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Striking Spell [A]
[Flourish][Metamagic]
Cast a Spell that takes one or two actions to cast and targets one other creature. Instead of casting the spell as normal, you place the spell's magic into one melee weapon you're wielding or into your body to use with an unarmed attack.
If you hit with a melee Strike using the receptacle for the spell, the spell is discharged, affecting only the target you hit if the spell is a spell attack. Any Strike made with the receptacle for the spell gains the Fortune trait. The spell attack is a success even if your discharging Strike was a critical success. If the spell requires a saving throw, the creature hit with the melee Strike rolls its saving throw as normal.
If you don't expend the stored spell with a Strike before the end of your turn, it is lost and dissipates harmlessly. The same thing happens if the weapon is used for a non-melee Strike (such as a thrown weapon Strike). A spell stored with Spellstrike cannot be discharged by anyone but the caster.
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After some discussion, this seems like it might be an interesting route and I'm curious what other folks think. Assuming a 2-action spell, the Magus gets to cast with an action discount, but still needs to find a way to deliver the spell. Overall, this would mean that you could:
1. Cast, move, strike;
2. Cast, use ability that includes a strike (i.e. sudden charge, twin feint, etc.);
3. Cast, strike, strike
This fits a goal in my mind of the Magus having both an efficiency boost over an MCD and a slight accuracy boost (because they use their weapon to deliver a spell). Adding the Fortune tag to any attack made with a charged weapon means that you aren't focused entirely on true strike, which in my earnest opinion means that Magi would have much more interesting build pathways. Focusing the feature on simply "charging up" the weapon also leads to some more interesting class feats, like letting you hold the charge longer or letting you avoid discharging the weapon for some other bonuses.
And it works with combat feats from other classes, which also makes the class more interesting in terms of builds.
I was thinking of something similar. Tho reducing it to a single action was not what I had in mind, not in that way though.
I think Spell Combat would be the ability to reduce the "release" action of a spell to be 1 action (so you cast it a turn in advance and hold on it so you can release it for 1 action later).
And Spell Strike would be a separate feature that allows you to either deliver a "held" spell on a strike. OR to cast a spell with it's normal number of action and replace the attack roll by a melee strike. Held spells could be save ones for spellstrike too.
Let's see if I understand, if you use a spell attack you automatically get a success on it if you hit the strike.
That is kinda problematic with the current design of the game that you either get an accuracy boost like Double Slice and Knockdown or action efficiency boost like Flurry of Blows and Dual Weapon Blitz.
Having both at the same time kinda breaks stuff.
Unless I got the text wrong and that you still have to roll the spell attack with it with MAP, in that case is the action efficiency boost and that is more acceptable.
Let's see if I understand, if you use a spell attack you automatically get a success on it if you hit the strike.
That is kinda problematic with the current design of the game that you either get an accuracy boost like Double Slice and Knockdown or action efficiency boost like Flurry of Blows and Dual Weapon Blitz.
Having both at the same time kinda breaks stuff.
Unless I got the text wrong and that you still have to roll the spell attack with it with MAP, in that case is the action efficiency boost and that is more acceptable.
What, in particular, is broken? If it's simply outside of the paradigm we've seen, I don't think that's enough of an argument. Every new class should push the envelope on its unique system.
If, for instance, on a class with 4 spell slots having the spells connect with a strike is ultimately far superior to another martial class I'd be interested to know.
Let's put this way...
A Swashbuckler in a finisher, 1 action to enter panache and another to finisher have a damage cap of 4d8 + 3d6 + 11 + 6d6. Cannot strike anymore because of the finisher trait and lose the panache.
A Magus with your version, 1 action to enchant the weapon and another to strike, using a cantrip, Telekinetic Projectile would do 4d8 + 3d6 + 13 + 10d6 + 5 and if miss can strike again because you keep the charge.
Now let's do better and go after Fire Ray from Cleric and now that 10d6 + 5 is a 20d6.
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Let's put this way...
A Swashbuckler in a finisher, 1 action to enter panache and another to finisher have a damage cap of 4d8 + 3d6 + 11 + 6d6. Cannot strike anymore because of the finisher trait and lose the panache.
A Magus with your version, 1 action to enchant the weapon and another to strike, using a cantrip, Telekinetic Projectile would do 4d8 + 3d6 + 13 + 10d6 + 5 and if miss can strike again because you keep the charge.
Now let's do better and go after Fire Ray from Cleric and now that 10d6 + 5 is a 20d6.
I'm sorry to disagree, but Eldritch Archer already kind of does what the OP proposed and does not break anything
Sure, the Op's ability gives a slight action economy boost and allows them to keep the charge, but that's enough compensation for
a) being in melee and
b) having only 4 slots
c) not being able to combine it with true strike (not saying E. Archer can do it)
I mean, automatically delivering spells through attacks already exists in the game not only in this, but in several other instances (Warpriest, Spell Storing Rune, etc)
Spellstoring weapons do that too. A NPC does that too. Honestly it's simple and effective at achieving the SpellStrike concept, I don't see how it breaks anything either.
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Yeah, I don't see that as an issue, considering Swashbuckler finisher damage is precision and doubled on a crit, they have built-in crit fishing technology at high levels, and their attacks can benefit from fortune effects.
Swashbuckler damage is also on the more limited end of the spectrum with how the finisher system works, considering a Barbarian is adding at least a flat +12 damage on every Rage attack, a Rogue can get sneak attack on every strike, Rangers get a plethora of bonuses against their hunted target, etc.
If the problem is cantrips adding too much extra damage, that's easy to resolve by limiting it to spell slot spells, which I think need to be consistent or the mechanic is going to feel really bad. I don't think cantrips or hitting hard on a 8hp chassis with limited other abilities is an issue though, all things considered.
Edit: That said, I'm not a math guy. This just feels like a smooth mechanic to me with a lot of modular possibility, and looks like it would create a motivating, exciting niche for the class.
Let's see if I understand, if you use a spell attack you automatically get a success on it if you hit the strike.
That is kinda problematic with the current design of the game that you either get an accuracy boost like Double Slice and Knockdown or action efficiency boost like Flurry of Blows and Dual Weapon Blitz.
Having both at the same time kinda breaks stuff.
Unless I got the text wrong and that you still have to roll the spell attack with it with MAP, in that case is the action efficiency boost and that is more acceptable.
FWIW, Eldritch Shot gives both action economy and removes MAP.
MAP is effectively removed as both attacks hit or miss as one.
Action economy is due to free "reach" metamagic: whatever spell you use has it's range extended to the bow's range, rather than the spell's default range. You can use melee spell strikes at 80' or more.
Just feelycraft and sleeping on it a bit, really, but I did make a Magus character with this, one with a 2-action version, and then one with the regular Striking Spell.
I think this one comes out ahead for me and felt good but still reasonable.
On a round-to-round basis with this, you're essentially getting a one-action discount, usually in the form of your cantrip costing one instead of two actions. This is a one-action advantage over a Fighter/Wizard casting a cantrip and striking, which means the Magus gets to move somewhere in there. That matches pretty closely with my expectations for the class' operation.
Big "nova" rounds are still spell + strike, but you can add in a move or another strike. One issue I see with this route, though, is that it's tough to add a MAP rider, which I think is reasonable. That makes the two-action version (cast + strike) a bit easier to add riders to, because it includes the strike in the action--issue there is that it makes it hard/impossible to deliver the spell with another combat feat.