Agnusthemagi's page

I agree that they need balancing, but then again, there is aways the "weak" or "less useful" of everything (be ir spell, feat or class feature). If everthing is brought a power level highter, maybe the others will be needing another fix for they will be left weaker in comparison.

I think mainly the bonus spells should be revised, some are really not useful (alarm?).
Also maybe every blood like should follow a pattern, like the abyssal and celestial ones, they have defensive, offencive and utility features (fly).
If every other had some of those three would make then more balanced.

So it's ok if PRPG has a sorcerer like that, with some kind of new ability (like those suggested or in other form), that enables then to do stuff with their magical power a wizard cant do memorizing spells.
Anybody got a suggestion for other form those abilities could take? Or more kinds of abilities (namely non-combat ones). If we do build a little list maybe...

Sorcerous Spontaneous Magic:
Sorcerers choose one Sorcerous Spontaneous Magic from the bellow list at 1st level, 4th and every 4 levels after that :8th, 12th, 16th, 20th.
To use those abilities you must spend a spell slot of any spell level you have available to cast. This is a spell like ability that takes a standard action and provokes attacks of opportunity to activate. The DC for the check to not lose control of the magic is 10 + spell slot spend level.

Sorcerous Blast
You cast a shimmering blast of force (you choose the color) from your fingertip or hand to hit a target within 60 feet. You make a ranged touch attack to hit with the blast and it causes 1d6 + 1d6 per spell slot level spend to cast it.

Sorcerous Force Armor
You summon forth a faint shimmering force field around yourself (or other ally) that deflects blows and projectiles (your force field can take the form you want it to: a ghostly suit of armor, a elipsoid force field, or a shimmering force field just above your skin making it glow faintly). The armor bonus provided by the force armor is 3 + the spell slot level spend to cast it.

Sorcerous Energy Deflection
You surround yourself (or other ally) with a field of energy that matches the color of one type of energy. The field absorbs damage from thar energy source at a rate of 5 + 5 per spell slot level each round, up to a maximum of 10 + 10 per spell slot level used to cast it.

Sorcerous Arcane Resistence
You summon forth a strong multicolored shimmering field of magical energy that surrounds you like (you can choose it's exact form). This magical field wards off spells that would otherwise target you, effectively giving you spell resistence 10 + 2 per spell slot level spend to cast it.
You must be at least 12th level to learn this Sorcerous Spontaneous Magic.

Sorcerous Adaptability
Manipulating magical energy, you can make yourself or other ally better adaptable to move and survive in an environment: air, earth, fire or water.
You get a movement type associated with the chose environment for the duration of the ability and can effectively survive the harmfull effects of the associated elemental plane*.
You must be at least 12th level to learn this Sorcerous Spontaneous Magic.

Air
movement type: fly speed equal to sorcerer's base speed.
environmental adaptability: immunity to poisonous fumes.
Earth
movement type: burrowing speed equal to sorcerer's base speed.
environmental adaptability: able to survive without air.
Fire
movement type: able to swin in lava with a speed equal to sorcerer's base speed.
environmental adaptability: able to breath normaly in extra hot environments (like a volcano's crater) and even breath while swimming in lava ponds.
Water
movement type: swin speed equal to sorcerer's base movement.
environmental adaptability: able to breath normaly underwater.

*Note however that a sorcerer can use this ability for benefit even on the material plane, using Air Adaptability to gain a fly speed, or Water Adaptability to gain a swin speed and water breathing.
This ability has a duration of 1 hour + 1 hour per spell slot level used to cast it.

Interesting ideas, but I think they probably stray a bit too far from the original idea of the sorcerer and get into Warlock territory.

Truth be told, I aways thought warlock seemed more like what the sorcerer should have been, but while the warlock focuses on "dark powers", our sorcerer would be focused on his bloodline and have some kind of "metamagic manipulators" which he could use to create effects insteady of using then to cast spells, since magic runs in the sorcerer's blood. So you are right, the idea strays from the sorcerer we see in the rules today, but not so much as to make it a whole new class, it only adds some abilities to allow the sorcerer to really have magic in it's blood, as is the sorcerer we see in description.

Also, as warlock is not OGL class, no problem I guess if sorcerer becomes similar, it's also similar to archmage in a way.
Maybe the powers could be done differently so as not be so like those other two classes, but I think the general idea is likely to generate a more interesting sorcerer.
As it's today, I dont see much reasons someone would play a sorcerer over a wizard (sure they cast a lot more spells, but if you ever get bored of throwing the same fireball over and over again, you dont have much choice, which is sad since the class has as much flavor as the wizard does).
In my home game, I began playing a sorceress then bugged the DM to let me turn her into a wizard, because wizards have so much more options available. That would have been diferent if sorcerer had some more interesting options at the time, like bloodlines and some other cool stuff.

I was thinking about what could be done to better distinguish the sorcerer from the wizard yet not change all their spellcasting, in addition to the bloodlines already introduced, which I consider quite a good idea.
What I really want to achied here is give sorcerers a way to play with magic that wizards cant mime easily, making the sorcerer more appealing with it's identity as "at will manipulator of magical forces". So I've come up with this class ability system scratch , similar to what the Archmage uses:

*Each ability spends spell slots from spells per day.

Arcane Blast:
1d6 + spell slot level force damage

Arcane Movement:
fly, burrow or swin (and breath water) for 10 rounds/level +10 rounds/spell slot level with caster land movement speed.

Arcane Physical Defences:
grant armor bonus and DR acording to spell slot level

Arcane Magical Defences:
grant SR acording to spell slot level

Arcane Elemental Transmutation:
Allows sorcerer to change spell's element, casting say a Frostball (Fireball) or a Lightning Storm (Ice Storm).

and some others in it's likeness. Maybe some more utility powers should be devised.

Those habilities could be learned in the fashion: each 4 levels you choose one from the list, but also some could require a certain caster level, like Arcane Magical Defences might require the sorcerer to be 12th level or highter.

What is the ranger missing? Two words: Trackless Step.

A good idea, which arises a new idea in it's own right: shouldnt a ranger be able to track someone with trackless step (lv 10-15 class ability maybe)? It would be a worth addition.

About animal companion and spells: I dont personaly think either it's worth to give up spellcasting altogether for a full animal companion. As I remember, in ad&d rangers where the companion's class, not the druid. Maybe for balance reasons keeping 1/2 HD animal companion for ranger is good, but it also makes for an diminished "animal ranger" archetype.
Maybe animal companion expansion could be a thirdy option for combat styles? Or extra animal companions as a combat style option?

My point about companions is: the ranger is the archetypal animal companion hunter/warrior, there could be some more options in that regard: improving animal companions or acquiring additional companions (not only trained beasts with the use of handle animal). Ok, you can say I could do it all with handle animal, but then the beasts are extremely fragile and as the campaign gets to medium and highter levels the usefulness of trained animals gets greatly diminished as they cant scout , enter combat or even serve as mounts whithout being easly killed by all foes the party faces or the ranger stalks.

Giving an option to buy use of combat style feats with medium armor is the same as is: you can buy the feats with levels, but then you would have then 2 times. Even mages can cast in armor nowadays, that wasnt even permited a while back, but rangers must remain in light armor or they lose their combat styles.

About Acrobatics: ok, I wanst aware of the cost for cross class skills lowered, then it's fine, as it dosent really is a ranger calling to do acrobatics (but jumping was).

I like the pathfinder ranger, but I think somethings are missing:

1)ranger should have athletics skill (no jumping over chasms or rivers?!)

2)There should be an option for the ranger to give up his spells and have a full animal companion like the druid's.

3)animal companions should benefit from favored enemy and/or terrain. It makes sense (as it hunts with the ranger all the time) and makes for a better animal companion, since you want to keep the ranger's companion weaker than the druid's.

4)armor restriction on ranger combat style should be removed, it dosent make sense, and the ranger would have to spend feats to learn medium and heavy armor, so why deny then some class features for spending his feats in armor trainning?