D&D 5E Who's the Best Arcanist (According to You)

[jgsugden]

The Metamagic allowing the 'upgrading' of spells gives the Sorcerer a huge edge in efficiency and power. While the Wizard is more iconic, the sorcerer is clearly the most effective.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

The Metamagic allowing the 'upgrading' of spells gives the Sorcerer a huge edge in efficiency and power. While the Wizard is more iconic, the sorcerer is clearly the most effective.

And the sorcerer's flavour is also more preeminent than the wizard's. How I'd like to have a wizard studying chaos magic or dragon sorceries instead of a scholar of one of the 8 schools!

 

[TwoSix]

Pact magic and invocations are better than spell slots, so warlock wins by default.

 

[Blue Orange]

Magic will never "feel magical or mystical" so long as we have a list of defined spells.

You are asking for D&D to be something it can't, and never was, other than when the books were a vast and unknown field to you, rather than dancing on your digital fingertips.

It's a very good point.

There are more freeform systems--Mage: the Ascension comes to mind, where you had general abilities like 'affect matter' and 'affect forces'. Ars Magica (from which I think Mage was derived) had a noun-verb system (control, sense, destroy, etc.) (earth, plants, mind, etc.).

I think it 'wouldn't feel like D&D anymore' to a lot of people, and Wizards tends to be conservative (in the nonpolitical sense) because they have a huge installed base and don't want to upset them too much.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Pact magic and invocations are better than spell slots, so warlock wins by default.

I voted warlock as well

 

[jgsugden]

And the sorcerer's flavour is also more preeminent than the wizard's. How I'd like to have a wizard studying chaos magic or dragon sorceries instead of a scholar of one of the 8 schools!

It is not hard to reflavor the sorcerer bloodlines into wizard schools.

Sorcerer 1: This becomes the Arcane Tradition Level 2 ability.
Sorcerer 6: This becomes the Arcane Tradition Level 6 ability.
Sorcerer 14: This become the Arcane Tradition Level 14 ability.

For the Wizard 10 Arcane Tradition ability grant a thematic feat (or similar ability).

• Aberrant Mind: Telekenisis, Telepathy,
• Clockwork Soul: Bountiful Luck (modified), Lucky
• Divine Soul: [Here I'd go astray and give them a Warlock Chain Familiar]
• Draconic Bloodline: Dragon Fear, Gift of the X Dragon,
• Shadowmagic: Shadowtouched, Eldrtich Adept (Devil's Sight)
• Storm Sorcery: Elemental Adept,
• Wild Magic: Luck

The 'special' spells for some subclasses could be added to your spelllist.

 

[CleverNickName]

It breaks my heart that more people have voted Bard than Sorcerer. I get why Warlock and Wizard are in the lead but come on.

 

[Vaalingrade]

I love the idea of the sorcerer. I'm just waiting for WotC to love it too.

 

[Zubatcarteira]

After playing Wizard, Sorcerer is pretty miserable. Sorcery Points are too few, and there's just levels when they don't get any new spells, while Wizards are always getting at least two, and can copy a lot more. Known spells just seem like worse than prepared spells in every way as well.

 

[Stormonu]

Arcane Trickster. A little dip of everthing - martial, skill monkey and magician. If they had access to magical healing they'd also be the best Bard in town. And, being a rogue, you'll never see them coming.