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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Kinematics" data-source="post: 7994718" data-attributes="member: 6932123">At level 1 or 2, all classes have brought in a core mechanic that will be relevant to the class for its entire existance.  This is from the base class, not the subclass.Ranger... skip. We know ranger is poorly designed, though it does have what should be its iconic abilities show up at level 1.Barbarian [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] RageBard [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] Bardic InspirationDruid @2: WildshapeFighter [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] Fighting Style, @2: Action SurgeMonk [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] Martial Arts, @2: Movement speed, ki abilitiesPaladin [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] Lay on Hands, @2: Divine SmiteRogue [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] Sneak Attack, Expertise, @2: Cunning ActionCleric @2: Channel Divinity.  Subclass [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] Divine DomainWarlock @2: Eldritch Invocations. Subclass [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] PatronWizard [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] Arcane Recovery. Subclass @2: TraditionSorcerer @2: Font of Magic, @3: Metamagic.  Subclass [USER=6851007]@1:[/USER] OriginSorcerer is the only class that has to reach level 3 to be able to use its supposed iconic power.  Everyone else establishes themselves at level 1-2.  And those abilities tend to be used throughout a character's career — Rage, Sneak Attack, Divine Smite, Action Surge, Wildshape, etc.  The other casters (Cleric, Warlock, and Wizard) are a little less well defined in the main class, but are pretty solid when combined with the subclass.With Sorcerer, Wild Magic is fairly notable, and Divine Soul is pretty significant (access to divine magic, a bonus spell, and a personal Bless).  Dragon's is a mostly forgettable passive (higher base AC, and bonus HP).  Storm gets a near-ribbon. Shadow gets darkvision, and a hopefully rarely-used passive.The only active-use ability in the early levels is Font of Magic (level 2).  And without metamagic, it's mostly useless.  Because of the poor exchange rate, it's extremely situational, rather than something that you'll be using all the time, the way it works for every single other class.Sorcerer needs an active ability at level 1-2 that helps define the class's use from the start, and that will be useful across all levels.Personal opinion: Metamagic is a subclass-tier ability.  Coming online at level 3 marks it as similar to something like a Battlemaster subclass.Unfortunately, coming up with a good idea to fit in here is hard.-----Brainstorming...Storm Sorcerer<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Keep the 10' flight when casting spells</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Move the Storm Guide ability to level 3.  Cosmetic control of the weather should come online fast.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Use the Darkness casting design from the Shadow origin.  Instead of bonus spells, be able to cast certain spells for the sales cost of the slot, rather than the purchase cost.  For example, casting Thunder Step at level 5 for 3 SP.</li> </ul>Actually, that could be interesting.  Doing it that way, you're basically still limited to your standard number of spell slots, but you change the nature of how the spells are cast.  That is, normal spell slots are fine to use when casting your "learned" spells (analogous to wizard spells), but your "innate" spells (those tightly bound to your origin) would be cast using spell points instead.  You just take the energy from a spell slot to do so.  It encourages use of the "innate" spells over the "learned" spells because of the Font of Magic exchange economy.Then you can design something around the use of spells cast using spell points.  You haven't changed the power of the class since you're still drawing from your spell slot pool, but it allows you access to other ways of using them, similar to how Paladins use them for Smites, or Druids for healing in their wild shape forms.And this is something you can even uplift to the base class.Just spitballing there, but using limited metamatic seems a bit workable. (The Battlemaster Sorcerer would of course have much more flexibility in using metamagic in all sorts of ways.)And then you could go back and say the Storm Sorcerer adds effects like:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Thunder Step: Doubles the distance you can teleport.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Lightning Bolt: Doubles the width or length of the bolt effect (your choice).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Call Lightning: Each creature that fails its save against a lightning bolt's damage is also blinded until the end of its next turn.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Etc</li> </ul>Basically, make it easy to cast from your innate spell list, and provide bonus benefits for doing so.  That leaves the normal learned spells as open for utility stuff, but they're less desirable to 'buy' if you run out of spell slots at that level.  You also have to use normal spell slots if you want to upcast an innate spell.You'd need to provide sorcery points at level 1, for your initial level 1 origin spell.  At the moment I won't try to adjust the number of sorcery points gained, so I'll just keep it at sorcery points = Sorcerer level, so you get 1 at level 1.---Thoughts?</blockquote>

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