What metamagic feat can your Arcane caster not live without?

[Avouz]

Heighten Spell is my must have. With the nerfing of Spell Focus and similar feats/class abilities, it's the only way my spellcasters have a snowballs chance of hurting rogues with a fireball.

 

[Benben]

I've never heard of "energy affinity" myself, but "Energy Substitution" is in the 3.0 "splatbook" (so named because they make a "splat" sound when you toss 'em on the gaming table ^_^), Tome and Blood.
/QUOTE]

Energy Affinity is the suspected 3.5 version of Energy Substitiution. It still a +0 Level modifier, but sonic is no longer a possible energy choice.

 

[rich]

I've never heard of "energy affinity" myself, but "Energy Substitution" is in the 3.0 "splatbook" (so named because they make a "splat" sound when you toss 'em on the gaming table ^_^), Tome and Blood.

You take the feat, and select one of the five cardinal energy types (fire, cold, acid, electricity, sonic). Thereafter, you can modify ANY spell that uses ANY of those energy descriptors, so that it instead deals damage of the type your Feat is specified for.

For example, you take "Energy Substitution: Acid"; whenever you cast fireball, Burning Hands, Cone of Cold, Lightning Bolt, Great Shout, Polar Ray, or whatever ... you can modify the spell to deal [acid] damage instead of whatever it normally would deal. Makes them fireballs useful when facing red dragons or fire elementals ... ^_^

OK, that's what it sounded like... I always did wonder where "splatbook" came from...

Energy Affinity is the suspected 3.5 version of Energy Substitiution. It still a +0 Level modifier, but sonic is no longer a possible energy choice.

what book is that in? does that allow any substitution, or do you have to pick an energy?

I'm wondering, because I'm thinking about playing a sorceror type from a Mongoose Quint book, that is sort of a Druid-y arcane spellcaster who can't harm nature with their spells. I'd hoped to find a way to substitute sonic, but if that's out what about cold? Would a "cold" fireball harm the trees? Any opinions?

 

[Pax]

Rich, I'd suspect it'll be in the not-yet-published "Complete Arcane", due out this fall. I suspect as well, you'll pick <b>one</b> type of energy to have an affinity with, and can substitute that energy type for whatever is listed in any spell you cast, and wish to so modify.

Since even the name is changing, maybe they'll also change htemechanics - make it a [General] instead of a [Metamagic] feat, let ANYone use it on-the-fly ... and not take a FRA for sorcerors. That would be nice indeed, IMO ...

anyway, yes, [cold] damage can and [d]does[/d] harm trees. However, there's hope for you yet ... in the Book of Exalted Deeds, there's a prestige class, Sentinel of Bharrai that does exactly what you're hoping to do: a Sentinelof Bharrai can alter any fire/cold/acid/electircal/sonic energy-based spell s/he casts so as not to be destructive to nature ... IOW, they deal nonlethal damage (instead of lethal) to any animals or plants that are affected by the spell. Thebest bit is, it's not even a metamagic - so Sorcerors don't get hit with the FRA stick. And it's a 1:1 spellcaster PrC to boot. The ability to not kill plants/animals is gained right away, at 1st level; the other abilities gained later are pretty nice, too (resistance 10 to, eventually, four types of energy; wildshape-like ability (to various bears only), a HUGE pool of paladin-esque lay-on-hands ability (equal to yoru own HP maximum in capacity!), and a couple other nifty abilities.

Prerequisites for the SoB (heh) are: any good alignment; 8 ranks each of knowledge (arcana) and knowledge (nature), sacred vow (feat), vow of obedience (feat).

All in all a nice class, and it sounds like (possible alignment conflicts aside) it might be exactly what you're looking for. Other than the skills (the knowledge(nature) could be rough for a sorceror), you could get into it for your 6th level ... and if your GM allows the 3.0 versionof Cosmopolitan, the Knowledge: NAture problem goes away, too.

Sorceror(5)/Sentinel of Bharrai(10)/Exalted Arcanist(5) would be a fun goal to aim for, if you feel like playing theultra-good-guy sort. ^_^

 

[Thanee]

Heighten Spell is my must have. With the nerfing of Spell Focus and similar feats/class abilities, it's the only way my spellcasters have a snowballs chance of hurting rogues with a fireball.

If you have to throw fireballs at rogues you have a problem, anyways. Heighten won't help you there.

I mean, geez, it isn't like there aren't enough spells, which work extremely well on rogues.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Thanee]

Rich, I'd suspect it'll be in the not-yet-published "Complete Arcane", due out this fall.

I actually expect to see Energy Affinity (MiniHB, btw) in there.

It's a better balanced version of Energy Substitution, which has some prerequisites and allows no sonic damage.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Thanee]

Since even the name is changing, maybe they'll also change htemechanics - make it a [General] instead of a [Metamagic] feat, let ANYone use it on-the-fly ... and not take a FRA for sorcerors. That would be nice indeed, IMO ...

Yeah, but that won't happen for sure. It just fits too well as metamagic.

Bye
Thanee

 

[drdevoid]

MiniHB = Miniature's Handbook

On the outside chance that the abbreviation threw you (like it threw me when I first started posting), MiniHB is shorthand for Miniature's Handbook- essentially the follow up to the Chainmail series. Many of the feats in the Miniature's Handbook seem a little bit powerful, but are generally too specific to really warrant too much concern. YMMV.

Also, "splatbook" as I know it (and I could be wrong) came from titles having an asterix "*" next to them- a "splat" as it were. Anyway this term generally refers to the 3rd edition classbooks like "Song and Silence" (the Rogue and Bard book) or similar 2nd Edition class books.

-Joe

 

[Pax]

Yeah, but that won't happen for sure. It just fits too well as metamagic.

Actually, no, it doesn't - no moreso than Eschew Materials did.

All keeping them metamagics does, is, maintain the current abnormally-high pressure for Sorcerors to strive for the Archmage PrC. The Mastery of Elements ability is alreadysuperior in being able to pick ANY of the elements on the fly, but for a Sorceror ... avoiding the FRA casting itme is even more attractive.

 

[rich]

Sorceror(5)/Sentinel of Bharrai(10)/Exalted Arcanist(5) would be a fun goal to aim for, if you feel like playing theultra-good-guy sort. ^_^

yeah, I've seen the PrC (I have the book), and it would be great if the prereqs were a little less -- 2 wasted feats and cross-class skills... still, it does work with my idea, and I love the idea of wildshaping into bears

thanks for all the help guys!

ps -- I really wish Complete Arcane was out already! :\