Helping the sorcerer/wizard- Arcane Synergy feat

[the Jester]

Hmm, having trouble with this- suggestions?

COMBINED DWEOMER [General]
You can give up one or more spell slots from your sorcerer spells available to improve the power of your wizard spells and vice-versa.

Prerequisites: Arcane Mastery, Arcane Synergy, Heighten Spell, able to cast 3rd-level arcane spells as a wizard or sorcerer and 2nd-level arcane spells as the other

Benefit: By giving up one of your highest-level spell slots as a wizard and as a sorcerer, you gain access to a spell two levels higher than the higher level spell given up as a spell of that class. This spell slot may only be used to prepare or cast a spell whose level has been raised with metamagic feats, but it is automatically considered heightened as well.

Special: If you have the Spontaneous Metamagic Mastery feat, the heightening applied to a Combined Dweomer does not count as a metamagic feat for purposes of increasing the casting time.

 

[the Jester]

Arcane Mastery-
I'd drop the restriction; just make it a higher-level slot. Making it cost a slot of the highest-level spells in the other class might be good to balance that, if you feel it's too powerful.

Except how will he know a higher-level spell as a sorcerer? Maybe he could learn it as a wizard, but as a sorcerer he's out of luck... unless this also becomes a new feat.... hmm. Will mull this one over.

Spontaneous Metamagic Mastery-

I'd also make Arcane Preparation a prerequisite for this...

I was kind of viewing the wizard levels as the arcane prep ability required. I think requiring Arcane Preperation as another feat to get it would be too harsh- nobody will ever take it in that case.

Thanks for the input, guys! I appreciate it!

 

[Capellan]

How about this as an amendment to Arcane Mastery?

ARCANE MASTERY [General]
Your mastery of different types of arcane magic allows you to cast more powerful spells than you otherwise could.
Prerequisites: Arcane Synergy, any metamagic feat, 2nd-level arcane spells as a wizard and as a sorcerer.
Benefit: You gain one spell slot of one level higher than the highest level spell slot you normally have available in one of your arcane spellcasting classes. You may choose with class is affected when you take this feat, but may not change your choice one it is made. You can only fill this slot with a lower-level spell that has had its level increased with metamagic feats.
This feat can be taken multiple times. You can choose which class it applies to each time you take it.

Eliminates the 'equal level' issue.

 

[Capellan]

ARCANE FOCUS [General]
Your arcane spells are more powerful than they would otherwise be due to your mastery of different kinds of arcane spellcasting.
Prerequisites: Arcane Synergy, Spell Focus (any), 3rd-level arcane spells as a wizard and as a sorcerer
Benefit: When you cast wizard spells, the saving throw DC increases by half of your Charisma bonus. When you cast sorcerer spells, the saving throw DC increases by half of your Intelligence bonus. This ability overlaps (does not stack with) Spell Focus and Greater Spell Focus.

Okay, on this one I was torn over whether it should stack with Spell Focus and GSF... opinions, anyone?

Given that it requires at least 5 levels to be invested in Wizard, and 6 in Sorcerer, which rules out ever getting 8th or 9th level spells in either class, I'd say it would be fair to allow it to stack. The only problem would be stat boosting items: I can see people loading up on both stats and ending up with some pretty hideous Save checks!

Maybe instead of basing it on the stat bonus you could simply make it a flat +1? Then add a "Greater Arcane Focus" feat that increases the bonus to +2? That should work fine with stacking.

If we have Arcane Focus, it seems to me you should also think about:

ARCANE PENETRATION [General]
Your arcane spells are more powerful than they would otherwise be due to your mastery of different kinds of arcane spellcasting.
Prerequisites: Arcane Synergy, Spell Penetration (any), 3rd-level arcane spells as a wizard and as a sorcerer
Benefit: When you cast wizard spells, your effective level for penetrating SR increases by half of your Sorcerer caster level. When you cast sorcerer spells, your effective level for penetrating SR increases by half of your Wizard caster level. This ability stacks with Spell Penetration and Greater Spell Penetration.

Also, as a global thing, I'd suggest replacing references to "Sorcerer" with "spontaneous arcane caster" and "Wizard" with "preparation-based arcane caster", or similar global terms. This makes more allowance for PrCs, and more particularly for poor ol' Bards, who are currently getting the shaft on these feats

 

[Darkness]

Except how will he know a higher-level spell as a sorcerer?

Not a higher; just his highest, even if that's rather low. Also, it was just a random thought; it might be okay even without taking anything away.

I was kind of viewing the wizard levels as the arcane prep ability required. I think requiring Arcane Preperation as another feat to get it would be too harsh- nobody will ever take it in that case.

Good point...

 

[the Jester]

Given that it requires at least 5 levels to be invested in Wizard, and 6 in Sorcerer, which rules out ever getting 8th or 9th level spells in either class, I'd say it would be fair to allow it to stack. The only problem would be stat boosting items: I can see people loading up on both stats and ending up with some pretty hideous Save checks!

Maybe instead of basing it on the stat bonus you could simply make it a flat +1? Then add a "Greater Arcane Focus" feat that increases the bonus to +2? That should work fine with stacking.

Hmm, this bears thinking about... but I like tying it to the ability scores. Still, you're right about the potential for abuse going up (especially as the character advances in levels and therefore has access to more stat-boosting items).

I'm trying hard to make a high-level wiz/sor a viable option since one of my players is running one, so I guess the trade-off here is higher dcs for lower-level spells... I think I'll stick with the ability bonus as the base for it, but I may yet change my mind.

If we have Arcane Focus, it seems to me you should also think about:

ARCANE PENETRATION [General]
Your arcane spells are more powerful than they would otherwise be due to your mastery of different kinds of arcane spellcasting.
Prerequisites: Arcane Synergy, Spell Penetration (any), 3rd-level arcane spells as a wizard and as a sorcerer
Benefit: When you cast wizard spells, your effective level for penetrating SR increases by half of your Sorcerer caster level. When you cast sorcerer spells, your effective level for penetrating SR increases by half of your Wizard caster level. This ability stacks with Spell Penetration and Greater Spell Penetration.

That's sort of what Arcane Synergy is for already. It comes out to just about the same thing, btw- Arcane Synergy lets you add the highest level spell you can cast in your other class to penetrate SR.

Also, as a global thing, I'd suggest replacing references to "Sorcerer" with "spontaneous arcane caster" and "Wizard" with "preparation-based arcane caster", or similar global terms. This makes more allowance for PrCs, and more particularly for poor ol' Bards, who are currently getting the shaft on these feats

Part of my reasoning on this, actually, is that I wanted these feats to apply only to classes with the same spell list. I actually had started off with them as "spontaneous" and "preperation" casters, but I revised it upon further consideration. However, as the chain shapes up I'll take another look at it and see what I think.

Thanks for all the input!

 

[the Jester]

Not a higher; just his highest, even if that's rather low. Also, it was just a random thought; it might be okay even without taking anything away.

Oh, I guess I wasn't very clear when I responded- I meant, how would he know a slot that was higher level than he normally knows (to cast it without metamagicking it up?)

 

[Darkness]

Oh, I guess I wasn't very clear when I responded- I meant, how would he know a slot that was higher level than he normally knows (to cast it without metamagicking it up?)

He gets one - just like the Eldritch Master, Mystic, and Eunuch Warlock do...

 

[Capellan]

That's sort of what Arcane Synergy is for already. It comes out to just about the same thing, btw- Arcane Synergy lets you add the highest level spell you can cast in your other class to penetrate SR.

Good point. I'd forgotten about that original feat, all the way up there

Part of my reasoning on this, actually, is that I wanted these feats to apply only to classes with the same spell list. I actually had started off with them as "spontaneous" and "preperation" casters, but I revised it upon further consideration. However, as the chain shapes up I'll take another look at it and see what I think.[/B]

Another good point. This raises an interesting question, though: say a Sor/Wiz knows Fireball as a Sorcerer but not as a Wziard. Should they get these stacking bonus on those spells?

Maybe one option to consider is to make these feats apply to any character with two or more casting classes? For instance:

SPELL SYNERGY [General]
Your spell-casting expertise carries over between your classes.
Prerequisites: 1st-level spells in two or more classes.
Benefit: When you roll to overcome a creature’s spell resistance, with a spell that you know in two or more classes, you gain a synergy bonus equal to the spell's level in the other class in which you know it. If you know the spell in more than one additional class, use the highest level. This bonus stacks with that gained from Spell Penetration or Greater Spell Penetration.

For example: Alexander is a Wizard/Bard who knows slow as a 3rd level spell in both classes. If he casts the spell in either of his classes, he gains a +3 bonus for the purposes of penetrating spell resistance. If he only knew slow as a Wizard, he woul get no bonus when casting it.

Thoughts?

 

[Aust Diamondew]

I like the idea of a wizard/sorcerer cahracter and ways to make him more effective, but why not just make a PRC that grants these abilities?