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I'm putting together a spell list for an arcanist, general use can be modified for a specific campaign. I have . . .
1) Mage Armour (Don't want to be hit).
2) Protection from evil (Helps with not being hit and mind controlled).
3) Burning Hands (for swarms).
4) Sleep (Good for battlefield control)
5) Silent Image (General use spell).
6) Endure Elements (make travel more comfortable)
Spells are listed in the order they'd be taken intelligence allowed. I have another 3 spells I'm debating over and I'm curious which people would say is more useful as a 1st level arcane caster.
1) Grease (Battlefield control).
2) Feather fall (usually not needed but a lifesaver if the circumstances are right).
3) Unseen servant (good general utility spell).
My personal inclination is to unseen servant but grease would be more useful in combat situation. Feather fall is handy if you can prepare but hard to justify a spot on your spell list (in case of falling break glass) at lower levels. What do people think?
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I would favor Grease over Feather Fall in a big way, because you want something to do in combat if Sleep doesn't work and weak AoE isn't relevant. Grease still isn't much at level 1, but it is fairly generally applicable.
I don't think you need to worry about Protection from Evil and mind control at level 1. Especially if you're playing with it only working on evil creatures' mind control.
Its also the bonus to saves and deflection bonus . . .
First, the subject gains a +2 deflection bonus to AC and a +2 resistance bonus on saves. Both these bonuses apply against attacks made or effects created by evil creatures.
Basically protection from evil + mage armour gives you +6 to armour class and +2 to saves against evil creatures.
Would you favour grease over unseen servant?
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Mage armor (don't kill me)
Alarm (i want to sleep)
Summon mount (don't want to walk)
Heightened awareness (more perception and knowledge, and can demise to gain +4 in initiative)
Color spray (best CC)
Snap dragon fireworks (search and dazzle) (and is fun)
Vanish (now you see me, now you don't)
I would favor Grease over Feather Fall in a big way, because you want something to do in combat if Sleep doesn't work and weak AoE isn't relevant. Grease still isn't much at level 1, but it is fairly generally applicable.
I don't think you need to worry about Protection from Evil and mind control at level 1. Especially if you're playing with it only working on evil creatures' mind control.
Its also the bonus to saves and deflection bonus . . .
First, the subject gains a +2 deflection bonus to AC and a +2 resistance bonus on saves. Both these bonuses apply against attacks made or effects created by evil creatures.
Basically protection from evil + mage armour gives you +6 to armour class and +2 to saves against evil creatures.
Would you favour grease over unseen servant?
don't forget auto miss by summoned evil creatures melee attacks (until engaged).
but yea. grease over unseen servant as it has 3 fold abilities.
- cast on floor to try and trip targets (also make them loose dex to ac when on it etc).
- cast on target weapon to try and disarm him (i used this in a boss fight, boss was speced to use his oversized weapon. rolled a nat one and went from uber mob to whimp with one spell).
- cast on clothes\armor to get +10 vs grapple - can be a life saver!
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Color spray is better than Sleep for several reasons.
The first is because of its casting time. Sleep has a 1 round casting time, so it is a good spell only if you can start to cast it when the opponent is outside its charge range (several animals can charge for 100' in the right circumstances).
Sleep is a non-targeted AoE spell, so casting it against nearby enemies can generate problems. Color Spray is a cone, so it is easier to control it.
Color spray still has a chance to do something if the opponent has 5+ HD.
At the first level, you can have only 2 prepared 1st level spells, so you need those with maximum flexibility or utility.
Not an expert on the Arcanist, but checking the exploits, Armored Mask gives you the benefit of Mage Armor, +Shield of Faith if you spend a second point.
Better than the spell.
Yeah but quick study help to change 1 spell prepared by consuming 1 arcane point of course you need the spell book at hand and generate attack of opportunities but can change 1 spell in a full round action this helps to always have the the right spell at hand
Other exploit i love is is dimensional slide 1 arcane point teleport 10ft/arcanist lvl, occupy 5ft movement speed, and don't provoke attack of opportunitie good for getting out of flank/strong opponent
Shocking Grasp.....
Grease over the other two because it's so versatile.
I probably wouldn't bother with mage armour at L1. It only lasts an hour, so depending on how your ref runs things one casting may not last the entire adventuring day, and spending a slot on it is a slot you can't use to have an impact in combat. Yes, survival is good, but standing at the back casting acid splash because you spent all your spell slots on slightly decreasing the chance you get hit is boring.
If your ref allows it, Ears of the City is a great spell to get at some point.
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So to reply to the various spells suggested (thank you all for them).
Alarm, Summon mount and vanish I tend to leave to higher levels when they last longer. Snap dragon I like but I tend to buy rather than take it as a free spell. Shocking grasp I tend to avoid as I have to get in range of sharp pointy things to use it. I thought sleep was a better option than colour spray at first level, I do prefer the "prismatic" type spells so I'm happy to have a reason to swap those around. I'll take a look at heightened awareness and ears of the city.
So to reply to the various spells suggested (thank you all for them).
Alarm, Summon mount and vanish I tend to leave to higher levels when they last longer. Snap dragon I like but I tend to buy rather than take it as a free spell. Shocking grasp I tend to avoid as I have to get in range of sharp pointy things to use it. I thought sleep was a better option than colour spray at first level, I do prefer the "prismatic" type spells so I'm happy to have a reason to swap those around. I'll take a look at heightened awareness and ears of the city.
Almost none of the spells on your list do anything to help your party overcome an obstacle or a badguy
Mage armor protects you - only needed if you get in front, it's ok, but there are better ways of upping your AC. I'm currently playing an arcanist as well - the dimensional slide is AWESOME for dealing with getting attacked.
Protection from evil - many bad guys aren't evil so has limited use
burning hands - nice spell, one of the basics, only downside is low range and potentially hitting your allies
sleep - you will very quickly be past 4HD creatures - so only good for a level or so (which at low levels translates to a game or two)
Endure elements - only useful if you roleplay travel - which gets boring, find a combat spell or something.
So better choices:
Enlarge Person - cast it on the fighter or Barbarian - if they are melee - they get +1 damage, plus an increase in the dice on their weapon.
Magic Missile - another classic - always hits - no range issue, keeps you out of combat - damage is on par with a fireball.
Shocking Grasp - another mainstay, with the right traits and feats - this is your killer spell.
snowball - another good ranged damage dealer
windy escape - for that rare time you get attacked - especially great for negating crits and sneak attack
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I tend not to take spells that require other people like enlarge person in my 1st level ones because usually 1st level is when you meet and form the party. For games where you start as a group the list gets adjusted.
Magic Missile is another one I take at higher level.
Shocking grasp requires you need to be close and I really don't want to take traits/feats for one spell as I don't have enough as is.
Snowball is not one I've ever really looked at, I'll do so.
Windy escape as with snowball not one I've looked at (don't even recognize the name), I'll do so.
Yeah but you are forgetting the primary ability of the arcanist that is if you consume 1 arcane point you increase your caster lvl by 1 or your DC by 1, if you take the potent magic exploit this bonus increase by 1 (leaving to +2 caster lvl or +2 DC) so spell like mage armor will last 2-3 hours, color spray increase the DC by 1-2, vanish will last for 2-3 turns, summon mount will last 4-6 hours
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Yeah but you are forgetting the primary ability of the arcanist that is if you consume 1 arcane point you increase your caster lvl by 1 or your DC by 1, if you take the potent magic exploit this bonus increase by 1 (leaving to +2 caster lvl or +2 DC) so spell like mage armor will last 2-3 hours, color spray increase the DC by 1-2, vanish will last for 2-3 turns, summon mount will last 4-6 hours
Oh I haven't forgotten it (thanks for bringing it up though) its why I'd be taking them 3rd to 4th level as by that point they last long enough to be worth it if you use that ability. At 1st level vanish only gives you 2 turns, not bad but I do have other things I want more. Burning hands is 2d4 damage vs swarms with it or if you have phoneix bloodline a cone heal for 2d4 hit points. Very nice with this ability.
I tend not to take spells that require other people like enlarge person in my 1st level ones because usually 1st level is when you meet and form the party. For games where you start as a group the list gets adjusted.
Magic Missile is another one I take at higher level.
Shocking grasp requires you need to be close and I really don't want to take traits/feats for one spell as I don't have enough as is.
Snowball is not one I've ever really looked at, I'll do so.
Windy escape as with snowball not one I've looked at (don't even recognize the name), I'll do so.
Traits are almost worthless to begin with, the one you want for Shocking Grasp is Magical Lineage - one of the best traits in the game. Later on take Intensify Spell Metamagic (which can be used on all your spells, but is awesome with the shocking grasp). you can use Rods of intensify if you choose, but this setup is pretty awesome. Get a Shocking Robe and the Varisian Tattoo Feat, Combine with Potent Magic and Admixture from your Arcanists, and you can be hitting with 9 dice shocking grasps at 5th level. use your versatile Evocation and your shocking robe gives you an extra dice on your fireball and burning hands as well.
if you can afford it, a Ring of Wizardry 1 is sweet, as you now have tons of extra spells.
Shocking Grasp.....
I don't think that this spell is good for a first lvl arcanist, the reason is simple, you have very low life, defense and attack, this kind of spell i get when I'm like lvl 7 reason (invincibility, spectral hand and other spell that improve my survival)
Another spell that i recommend is illusion of calm
https://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/i/illusion-of-calm/
This spell can help caster to use they spell and to not worries to much of being attacked
I'm pretty sure the shocking grasp was a bit of a joke...
Grease is awesome spell, we have used it with great success even on level 13+. Giants have a crappy Reflex save and acrobatics skill :D
I'm pretty sure the shocking grasp was a bit of a joke...
No joke, it's mainstay of my caster builds.
A caster's job is to help the party overcome obstacles. sometimes that obstacle is a bad guy - with the right setup, shocking grasp is NASTY. and it doesn't take much to get it that way.
At level 1, magic missile pretty easily outclasses shocking grasp. Auto hit. Very good range. Less resisted. Same average damage as shocking grasp.
But really, low level spells just aren't great for damage. A d6 touch attack isn't that much compared to the big martial rolling a bigger damage die and adding +4 to +6 strength mod to the damage.
At least burning hands has the advantage of hitting multiple enemies and being decent against swarms.
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At level 1, magic missile pretty easily outclasses shocking grasp. Auto hit. Very good range. Less resisted. Same average damage as shocking grasp.
But really, low level spells just aren't great for damage. A d6 touch attack isn't that much compared to the big martial rolling a bigger damage die and adding +4 to +6 strength mod to the damage.
At least burning hands has the advantage of hitting multiple enemies and being decent against swarms.
Its not about the damage its about my not wanting to use a spell that requires my highly vulnerable caster get into stabbing range of the people who's job is stabbing things. I tend towards battlefield control with some buffing/debuffing e.g. sleet storm over fireball. My list (modified a bit for the advice here) reflects that. Protection from evil can give a deflection bonus of +2 to the front linerss and protect against mind control vs evil beings which at least for me have generally been fairly common. Burning Hands swarm control which while not exactly common are a pain if your not able to hurt them. Colour spray to battle various groups. Silent image lot of applications e.g. create an illusion of a barrier, a distraction, etc. Grease battle field control again to make enemies slip and slide or counter grappling foes before they rend. Endure elements good for hot and cold regions or areas.
I will consider to use protection from evil as a scroll unless you are in a evil npc campaign it's don't help to much, the problem that i see whit grease is that ok you affect all a enemy to slip but also affect melee ally's
Grease is multi-use. Slipping is good but the disarming can trivialize some normally tough enemies like giants.
Protection from evil is pretty niche at low level. Maybe better on a more spontaneous caster because it is so niche but critical. Magic circle against evil lasts 10 min per level so replaces it for high level play.
When i create a PC arcane caster i always get at first lvl 1 spell of each school not for the application but for the rol play (to explain how do I get 2 spell of the school every time I lvl up, since i don't have an arcane library to help me to do the discovery during my travels/adventure)
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Grease is multi-use. Slipping is good but the disarming can trivialize some normally tough enemies like giants.
Protection from evil is pretty niche at low level. Maybe better on a more spontaneous caster because it is so niche but critical. Magic circle against evil lasts 10 min per level so replaces it for high level play.
I always thought magic circle was in one spot so not that good for moving fights?
Area 10-ft.-radius emanation from touched creature
Its not about the damage its about my not wanting to use a spell that requires my highly vulnerable caster get into stabbing range of the people who's job is stabbing things.At level 1, magic missile pretty easily outclasses shocking grasp. Auto hit. Very good range. Less resisted. Same average damage as shocking grasp.
But really, low level spells just aren't great for damage. A d6 touch attack isn't that much compared to the big martial rolling a bigger damage die and adding +4 to +6 strength mod to the damage.
At least burning hands has the advantage of hitting multiple enemies and being decent against swarms.
See, Magic missile is your spell for dealing damage and not worrying about being in stab range. But Shocking Grasp is your defense spell when they get close to you. the bad guys charges you or gets to you or whatever, you cast windy escape or take the hit depending on "stuff", then cast a massive shocking grasp on your turn, and use dimensional slide to get away. the bonus stuff I listed earlier (rod of intensify, varisian tattoo, shocking robes, arcanist upping their level etc) all boost your damage.,
It's possible for a 1st level mage to be dealing a 4-5 die shocking grasp, enough to kill that stabby guy who just got close to him.
Human Wizard (Exploiter Archetype)
Spell focus Evocation
Varisian Tattoo Evocation
Spend 1 point from your arcane pool to boost your CL by 2, Tattoo give +1 CL to evocation spell. bam 4 die shocking grasp. add a shocking robe and its 5 dice (or level +4), so by second level you can use the Magical Lineage Trait and Intensify Metamagic (or a rod) to memorize/use 6 die (level +4) shocking grasps.
In the meantime, your fireballs, magic missile etc are all +1CL, and you can spend arcana to make then another +2 CL, and if you wan to change them to lightning using the Admixture Exploit, they gain another +1 CL, and the all gain 1/2 level extra damage.
So close spell, ranged spells, etc, can all be boosted by CL = 4 or 5
you can so the same thing with snowball, at range, just convert it to be an electric snowball using admixture.
Which is fine if you want to focus on evocation/direct damage spells but I really don't. Especially at the cost of an archetype and two feats.
which is fine, there's tons of ways to play a mage, however, as mentioned a mages job is to either kill the bad guys or help the party over come obstacles. this means evocation spells, or buff spells, or things like knock, teleport, etc.
your initial spell list had very few of these.
Which is fine if you want to focus on evocation/direct damage spells but I really don't. Especially at the cost of an archetype and two feats.which is fine, there's tons of ways to play a mage, however, as mentioned a mages job is to either kill the bad guys or help the party over come obstacles. this means evocation spells, or buff spells, or things like knock, teleport, etc.
your initial spell list had very few of these.
That is a very narrow minded outlook… thats like saying a clerics job is to heal the party and proceeding to say that someone building a combat focused cleric is not contributing. Or a Rogue’s hob is to open locks and find traps, so any archetype that trades out those abilities is counter productive…
There are several ways to play every class, not all of them will fit into your narrow scope of what each classes job is. You think their spell list is bad and non contributing because its not damage and/or buffs… and yet what I see is a versatile spellcaster prepared for a multitude of scenarios… they have crown control (sleep/color spray, and grease), they have AoE damage (burning hands), they have a multipurpose deception/stealth/diversion spell (silent image), they have buffs (mage armor {personal}, protection from evil {party}), they have environmental precautions (feather fall, and endure elements), and they have a general utility (unseen servants)… that is not a bad spell list at all… are there better options for some of those? Absolutely… but that doesn’t make them bad choices (except Sleep… that spell is unfortunately a terrible spell for player characters… great for low level NPCs though….)
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Which is fine if you want to focus on evocation/direct damage spells but I really don't. Especially at the cost of an archetype and two feats.which is fine, there's tons of ways to play a mage, however, as mentioned a mages job is to either kill the bad guys or help the party over come obstacles. this means evocation spells, or buff spells, or things like knock, teleport, etc.
your initial spell list had very few of these.That is a very narrow minded outlook… thats like saying a clerics job is to heal the party and proceeding to say that someone building a combat focused cleric is not contributing. Or a Rogue’s hob is to open locks and find traps, so any archetype that trades out those abilities is counter productive…
There are several ways to play every class, not all of them will fit into your narrow scope of what each classes job is. You think their spell list is bad and non contributing because its not damage and/or buffs… and yet what I see is a versatile spellcaster prepared for a multitude of scenarios… they have crown control (sleep/color spray, and grease), they have AoE damage (burning hands), they have a multipurpose deception/stealth/diversion spell (silent image), they have buffs (mage armor {personal}, protection from evil {party}), they have environmental precautions (feather fall, and endure elements), and they have a general utility (unseen servants)… that is not a bad spell list at all… are there better options for some of those? Absolutely… but that doesn’t make them bad choices (except Sleep… that spell is unfortunately a terrible spell for player characters… great for low level NPCs though….)
Which is why I took the advice and changed it to colour spray, also thank you.
There are several ways to play every class, not all of them will fit into your narrow scope of what each classes job is. You think their spell list is bad and non contributing because its not damage and/or buffs… and yet what I see is a versatile spellcaster prepared for a multitude of scenarios… they have crown control (sleep/color spray, and grease), they have AoE damage (burning hands), they have a multipurpose deception/stealth/diversion spell (silent image), they have buffs (mage armor {personal}, protection from evil {party}), they have environmental precautions (feather fall, and endure elements), and they have a general utility (unseen servants)… that is not a bad spell list at all… are there better options for some of those? Absolutely… but that doesn’t make them bad choices (except Sleep… that spell is unfortunately a terrible spell for player characters… great for low level NPCs though….)
I mentioned having utility and buffs etc. the OP asked for advice. I agree here are tons of ways to play characters, some good, some bad. you admit there are better options for some of his spell choices, I am merely pointing out what some of them are. The main issue with his list of spells are that most are very situational. Great to have if that situation comes up, but worthless if it doesn't. If at the end of a day of adventuring you have a spell that was never cast, and that happens repeatedly, then that spell needs replaced.
I've played (with bad) GM's that will look a the spell lists of the players and purposely put in encounters that none of your spells are good for. Take all AOE's, never see a bad guy, encounter only locked doors, rope bridges and chasms. Take All the "Anti evil spells", all the bad guys are neutral. take all utility spells, nothing but combat. So I've learned which spells are useable in a more general sense, and less in a situational sense. which is what my advice revolves around - aside from evocation, which is a wizards damage part, pick spells that are less situational.
And no, I don't believe every class has a particular job, but if your character isn't making a positive contribution to over coming obstacles, then you need to improve your character.
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I agree with Mark's advice gist, but implementing it is heavily campaign dependent.
In some campaigns getting the time and resources to scribe scrolls is hard.
You can only write one scroll a day and you can scribe only prepared spells, so initially, you can scribe only a single scroll with 2 different spells and 3-4 total uses between the two. Writing it will leave only the cantrips available.
The best situation is if the GM allows you to start the game with some pre-written scroll, but an arcanist hasn't a lot of starting cash to pay for them, even at half price (if he makes them).
After the start of an adventure, the characters usually have more cash, but little time to scribe scrolls. Usually, you will have already reached level 2 before you get the time to scribe some scroll. But, usually, it will be well worth it to scribe them.