If a spell is currently too high level to cast, can you still add it to spellbook?

[Lawful Good Garagos]

If a wizard has a high spellcraft skill, and can succeed at a spellcraft check of 24 (15 + spell level of 9).

Can he add a level 9 spell even if his current Wizard level does not allow him to cast such a powerful spell?

It would be useful for someone who aspires to be a Red Wizard. Upon becoming a Red Wizard, a character must ban additional schools.

So if he can copy to his spellbook the high level spells of his future banned schools ahead of time, can the Red Wizard cast them later when his level is high enough?

 

[frankthedm]

I only glanced at the text, but I only noticed the Spells Gained at a New Level having the "must be of spell levels she can cast" requirement. Spells Copied from Another’s Spellbook or a Scroll did not seem to have that requirement.

Arcane Spells :: d20srd.org

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

You should be able to. But a banned school means no learning OR casting, I thought?

 

[Jack Simth]

If a wizard has a high spellcraft skill, and can succeed at a spellcraft check of 24 (15 + spell level of 9).

Can he add a level 9 spell even if his current Wizard level does not allow him to cast such a powerful spell?

It would be useful for someone who aspires to be a Red Wizard. Upon becoming a Red Wizard, a character must ban additional schools.

So if he can copy to his spellbook the high level spells of his future banned schools ahead of time, can the Red Wizard cast them later when his level is high enough?

Copying a spell is lacking the restriction on being able to cast it, so by most readings, yes, this is legal.

Of course, you're spending... what, around 4,000 gp? ... at low-ish levels for a benefit where the campaign might never reach there...

You should be able to. But a banned school means no learning OR casting, I thought?

Normal banning, yes. Red Mage Banning is different, though, as spelled out in the PrC.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

Red Mage is the one with that Circle Magic thing that's ripe for abuse as well, right?

I don't think I like this Prestige Class...

 

[Dandu]

Red Wizard is the one which can jack your caster level up to 40 by itself.

Red Mage is the one who thinks he's a powergamer but isn't.

 

[Sekhmet]

You may scribe new spells to your spellbook even if you do not meet the requirement for that spell, even if it is a prohibited school, even if it is higher level.

Regardless if you have the spell in your book or not, you still may not cast it if it is in a prohibited school.

 

[anest1s]

Red Wizard is the one which can jack your caster level up to 40 by itself.

Red Mage is the one who thinks he's a powergamer but isn't.

He is.

To tell the truth, hes the only reason I can't stop myself from having ranks on sleight of hand.

 

[Jimlock]

I was gonna cry out that this sounds preposterous, for I always thought that a wizard should "understand" (=be able to cast) the spells he copies... but it seems you guys are right.

Moreover:

RC p160

ADDING SPELLS TO A SPELLBOOK
Spellcasters who use spellbooks can add new spells to their spellbooks through several methods.
Gained Spells
Spellcasters who use spellbooks perform spell research between adventures. Each time such a caster attains a new level in the appropriate arcane spellcasting class, that spell- caster gains spells to add to the spellbook according to the class’s description and any restrictions from specialization. Spells so gained must be of spell levels the caster can cast. Spells gained in this way don’t have the time and money costs for spell’s copied or researched (see Writing a New Spell into a Spellbook and Researched Spells).

Copied Spells
Spellcasters who use spellbooks can add a spell to their book whenever they find one on a scroll or in another caster’s spellbook. The spell to be copied must be on the copier’s class spell list. No matter what the spell’s source, it must first be deciphered. Next, the decipherer must spend a day studying the spell. At the end of the day, if the decipherer can learn the spell, he makes a Spellcraft check (DC 15 + spell’s level). If the check succeeds, the spellcaster understands the spell and can copy it into a spellbook (see Writing a New Spell into a Spellbook). The process leaves a spellbook unharmed, but a spell successfully copied from a scroll disappears from that scroll.
If the check fails, the spellcaster can’t understand or copy the spell. After such a failure, the decipherer can’t learn or copy that spell again until he gains another rank in Spellcraft. A spell that was being copied from a scroll doesn’t vanish from the scroll in this case.
In most cases, wizards charge a fee for the privilege of copying spells from their spellbooks. This fee is usually equal to the spell’s level × 50 gp.

...so by raw its 100% ok.

personally... I am not sure i'd allow it though...

somehow it doesn't make cense.

 

[Sekhmet]

The "Spell to be copied must be on the copier's class spell list" indicates that, if you have Abjuration and Illusion (why, oh why?) as prohibited schools, they're effectively no longer part of your class list, and you cannot copy them.