New PrC: Master of Words

[Nyrahil]

I have created a hopefully new PrC and need some feedback. I hope you like it.

The old man sits in the middle of a small group of people who paid him for his stories. As a group of cutpurses closes in on the group he utters but a single word and they run for their lives.

The Master of Words uses his knowledge of the arcane arts and languages to change all his spells into single words. This they learn due an ancient tongue wich is greatly connected to the arcane arts and is mostly unknown.They mostly only use their voice and can even penetrate areas in wich no sound can travel.

Prerequisites:
Knowledge Arcana: 8 ranks
Perform ( singing, tale telling): 4 Ranks
Languages: must know at least 4 different languages
Feats: Still Spell, Eschew Materials, Energy Substitution Sonic
Spells: Must know at least 4 spells with the Sonic descriptator, two of wich must be at least 2nd level.

HitDice: 1d4
Skills: Knowledge (Arcana), Perform, Speak Language, Spellcraft, Concentration, Listen, Profession, Scry
Skill Points: 2 + INT

Base Attack: as Wizard

Saves: Good: Will; Bad: Fort, Ref

Spells: At the Levels 1 to 3, 5, 6, 8, 9 the Master of Words gains spells as if they had progressed in the Spellcasting Class they formerly belonged to (as in the usual Spell casting Prestige classes)

1) Ancient Tongue
2)
3)
4) Words Only
5)
6)
7) Super Sonic Voice
8)
9)
10) The Word

Ancient Tongue: While learning new languages the MoW slowly learns another mostly unknown and ancient language wich is strongly connected to the arcane arts. For every 5 languages the MoW has thoroughly learned the DC for his spells go up by 1. For every 7 languages the MoW knows the MoW adds 1 to the caster Level check to overcome spell resistance. This extraordinary ability only works on spells with a verbal spell component and the sonic or language-dependend descriptator . This is cummulative to spell focus, greater spell focus, spell penetration and greater spell penetration.

Words Only: When the MoW uses the Still Spell Feat and Eschew Material Feat the spells use the the same slot as the original spell. Sorcerers and Bards only need the usual casting time. This extraordinary ability only works on spells with a verbal spell component and the sonic or language-dependend descriptator. Arcane spell failure still applies due to the extreme amount of concentration needed.

Super Sonic Voice: The MoW can cast spells even when within an area wich is affected by a Silence spell. Their Spells penetrate Silenced areas. Antimagic areas still work normally. This supernatural ability only works on spells with a verbal spell component and the sonic or language-dependend descriptator.

The Word: The MoW has now so much knowledge of the words, that he can cast his spell with speaking one word only. He can cast spells wich he can cast in 1 action as a free action without suffering from AoOs. This extraordinary ability only works on spells with a verbal spell component and the sonic or language-dependend descripator. He can still cast only one spell per partial action the caster has.

 

[Nyrahil]

MoW

I changed a few things due to critique.

 

[Khorod]

Cool concept, I like the # of languages equating to more power angle.


A wizard can get the PrC as their 6th level.

At 10th PrC level, they will be accounted 14th level mages in almost all ways- feats and familiars are really minor points of the class. They can cast most of their spells as a free action, using no material components, while tied up, inside a silence spell.

The language ability will presumably give him at least a +1 DC bonus to all spells.

That seems very overpowered to me. He can sit in a area of silence chained to the wall and cast two Sonic-substituted fireballs per round. This class suffers in being balanced so that an extremely powerful specialization is gained as a trade off for two feats, familiar enhancement, and a single level of spellcasting.

Remember, any intelligent spellcaster of this type will also research new spells of the sonic & verbal type.

Make spellcasting advance at most 2/3 of the level.

 

[Nyrahil]

That seems very overpowered to me. He can sit in a area of silence chained to the wall and cast two Sonic-substituted fireballs per round.

He can do this only if he's hasted himself beforehand, and he might not be able to cast haste while chained to the wall. (If I remember correctly a round has only one partial action and one move action, wich can be combined into a fullround action).

 

[Deset Gled]

Two possible changes that may help balance the class out a bit:

Words Only: Allow the player to use either Eschew Materials or Still spell for free, but not both. One free metamagic feat can be very powerful on it's own accord. I think two goes a bit overboard.

The Word: Instead of a free action, make casting a move equivalent action that provokes AoOs as normal. Still limit the number of spells to the number normally possible. Casting as a free action is, again, a bit overboard for giving up a familiar.

Even with these two changes, I would still recommend taking out at least one more level (if not 2 to 4) of caster level. With the Ancient Tongue ability, the lowered caster level will barely affect them at all, and the lower number of spells in the only effect.

Another idea might be for the class to require some levels in bard before you can get the class.

 

[Nyrahil]

Words Only: Allow the player to use either Eschew Materials or Still spell for free, but not both. One free metamagic feat can be very powerful on it's own accord. I think two goes a bit overboard.

Since Eschew Materials doesn't change the spell level, I think its fine as it is.

The Word: Instead of a free action, make casting a move equivalent action that provokes AoOs as normal. Still limit the number of spells to the number normally possible. Casting as a free action is, again, a bit overboard for giving up a familiar.

I will think about that. Though, I would rather only remove one more casterlevel, and keep rest as it is.

With the Ancient Tongue ability, the lowered caster level will barely affect them at all, and the lower number of spells in the only effect.

I don't understand this one. Either my englich is that bad or I'm just plain stupid.

 

[Khorod]

He can do this only if he's hasted himself beforehand, and he might not be able to cast haste while chained to the wall. (If I remember correctly a round has only one partial action and one move action, wich can be combined into a fullround action).

I was thinking of the Free Action spellcasting. As I understand it, that equates to him being able to cast one spell as normal, and one spell as a free action.

Of course, double checking now I see the limitation tacked onto the end.

Okay, then your 10th level Word guy can have his arms tied behind his back, move 30 ft in a Silenced area, and bull rush a guy while sonic bombing his friends. Sounds cool.

I still think the balance of this class is designed too much around specialized magic. If this class existed in any common way, their would be lots more sonic, verbal magic. This guy would probably have spells that do just about anything, unless the spell-lists are meta-balanced. I figure there would be sonic-based spells for enchantment, invocation, & abjuration easily.

My answer to the balance is taking out a lot of those caster level boosts. Alternatively, maybe the bonus caster levels only help with sonic & verbal spells. That way a 10th level Master of Words is not just as good as a mage minus 1 level, a familiar, and two bonus feats PLUS being the grandmaster of all that is sonic & verbal.

The most important class ability of the mage, by far, is the spellcasting. Here's a measurement of the class abilties in 'feat units'. I do not suggest making feat chains out of this analysis.

 The Ancient Tongue ability is intrinsically balanced in some respects, making it equivalent to about 3/4 of a feat. Still Spell at no modifier is probably worth, say, 2 feats. Right there we've balanced the lost bonus feats.
 Super Sonic Voice removes the only real limiting factor on the power of sonics- I believe there is a current thread dedicated to discussing how there isn't enough stuff with sonic immunities, and how that, and the power of sonic attacks, is balanced by spells like Silence. For a sonic-oriented character, this has got to be like 3 feats. I think two of these balance the Familiar.
 The Word. What can I say. Its cool. But it basically gives the character a free non-magical action per round. That's another three to four feats.

So, our feat unit tally comes to 4 or 5 and 3/4 feats. The loss of one spellcasting level is worth one feat or so. I'd call this class 3.75 feats overbalanced as long as he maintains his spell-list as emphasizing the sonics, and why would he change that at 10th level of this?

I'd say 3.75 feats is probably worth about three more levels of spellcasting off the top (or making the spellcasting sonic specific, as suggested above). Making him vulnerable to an AoO for The Word is worth maybe a single feat.

The class is still stronger than the mage with 0.75 extra power. And, while the mage is versatile, if this guy can find a way to work sonics into an encounter he is worth a lot more than that mage, on the order of another 3 feats.

Did that make sense?

 

[las]

K this might seam like a stupid thing. But what if that person takes the Polyglot feat from the epic level handbook. They now speck all the languages in the game what would you do (theres a none epic vershen in another book).

Gust wondering.

 

[Khorod]

I don't like that feat. Sure, mechanically it is balanced, but in practical terms, that's one feat for several hundred languages, and that's just Earth -> humans. I don't think so.

You'd add a line saying that while such a feat will give you a speaking and general reading comprehension, the linguistic level of detail to apply the class ability requires specific, language by language study.

 

[Nyrahil]

K this might seam like a stupid thing. But what if that person takes the Polyglot feat from the epic level handbook. They now speck all the languages in the game what would you do (theres a none epic vershen in another book).

Hopefully here sets in common sense. I wouldn't allow that feat for this PrC. Anyway for a nonepic feat its much to powerful anyway.

I still think the balance of this class is designed too much around specialized magic. If this class existed in any common way, their would be lots more sonic, verbal magic. This guy would probably have spells that do just about anything, unless the spell-lists are meta-balanced. I figure there would be sonic-based spells for enchantment, invocation, & abjuration easily.

You are right here. Though I thought it included the language-depended spells as well, and now that I see it I will probably include it for the MoW as well. I guess that will make him even more powerfull.