D&D 5E Sorcerer Wild Magic Surge

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[MENTION=6803346]basilforth[/MENTION] The AD&D wild mage had a similarly...zany...list of wild magic effects, so the 5e PHB version is playing off of that. For some groups and some games that's fine — a somewhat zany and off-beat dungeon romp is exactly what the group is looking for. And that's great!

However, in a more "serious" campaign, well... For example, for the Witcher game I'm running I created a heavily modified version of the sorcerer based on merging the ideas of the wild mage with the way "Sources" (untrained sorcerers) are depicted in the fiction. This led to a much clearer execution without the zaniness. My version addresses many of the issues raised by [MENTION=12731]CapnZapp[/MENTION], but it makes certain assumptions that support a game with a Witcher "feel."

I'd suggest starting with what you think a wild mage and his or her surges should look like, and talking with your DM about your idea so you can find a solution that fits better together.

 

[Gardens & Goblins]

We have a halfling (re-skinned to be something akin to the halfling Dragonborn..) with the Lucky feat who is also a Wildmagic sorcerer.

And we use http://www.traykon.com/pdf/The_Net_Libram_of_Random_Magical_Effects.pdf.

Good times.

No complaints here - in actual play things have worked out fine and fun. Traumatising. But fine and fun.

 

[I'm A Banana]

IMO the most valuable ability of the wild mage is actually Bend Luck, not wild surges. It's like +4 to everyone's casting stat and +4 to most people's most critical saving throws and ability checks, as long as you use it only on the margins. I'd probably still take Wild Mage (+Warlock 2) over Dragon Mage (+Warlock 2) in most situations even if the DM never, ever called for wild surges (so that Tides of Chaos only worked once per long rest).

Bend luck has, IMXP, been the more useful of the two (it doesn't even require an action, so you can do it surprised!), but it comes ambling along too late to be much of a signature ability.

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

Bend luck has, IMXP, been the more useful of the two (it doesn't even require an action, so you can do it surprised!), but it comes ambling along too late to be much of a signature ability.

Unfortunately, this isn't the case. Bend Luck takes your reaction. You can't take reactions while surprised (unless you've already had your turn, which I'll call "not surprised any more"). Ergo, no Bend Luck while surprised.

 

[I'm A Banana]

Unfortunately, this isn't the case. Bend Luck takes your reaction. You can't take reactions while surprised (unless you've already had your turn, which I'll call "not surprised any more"). Ergo, no Bend Luck while surprised.

That's what I get for reading fast.

 

[feartheminotaur]

It's only a 20' radius anyway. You should be in dispersed formation anyway just in case an enemy (e.g. Flameskull) hits you with a Fireball or a breath weapon (e.g. Magma Mephits).

I don't buy the idea that a Fireball = unavoidable TPK below level 5.

Yep. It's a 2% chance that it'll go off (if an auto-roll, otherwise, a .1%), and based on party arrangement, probably much lower of a chance that it will affect the entire party. A half-ogre, a medium challenge for 4 1st level PCs, has a 55% chance of hitting an AC 15 player and, at 2d8+3, an even chance at dropping low-CON, non-barbarians characters outright.

The real "bad" result is the potted plant. Of course, you can always use Tides on the save...

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

Yep. It's a 2% chance that it'll go off (if an auto-roll, otherwise, a .1%), and based on party arrangement, probably much lower of a chance that it will affect the entire party. A half-ogre, a medium challenge for 4 1st level PCs, has a 55% chance of hitting an AC 15 player and, at 2d8+3, an even chance at dropping low-CON, non-barbarians characters outright.

The real "bad" result is the potted plant. Of course, you can always use Tides on the save...

Yes, potted plant is the worst result by far. It doesn't have a save, either, so you can't use Tides of Chaos, and it's not a "you cast Polymorph" effect so it can't be Counterspelled either. If it happens just as you were Shielding against a full attack routine from a Titan (Empyrean), you're toast.

Oddly, the PHB gives zero guidance on what to do with your AC/stats while you are a potted plant. Going by strict RAW, you retain your stats and AC while a potted plant, but that's goofy. As a DM I genuinely don't know what to do with that result. I'd probably run it by RAW at least once or twice ("I dunno, I guess you're a potted plant inside of a suit of chain mail") and then maybe after that rewrite the result to something equally bad but more sensible.

 

[feartheminotaur]

Weird, I thought it was "polymorphed", but you're right, it's just "you turn into". I had it confused with the sheep one.

I've actually never seen that one rolled. But if it's not polymorph what makes you think you'd retain stats and AC after the transformation, and not you literally turn into an object? Personally, I'd rule it as if you were an object as per the DMG, so, probably AC 13 with 1d6 HP.

Edit: Not sure reading it now that it's that bad. You don't die at 0 HP, you 'revert' back to your original form. That's not really clear if you have 0 HP after, or if it's like wild shape and you're your normal full HP self.

Still worse than 8d6 save for half (or less).

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

Weird, I thought it was "polymorphed", but you're right, it's just "you turn into". I had it confused with the sheep one.

I've actually never seen that one rolled. But if it's not polymorph what makes you think you'd retain stats and AC after the transformation, and not you literally turn into an object? Personally, I'd rule it as if you were an object as per the DMG, so, probably AC 13 with 1d6 HP.

Edit: Not sure reading it now that it's that bad. You don't die at 0 HP, you 'revert' back to your original form. That's not really clear if you have 0 HP after, or if it's like wild shape and you're your normal full HP self.

Still worse than 8d6 save for half (or less).

The main thing that makes me think there's supposed to be some stat retention is that you have vulnerability to all damage. That implies that it's not a regular Polymorph where you turn back into yourself at 0 HP with full HP, because who cares if your bonus Polymorph HP have vulnerability or not? Vulnerability just means you spend less time as a potted plant, and take slightly more damage on the final blow that actually "kills" you in plant form. It doesn't sound like that consequence is what the wild surge entry is aiming for--it's supposed to be scary and threatening.

You know what? It's probably simplest to just make that result be "you are paralyzed until the end of your next turn." It's effectively the same thing as the "potted plant" result (because auto-crits ~= vulnerability) without any of the DMing headaches.