Incanter, Alternate Arcane Spellcaster

[Shirt Guy John]

Incanter, Alt. Arcane Spellcaster
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Basic Concept: It is said that the Sorcerer casts spells by blood and the Wizard casts spell by book. While the statement about the Wizard is mostly true, another class ealies more heavily on spell books. The Incanter casts spells "on the fly", as it were, by reading them from tomes and/or scrolls. He does not prepare spells, and does not cast spells through the virtue of his heritage. He simply casts spells by reading them.

Spell-Casting Basics:
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*The Incanter can theoreticaly cast an unlimited number of spells each day. By reading the spell directly off of a piece of parchment (either in book or scroll form), he can invoke the powers of the arcane.

*Each time an Incanter attampts to cast a spell, he must have the medium in which it is available (Such as a tome) at hand. He reads directly from the medium. The Incanter's spell rely heavily on verbal components, so like a Bard, he can not cast silent spells. In an area of complete silence (ie. area of a "Silence" spell) the Incanter's spell-casting abilities are nulified.

*If using a tome or spellbook, the Incanter must flip through to find the spell he wishes to cast. This takes a move equvilent action, and provokes an attack of opportunity (At the DM's option, this AoO may force the Incanter to make a Concentration check to avoid losing his place). An Incanter who wishes to expediate this procedure may take the following feat.

Memorized Location[General]
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Requirements: Intelligence 15+, Incanter level 3+

Benefits: You can effortlessly find the locations of certain favored spells in your collection of tomes. Choose 5 spells that you have access to. If you have a tome or spellbook at hand that contains any of the chosen spells, you make locate the pages containing the spell as a free action (You open the book directly to the correct pages). You may take this feat multiple times, chosing 5 more spells each time.

*The Incanter does not have a spell list or a limit of spells per day. To cast a spell, the Incanter must be able to read it from the book/tome/scroll. The spell requires the standard casting time and all standard arcane material components. The Incanter makes a Spellcraft check to determine whether or not he succesfully casts the spell. The DC for this check is equal to 10+(2xSpell Level). Each time he succesfully casts a spell each day, the Incanter gains a penalty to all spellcraft checks for the remainder of the day. This penalty is equal to spell's level and all such penalties are cumulitive throughout the course of a day. These penalties are lost once an Incanter gets at least 8 hours of sleep (or a great enough amount of rest to suffice).

*An Incanter has trouble with meta-magic feats. He suffers the same restriction as the sorcerer when using said feats (The casting time for a Meta-magic spell is increased from 1 action to 1 full round (or increased by 1 full round if the casting time is longer than 1 action). Since the Incanter has no spell limit, though, the modified spell level is used to determine the DC and penalty asociated with casting the spell.

*As an Incanter cannot easily read the scribblings of a Wizard's spellbook "on the fly", they ussually keep their own writen in the language that the spells originated in. An Incanter's spellbook, or Tome, as most refer to them, ussually contains 100 pages. Each spell uses a number of pages equal to the spell level, but can only be cast by an Incanter in this form. The incanter may choose to write the spells in their entirity, but the spells then take up a number of pages equlal to 2x the spell level.

*The Incanter can cast spells from scrolls without "using up" the scroll. If he is just using the scroll as a spell source (and thus making all of the skill checks and taking all of the penalties) and not as a spell-activation item, the scroll still remains after casting. He may still activate scrolls normally as a Wizard of equal level, if he so wishes.

*Incanters use their intelligence modifier to determine spell save DCs.

Class Abilities:
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Base Attack Bonus: As Wizard (1/2 level)

HD: As Wizard (1/2 level)

Weapon/Armor proficiency: Dagger, Punching Dagger, Club, Quarterstaff, Light Crossbow, Heavy Crossbow. No armor. No shields.

Class Skills: Alchemy(Int), Concentration(Con), Craft(Int), Decipher Script(Int), Forgery(Int), Knowledge[Arcana, religion, nature, and all others](Int), Profesion(Wis), Scry(Int), Speak Language(---), Spellcraft(Int)

Skill Points Per Level: 2+Int Modifier (x4 at first level)

Level Special Spell Level Limit
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1 Arcane Ability 1st level
2 1st level
3 2nd level
4 2nd level
5 Arcane Ability 3rd level
6 3rd level
7 4th level
8 4th level
9 5th level
10 Arcane Ability 5th level
11 6th level
12 6th level
13 7th level
14 7th level
15 Arcane Ability 8th level
16 8th level
17 9th level
18 9th level
19 9th level
20 Arcane Ability 9th level
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Arcane Ability:
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The Incanter learns to utilize his/her arcane attunement better. At each level that is a multiple of five (and at first level; 1,5,10,15,20), the Incanter can choose to gain one of the following abilities:

-Well Read: The Incanter may make an Intelligence check with a bonus equal to half his class levels when dealing with an obscure topic once each day. Treat the result like a use of the Bardic Knowledge ability (See pg.29), except that it represents the general knowledge that the Incanter picks up through his intense readings.

-Clerical Readings (Requires 8 ranks in Knowledge[Religion]): The Incanter may cast divine spells in the same way that he casts Arcane spells (writen Divine spells ussually only exist in scroll form). He can cast Divine spells from the Cleric's spell list the same way as Arcane spells, but his maximum spell level is treated as hlaf of what it is for arcane spell-casting (round down; if Arcane is 9, then he can activate 4th level divine spells from the cleric spell list).

-Natural Reading (Requires 8 ranks in Knowledge[Nature]): The Incanter may cast divine spells in the same way that he casts Arcane spells (writen Divine spells ussually only exist in scroll form). He can cast Divine spells from the Druid's spell list the same way as Arcane spells, but his maximum spell level is treated as half of what it is for arcane spell-casting (round down; if Arcane is 9, then he can activate 4th level divine spells from the druid spell list).

-Read all Magic (Requires 8 ranks Decipher Script): The Incanter can freely read most magical writings. He can read, and thus cast, any arcane spell from a wizard's spell-book without aid of the "Read Magic" spell (This would allow an Incanter and Wizard to work out of the same book each day).

-The Incanter may choose a bonus feat from the following list: Augment Summoning, Combat Casting, Greater Spell Focus, Greater Spell Penetration, Memorized Location(See above), Quik Draw(Functions for Tomes as well as weapons, if the Tome is carried in an easy-to-reach place), Skill Focus[Any class skill], Spell Focus, Spell Penetration, or any meta-magic feat(other than Silent Spell).

Spell Level Limit:
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The Incanter can only cast spels of a restricted degree of power. The Incanter is limited to spells of the listed level or lower until he reaches a new class level (Any attempt to cast a spell of too high of level automatically fails).


General Notes on Creation:
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Greetings all. This alternate Arcane spellcaster was brought to mind by my growing interest in my idea of the classic spell-book wielding mage. I wanted a class that completely relied on a skill (Spellcraft) and his books to survive. I think I've done a fairly good job getting accross what I intended. Finding some way to limit his spells per day (without resorting to "mana points" or something like that that doesn't fit the feel of the class) was the most interesting part of this class. As is, he will probably cast a number of spells each day equal to or less than the standard wizard (though I didn't use too detailed of an evaluation method). I was going to add a Spellcraft bonus to make sure that at least one high-level spell could be cast with relative certainty each day (I rethought it, though, because I think it'll work out just fine. It was just gut instinct). It also seems that the order in wich they cast their spells each day will make a significant difference later (If I cast a few "Magic Missile"s now, I might not be able to make the Spellcraft check to cast Fireball later). Originally I was not going to cap the spell levels that he could cast at any given level, but I figured that a monsterous character with one level of this class and a really high Intelligence might become overpowered. I also toyed with the idea of just making the "Arcane Abilities" special feats, but I figured that they will function better this way. Overall, I think I'm pretty pleased. I need to playtest it some how, but since I'm "Between Campaigns" for right now, that may be a long way off.

Please feel free to coment (Acctually, that's the only reason I posted it in the first place).

 

[Privateer]

Hm, interesting idea... I certainly wouldn't have thought of it, but it does make a good deal of sense explaining why all those wizard miniatures have a spellbook out ... however, two things make this so incredibly unbalancing that I would never, ever allow it in my campaign (no offence, naturally):

- The ability to cast divine spells. IMHO, the divine should be left to divine spellcasters, even if it means taking a dive on your next check.

- The spellcraft check can be easily and cheaply modified with a magic item.

I love the idea, just not the set-up. It works in theory, but then again, so does the spiked chain

If you can make this class more balanced, I would be happy to have this in my campaign; but as it stands...

 

[poilbrun]

Don't expect this guy to cast a lot of spells either... At level 20, he will have a max spellcraft skill of maximum 50 : 23 ranks + 4 (INT 22 [Creation 18 + 4 at various levels] + 3 (headband of intellect + 6) + 3 (Skill Focus) + 10 (non-epic object that gives a bonus to spellcraft) = 43 ranks. I'm sure it's possible to get a bit higher, so let's just say 50 in spellcraft. If he rolls a 20 on his spellcraft check, that means he can cast 70 levels of spells. A wizard can cast 180 levels of spells (4 of each level) and a sorcerer can cast 270 levels of spells (6 of each level).

I also tend to agree about the divine spells. I tend to see divine spells as coming from a god (or at least a force, such as nature), and do not like the fact that this guy would be able to cast divine spells because they are written in a book. Maybe by linking these spellcasters with the god of knowledge But no matter if it has a roleplay explanation, it surely unbalances the class.

There are some details that you should think about: how are level 0 spells treated for the spellcraft check (I suppose DC11 since level 0 are usually seen as half a level 1), and do they give a penalty to further check in the same day? Does an ability score give them bonus spells? I don't know how it would work though... If they don't receive bonus spells, this may be seen as a balancing factor. How is the DC of their spells calculated? I would say DC 10 + spell level + INT modifier. Can he get a familiar?

I have no need for new core classes, but I think this one is a good one though...

 

[MeepoTheMighty]

Flavorwise I like it, but I have issues with the "Memorized Location" feat. Couldn't a couple of colored paperclips or post-it-notes do the same thing?? Why bother wasting a feat for what is essentially a bookmark?

I really like the idea of using progressively harder Spellcraft checks to cast a spell, but as others have pointed out, that system isnt' perfect. Ah well.

And Privateer, don't knock the wizard minis with the books out, the very first mini I painted was one of those Turned out really well, too - I was amazed at how easy it was to make the writing on the spellbook really stand out with a little bit of ink washing.

 

[Cheiromancer]

I like the idea, but I don't like the base mechanic. That stacking penalty is a way of turning the Spellcraft skill into a weird mana pool. I'd like to suggest the following as a mechanism for "infinite casting":


First, an infinite caster cannot cast spells with a duration of instantaneous. In fact, his spells tend not to last very long. (Maybe if he powered them up with spell slots they'd have better staying power!) The duration of the spells he casts can never be longer than the duration given in the spell description, but may be considerably shorter. The actual duration of the spell is given by how much he makes the spell DC by. If the infinite caster maintains concentration on the spell, he can extend to the duration for as long as he concentrates, up to the maximum duration given in the spell description.

To cast a spell, the infinite caster must make a level check (modified by the salient ability modifier) vs a DC of 10 + 2 x spell level.

This will allow a spell to last up to 1 round/level.

If he makes the check by 6, it lasts up to 1 minute/level.
If he makes the check by 14, it lasts up to 10 minutes/level.
If he makes the check by 20, it lasts up to 1 hour/level.
If he makes the check by 30, it lasts up to 1 day/level.

Never more than the spell description allows, of course. An infinite caster can take 10 or 20 with the level check, provided he is not in a stressfull situation. Taking 20 (reading very slowly and enunciating very carefully) takes 20 times the normal casting time of the spell.

Example: A 5th level infinite caster with an Intelligence of 16 wishes to cast invisibility on a companion. The DC is 14, and his base score is 5 (level) + 3 (Int modifer) = 8.

On a roll of 6 or higher, the companion turns invisible. The base duration will be for only 5 rounds, though. If the infinite caster rolls a 12 or higher, the invisibility will last for 5 minutes. Only with a roll of 20 will the invisibility last for the standard 50 minutes.

Example: A 12th level infinite caster with an 18 Intelligence wishes to cast a rope trick. He knows that long duration spells are not his forte, so he takes 20.

The base DC is 14. Taking 20, the infinite caster's check result is 36. This exceeds the check by 22, so the spell lasts for 1 hour/level.

Since an infinite caster cannot cast permanent or instantaneous spells, I would allow him to read clerical prayers too (no healing!). But he should probably use his wisdom bonus, not his intelligence bonus.

[edit- changed the class name in the example from "incanter" to "infinite caster"- just to distinguish it from the original class.]

 

[Shirt Guy John]

Incanter, Alt. Arcane Spellcaster, Version 2.0
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I've read through your replies, and as it is the general consensus that it's a good idea using bad mechanics, I thought I might as well take a second stab at it, starting from scratch.

Spell-Casting Basics:
=====================
-The Incanter can theoreticaly cast an unlimited number of spells each day. By reading the spell directly off of a piece of parchment (either in book or scroll form), he can invoke the powers of the arcane.

-Each time an Incanter attampts to cast a spell, he must have the medium in which it is available (Such as a tome) at hand. He reads directly from the medium. The Incanter's spell rely heavily on verbal components, so like a Bard, he can not cast silent spells. In an area of complete silence (ie. area of a "Silence" spell) the Incanter's spell-casting abilities are nulified.

-If using a tome or spellbook, the Incanter must flip through to find the spell he wishes to cast. This takes a move equvilent action, and provokes an attack of opportunity (At the DM's option, this AoO may force the Incanter to make a Concentration check to avoid losing his place). An Incanter can mark a spell in each Tome (using something akin to a bookmark or paperclip or something) so as to make access to that spell easier. He can access the marked spells as a free action instead of a move-equivilent action. An Incanter can have up to five such marks in any given tome without suffering a risk; any more than that and it becomes difficult to remember which mark is for what (though another system could easily be created, I'm just working with this one for now). If a Tome contains more than five marks, the Incanter must suceed at an Intelligence check (DC: 10 + total number of marks or tabs) to find the correct one. If he does not make the check, the time to find the spell is not lowered (it remains at the standard move-equivilent action). Obviously, scrolls cannot be marked, and are automatically free actions to access.

-The Incanter does not have a spell list or a limit of spells per day. To cast a spell, the Incanter must be able to read it from the book/tome/scroll. The spell requires the standard casting time and all standard arcane material components. The Incanter makes a caster-level check to determine whether or not he succesfully casts the spell. The DC for this check is equal to 8+(2xSpell Level), but he may add his Intelligence modifier to the check as a misceleneous bonus (a roll of 1 is an automatic fail. Additionally, his penalty to checks is increased by -2 for each natural 1 he rolls). Each time he succesfully casts a spell each day, the Incanter gains a penalty to all such caster-level checks for the remainder of the day. This penalty is equal to spell's level and all such penalties are cumulitive throughout the course of a day. These penalties are lost once an Incanter gets at least 8 hours of sleep (or a great enough amount of rest to suffice).

(Note: Here's what I figured for a first level Incanter with 16 Int. He can cast 0-level spells as many times as he wants with an 85% chance. The first 1st level spell he casts has a 75% chance, but the second one is at a 70% chance and the third is at 65%. After casting a 1st level spell, the Incanter has an 80% chance to cast a 0-level spell succesfully. When we add in that the casting time is usually significantly increased (by a move-equivilent action, unless marked)and that on a natural 1 he can't cast the spell AND his chances of casting further spells are decreased by 10%, I think it's pretty fair. For a 20th level character with 30 Int., things get a bit more screwy. He can cast any spell with 95% chance of succes once per day. He can cast up to a 4th level spell without reducing his chance of casting a second spell. If he casts a 9th level spell, he can cast his second 9th level spell at a 80% chance. If he casts 2 9th level spells, he can cast a third at a 60% chance. His forth 9th level spell with have a 35% chance to succeed. He could not make the check to cast a fifth 9th level spell in the same day,although a wizard of the same level with the same intelligence has 5 per day. Of course, he could cast a hell of a lot more lower-level spells if he forfeited his high-level spells. Let's say he wants to kick some righteous-donkey-butt, and wants to cast a bunch of fireballs and lightning bolts. His 3rd level (where the destruction is) spells can be cast 6 times with a 95% chance of success. Only after 14 spells is he unable to cast further 3rd level spells in that day (A wizard can cast only 6 3rd level spells, but a Sorcerer who is willing to sacrifice all higher level spells for the day can cast up to 42 3rd level spells). I think it's pretty balanced, as is. Perhaps with a few feats to allow for additional bonuses on the c-level check (Like the feats that grant bonus spells to wizards) it would appear more... attractive.

-An Incanter can use and cast Bard spells, but he does not do so easily. First, he must find a writen version of the spell (I don't know about you, but my bards pass spells only by word of mouth). After he has a writen version of the spell, he may cast it in the same manner as a wiz/sor spell, but with the caster-level check DC increased by +2 (essentially 1 spell level). Depending on the campaign and how bards work in it, you might want to remove this ability.

-An Incanter has trouble with meta-magic feats. He suffers the same restriction as the sorcerer when using said feats (The casting time for a Meta-magic spell is increased from 1 action to 1 full round (or increased by 1 full round if the casting time is longer than 1 action). Since the Incanter has no spell limit, though, the modified spell level is used to determine the DC and penalty asociated with casting the spell.

-As an Incanter cannot easily read the scribblings of a Wizard's spellbook "on the fly", they ussually keep their own writen in the language that the spells originated in. An Incanter's spellbook, or Tome, as most refer to them, ussually contains 100 pages. Each spell uses a number of pages equal to the spell level, but can only be cast by an Incanter in this form. The incanter may choose to write the spells in their entirity, but the spells then take up a number of pages equlal to 2x the spell level.

-The Incanter can cast spells from scrolls without "using up" the scroll. If he is just using the scroll as a spell source (and thus making all of the skill checks and taking all of the penalties) and not as a spell-activation item, the scroll still remains after casting. He may still activate scrolls normally as a Wizard of equal level, if he so wishes.

-Incanters use their intelligence modifier to determine spell save DCs.

Class Abilities:
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Same as above, but change the "Arcane Abilities" to just Bonus Feats (using the same list provided, but without "Memorized Location", 'cause I just dropped it). Everything else should work just fine now.

Notes to Consider:
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*Most of the above wqas a repost, except the rules workings

*His spells per day are very much related to the order in which they are cast. If he casts his highest level spells too early, it will be much more difficult to cast other spells later.

*He must have a book out in combat. He can be weakened greatly simply by attacking the book, which won't be too hard for most opponents. He must thus stay pretty far out of combat at all times.

*He can cast a nearly unlimited number of cantrips each day, but afterall, they are just CANTRIPS.

*He has no familiar, although he doesn't seem to have any abilities to replace it. I may want to add something simple (or just give him a familiar).

*He can cast Bard spells at +1 spell level but ONLY IF THEY'RE WRITEN. I can't remember ever seeing a writen bard spell, except maybe on scrolls. Then again, scrolls must be read with a Read-Magic spell.