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Greetings, would-be wizards!
So, one of my first-ever homebrew projects was creating a 10th level metamagic feat for each of the 8 schools of magic. I felt as though there wasn't enough differences between schooled wizards, a sentiment which still seems relevant with the various wizard threads popping up all over.
However, while I still agree with this notion, I have learned a lot about 2E by playing, running and creating homebrew for it. I think my original creation left a lot to be desired, so here I present to you a reboot. All of the original feats have been either altered, or remade entirely. I'm hoping the end result is some fun, useful character options that help add flavor to your chosen field of magic. Feedback of any kind is always welcome. Enjoy.
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School Metamagic: Rebooted
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Reddit discussion thread
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|
Greetings, would-be wizards!
So, one of my first-ever homebrew projects was creating a 10th level metamagic feat for each of the 8 schools of magic. I felt as though there wasn't enough differences between schooled wizards, a sentiment which still seems relevant with the various wizard threads popping up all over.
However, while I still agree with this notion, I have learned a lot about 2E by playing, running and creating homebrew for it. I think my original creation left a lot to be desired, so here I present to you a reboot. All of the original feats have been either altered, or remade entirely. I'm hoping the end result is some fun, useful character options that help add flavor to your chosen field of magic. Feedback of any kind is always welcome. Enjoy.
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School Metamagic: Rebooted
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Reddit discussion thread
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Very interesting. I really like most of these, much better than I did your first attempt IMHO. I don't quite know how the Crawling Necromancy would play out (if you create a fly empowered to deliver a spell attack, and all it needs to do is land on the target and deliver the spell, does the caster (or fly?) still need to make an attack roll? That should be similar to a person trying to hit the earth he is standing on, shouldn't it? Would this effectively turn any touch Necro spell attacks into auto hits if the pest gets to the target, unless he's hiding under mosquito netting...)
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Very interesting. I really like most of these, much better than I did your first attempt IMHO.
Thanks! For the first time around, I think the idea was solid, but my execution ended up hurting as a result of simply not knowing the system very well. My experience with other homebrew projects (hopefully) let me make something that's both more interesting, usable and balanced within the framework of 2E.
I don't quite know how the Crawling Necromancy would play out (if you create a fly empowered to deliver a spell attack, and all it needs to do is land on the target and deliver the spell, does the caster (or fly?) still need to make an attack roll? That should be similar to a person trying to hit the earth he is standing on, shouldn't it? Would this effectively turn any touch Necro spell attacks into auto hits if the pest gets to the target, unless he's hiding under mosquito netting...)
When the reanimated husk releases the spell, it is cast as though you yourself had cast it normally. If it uses a save, it uses your spell DC and if it's a spell attack it uses your spell modifier. This is how the feat works as written, and how it's intended to work - though individual GMs might rule differently of course. The main benefit of the feat is extending your reach without actually having to move towards the enemy yourself - similar to Reach Spell.
Henro, I think your base idea is strong here, and I hope it is working well at your table. I think what I would want out of specialization metamagic feats would be more directly related to the casting of the spell itself, in a way that doesn't have to be remembered long after the spell is cast. I don't know if they all need to be metamagic feats even.
Like if necromancy could get a spectral familiar that is incorporeal, I think that is a lot of heavy flavor and accomplishes much of the same thing as your feat without having to create awkward rules for a special construct.
I think the transumation one might be right about what I am thinking but I think many of the others feel like they are adding a lot of complexity to any already complex aspect of the game (spell casting).
I'm not entirely sure I understand the first part of your comment Unicore - you seem to suggest wanting more instant-acting metamagic abilities, but the transmutation one is one of the longest-duration ones so I feel like I'm misunderstanding something with your comment, maybe.
As for complexity, I think these feats end up being a lot less intimidating than they may appear at first glance. A wizard is only ever going to have one of these, so it doesn't really overload them (I would hope at least, I haven't gotten too much playtesting with these feats yet).
Recoil Evocation and Subversive Enchantment are the only instantaneous feats, so the concern that one or more of the other ones could cause memory problems is reasonable - I would have to test them out more to find out (though that's kind of hard since I only run one table.)
Its not just that the effect might last, it is that it might have things about it that have to be remembered later.
Your transmutation one, the wizard makes a choice when they cast the spell, then, wherever they are keeping track of its effect, it just does that one thing extra. It might be a little overturned in power level, but since it wouldn't stack with any other bonuses, I don't think it would be too bad.
The Abjuration one on the other hand, has to be remembered later to be useful, as does the conjuration one to a lesser extent. At the point that the effect is to give a conjurer a 1 action, or 2 action summons (if the jar is stowed), it might as well just be a feat that allows that x times a day.
That's an interesting point - what you're essentially saying is that some of these could only really exist as metamagic, while others could potentially exist as separate abilities.
I could also see persistent abjuration in particular causing issues actually - especially since it operates on a set time frame (IE, it's really hard for a player to tell when exactly an hour has passed, so they would have to constantly ask their GM. At the very least I think I'm going to consider allowing the player to trigger Persistent Abjuration themselves instead of having it happen after exactly one hour, probably during a much smaller time frame (maybe 1 minute).
Henro,
I just came up with this one in a different thread about the incapacitation trait, but I think this would be a great school specific metamagic focus spell for an 8th level enchanter:
Overpowering Enchantment
1 action - verbal,
Target: 1 creature.
Effect: The next enchantment spell you cast counts as 1 level higher for the purposes of counteracting and for overcoming the incapacitation trait against your chosen target.
I think that's a good direction to take a focus metamagic. I think a focus metamagic that raised the level of the next spell you cast could be a good general ability for Wizards as well.