Hello everyone, I'm new to these boards and I've never played a majik class before in 3.5/pf. The sorcerer intrigues me. I was wondering if I could get any tips or suggestions?
Note: I haven't even looked at the majik system yet...
<bump> anyone out there?
<bump> anyone out there?
Hmmm... A friend of mine found the half-elf with sorcerer with the draconic bloodlines (silver dragon) to be a fun mix. They chose their skill focus to be perception and had a +9 total for it at level 1. Perception is one of the most used skills by any class in the game by any class. My friend had played a sorcerer before that for a session that had a rogue sneak up and kill them from behind. Bad perception score that.
Also, Treantmonk puts out really good class guides, but I don't believe he's done sorcerer... but wizard and bard I believe he has. Good luck!
<bump> anyone out there?
Sometimes it takes a while to get a reply.
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Hmmm... A friend of mine found the half-elf with sorcerer with the draconic bloodlines (silver dragon) to be a fun mix. They chose their skill focus to be perception and had a +9 total for it at level 1. Perception is one of the most used skills by any class in the game by any class. My friend had played a sorcerer before that for a session that had a rogue sneak up and kill them from behind. Bad perception score that.Also, Treantmonk puts out really good class guides, but I don't believe he's done sorcerer... but wizard and bard I believe he has. Good luck!
Thank you Kakarasa^^
Actually, I usually play rogues and have played a ranger, really enjoy both. I've always soon interest in the sorcerer. Just recently I switched to PF from 4.0, and I know majik works differently.
I am considering the destined bloodline. However the aberrant or abyssal both appeal to me as well. I'd like to know more about the differences in the spells.
Hmmm... A friend of mine found the half-elf with sorcerer with the draconic bloodlines (silver dragon) to be a fun mix. They chose their skill focus to be perception and had a +9 total for it at level 1. Perception is one of the most used skills by any class in the game by any class. My friend had played a sorcerer before that for a session that had a rogue sneak up and kill them from behind. Bad perception score that.Also, Treantmonk puts out really good class guides, but I don't believe he's done sorcerer... but wizard and bard I believe he has. Good luck!
Thank you Kakarasa^^
Actually, I usually play rogues and have played a ranger, really enjoy both. I've always soon interest in the sorcerer. Just recently I switched to PF from 4.0, and I know majik works differently.
I am considering the destined bloodline. However the aberrant or abyssal both appeal to me as well. I'd like to know more about the differences in the spells.
Your welcome. :) The aberrant bloodline was fun when I used it to make a Half-Elf Sorcerer/Rogue built Arcane Trickster in a privateer ships and dungeoncrawl. The long arms lets you really get those melee touch attacks out after 3rd level. Combine with sneak attack, and pick a flanking buddy.
As far as spells go...
As far as spells go...
Abyssal would be better if you want to summon a lot, and the abilities are okay, but I'd think that keeping at a range is better unless you're multiclassing a melee character.
Destiny has a nice roleplaying flavor to it, but I didn't cast as many personal spells, except mage armor, because if I had to pick a buffing spell and many uses, I'd also want to be using it on my teammates.
It really depends on your build. I haven't played sorcerers in pathfinder enough to be more than a dabbler myself, but I think Abberant, Draconic, and Elemental are my favorites. Destiny can be great, but I'm just not as into it as the others.
Before deciding maybe someone can give us a couple other opinions?
It really depends on your build. I haven't played sorcerers in pathfinder enough to be more than a dabbler myself, but I think Abberant, Draconic, and Elemental are my favorites. Destiny can be great, but I'm just not as into it as the others.Before deciding maybe someone can give us a couple other opinions?
Your right the half elf rogue/sorcerer does sound fun^^ but I am not planning on multi-classing, this time around.
As for my build, I have not rolled for stats yet. However, I know how I will use my numbers. First and foremost will be CHA and then DEX & CON with weapon finesse. Flavor of course should be no problem.
It really depends on your build. I haven't played sorcerers in pathfinder enough to be more than a dabbler myself, but I think Abberant, Draconic, and Elemental are my favorites. Destiny can be great, but I'm just not as into it as the others.Before deciding maybe someone can give us a couple other opinions?
Your right the half elf rogue/sorcerer does sound fun^^ but I am not planning on multi-classing, this time around.
As for my build, I have not rolled for stats yet. However, I know how I will use my numbers. First and foremost will be CHA and then DEX & CON with weapon finesse. Flavor of course should be no problem.
EDIT: Sounds good. I changed the post because I misread your post for a moment. Be sure to pick up chill touch, as it works with undead as fear touch and is a multiple use touch spell.
First of all, my best advice is to stay away from a fight as much and as long as possible. The sorcerer is pretty weak in combat, having the lowest HP, the lowest BAB and likely the lowest AC. Lack of dangerous weapons in their arsenal means that in a straight up fight, you have to be back and away.
If you need to invest in actual combat, it is best that you pick ranged combat to invest any valuable feats If you have an elf, your free access to bows is nice, but if you have to invest in feats I reccommend getting precise shot as soon as it is feasable. It will apply to your ranged weapons as well as your Ray spells and bloodline rays.
Destined: it sounds cool, but it falls down a lot, especially in early play. from 5th level onward your bonuses are quite decent, especially with access to blur (that said, every sorcerer has access to blur so...) there is a lot to be said for class though, and destined feels epic.
Abyssal: these guys make decent summoners, and if you go this route you are wise to invest in spell focus(conjouration) and augment summoning earlier rather than later. the claws look cool, BUT it means you have to enter melee combat..and that's highly ill advised.
Aberrant: Acidic ray from the onset really makes this guy stand out at low levels, and the ability will retain a measure of usefulness up until 10th level or so. The extra range on tough attacks makes you more useful now that, at 3rd level, you can cast a touch spell from a safe distance. make sure you pack one in your spell list (at low levels I highly regard shocking grasp).
Spell selection in general: Get either shield or mage armour if there is a remote possibility of getting into combat. Get a spell that's useful in combat, aside from the damage dealing ones. magic missile is *nice* but it's pretty much fire and forget. and burning hands is tactically dangerous. Grease comes highly regarded, as it's usefullness is pretty broad (remember, someone balancing on a greased sqaure is denied his dex bonus to AC) At 4th level, you get some pretty good damage dealing spells, so wait until then to pick them up (flaming sphere, for instance, is beautiful to watch in play.
Batts
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32
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If you have the time Sachiye, take a look through my Alias'. All of them are PBP characters and over half of them have Sorcerer thrown into the mix somewhere (if it's not on the sheet yet and the character is 1st level, chances are it soon will be).
I build my Characters for RP purposes rather than Uber building, so some people may find fault with them, but it will at least give you an idea at some of the posibilities out there.
Destined: it sounds cool, but it falls down a lot, especially in early play. from 5th level onward your bonuses are quite decent, especially with access to blur (that said, every sorcerer has access to blur so...) there is a lot to be said for class though, and destined feels epic.Abyssal: these guys make decent summoners, and if you go this route you are wise to invest in spell focus(conjouration) and augment summoning earlier rather than later. the claws look cool, BUT it means you have to enter melee combat..and that's highly ill advised.
Aberrant: Acidic ray from the onset really makes this guy stand out at low levels, and the ability will retain a measure of usefulness up until 10th level or so. The extra range on tough attacks makes you more useful now that, at 3rd level, you can cast a touch spell from a safe distance. make sure you pack one in your spell list (at low levels I highly regard shocking grasp).
Spell selection in general: Get either shield or mage armour if there is a remote possibility of getting into combat. Get a spell that's useful in combat, aside from the damage dealing ones. magic missile is *nice* but it's pretty much fire and forget. and burning hands is tactically dangerous. Grease comes highly regarded, as it's usefullness is pretty broad (remember, someone balancing on a greased sqaure is denied his dex bonus to AC) At...
<a light turns on above her head>
Wow. Thank you.
I'm leaning more towards aberrant. I'm not sure about the whole "stretchy-arm thing", I'm thinking to RP it as long antennae that sprout from my head temporarily to deliver touch attacks.
I'll take a look at Shocking grasp and grease.
Great advice!^^
If you have the time Sachiye, take a look through my Alias'.
I just checked them out, so many cool ones, even a jedi!
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If you have the time Sachiye, take a look through my Alias'.I just checked them out, so many cool ones, even a jedi!
lol Thanks. :D
Yeah sorry I do have 3 Star Wars Saga Characters and a d20 Modern Character in there as well. :)The next Sorcerer I attempt is gonna be an Aberrant one. I'm trying to decide on a concept and need a the right game for it to make it happen though.
The next Sorcerer I attempt is gonna be an Aberrant one. I'm trying to decide on a concept and need a the right game for it to make it happen though.
I agree ^^ an Aberrant is very appealing. Plus, it could have kind of a sci-fi feel, if played right.
Just wondering, not in a sarcastic or potentially offensive way, why "Majik" instead of "Magic"?
Just wondering, not in a sarcastic or potentially offensive way, why "Majik" instead of "Magic"?
Honestly, it's just a habit and I really don't know, I just like how it looks. Perhaps it looks more majikcal >.~
Just wondering, not in a sarcastic or potentially offensive way, why "Majik" instead of "Magic"?Honestly, it's just a habit and I really don't know, I just like how it looks. Perhaps it looks more majikcal >.~
Fair enough ;)
Fair enough ;)Just wondering, not in a sarcastic or potentially offensive way, why "Majik" instead of "Magic"?Honestly, it's just a habit and I really don't know, I just like how it looks. Perhaps it looks more majikcal >.~
Go ahead if you'd like. We'll start a trend.
You may also want to take a look through this guide:
the (Almost) Complete Guide to Sorcerers - A Practical Handbook
...oh, and I'd like to cast a vote for "magic" instead of "majik" - I throw up in my mouth a little bit every time I see it spelled that way.
You may also want to take a look through this guide:
the (Almost) Complete Guide to Sorcerers - A Practical Handbook...oh, and I'd like to cast a vote for "magic" instead of "majik" - I throw up in my mouth a little bit every time I see it spelled that way.
Whaddaya know... the same thing happens to me when I get excited >.<
Aberrant sorcerer is really cool flavor wise- and quite powerful, which is a plus. on the whole I suggest to choose flavor over power when it comes to bloodlines, as they're not that big of an influence on your actual power. That said, there are some huge discrepancies in the power of the bloodlines- Destined comes to mind... Gah it's not a good option.
Also, I second going to my guide, but I'm kinda biased.
Aberrant sorcerer is really cool flavor wise- and quite powerful, which is a plus. on the whole I suggest to choose flavor over power when it comes to bloodlines, as they're not that big of an influence on your actual power. That said, there are some huge discrepancies in the power of the bloodlines- Destined comes to mind... Gah it's not a good option.
Also, I second going to my guide, but I'm kinda biased.
Thanks Minstrelin^^ Where is your guide? I'll check it out. Can you link me?
Here's the link to the guide itself
Go to the (Almost) Complete Guide to Sorcerers - A Practical Handbook.
or you could follow the link JaceDK put up- a link to the thread about the guide, which also includes a link to Ogre's Guide to sorcerer spell selection anf Treanmonk's guide to wizards- which has a great overview of arcane spells.
Here's the link to the guide itself
Go to the (Almost) Complete Guide to Sorcerers - A Practical Handbook.or you could follow the link JaceDK put up- a link to the thread about the guide, which also includes a link to Ogre's Guide to sorcerer spell selection anf Treanmonk's guide to wizards- which has a great overview of arcane spells.
Thank you again. Oh and the color coding is great.
If you're playing the aberrant bloodline you should look up the aberration feats from the lords of madness, they crack me up and give some great character to your character. some modification is needed.
Thank you again. Oh and the color coding is great
Glad to help- I'd be lying if I told you I didn't steal the color coding from Treantmonk's guides though...
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Thank you again. Oh and the color coding is greatGlad to help- I'd be lying if I told you I didn't steal the color coding from Treantmonk's guides though...
Nice Guide Minstrel. Being the fan of Sorcerer's that I am I'm definately gonna give this a more thorough going over.
Thank you again. Oh and the color coding is greatGlad to help- I'd be lying if I told you I didn't steal the color coding from Treantmonk's guides though...
Well then, all hail the treantmonk ^^
Also the feat section is very much appreciated. Choosing feats can often be a hassle, for new players.
Some random other advice -
Some random other advice -
You have a very short list of spells known, so you should take spells that will be useful in lots of situations. The same applies to bards and they have lots of the same spells, so I recommend checking out the spell suggestions in Treantmonk's bard guide.
Ok thank you Tejon. Everyone is so helpful. Btw who is treantmonk, and where can I find his guides? O.o
Ok thank you Tejon. Everyone is so helpful. Btw who is treantmonk, and where can I find his guides? O.oSome random other advice -
You have a very short list of spells known, so you should take spells that will be useful in lots of situations. The same applies to bards and they have lots of the same spells, so I recommend checking out the spell suggestions in Treantmonk's bard guide.
Here's the Bard Guide, it has the ranger and wizard as links up top.
Ok thank you Tejon. Everyone is so helpful. Btw who is treantmonk, and where can I find his guides? O.oSome random other advice -
You have a very short list of spells known, so you should take spells that will be useful in lots of situations. The same applies to bards and they have lots of the same spells, so I recommend checking out the spell suggestions in Treantmonk's bard guide.
Here's the Bard Guide, it has the ranger and wizard as links up top.
Thanks for the links. I like how he breaks it down into different builds.
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Sorcerer is one of the most fun classes in 3.5/PF. Pick something you would like to be good at spellwise, and just do it a lot. Damage spells are solid for a sorc, but still not the best way to do. Even so, it's very fun to fire and forget if that's all you're looking to do.
At higher levels, you will have to be more careful since enemies will probably start to target you first.
there is a recent podcast on 3.5 Private Sanctuary on playing the sorcerer. I believe its episode 98
Even so, it's very fun to fire and forget if that's all you're looking to do.
This is true. I probably would have a difficult time remembering the durations. Thank you so much for the good advice. ^^
I probably would have a difficult time remembering the durations.
I use one of my extra dice to track durations (number on top is the duration left). Just make sure not to roll it.
I use one of my extra dice to track durations (number on top is the duration left). Just make sure not to roll it.
Well, I never thought of that. It's such a good idea, I'm going to use it. Thanks. Our campaign starts in about a week (after finals).
As for my sorcerer, I'm still trying to decide on the race. She'll be a halfing and a half-elf. I have never played a halfling before, but being an over 6ft tall goddess in this world, I thought it may be good contrast :)
I thought I'd put my two cents in, because I've been disappointed with the sorcerer class in 3.0, 3.5, and Pathfinder. And yet I'm thinking that my next character will be a sorcerer/barbarian, with an emphasis on spells useful in melee combat like Shield and Expeditious Retreat (and of course, True Strike).
(Actually, True Strike would have been useful for this character, so she could get the most out of her single shot with a heavy crossbow before joining the battle, but sorcerers don't get a lot of spells, so ...)
I've always ended up multi-classing sorcerers, even if I don't plan to at first. For my 3.5 character, I ended up multiclassing into Wizard and Ranger and eventually planning on entering a bard-like PrC. For my Pathfinder character, I multiclassed into Bard and am thinking of again going into a bard-like PrC like Virtuoso.
But whether you end up multiclassing or going into prestige classes, I have found the following to be helpful.
A crossbow is a good substitute for a magic missile spell. People have asked "Why didn't you take magic missile", and I'd say "This is my magic missile."
My current character also carries a longspear, which is nice because when I gets in melee I can attack from 10 feet away. (Come to think of it, maybe it's my style of always getting into melee that makes me convinced I have to multiclass into something like Ranger or Barbarian.)
In the last session I got good use out of the Expeditious Retreat spell, being able to cross a lot of ground and put herself into good places to use me close range magical attacks without getting too close.
I also picked up the Read Magic cantrip last level, which has potential for being able to buy and read scrolls containing spells I doesn't have. Problem is that scrolls are an expensive way to cast spells, so be sure to take that into account.
The nice thing about taking one level of Bard is that now I have an arcane Cure Light Wounds on my spell list, so if I can find a scroll or wand with the Bardic version of the spell, I'm in luck. Since scrolls cost half the price of potions, this could be a good bargain. If I had taken the Scribe Scroll feat, I would be able to stock up on healing for 1/4 the price of buying the scrolls on the market, but I neither took that feat, nor took that as one of my bardic spells.
The disadvantage of a Bard level is that now I have to wait until at least 5th level to get any 2nd level spells. But at 2nd level I can currently cast Mage Armor, Grease, Expeditious Retreat, and Feather Fall, plus 8 different cantrips. It really helps to get that Elemental Ray power from my Elemental bloodline.
I thought I'd put my two cents in, because I've been disappointed with the sorcerer class in 3.0, 3.5, and Pathfinder. And yet I'm thinking that my next character will be a sorcerer/barbarian, with an emphasis on spells useful in melee combat like Shield and Expeditious Retreat (and of course, True Strike).
(Actually, True Strike would have been useful for this character, so she could get the most out of her single shot with a heavy crossbow before joining the battle, but sorcerers don't get a lot of spells, so ...)
I've always ended up multi-classing sorcerers, even if I don't plan to at first. For my 3.5 character, I ended up multiclassing into Wizard and Ranger and eventually planning on entering a bard-like PrC. For my Pathfinder character, I multiclassed into Bard and am thinking of again going into a bard-like PrC like Virtuoso.
But whether you end up multiclassing or going into prestige classes, I have found the following to be helpful.
A crossbow is a good substitute for a magic missile spell. People have asked "Why didn't you take magic missile", and I'd say "This is my magic missile."
My current character also carries a longspear, which is nice because when I gets in melee I can attack from 10 feet away. (Come to think of it, maybe it's my style of always getting into melee that makes me convinced I have to multiclass into something like Ranger or Barbarian.)
In the last session I got good use out of the Expeditious Retreat spell, being able to cross a lot of ground and put herself into good places to use me close range magical attacks without getting too close.
I also picked up the Read Magic cantrip last level, which has potential for being able to buy and read scrolls containing spells I doesn't have. Problem is that scrolls are an expensive way to cast spells, so be sure to take that into account.
The nice thing about taking one level of Bard is that now I have an arcane Cure Light Wounds on my spell list, so if I can find a scroll or wand with the Bardic version of the...
I can always use two cents ;) Thank you. I still need to decide on some of her spells, so all this good advice will help.
I agree ^^ an Aberrant is very appealing. Plus, it could have kind of a sci-fi feel, if played right.
The next Sorcerer I attempt is gonna be an Aberrant one. I'm trying to decide on a concept and need a the right game for it to make it happen though.
Yeah, the aberrant bloodline looks cool, the acid ray class feature is appealing, as is the increased touch range later-on. With the ray, you could get-by not using your first level slots (at first level) for damaging spells, and wait till you get more slots to take something like magic missile...
But, as always, flavor first!
When picking a bloodline keep in mind the bonus spells are probably the biggest benefit of any single bloodline. They are the class ability you will use the most and deserve a lot of attention. I really like the bonus spells for Arcane, Draconic, and Fey. The rest of them have pretty iffy bonus spells and in some cases pretty blah. Other than the claws the other draconic bloodline abilities are quite nice also. Natural armor and energy resistance are quite nice.
The exception to this is if you want to blow things up. In that case you might think about the elemental bloodline. The energy substitution bonus is really nice to bypass energy resistance. Take spells which deal damage other than your primary element then you can always substitute for your primary element. Pick either acid or cold because those energy types have the least resistances.
The 1st level at will abilities are hit or miss. At low levels ranged onces can be nice but by 5th level or so you should have enough spells that you no longer need the 1d6+2 ability.
But, as always, flavor first!
ALWAYS !!! Flavor first ;)