I was having a discussion with a friend the other day and he pointed me towards Words of Power variant rules. I saw them and immediately thought "This would be amazing for sorcerers!" and began to mess around with the idea. However the more I messed around the more unsure I was. Don't get me wrong, Words of Power is an excellent idea, but there are so few of them that many kinds of spells don't have a presence (particularly Enchantment/illusion spells). I don't know if the versatility allotted by Words of Power make up for the areas that it doesn't cover.
So, I'm unsure, but you may not be. The Idea I had was a sylvan-blooded gnome sorcerer with a roc companion (mini gandalf) who gives air support through debuffs/buffs, illusions, and battlefield control. This idea I would like to preserve, but Whether this is better achieved through Words of Power or regular casting, I don't know.
So, TL;DR (and its really not TL). Words of Power, are they any good on a non-blaster sorcerer?
Edit: Found some artwork that shows my idea.
http://riot-web-static.s3.amazonaws.com/images/news/December_2011/2011_12_2 1_skin_sale/Veigar_Greybeard.jpg
No. Words of Power have a major problem: it's a consistent system. There are potent combinations, and spontaneous casters get more mileage out of it. But you lose out on all the fun spells, the quirky ones and those that combine nicely with other spells.
Nope. They're good for blasting, summoning, and expendible necromancy, but that's all. This guide has a lot more details.
The author of that guide doesn't recommend the absolute, hands-down best level 1 Word somehow: Lock Ward. Standard action Brew Potion for up to 8th level effects, meaning you can make super Explosive Runes or high level buffs. This is honestly how you expend your spare slots each night. And really, who doesn't want to see the melted remains of someone who got blasted when they opened your Intensified Selected Lock Ward Lengthy Corrosive Bolt letter?
It's listed in the chart as a Blue option, but it's left out of the "best words" list for the level. Obviously, I strongly disagree.
The most breakable Word in the system – which means you have to play it very carefully (because otherwise the GM will ban Words of Power at your table.)
Probably because of this. Annoying your GM with, shall we say, "a clever use of game mechanics" in a way that probably wasn't RAI generally isn't a good idea. So it makes sense that the author would err on the side of recommending options that sane GMs would actually let you use.
