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I am in the process of creating a campaign world. Building from scratch I am thinking about class and their roles in the world. This was brought on by the Gnome Stew article, Cut it Out. I am thinking of removing either sorcerers or wizards along with at least all but 1 divine casting class. I want magic to be a bit more mysterious and less understood. A bit like Dragonlance where wizards are severely mistrusted and thus a extremely rare by the 4th age. does any one have any ideas about the classes or other changes to make magic a bit different.
You want arcane and divine magic to be feared and misunderstood? Give them Sorcerers and Oracles only. Think about it: the gift of the arcane is ONLY in the blood - you must be one of the elite to have it. No wizard or bard can just come along and read it in a book; you must INHERIT it (or savagely drink the blood of another...) and the Oracle? The gods are so distant, so unknowable that there are no clerics or champions like the paladins or inquisitors. There are only the non-magical clergy and the "touched"; those who are both blessed and cursed by their connection to the devine. Many of the faithful refer to a calling, but this implies that it is something that, for whatever reason can be ignored or unheeded. Oracles are literally bound, unwillingly from birth and marked both by the glory and sin of their conduit to these otherworldly beings.
So keep the Sorcerer and the Oracle. Then make the society around them reflect their strangeness. Schools or monasteries, much like the ancient fighting schools and temples of the Far East, would be isolated places of tolerance and training to the otherwise bizarre and frightening Sorcerers (think Last Airbender); and like greek mythology oracles would be sought out for their powers but otherwise shunned both in religious and daily life.
Me? I'd get rid of Bards. They're too much like Carnies; small hands, smell like cabbage...
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But keeping with sorcerers and Oracles presents some problems. First why would they organize into monasteries? They cannot learn from each other like wizards can. This presents problems, they may be hated, but they would still be alone and unlikely to organize into towers, especially since Sorcerers are based on CHA and thus you have a constant battle for popularity between members. Also with arcane magic, I am trying to figure out how they would detect potential magic users, no midi-clorians here, but still there needs to be a way to find those with magical potential. Also I kinda like bards, they have a different access to magic and are a mix between arcane and divine.
But keeping with sorcerers and Oracles presents some problems. First why would they organize into monasteries? They cannot learn from each other like wizards can. This presents problems, they may be hated, but they would still be alone and unlikely to organize into towers, especially since Sorcerers are based on CHA and thus you have a constant battle for popularity between members. Also with arcane magic, I am trying to figure out how they would detect potential magic users, no midi-clorians here, but still there needs to be a way to find those with magical potential. Also I kinda like bards, they have a different access to magic and are a mix between arcane and divine.
I think you are on the right track adding bards. Also you might want to consider adding witches.
As to your concern of how monasteries and aracane organizations. Divine groups are easier to explain. They gather not to have a group of spell casters in one place but for study, worship and common purpose once in a few generations someone is blessed with being an oracle they may or maynot be a part of such a group. Just because the rulebook calls them oracles does not mean that they are not part of a churches clergy. Sorcerers do not need to learn in the sense that wizards do but perhaps they need to practice control, develop minor gifts into actual useful arcane power. They can join Lord Xavier's school for gifted youngsters;)
Just because the rule book roles are limited does not mean that the in game roles are not diverse.
Also another trick is to slow down the other spellcasters progression. Let them take level 1 of a spell casting class then 1 level of expert, commoner or aristocrat and so on until level 3 and let them progress as normal. Alternatively you can let them use the 3.5 racial paragon levels instead of expert.
I think you are on the right track adding bards. Also you might want to consider adding witches.
And since witches have the ability to form covens (though I'd drop the Hag requirement) you already have a reason for them to group up.
You might also want to look at limiting your PC's to certain archetypes. For example, the Ranger's Skirmisher and Trapper archetypes both give up spellcasting, as does the Paladin's Warrior of the Holy Light.
When dealing with spell caster and groups, why not look at Warhammer and Iron Kingdoms for some inspiration.
Consider having the verbal components of spells be in the language corresponding to their bloodline. Even if they don't know that the Sorcerer has demonic heritage, the peasants are going to panic when they hear him speaking in Abyssal. Actually, hearing a Celestial Sorcerer cast spells would probably also sound alien enough to scare the peasants.
When I read this, this scene popped in my head. When you see it, just imagine a Sorceror casting in that language.
But keeping with sorcerers and Oracles presents some problems. First why would they organize into monasteries? They cannot learn from each other like wizards can. This presents problems, they may be hated, but they would still be alone and unlikely to organize into towers, especially since Sorcerers are based on CHA and thus you have a constant battle for popularity between members. Also with arcane magic, I am trying to figure out how they would detect potential magic users, no midi-clorians here, but still there needs to be a way to find those with magical potential. Also I kinda like bards, they have a different access to magic and are a mix between arcane and divine.
They would organize the way noble houses do, so "monastery" might not conjure the right image.
I conceptualized sorcerers like this: A dragon boinks a maiden, 9 months later she has a little boy - we'll call him Hennet. Now, little hennet by age 3 has this tendency to move things with his mind when he throws a tantrum. No one in his village has ever seen this before and his mom's already been branded (literally) as a witch, so they are forced into a cottage in the woods. Fast forward 15 years and the lad has (SOMEHOW) learned to control his powers and uses them for good. He returns to his village, wins the people over despite their fear (CHARISMA) and retires as the mayor and protector. Then he takes a mortal wife and has kids of his own...
3 generations later you now have Hennet Hall - a noble house of this bloodline. However, it turns out in reading his mother's old journals that Hennet learned who his father really was and in doing MORE research he's learned that his papa was a rolling stone with a LOT of other offspring. Soo...
Hennet Hall also becomes Professor Hennet's School for Gifted Youngsters. He gathers to himself others of the same Bloodline and they DO learn from each other, but not the way wizards and bards learn. No, what they learn are basic mental techniques like how to focus your ego to dominate your power so it doesn't control you or practical stuff like how to not breathe fire every time you sneeze (same BLOODLINE power).
And how do they detect? Well, therein lies the uniqueness of your world! Maybe the sorcerers have divinations or blood tests; maybe you have magical pedigrees showing who/what you descend from. Or maybe...
The Law of Telofshire: "All persons displaying or suspected of possessing supernatural gifts as those bestowed upon them by virtue of their birth shall be publicly flogged and then exiled from the town. Those persons using said powers to inflict bodily harm or damage property, livestock or other valuables shall be put to death by fire."
Nuff said?
If you must have organizations of Sorcerers, base them off Bloodlines or Archetypes. A conspiracy of Aberration Sorcerers? Rimeblooded protectors of the frozen ice! Groveborn Verdant Sorcerers at war with the local druids! Oh my!