Why Isn't "Animate Objects" on the Sorc / Wiz List?


Rules Questions


Subject topic says it all. What the hell is the rationale there?


Tradition probably, and nothing else.


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Tradition has sorcerers casting it.


Azten wrote:
Tradition has sorcerers casting it.

Yeah, it's that kind of thing that makes my mind boggle. Bringing life to inanimate objects is, in my opinion, one of the most wizard-y things there is.


I also wonder why the beast shape line of spells is left off of the druid spell list. I suppose you could argue that Wild Shape fulfills that, but it still seems weird to me. I mean, druids are spellcasters and nature (often especially animals) are kinda their thing. It seems logical to me.

And I totallly agree about animate objects. That's weird.


This is also why golems tend to require cleric spells to create. Tradition.

It may be based on the old Jewish story of the golem, which was created using divine magic.


I've always wondered this too.

I heard one rationale that it requires deity-level power to animate an object into a creature. ("Only the Gods create life")

Undead are different because they were once alive and the caster just provides the negative energy where the positive energy used to be.

Grand Lodge

They can still create animated objects with Crafet Construct.


darth_borehd wrote:

I've always wondered this too.

I heard one rationale that it requires deity-level power to animate an object into a creature. ("Only the Gods create life")

Undead are different because they were once alive and the caster just provides the negative energy where the positive energy used to be.

not to mention bards can do it ! (ok, I did mention)


Drejk wrote:
Tradition probably, and nothing else.

I would like to clarify that I meant short term tradition - AD&D/D&D (and I think that at least one of older iterations of D&D had animate object or equivalent spell available to Magic Users/Mages).

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

In 1st edition, it was a cleric spell and not a magic user spell. And so that tradition has passed up through the editions to pathfinder.

Animate objects should definitely be a sorcerer wizard spell, as per 'The Sorcerers Aprentice'


I don't think it would be too unbalancing to allow Sorcerers/Wizards and maybe witches to cast it one level higher than a cleric.


Witches can already cast it.


Bards can too.

Edit: I see that has already been said. Oh well.


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Arise chicken arise.

Is there any feats etc anyone knows of to get this on sorc list now?


If we really look at it, there are plenty of spells that probably should be put on other class's spell lists. I've wondered about animate objects, but what about halt undead not being a cleric spell? The mind begins to boggle at some of these things :)


Wildebob wrote:

I also wonder why the beast shape line of spells is left off of the druid spell list. I suppose you could argue that Wild Shape fulfills that, but it still seems weird to me. I mean, druids are spellcasters and nature (often especially animals) are kinda their thing. It seems logical to me.

And I totallly agree about animate objects. That's weird.

The Druid thing might be due to the existance of the share spells feature and animal companions. That's the only thing I can think of.

Sczarni

I also wonder why they get Gravity Bow despite having little if any use for it, especially when the other class that gets it is a divine casting class.

I suppose another part of it is a desire to differentiate the spellcasting classes. If there are too many good spells that span too many lists, it starts to not matter so much which class you pick because they all have the spells people want to cast.


Silent Saturn wrote:

I also wonder why they get Gravity Bow despite having little if any use for it, especially when the other class that gets it is a divine casting class.

I suppose another part of it is a desire to differentiate the spellcasting classes. If there are too many good spells that span too many lists, it starts to not matter so much which class you pick because they all have the spells people want to cast.

They have little use for gravity bow? Since when?


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Zwordsman wrote:

Arise chicken arise.

Is there any feats etc anyone knows of to get this on sorc list now?

The only way I'm aware of is the Samsaran alternate racial trait Mystic Past Life.

Sczarni

Remy Balster wrote:
Silent Saturn wrote:

I also wonder why they get Gravity Bow despite having little if any use for it, especially when the other class that gets it is a divine casting class.

I suppose another part of it is a desire to differentiate the spellcasting classes. If there are too many good spells that span too many lists, it starts to not matter so much which class you pick because they all have the spells people want to cast.

They have little use for gravity bow? Since when?

Well, they're 1/2-BAB full-casters who aren't even proficient with bows normally. I'm sure a wizard or sorcerer could find a use for it, or scribe scrolls of it, but it still seems like quite an odd choice for them.


This... is nuts. Considering sorc/wizard has EVERY OTHER CONSTRUCT-CRAFTING SPELL! I hadnt even noticed that. Dear me.

Well, I'm houseruling it into the sorc/wiz spell list (for my own games at least), because otherwise nobody has all the tools necessary to craft constructs (clerics lack wish & a bunch of other spells).


Found it.


Taow wrote:
Found it.

Prestidigitations are minor tricks that novice spellcasters use for practice. Once cast, a prestidigitation spell enables you to perform simple magical effects for 1 hour. The effects are minor and have severe limitations. A prestidigitation can slowly lift 1 pound of material. It can color, clean, or soil items in a 1-foot cube each round. It can chill, warm, or flavor 1 pound of nonliving material. It cannot deal damage or affect the concentration of spellcasters...

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