Help my soon to be 15th level wizard choose feats..

[just__al]

First a little background... The campaign started with 12th level characters. I was warned (when I asked) that we probably wouldn't want to take a lot of downtime or have a good place to work on items so I didn't take any item creation feats.

My character was a slave who was noticed by the slaver mages as being a born talent for magic and they decided to free him if he became one of them. He didn't like being a slave but decided to play along and see if he could get powerful enough to maybe get rid of all the slavers. Along the way he freed some of the current party and his cohort nearly at the cost of his (my wizard's)life.

His current feats are... (human Wizard)
Spell Casting Prodigy
Persuasive
Silent Spell
Energy Substitution (Acid)
Still Spell
Leadership
Spell Penetration
Energy Admixture (Acid)

I might go archmage at 18th level in which case I have to take spell focus enchantment and evocation (and my last requirement as an 18th level character)

If I don't do that the other choices are keep going mage or go elemental savant at 16th level.

Assuming I'm not an archmage I'm thinking the following possibilities...

Extend spell for mage armor, false life, etc...

Quicken Spell

Persistant spell - for day long buffs, but I don't know about this one, most of the spells I like to cast only need to be extended to last all day

Enlarge Spell to really get some distance out of the "close" spells and maybe even fireball things from as far away as ohio.

Widen spell not sure about this one either we have a seven person party including my cohort - it's hard enough to "fit" anthing into a close battle without wanting to make it twice as big

I have a lesser metamagic empower rod so I don't especially want to take empower spell. As it is I occasionally "hold back" a little in combat if we aren't seriously threatened because I can still have fun without having to end the battle with one spell and I'd like to see everybody else have fun too....

 

[BiggusGeekus]

What about Greater Spell Penetration?

How often are you low on hit points? Would Toughness help you out or be a waste?

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Chain Spell is serious fun. It adds 3 levels-- essentially turning any spell you know into a "Mass" version of the same spell: one target per caster level.

(It's perhaps more useful for sorcerors for that reason...)

I had a cleric with Chain Spell, and it was a godsend (no pun intended). Not sure how useful it would be to a wizard (they generally have fewer buffs/heals, which is how I mostly used it with my cleric) but a Chained Polymorph Other is no friggin fun, I'll tell you that... Been on the wrong side of that one, I have...

Take a look through your spellbook (and the PHB in general) and see how many of your spells would benefit from it.

Chain Dispel Magic is also nice. Instead of using one Dispel Magic to target an area, dropping only one spell per target, you can Chain it instead and use the targeted version, potentially dropping ALL the spells on 15 individual targets.

Wulf

 

[just__al]

What about Greater Spell Penetration?

How often are you low on hit points? Would Toughness help you out or be a waste?

Very seldom am I low on hitpoints. My cohort is a devoted defender and I don't usually get attacked because I am often flying invisible (greater too) if I get the chance.

Besides, I have a decent con.

 

[just__al]

Chain Spell is serious fun. It adds 3 levels-- essentially turning any spell you know into a "Mass" version of the same spell: one target per caster level.

(It's perhaps more useful for sorcerors for that reason...)

I had a cleric with Chain Spell, and it was a godsend (no pun intended). Not sure how useful it would be to a wizard (they generally have fewer buffs/heals, which is how I mostly used it with my cleric) but a Chained Polymorph Other is no friggin fun, I'll tell you that... Been on the wrong side of that one, I have...

Take a look through your spellbook (and the PHB in general) and see how many of your spells would benefit from it.

Chain Dispel Magic is also nice. Instead of using one Dispel Magic to target an area, dropping only one spell per target, you can Chain it instead and use the targeted version, potentially dropping ALL the spells on 15 individual targets.

Wulf

Wow, chain spell huh. I can definately see a lot of use from that. I don't have access to any of the splat books here at work, so I'll ask, can you chain buffs or maybe false life, that would be cool...

A chained dispell magic sounds really sweet.

 

[jgsugden]

Unless you decide to do Archmage, there is really only one choice for power reasons: Quicken Spell.

The most valuable commodity in D&D is an action. This is what made 3.0 haste so incredibly powerful: you got an extra action!

Quicken effectively gives you another action, though at a high cost. Giving up a high level spell slot for a lower level spell seems like a lot to give up, but in truth, the cost is far less than the benefit. Often, 2 lower saving throws are more difficult to pass than one that is higher by 4.

 

[just__al]

Unless you decide to do Archmage, there is really only one choice for power reasons: Quicken Spell.

The most valuable commodity in D&D is an action. This is what made 3.0 haste so incredibly powerful: you got an extra action!

Quicken effectively gives you another action, though at a high cost. Giving up a high level spell slot for a lower level spell seems like a lot to give up, but in truth, the cost is far less than the benefit. Often, 2 lower saving throws are more difficult to pass than one that is higher by 4.

Yeah, I could definately see opening up a combat with a quickened fly and then an improved invisibility. Or maybe a quickened glitterdust followed up by a confusion spell.

 

[just__al]

anyone else with suggestions?

 

[Storminator]

anyone else with suggestions?

I agree with Quicken. You're starting to get the spell slots that make the +4 a mere inconvience. You can Quicken True Strike for Enervations and Disintegrates. You can Quicken Web for an instant battlefield control. You can Quicken a Mirror Image for a few rounds of protection while you fire off some spells. Note that none of these examples uses your highest level slots...

Not only is Quicken a great feat, but no one can utilize it like a wizard.

PS