My player submitted this class to me

[Nifft]

As I said earlier as to the player's comment, the point of the class was designed around the use of Reserve Feats.

If it's about Reserve feats, why does it need more than 1 spell per day at each spell-level?

The per-day and early-level-acquisition are more the issues than the spells-known, in this case, since it's a better Sorcerer than the Sorcerer.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Rechan]

Can your player just come here and post? It'll be easier than making you the middle man.

Tried. He doesn't like seeing how people react to his creative creations. Big chicken.

The player apparently is just in love with playing a Warforged magic user, and wants to explore "I'm a magical creation, so I want to exploit my nature/source of magical power". The player just can't find satisfaction with any class mechanics; the warlock's powers and mechanics don't seem to "do it".

For now the player decided to just keep with Warmage because it's less annoying, but is dissatisfied with how so many classes just are 'you suck in your early levels, and only get your cool abilities in the higher levels'; the player wants to be cool from day one.

Which, given that I'm running an online game (thus: it takes Forever) starting at level 3, well, they're going to be pretty weak for a while.

 

[Nifft]

Tried. He doesn't like seeing how people react to his creative creations. Big chicken.

If he wants to design good stuff, he needs to be open to ridicule criticism. Seriously, every sucks in the beginning.

The player apparently is just in love with playing a Warforged magic user, and wants to explore "I'm a magical creation, so I want to exploit my nature/source of magical power".

Artificer?

Cheers, -- N

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

I agree, this class is too much. The martial aspect of the class is alright; average BAB and d8 HD is limited enough. The casting aspect needs to be toned down though; the limited spells known is a step in the right direction but spells per day and spell levels are at least as important as spells known. At the very least, get rid of those bonus feats and goodies. If not the goodies, then make it a partial casting progression even if you up the spells known to 2 per level.

I sympathize with your player's complaint about so many classes sucking until the mid levels. It seems to be a common theme in d&d, especially for the casting classes. I actually made my own warrior-mage class because the published ones don't satisfy me; if you're interested you can find the Arcane Warrior here.

 

[Aleolus]

I asked the player this, and the email response is:

"Duskblade is kind of cool, but they have a few problems that really annoy me. Primarily the lack of decent combat touch spells to be used with their arcane channeling ability. I suppose what I kind of want is a nice mage/fighter mix, just with different magical abilities then a duskblade, and without the limited spell list.

A lot of it is that I really liked the idea behind the reserve feats. The idea of having innate abilities that you could use at will based on spells you have prepared seems really neat to me. So I was aiming for a magic-user class that had a decent spell-level progression, but only had a handful of spells to power the reserve feats. The idea behind the elemental channeling ability is that I was looking for some way to actually make the 0-level spells kind of useful.

I suppose the actual physical combat ability isn't really that important to me. I mean I like the concept behind the warmage and it doesn't have very good combat skills. Guess I just would like different abilities and spell progression is all."

I would say to have him play a Duskblade, but change the spell list. That was always a sore point for me as well, Duskblade's have a maximum of four 0 level spells, and not many spells of higher levels, yet they can cast up to five spells a day from each level (max). That annoyed me.

Also, the feat listed has a BAB requirement of +1, yet they get it at first level, when they have a +0 BAB? That doesn't quite follow. You should add in that they get it even if they don't meet the normal prereq, there are a few classes that do that.

 

[eamon]

He should probably be using a sorcerer-type (i.e. spontaneous) casting progression.

I would let him pick half the wizard schools and ban the others to reduce the spell list, and allow only core spells, no spell compendium or whatnot.

The rest would be fine (since flexibility is part of the sorcerers key benefit), roughly, though you'd need to ensure his abilities are on par with a beguiler, say.

Essentially, he'd be building a beguiler with better BAB, worse saves, similar abilities, and a comparable spell list (slightly wider range, but much much smaller since he only knows spells as a sorc does). It should be doable anyhow; the BAB isn't really killer anyhow for a sorc-type caster and it'll make him a little more versatile. You might want to pay careful attention to ranged-touch attack spells, however.

 

[Dargon]

Higher lvl spells is far more powerful then a broad selection of spells.\
What the character says he want is also fulfilled with the spell progress Arkhandus suggested. This way I think it is balanced with spells from the wiz/sorc spell list.

I think duskblade should cover nicely; the player could spend a feat(s) on reserved spells. They have plenty of touch spells (you know that there are more spells the ones mentioned in PHB2, I cannot remember the pager of the full spell list but it is their somewhere.

 

[Technik4]

The whole point of playing a wizard/sorc is getting those spells at higher levels. You have to be crafty and careful in the early levels, and deal with a limited amount of spells/day, but almost every character is gimped early on.

Making a d8, medium BAB, feat-ridden class with the exact same progression of spells is just silly. Its not that it obsoletes the Wizard, but with intelligent item-use, it just makes sure he never seems special.

 

[Meeki]

WAIT! make him a bard! yea! oo.. wait...

anyways is he opposed to taking a prestige class? Spellsword does what he wants pretty nicely. I'm sure there are tons more out there.

He wouldn't be able to reach the casting in armor as fast but he would be able to get into the class as a fighter/wiz and have access to all the spells he wants.

 

[Flamewarrior]

Will I need to post in every friggin' D&D forum I'm a member of that this class isn't even good enough? Look, it doesn't have the slightest casting versatility, its class features are nonexistant, and medium BAB doesn't synergize with anything this class has: it's good for sneak attack, it's good for wildshape, it's good for martial strikes (of some disciplines), but it isn't even for a cleric (who functions off divine power, in truth), much less for a (nerfed) wizard. I think that an actually decent quick fix would be: go over the reserve feat list and boost them until taking one isn't a shame (you might take some inspiration from here, if you use psionics and are willing to pull the - few - bucks, as it's a great book, with feats better made along the same concept), allow quick cast to be applied to spells (not necessarily of highest level), and, at some point after the 10th, make reserve feat use be always a swift action, without cost.