New Design: Wizards...

[Zebediah Magus]

So I'll need my Necronomicon in hand on every fight?

As far as multiclassing goes, there may be a mechanic to consider your non-casting classes into the caster level plus a possibility to choose talents from any tree you have access to, like the force on Star Wars Saga.

 

[Nahat Anoj]

What an interesting article. I bet clerics will have "gear" for their divine magic as well - for example, holy symbols will probably be like "weapons" now.

 

[JoelF]

As much as I don't like the flavor/mechanics implimentation, the two things that stick out at me most are:

1) why does the wand influence long range effects AND personal ones? That's the strangest set of opposites I can think of!

2) will the game effects of the +x wand/staff/orb/tome simply replace the current spell focus feats? If so, this seems like junking around with the fluff/flavor text for no good reason.

 

[DItheringFool]

Sounds Like Diablo II

This blows... I already own the Diablerie.

 

[Charwoman Gene]

It reminds me, in a good way and a bad way of Mage: the Ascension.

I like wizards having focuses that aren't completely necessary, but REALLY help when they are there. I hated some of the default foci in M:tA too. I hate wands. Always have.

Speculation
At will: Wizard Strikes/Cleric Holy Symbol Attacks
Per Encounter: Power Words/Holy Words
Per Day: Arcane/Divine Spells

 

[Derren]

A change from 8 schools of magic to 4?

Yep, the new schools of magic are: Buff, Debuff, Crowd Controll and Direct Damage.

I can't await till I see the new spells:

[B]Mesmerize[/B]
Wiz 2
[B]Range[/B]: 20 squares
[B]Casting time[/B]: 1 action
[B]Cooldown[/B]: 5 rounds

Mezzes the target for 3 rounds. Any damage to the target breaks the effect.
Does not work on CR +3 targets.
[COLOR=Red]
You need to have an orb equipped to cast this spell[/COLOR]

Lets hope the sorcerer can fend of the item requirements.

 

[WayneLigon]

Very cool idea, yes; I'm already used to it through Arcana Unearthed, where Majisters had to have their staff to cast spells at their full effect, a Witch had to have his athame, and a Mageblade had to have his special weapon.

I might replace the implements with Sword, Cup, Pentacle, and Wand. As it should be

 

[Clavis]

I have been generally negative towards the 4th ed in general, but I LOVE the idea of Wizard's actually using implements. It makes Wizards run more like their legendary/mythological equivalents. I would have had the implements simply replace material components however, and still have there be spells that cannot be cast without an implement.

For anyone that questions the use of the Tome in combat, that's exactly what's depicted in the medieval legends of Charlemagne. Malagigi, the wizard-knight, uses his book to summon and command demons, and when his book is stolen, he can't use his magic. In actual medieval occultism, the book would have contained not only the conjurations the magician needed, but also the actual pacts and sigils of the demons that forced their obedience. Actual grimoires from the 16th and 17th centuries (I know a collector) were made small, so they could be held in one hand while the magician worked (and could be hidden up a wide sleeve if needed) So, the image of a wizard reading from his book in the middle of the dungeon is entirely historical.

 

[Rechan]

As much as I don't like the flavor/mechanics implimentation, the two things that stick out at me most are:

1) why does the wand influence long range effects AND personal ones? That's the strangest set of opposites I can think of!

Because in iconic mythos, wizards tap something with a wand to give it a temporary effect.

The difference between a Staff and a Wand, IMHO, is the difference between a baseball bat and a scalpel. The former is a brute force weapon, and the latter is a matter of precision. Maybe the Staff only works at short range because it's like the arcane equivalent of a Shotgun or a firehouse - a lot of power is funneled into a short distance, but the energy is expended by the time it reaches any real distance.

So for the Wand, you have to focus and fire and it blows something up very far away, like a laser that hits and spreads out.

 

[GoodKingJayIII]

Well, this is an element I'm not excited for. I dislike the idea of a wizard digging around his bags and robes for his wizardly crockpot in order to empower his spells of cookery.

Of course, as already mentioned multiple times, there is a lot of precedent for this kind of behavior. Individually, taken as separate pieces these all work quite well. I like the idea of wands for one type of wizard, or staves for another. But encouraging bonuses will almost guarantee that every wizard player will want the best of each of these items. And that sounds to me like a new translation of the Christmas Tree Effect.