improve it. I always thought that if a wizard of mine was even a target of an attack, I wasn't trying hard enough. At low levels, use cover, concealment, non-wizardly clothes, and the presence of the fighter to make yourself an unlikely target. A 1st level wizard isn't much in combat anyways, so your party won't lose much here. At higher levels, there are plenty of spells that block the enemy's line of sight, some of which don't touch yours, so use those to prevent direct attack (Leomund's Tiny Hut, Major Image, wall spells). At that point a higher AC becomes absolutely useless for you. Every now and again an enemy will slip past those defenses, and when they do, you'll probably want more HP to soak a blow and allow yourself to escape than reduce your chance of being hit from 95% to 80%.
Re: Human v Gnome
You lose a feat and one skill point per level; in return you gain 1 hp per level, +1 AC, +1 attack, some nifty SLAs, and a large nose. I could really go either way depending upon the concept. Frankly I'd call this a wash.
Re: Con v Int
You get a +3 on stuff if you choose Con; you get a +1 to things if you choose Int. The skill point and save DC is nice, but raising your Con ever after will be a damn nuisance, while raising your Int from 15 isn't that bad a starting place.
Re: Specialization
If you want a cheap extra spell per day, be a Diviner. You'll generally be able to use one Divination spell in your repitoire per day, and you'll have the rest of your spells for more combat oriented stuff. If you want to do some serious focusing, specialize and take Focused Specialist from the PHBII; you'll get 3 extra spells for your speciality, something that the usually spell-starved wizard can redialy use. Yes, you give up 3 schools of magic for this, but you'll just have to let the group know that you're not a catch-all versatility wizard, you're a gum-just-ran-out but-kicking wizard.
AC is actually pretty hard for a wizard to raise, unless he spends magical resources (and rounds of spellcasting) to improve it. I always thought that if a wizard of mine was even a target of an attack, I wasn't trying hard enough. At low levels, use cover, concealment, non-wizardly clothes, and the presence of the fighter to make yourself an unlikely target. A 1st level wizard isn't much in combat anyways, so your party won't lose much here. At higher levels, there are plenty of spells that block the enemy's line of sight, some of which don't touch yours, so use those to prevent direct attack (Leomund's Tiny Hut, Major Image, wall spells). At that point a higher AC becomes absolutely useless for you. Every now and again an enemy will slip past those defenses, and when they do, you'll probably want more HP to soak a blow and allow yourself to escape than reduce your chance of being hit from 95% to 80%.
Re: Human v Gnome
You lose a feat and one skill point per level; in return you gain 1 hp per level, +1 AC, +1 attack, some nifty SLAs, and a large nose. I could really go either way depending upon the concept. Frankly I'd call this a wash.
Re: Con v Int
You get a +3 on stuff if you choose Con; you get a +1 to things if you choose Int. The skill point and save DC is nice, but raising your Con ever after will be a damn nuisance, while raising your Int from 15 isn't that bad a starting place.
Re: Specialization
If you want a cheap extra spell per day, be a Diviner. You'll generally be able to use one Divination spell in your repitoire per day, and you'll have the rest of your spells for more combat oriented stuff. If you want to do some serious focusing, specialize and take Focused Specialist from the PHBII; you'll get 3 extra spells for your speciality, something that the usually spell-starved wizard can redialy use. Yes, you give up 3 schools of magic for this, but you'll just have to let the group know that you're not a catch-all versatility wizard, you're a gum-just-ran-out but-kicking wizard.
Humanaut
First Post
My 2 Bits
So much depends on the style of play and desire of the player. You really wanna be a blaster? High Dex rawks the attack bonus, Int raised from 15 ain't bad. High Con for HP and Concentration and Fort saves is my normal 2nd high stat for a wizard... so a tough choice as they're all good, some more optimal than others at different angles.
I'm from the camp of high Int always... and want the highest possible Int to start, other high scores are nice and good, but secondary to my skill points, Spell DC, starting spells and bonus spells which is my bread and butter.
So much depends on the style of play and desire of the player. You really wanna be a blaster? High Dex rawks the attack bonus, Int raised from 15 ain't bad. High Con for HP and Concentration and Fort saves is my normal 2nd high stat for a wizard... so a tough choice as they're all good, some more optimal than others at different angles.
I'm from the camp of high Int always... and want the highest possible Int to start, other high scores are nice and good, but secondary to my skill points, Spell DC, starting spells and bonus spells which is my bread and butter.
The problem with Color Spray is that you need to be very close indeed to your intended targets for the spell to work. It depends on how you play your Wizards, but Color Spray for me would be a defense-only spell. Not a bad defense, though, in a pinch. I'd prefer to flee for a round and let my meat shields take care of the problem. I guess that's why I like Expeditious Retreat so much as my favorite 1st level spell. Heh.Nifft said:
And then a human can move 10 feet further each move, 20 with ER. Don't have to run faster than the landshark, you only have to run faster than the gnome, eh?
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