What DO you DO for... Wizards?

Nyaricus

First Post
So, since people are out for blood for this thread, here she is. WDYD4 Wizards?

Got a neat variant kicking around on the net someplace? A list of tiny changes you've made? Something completely different? Feel free to post whatever you've done (although bear in mind that whole classes usually warrant a new thread; please feel free to start up a new one if need be and then post a link to this thread).

So, what DO you DO for Wizards?

cheers,
--N
 

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As stated before in the other WDYD threads.. I give extra stuff to each class, resulting in a higher-powered game.

Specialist Powers: At 1st level, a wizard gains Spell Focus in his specialty school (as the feat), Spell Power +1 in his specialty school, and any Initial Power(s) as detailed below in School Specialization.

Enchant Trinket: At 1st level, a wizard can make items with a value of 1000gp or less. You create items at the rate of 500gp per day. Only 1-shot consumable magic items are allowed (scrolls, potions, Quaal's tokens, etc.)

Enchant Minor Item: At 5th level, a wizard can make items with a value of 10,000gp or less. You create at 1000gp/day, and you can now make items with either multiple charges (i.e., wands and staves) OR 1 activation per day. You can also make magical weapons/armors, as long as your caster level is four times the market price modifier.

Enchant Moderate Item: At 10th level, a wizard can make items with a value of 50,000gp or less. You create at 2000gp/day, and you can now make X/day items and slotless items in addition to the previous types. You can also make items which boost numerical values directly (the stat-boosting items, Amulets of Natural Armor, Bracers of Armor, anything that boosts a skill, etc), as long as your caster level is three times the numerical bonus. For every 20,000gp in the item's value, there's a cumulative 1% chance it is intelligent, although this cannot bestow abilities which would raise its cost above the value cap.

Enchant Major Item: At 15th level, a wizard can make items with a value of 200,000gp or less. You create at 4000gp/day, and you can make unlimited-use items (those which produce the effect of a spell either at will or on use, or those with no duration like goggles of darkvision). When checking to see if a created item is intelligent, you can choose to increase or decrease the chances by up to 10%.

Wizard's Staff: At 1st level, a wizard can obtain a magical staff. Doing so takes 24 hours and uses up magical materials that cost 100gp, in addition to requiring a masterwork staff. A wizard's staff contains spells and/or abilities as determined by the DM and increases in power as the wizard advances in levels. A wizard may only have one staff at a time. If the staff is destroyed, the wizard may create another one.

Reflexive Casting: At 2nd level, a wizard may cast one defensive spell per day as an immediate action. The wizard gains one more use of this ability per four levels above 2nd.

Spell Mastery: At 3rd level and every four levels afterwards, choose a number of spells equal to the number in parenthesis that you already know. From that point on, you can prepare these spells without referring to a spellbook (as the feat Spell Mastery). The spells picked must be of a spell level equal to or less than your Intelligence modifier. The wizard casts these spells at +1 caster level.

Metamagic I: At 4th level, a wizard gains one bonus feat from the following list: Enlarge Spell, Extend Spell, Silent Spell or Still Spell.

Metamagic II: At 9th level, a wizard gains one bonus feat from the following list: Empower Spell, Heighten Spell.

Metamagic III: At 14th level, a wizard gains one bonus feat from the following list: Chain Spell, Maximize Spell, Widen Spell.

Metamagic IV: At 19th level, a wizard gains one bonus feat from the following list: Persistant Spell, Quicken Spelll, Twin Spell.

Advanced Specialist Power: At 5th level, a wizard gains additional power(s) in his specialty school, as detailed below in School Specialization.

Lore: At 6th level and every six levels afterward, a wizard gains four ranks in any one knowledge skill or a new language. This may raise the skill's ranks above the maximum.

Focus: At 6th level and every six levels afterward, a wizard chooses a school of magic that he favors. He casts spells from this school at +1 caster level. He can only choose the same school more than once if it is his specialty school.

Forbidden Lore: At 8th level and every eight levels afterward, a wizard gains access to one path of forbidden knowledge. Ask the DM for specifics.

Lesser Ritual: At 13th level, a wizard can perform spells as rituals to negate the need for expensive material components (limit of 2500gp) or an xp component (limit of 1000xp). Performing a ritual takes one day per level of the spell.

Greater Ritual: At 17th level, a wizard's ability to perform rituals improves. The limits increase to 5000gp and 2000xp, and it only takes one hour per level of the spell to perform the ritual.

Improved Metamagic: At 20th level, a wizard's ability to use metamagic on his spells becomes more efficient. After applying metamagic feats to the spell to be prepared, reduce the total level of the spell by one. This cannot reduce the cost of a metamagicked spell less than +1 level.
 

I'll be giving wizards in my upcoming game the Archivist's Dark Knowledge ability, as well as a Lore class ability (same as the Loremaster).

Other than that, they're the same as normal. Wizards (like all characters in the Red Sails campaign) will be able get some extra bonuses through the affiliations they may join.
 

  • Now known as Mage.
  • Magical Talent (runic) as a bonus feat at 1st level. Note: This feat is now necessary for the casting of this particular form of magic (the type that Magi practice).
  • Literacy is a class skill.
  • To cast higher level spells, further levels of fluency and literacy in 'Arcane' are required.
  • Proficient with Basic Weapons (the w/group, as it is in my HRs).
  • Instead of Summon Familiar, they may choose Special Training as a bonus feat at 1st level.
  • Specialists can learn spells of their prohibited school(s), but as though the spells were 2 levels higher than they normally are (this only in the ways that are disadvantageous to the specialist, of course).
  • Their spell list is distinct from Sorcerers', mostly (i.e., not shared).
  • Certain skill ranks, and one feat, are now required in order to multiclass into Mage. Note: All base classes in my HRs have multiclassing entry requirements.


I think that was it at last count, other than non-class-specific house rules, of which there are many. I'm not running d20 at the moment, so hey, I might've simply missed one or two, as well. ;)
 
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Replace Craft * with Craft Minor Magic Item, Craft Moderate Magic Item, and Craft Major Magic Item. These feats grant a pool of XP for magic item creation, similar to the artificer.

I've been toying with making specialist wizards into PrCs or giving them some kind of bonus abilities related to their specialization, but I don't have anything hammered out.
 

I like to give Wizards the same spell progression as Druids. I think it is ridiculous that divine casters get more spells per day than Wizards, despite having so many other advantages like armor, two good saves, more hit points, etc. I also like to give specialist Wizards the Spell Focus feat for free, in their specialty school, of course.

I also like to allow Wizards and Sorcerers to get improved familiars without spending the feat. They just take a -3 penalty to their effective level for determing what their familiar gets. Taking the feat eliminates this penalty.
 

I allow for - expect really - wizards to be a level or two behind the others. That's without multiclassinng, which I encourage. All too often I see adventures listed as being 'for Level X' when what they really mean is 'have spellcasters capable of Y and fighters with a BAB of Z'. Not their fault, really as the design target is the canonical 4.
 

No major changes for me. I give them Decipher Script as a class skill, and let them swap the familiar for a bonus Wizard feat.
 


I have, in the past, allowed wizards to create a staff instead of getting a familiar. This can hold a spell at each level the wizard is capable of casting, although they must charge it with each spell. (Essentially, allowing a specialized wizard to have the same number of spells per day as a sorcerer.)
 

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