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T O P I C    R E V I E W
Nicolai Withander Posted - 01 Jun 2011 : 14:36:25
Hey... I was thinking that it would be fun to hear how you guys play you mage. Be it wizard or sorcerer. Just a short summery about concept and maybe speciel spells or feats that you like. Maybe some info about prestige classes.

Ill go first.

Human wizard lvl 15, arcane avatar lvl 5 arch mage lvl 5. The feat i like to most is that he's a spellfire wielder. he's got some home made spells. Very powerful... they can be found round and about this forum. he's 44 years old and is of halruuan and half-elven decendent.

Personal goals is to become the most powerful spellcaster on the face of Faerûn. And hes main prioritet is the safety of Mystra and the weave.

He is build as and anti spellcaster. Specializing in combating other spellscasters.

He knows some of the chosen, and has helped the magister at some point. He's currently in "war" with the Red Wizards, since Khelben was killed by Szas Tam. Currently he trying to figurer out how to retaliate the murder.

not sure what more to write, but if anyone would like to contribute I think it would make for some interesting reading!
30   L A T E S T    R E P L I E S    (Newest First)
cpthero2 Posted - 07 Nov 2020 : 19:59:01
Master Withander,

quote:
Hey... I was thinking that it would be fun to hear how you guys play you mage. Be it wizard or sorcerer. Just a short summery about concept and maybe speciel spells or feats that you like. Maybe some info about prestige classes.


When I play a mage/wizard, etc., I play a Master Speciliast | Focused Specialist | Diviner with prestige class into Arcane Devotee or Void Disciple (preference to Void Disciple) w/worship being to Savras.

Good stuff, and a face wrecker with that kind of knowledge in a game.

Best regards,


The Arcanamach Posted - 28 Aug 2020 : 16:14:28
I've played a variety of mage 'types' over the years. I tend to favor battlefield control and/or support over raw damage. Currently playing a chronurgist mage in 5e for a new campaign hosted in our home. Having fun with it but still only level 6 at the moment. Should really open up in a few more levels (around 10th or so). One of our PCs died last night because assassin's were sent to our camp and the two guards both failed perception. Our kenku rogue never had a chance. I rolled high on initiative and laid out a hypnotic pattern and all enemies were affected. They're now dead without me doing a single point of damage.
Cosmar Posted - 22 Mar 2019 : 01:12:41
I go between specializing in Abjuration or being a generalist.

I know Abjurers are far from optimized and a lot of people find Abjuration kind of boring, but for some reason I always think of them as the classical wizards even more than Conjurers or Necromancers. For some reason, in my head, literary mages like Gandalf and Ged would be Abjurers. In 3rd edition I'd typically go Master Specialist --> Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil.

Lately I've been super basic and been loving playing as Elven generalists (using the Elf Wizard racial substitution levels from Races of the Wild).

Right now my Sun Elf generalist, Kethamil Sylairaque, is Wizard5/ Harper Mage 4, with plans for going into Olin Gisir. He originally wanted to become a Spellguard of Silverymoon, but recent adventures have driven him to a more Divinatory path, and he really wants to find/protect/destroy ancient elven secrets.

He comes from a long line of talented mages who have at various times been involved in Big Things (the Crown Wars, Seven Citadels' War, establishment/fall of Myth Drannor, etc.) and basically wants to follow in their footsteps, intending to master all forms of magic, perhaps learn Elven High Magic someday and invent a bunch of his own spells.

At the moment, he's trying to thwart a demonfey plot to kidnap Sun Elves and use an evil artifact (some kind of brazier that utilizes demon hearts...) to forcibly turn them into Fey'ri. At the same time, they're trying to find a way into an Unseelie Fey demiplane called the Vale Beyond the Veil, in which the demonfey are trying to find something called the Rain of Embers (which might be a weapon dating to the Seven Citadels' War).

ALSO, his wizard and Spellguard of Silverymoon father (whom he later discovered was secretly a Harper) went missing on a mission and he's been trying to find him. Turns out daddy-o was researching ways to contact and/or travel to Myth Adofhaer, and Kethamil has discovered a spellbook relic of Labelas Enoreth that contains a ritual in which one can open a temporary portal between planes that are out of temporal sync (including both the Vale Beyond the Veil and Myth Adofhaer). His father completed the ritual and may have already gone to Myth Adofhaer...Kethamil has deciphered the ritual and is searching for the components to complete it himself, which include 10,000 gp in diamonds, focii from both planes, and a scale from the dragon god of time, Chronepsis.

But the fey'ri business with the turning elves into demons thing, and Rain of Embers, whatever that is, are kind of taking priority.
Thraskir Skimper Posted - 17 Jun 2018 : 03:21:38
My Cantrip wielding Apprenti are all used in City adventures where the worst thing that happens is an Apprentice will get mugged or asked to spy on someone with out being seen and getting beaten up if spotted. Which of course serves them right for getting seen. Typically a student or pre student will guide a merchant for a fee through a city cast a coloured light spell above a merchant which wards off the thieves in a district. Assuming they don't screw it up. Or they will carry their broom around to various shops for cleaning services with a chance to cast cleaning spells to cut down on work and get paid enough money for attending classes. Keeps the Apprenti busy. Yes scrying is a great way to spy on people but 50 to 100 apprentice can often do it better.
Wooly Rupert Posted - 16 Jun 2018 : 01:15:36
The proficiency idea was the simplest and most elegant.

If I had to redo the cantrip idea, I think I'd use the 2E proficiency as a basis for how oft cantrips could be used, and otherwise tie them to the Spellcraft skill. You can cast a certain number of cantrips, but have to make a skill check, until you've got like 5 ranks or so in the skill -- and then you no longer need the skill check.
TBeholder Posted - 16 Jun 2018 : 00:38:21
quote:
Originally posted by Thraskir Skimper

I Have developed a Zero Level class of Magic user called the "Apprentice". Based on four levels of Cantrips mostly from Unearth Arcana.
These are four levels leading up to the 1st level.

Was done in... Mystara, Greyhawk and College of Wizardry, IIRC. The problems are that:
1. To be used outside specific "everyone is an apprentice in magic school" campaign it should be applied to all classes, and
2. The only way for this to work without creating more mess is to have classes dismantled into component abilities, much like in Warhammer 40k RP.
Which could be done even in PO, of course, but it's larger than just one option for Magic user class(es).

quote:
There is another option to specialise as a Cantripian. A Specialist in Cantrips.

Okay, that's just silly.
Thraskir Skimper Posted - 16 Jun 2018 : 00:18:08
I Have developed a Zero Level class of Magic user called the "Apprentice". Based on four levels of Cantrips mostly from Unearth Arcana.

These are four levels leading up to the 1st level. In Thay you would then specialise in one of the many schools for 5 more levels until you graduate and receive your Red Robes and first level as a Red Wizard Novice.

There is another option to specialise as a Cantripian. A Specialist in Cantrips. Cantripians are limited to the first four levels as an apprentice and then up to five more with more advanced versions of cantrips and simple 'limited' spell levels. Similar to the number of spells a Sorcerer has between levels 1 to 5. I will follow this up with more info if you are interested.

Wooly Rupert Posted - 10 Jun 2018 : 16:25:38
Indeed, that was the article.

Cantrips in D&D have always bugged me, because the game application of them has never matched the way they're always described in fiction. That's why I continue to think that the proficiency idea in that article was the best way cantrips have ever been addressed in D&D.
The Masked Mage Posted - 10 Jun 2018 : 07:17:30
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

My favorite two mage characters... One was a wild mage who happily embraced the chaos of wild magic.

The other was a half-elf fighter-mage with the Aristocrat kit from an old issue of Dragon (obviously, this was in 2E). The half-elf's closest thing to a signature spell was his heavy use of cantrips. We were using a variant rule (also from Dragon) that made cantrips a proficiency, which I still think was the best way I've seen D&D handle cantrips, in all editions. Because of that rule, my character was able to toss off multiple cantrips a day, and he very much took advantage of that. It was mostly just a flavor thing, but he was still one of my favorite characters, due in no small part to that one detail.

He used his cantrips mostly for utility stuff: drying/fixing his clothes, starting a fire more easily, adding flavor to his food, etc.



I LOVED that cantrip variant. It made wizards in games more like wizards in stories, AND did not boost their power much. The article was called "The Little Wish" if memory serves.
Thraskir Skimper Posted - 08 Jun 2018 : 05:27:09
Thraskir Skimper is a Thayan Judge. Main Power of a Thayan "newish" House. He was originally imprisoned in under High Thay by a Raumathur Battle group, himself a Narfelli Mage working with the Demon Binders, all those years ago. Locked away he had time to think. Someone noted somewhere where he fell in combat to an imprisonment spell and he was released much later after Thay was established by a fellow member of the Red Cohort a new Red Wizard House by an Abjuration Red Magi, Zaharrah. She is the Founder of the Red Cohort. The Red Cohort is a group of 22+ Red Wizards operating from a semi secret "disguised" base originally in Impiltur in a city called "Barnacus" (ported in from the Module from Dragon magazine number 80). Revised for 3.5. Barnacus through a series of Circle magic spells and recovered or remembered, Thraskir Skimper is very old, spells. Chiefly Skycastle and the Apportation School of Magic. Lightning curtain, Permanent Darkness, Permanency, A Decanter of endless water, and two years of studying, infiltrating and studying the City, establishing a major temple of Beshaba, Building up the Investigation business, Skimper is a Divination Specialist Red Wizard.

Thraskir Skimper: Wizard 5th, Pale Master 4th (when he was Imprisoned) Later 10th, Red Wizard 10th. Divination specialist Opposition school Transmutation, Double specialisation opposition school Evocation. Skimper is rather Chaotic but started his investigation business and operates from the shadows. Looking in on people, finding and using secrets, a little black mail to get this done, infiltration, enchantment, illusion and necromancy to change peoples mind or to get the Thieves guild and Assassin's guild doing what he wants them to do. Disease here, insanity there, slave girls and boys for the nobles and lots of gold. That most of this already existed in Barnacus and just needed a few tweaks and enhancements all the better. Protecting the city from locals and concealment spells with a push to corrupt a few already corrupted officials. When the Nobles are paying you to find out where their husbands are going at night, and the merchants are using your services to protect them from the local thieves guild, When you generously upgrade the weapons and armour of the Wall and Gate guards they tend to turn a blind eye to your 'shipments'. When your Mage School apprentice serve at the towers enhancing and fortifying the guards duty, life and general well being with spells and magic items. When the Captain of the guards gets a personal invitation to collect and arrest thieves that are operating without official sanction. With their loot and full confessions. These things all take time but provide endless adventure, From the First adventure City in Peril to the Rescue, Enclave, Temple and finally School. Bringing in the original nine Red Cohort members and adding and adjusting the alignments Convincing the Duke to allow an enclave to start up. After the Investigations business solved the original problems. From there a casino and pleasure slaves plus the 'good' life of nobility and ease. Thieves that leave most everyone alone, yet keep those who plot against the Duke in check. The Duke showed great gratitude when the Assassins were exposed their plots foiled and with a couple tweaks his neutral outlooks adjusted to a better outlook for Thayan outpost trading. With the influx of Magic, items, potions, intrigue and lots of gold, happy subjects a resurgence of (introduction of) Kossuth faith and Beshaba; view points can be changed. Ruins in the local area provided additional adventure, nearby towns all opened branch offices of the divination investigation offices of Skimper. New thieves guilds were adjusted. Local Guild leaders changed from ambitious thriving men or women to wraith who are happy to sit back and wait. Changing those who require adjustment and for those who won't into undead who will. Ultimately this lead to a certain level of conflict and was traced back to the city which was besieged. Luckily 20 Red Wizards, a Dozen Clerics of Beshaba and Kossuth plus the other Temples, 35 Apprentice trained in Wall and Tower defense as well as several Hundred Guards plus a Standing army of Two Thousand and a Further 1000+ Slaves acting as body guards. Every Pub and Inn had a Bard to rally the locals, sing great ballads of Thay and enhanced the troops and locals in time of need. Barnacus became a base for the merchants who suddenly were immune to the Pirates and Slavers and them and some of the Thayan warships. Suffice to say the locals never expected their naval blockade to be countered by so many buccaneers, pirates, soldiers and armed merchants. The Soldiers army that surrounded Barnacus never expected that during the night the Thieves guild undead would attack, Followed by Dozens of fireballs, sleep spells and over 5000 locals, soldiers, body guards, Gate and Wall Guards, Clerics and Bards keeping everyone fed healed and moral so high. Ultimately the siege succeeded not in conquering Barnacus but in its disappearance. For while the Siege itself failed spectacularly quickly. 30 Boats were either sunk or captured. Their armies shattered and the immediate lands and forest haunted with 100's of undead. It was a spectacular battle.

However it was known that the locals would return with more men armies etc... Caution meant the city was evacuated many would head back to Thay with much of the fleet some of the students, particularly the Noble houses and sponsoring family members. They would take part in the new Schools of Magic, we established a reworking of 12 Schools of Magic. Many Thay Noble houses and Merchants built 'embassy's' if you like. Not willing to give up Barnacus the Red Cohort came up with some recovered spell casting and decided to move the city. Skycastle, lightning curtain, permanent Darkness, Permanent Fire wall, an inland contained sea and a Decanter of Endless water ultimately with some Earth Moving Thaumaturgy, Stone Shape, plus Flying spells Feather fall and other means of transportation. Suffice to say it took a while but when the next bigger more prepared army arrived nothing was left where Barnacus used to be. The lake had a new bay and Thay had a weather defying Thunder storm localised to a 5 mile diameter. The weather nets seemed not to affect it and its continuous rains never seem to dissipate. While not a flying inverted Castle it is an awesome sight to see often mistaken for a storm cloud when flying or a fog surrounded city when 'docked', landed. Be it on a cost or inland surrounded by a new stream lake eventually a seasonal river. Barnacus moves from place to place. It is self sufficient but offers sea trade, land trade and air trade.

So Thraskir Skimper, adventures in many forms, city adventures, haunted ruins, intrigue and establishment, merchants, pirates, slaves, gambling, temples, noble estates, etc...
TBeholder Posted - 23 Nov 2016 : 12:58:00
quote:
Originally posted by sleyvas


TACTICS: Myrddin is a wizard first and foremost. His studies as a war weaver make him a very effective squad leader, providing enhancements for his group during times of emergency. His studies as an arcane disciple of Ilmater make him especially effective as a group healer through his eldritch tapestry.

IDK, War Weaver is one of the good ideas, and isn't fanfic-wretched, but couldn't it be made more "realmsified" in style?
Perhaps even implemented as more than one variant:
A. "Magic Choir" (song magic) - purely elven tradition.
B. "Battle Wards" (using carried token for each beneficiary) - all sorts of elves, War Wizards, maybe Red Wizards and Witches.
Wooly Rupert Posted - 28 Sep 2015 : 21:14:00
Since I last responded to this thread, I played a gun mage in a Iron Kingdoms/Pathfinder game -- it was the Iron Kingdoms setting, but modified for Pathfinder rules.

Gun mages are variant sorcerers; their schtick is that they have special pistols they bond with, and they can then cast spells thru those pistols. One of my character's favorite tricks, once he got the option, was to shoot bad guys with a bullet carrying a vampiric touch spell.

By the time that campaign ended (the DM moved), my character's preferred tactic was to use fly and greater invisibility to fly over the battle, channeling spells thru his magelock pistol (sometimes with cat's grace or true strike, to guarantee a better shot) and moving in another direction after every shot. His second magelock pistol, Lady Jerilyn, also acted as a lesser rod of empower, so he could soup up some of the spells he fired through it (and have to roll a metric buttload of D6s! ).

(He had the silent spell feat, but that's of limited utility when most of your spells are delivered via pistol shot)

My character was obviously lightly armored (mostly magical stuff for armor and a great coat), so the flying about unseen was my way of not getting hit. The first few levels, my guy had a distressing habit of winding up way too close to dead. After a few levels, it went from "wow, I didn't almost die in this combat!" to "nope, I don't need healing, no one came close to touching me." Although there was one combat when my cone of cold failed to have the desired effect, and the only thing that saved my character's life was the fact that we killed the boss and his underlings were happy to surrender. (It would have been beautiful if those guys hadn't been protected by some sort of anti-magic toy).

The dimension door spell also got a lot of use, including my character being a taxi a couple of times.
Artemas Entreri Posted - 28 Sep 2015 : 19:58:57
My favorite mage character was my lich who enjoyed experimenting with golems. (2E rules)
Alefian Posted - 28 Sep 2015 : 19:22:33
quote:
Originally posted by sleyvas

Ironically, back in the days of America Online, I actually met up with another gamer who was also heavily into spellcasting and we shared a lot of ideas back and forth. His character, Alefian, "became" a child of Sleyvas' from a woman he'd married while entrapped in the world of the "masque of the red death" campaign. He and the woman were both powerful mages and had turned on one another, so when she "got pregnant"... she never told her ex-husband and left him. We developed a long back story together, but the gist of it became that Alefian was raised in the realms and eventually met up with his father as an enemy who turned friend.



I have many fond memories of our stories and gaming, sharing such a rich family history together. Always enjoyed them. Always will. I can't believe it's been over 18 years we've stayed in touch sharing lore and tales. Here's to another 18 more.

- Alefian
Wooly Rupert Posted - 01 Jan 2012 : 04:35:13
quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik

quote:
Wooly Rupert

He used his cantrips mostly for utility stuff: drying/fixing his clothes, starting a fire more easily, adding flavor to his food, etc.
Damn. Grooming and gluttony? What a wonderful waste, I love it.

Alas, my players use "utility" cantrips to do things like cheating in card games, briefly distracting guards, and remotely setting off traps. In short, they won't ever "waste" even the most insignificant power if it can instead somehow serve as a tool or advantage. I say "you could use a cantrip to sharpen your sword" and they respond "naw, my character wants to spend half an hour doing it manually, just in case he needs to save the cantrip for something useful".



Oy!

Being able to toss off multiple cantrips, under that system, made them so easy and so useful it seemed a shame not to waste them. That was why I loved that approach so much -- it was the first time there was a system for cantrips that captured the feel of cantrips, and that made them the minor little magical exercises they're always described as.

I went out of my way to find uses for cantrips, because I loved them so much!
Ayrik Posted - 01 Jan 2012 : 02:12:26
quote:
Wooly Rupert

He used his cantrips mostly for utility stuff: drying/fixing his clothes, starting a fire more easily, adding flavor to his food, etc.
Damn. Grooming and gluttony? What a wonderful waste, I love it.

Alas, my players use "utility" cantrips to do things like cheating in card games, briefly distracting guards, and remotely setting off traps. In short, they won't ever "waste" even the most insignificant power if it can instead somehow serve as a tool or advantage. I say "you could use a cantrip to sharpen your sword" and they respond "naw, my character wants to spend half an hour doing it manually, just in case he needs to save the cantrip for something useful".
sleyvas Posted - 31 Dec 2011 : 18:35:49
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

My favorite two mage characters... One was a wild mage who happily embraced the chaos of wild magic.

The other was a half-elf fighter-mage with the Aristocrat kit from an old issue of Dragon (obviously, this was in 2E). The half-elf's closest thing to a signature spell was his heavy use of cantrips. We were using a variant rule (also from Dragon) that made cantrips a proficiency, which I still think was the best way I've seen D&D handle cantrips, in all editions. Because of that rule, my character was able to toss off multiple cantrips a day, and he very much took advantage of that. It was mostly just a flavor thing, but he was still one of my favorite characters, due in no small part to that one detail.

He used his cantrips mostly for utility stuff: drying/fixing his clothes, starting a fire more easily, adding flavor to his food, etc.



Yeah, its funny how doing that kind of stuff so makes you feel like your character... using a firefinger to light your cigar... using a cantrip to bring some minor item to hand... using a frostfinger to cool off your beer... using a cantrip for silliness like making your pistols twirl on their own and re-insert themselves in your holster.
sleyvas Posted - 31 Dec 2011 : 18:20:39
Oh, and I really liked the bloodstone lands and used the twilight riders on two occasions. I always like Myrrdin Viligoth (a former red wizard turned paladin of Ilmater) from the sourcebook, and one day a few years ago, I statted him for 3rd edition and really liked this build. Here's the link to the stats, but I'll put the history below.

http://forum.candlekeep.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=7576

Myrddin Viligoth was born in Thay to a Taeros Viligoth, scion of a powerful family of evokers, and Meena Flamescourge, a priestess of Kossuth. Thus, from an early age, Myrddin was given towards a fascination with fire. He learned that fire was a neutral thing which could both help and harm, purify and destroy, and it was only in its use that moral dictates could be applied to it. It was not surprising to his family then when his keen intellect led him toward the familial path of wizardry.
Myrddin proved a capable enough student, but his mentor approached Myrddin’s father because it seemed that the young boy lacked the “commitment” required to become a red wizard. Apparently, Myrddin was proving retiscent to do things which seemed “immoral”. This of course was a horrid embarrassment to the family, one that could could not be allowed to continue. Taeros blamed the slaves which had helped raise the young boy. Thus, his father set about to create a cursed helm that would alter his son’s moral views. As his first act after placing the helm upon his son’s head, Taeros “informed” his son that it was the slaves who had “betrayed” him. It was with savage glee that Myrddin tore apart the innocent slaves who had raised him, leaving nothing but burned and sundered corpses upon the ground.
The next few years proved typical as Myrddin climbed the ladder of Thay’s wizardly ranks. He raided tombs, assaulted neighboring countries at the behest of his leaders, killed Mulhorandi priests on sight, and on occasion even fought amongst his fellow red wizards. Then came the day when the story of a manual of gainful exercise, rumored to be hidden in a mountain cavern in Damara, reached Myrddin’s ears. What Myrddin did not realize was that the story was but a lure to get him outside of Thay. A powerful priest of Ilmater, had discovered the truth behind the dastardly deed of Taeros Viligoth when the ghost of one of the dead slaves had come to him while the priest was on a mission to free some recently captured monks of the monastery of the yellow rose. The ghost revealed that he could not rest until Myrddin was returned to his normal self.
Naturally, Myrddin took the bait, leading a group of elite gnoll scouts and young red wizards on a foray into the trap. Eventually, Myrddin became separated from his fellows due to a magically placed wall of stone, and it was then that the high priest freed Myrddin from his enchantment by calling upon Ilmater for a miracle from a scroll penned in a bygone age by St. Sollars himself. The death of his former comrades at arms soon followed, for Myrddin knew that he could not allow such evil to acquire the holy manual held in the cavern.
Myrddin felt that he must atone for his sins, and he found the country of his benefactor caught in a deadly conflict with a powerful lich known as Zhengyi the Witch King. Myrddin decided that the best thing he could do would be to help protect the goodly people of Damara, so he joined the defenders. He was initially met with trepidation; after all, the people of Damara had often heard of Thayan wizards and Myrddin’s tattooed head was an obvious reminder of his country of origin. Even moreso, the mages of Damara knew that Zhengyi was a former Thayan wizard himself, and there was much suspicion that Myrddin was a spy sent to worm his way into their ranks.
Thus, Myrddin found himself forming his own elite force who struck out against the forces of Zhengyi without the army to back them up. Using his divination magics to locate the enemy, Myrddin’s squad of heroes would often magically transport into dangerous battlefields to turn the tide for the beleagured forces of Damara. When King Virdin Bloodfeathers was slain at the ford of Goliad, it was through Myrddin’s quick spellcraft that a small remnant of the army was able to escape and make their way into the Galenas.
Myrddin and his band of guerrillas continued to harry the witch king’s army over the next two years, but slowly they were losing numbers despite their best efforts. It was the actions of the Paladin of Ilmater, Gareth Dragonsbane, that finally broke the back of Zhengyi’s forces. Seeing service to Gareth as one of the best ways to serve Ilmater, Myrddin offered his services to the Paladin and formed a group known as the Twilight Riders.
Working as Gareth’s personal agents within southern Damara, Myrddin and his comrades spread hope to the southern baronies of Damara. Each night, Myrddin would cast a spell called sunhorse that he had developed while in Thay, based upon capturing the elemental energy of the rising or setting sun’s rays and turning it into temporary constructs resembling flaming horses. Then he and his seven compatriots would set about riding across the countryside, looking for wrongs to right, people to aid, or just downtrodden folk to whom they could deliver some hope. Amongst the twilight riders rode a nomadic paladin of Torm by the name of Agarelth, and Myrddin and Agarelth quickly struck up a great friendship.
The twilight riders focused on removing the stranglehold that Advisor Zorth held over the young boy baron of Polten, Donlevy the Younger, who had only recently returned to the throne after spending his entire youth in Tellerth posing as a farmer’s son. It was only after Zorth was revealed as an impostor posing as nobility that Donlevy the younger began to realize the duplicitous nature of the man. Feeling awkward because of the truth he was concealing, Agarelth felt it was time to reveal his own allegiances. Of course, Myrddin had already figured out that Agarelth was secretly Haelimbrar, one of the twelve Lords of Imphras II of Impiltur; and it was with great joy that he revealed the paladin’s secret before the man could do it himself.
Ultimately, the evil barons of the southern baronies of Ostel and Morovar were overthrown with the aid of the Twilight Riders and the forces of Gareth Dragonsbane. It was the first time in over twelve years that the country of Damara found itself at peace. Myrddin found himself assuming the role of court wizard and chief advisor for the barony of Polten, for the boy baron had precious few others that he could depend on. Being that Polten and Impiltur directly border one another, Myrddin began developing relations with the neighboring nation, encouraging the boy Baron to make allegiances with the knights of the Triad and helping rebuild the temples of Ilmater which had been sacked during the war against Zhengyi.
While the last fifteen years have been quieter, they have not been silent. Polten is bordered by the Rawlinswood on the east, and the actions of the Rotting Man have had to be forced back on more than one occasion. To the north lies the barony of Soravia with its swarms of humanoids leftover from the invasion of the witch king. Finally, the disappearance of Lord Kylraun, the former spokesman for the Lords of Imphras II and the most powerful proponent of Ilmater in Impiltur, has left Myrddin as a very vocal voice within the church of the triad. Myrddin almost wishes for the times when the enemy was open and apparent in front of him. Of course, there are times that he sneaks out to adventure again, leaving a simulacrum in his place to make things LOOK secure.


TACTICS: Myrddin is a wizard first and foremost. His studies as a war weaver make him a very effective squad leader, providing enhancements for his group during times of emergency. His studies as an arcane disciple of Ilmater make him especially effective as a group healer through his eldritch tapestry. He prefers to attack from range with his spells or arrows, though on occasion he realizes he may have to wield a sword in toe to toe combat. He is also particularly fond of using cone effects against large numbers of foes, for that is when he gets the best use of his enlarge spell ability. Finally, he should keep a number of contingent effects through craft contingent spell ready should he be faced with a dangerous situation that disables him.
Note also, don't forget to make use of his circle magic. He should have several empowered/maximized/heightened spells for use in dire straits. The whole reason he has the spell reprieve feat is to get access to the simulacrum spell. The whole reason to get the simulacrum spell is to have "apprentices" to work the circle with him (since he's good, he's not going to be attracting other folk with the tattoo focus feat). Thus, I imagine he has probably a dozen simulacrums or more of himself, each of which is responsible for maintaining his personal home wards and performing the more minor magical duties of the court.

sleyvas Posted - 31 Dec 2011 : 18:16:09
quote:
Originally posted by Diffan

My friend is starting up a new campaign (4E) this coming Monday and I'm excited to say I'll be playing my 1st actual wizard/mage character ever. Yes, I've been playing D&D for over a decade and it's my first one. Now, there was a bunch of ideas going through my head (style, school, wants, desires) and at first I was torn between a human Nethermancer (shadowy spells and a love for Evard) or an Eladrin Evoker (or Blaster Arcanist from PHB) that focused on Frost powers/Ghaele of Winter etc..... BUUUT because I couldn't choose I went a completly different route and chose Illusionist mage.

My illusionist mage's name is Syrek "Sly" Hlondar, a 19 year old human prodigy, which has recently been expelled from school. As the typical prankster, he's gotten into loads of trouble for his childish antics but the teachers have been looking the other way because of his family's money and Syrek's huge potential. But when he used mundane items to turn the Head Master's face, tongue, and eyes a particular shade of "Goblin Green" enough was enough and I was forced out.

So his family (whom already despised him in the first place) shunned him and he was finally free of all those horrible expectations and degrees of prestige of university life. Now on his own, he's able to fully experience the real world in all it's terrible and terrifying splendor.

Not really sure if his campaign is going to be taking place in Faerûn or not but if so, he'll be from Waterdeep and the school would've been Blackstaff tower.

He was given the name "Sly" because of his micheviousness and ability to get out of many situations without resorting to violence. The fact that he works with Illusion magic helps him stay hidden under guises and facades. In addition he has a strange mark upon his body (both forearms) almost like a tattoo with a strange dark swirl pattern resembling a tribal design. This symbol was considered a dark omen among his family and was the reason he'd been treated as the black sheep during his childhood. In game terms, this is a feat called Mark of Shadow (something from Eberron but re-adapted) and plays a vital role in his illusion- and shadow-based powers and theme.

As far as his levels, he'll go Illusion Mage/Phiarlan Phantasmist/Archmage and really play up Illusin and Shadow magic to confound and disorient his foes.




Just a tip (take it or leave it as you will). Just for fun, if you can spare the spell later on, give yourself a "familiar" which is nothing more than an illusion. Talk with it (i.e. have one sided conversations) as if it were telepathically talking with you. Then, just to freak with people, tell it to go do something and have it either disappear, or change shape, or whatever. Whenever you want it to go away, touch a tattoo on your arm that "looks" like it. If someone attacks the illusion, act really concerned.
sleyvas Posted - 31 Dec 2011 : 18:08:10
My favorite mage is, of course, a bounty hunter named Sleyvas of Thay, whom I've used over the years as an NPC mostly (occasionally, I'd stat him up for a convention or something as my own toon). He's changed over the past 20 years a lot, but in general he's a warrior mage from Thay who wears armor, smokes cigars, and carries pistols <yeah, I like Clint Eastwood> (so eldritch knight & spellsword would be the way to present him in 3E). In 2E, he'd be an evoker. In 3.5E, I probably would have switched him to diviner as much as I hate to say it, only due to the loss of schools. In Pathfinder, he'd again be an invoker. He's not evil in the classic "muahahaha" evil sort, but his main concerns are himself and those few people whom he chooses to care about in life. He was originally more neutral, but his wife (Melarra) was accidentally slain in the marketplace by a paladin chasing a rogue (to his secret horror, she was only in the marketplace because she was looking for him, while he was cheating on her with another woman). He blamed said paladin for his wife's death rather than taking on the responsibility for his own actions, and turned into a wand for hire.
His driving goal is to be a better strategist in spell combat, and if he finds a combatant who suitably impresses him with their ingenuity but lack of skill, he may allow them to live. He was all about offense, defense, and subterfuge. One of his favorite sayings was "If you can't find me, you can't kill me". He took the Thayan motto of "Alavairthae" to heart. He considered spells that took away people's will to be reprehensible, and particularly enjoyed hunting down their practictioners because finding them proved to be such a challenge. Conversely, spells that would trick people (such as illusions) were perfectly fine. Also, working through undead & construct intermediaries was fine as well (one of the things I liked to do was use rat swarms imbued with fireballs, and I liked the corpse host spell from the Complete Necromancer's Handbook). He focused a lot on force effects that could be used to entrap people in an area along with cloud/area type effects that would damage everyone entrapped in said area. He developed a lot of magic revolving around "triggers" in 2nd edition, so in third edition he'd definitely be about the contingent spell feat and building off of it (btw, third editions using of feats to limit mage powers was genius compared to what he could accomplish in 2nd edition).
However, just becoming a master spellcaster isn't enough, and he wants a family. He developed magic which (in hindsight) was similar to what was done with Alias, in that it was able to use his genetic material and that of two others (I did the two others because one was from his dead wife, so he needed another "living" donor) to create the fully-grown "children" he'd never been able to father with Melarra. Unfortunately (for him, that is) almost all of these "children" were at least partially insane and turned on him at one point or another. The reason I created this was it gave me a way to introduce my players to a "lesser" version of him in a campaign, and one which I had tweaked down a different path (i.e. different kit, different prestige class, etc...). He of course also had simulacrums for similar uses, but he regarded simulacrums with less of an attachment than these "children" that he'd created. After they'd defeated one of his children (who had escaped), the "child" would often return later during some other adventure along with 2 or 3 simulacrums in tow on loan from his "father" to perform a hit on the party. This, of course, would raise their interest into who this guy was. If the campaign went far enough, eventually they'd meet up with the original Sleyvas of Thay.
Ironically, back in the days of America Online, I actually met up with another gamer who was also heavily into spellcasting and we shared a lot of ideas back and forth. His character, Alefian, "became" a child of Sleyvas' from a woman he'd married while entrapped in the world of the "masque of the red death" campaign. He and the woman were both powerful mages and had turned on one another, so when she "got pregnant"... she never told her ex-husband and left him. We developed a long back story together, but the gist of it became that Alefian was raised in the realms and eventually met up with his father as an enemy who turned friend.
Trixie Posted - 31 Dec 2011 : 17:03:55
lol
Wolfhound75 Posted - 29 Dec 2011 : 15:53:26
Not really a FR-pure character here but memorable for the craziness none the less.

My most memorable arcane was from a very short (only six months) campaign and I sadly never got to finish playing him to high level.

He was a War Forge Wizard named Uhtom Uhtaan.

Obviously, the character's background was from Eberron. He wound up Toril when a magical experiment went awry and the resulting magical blast shot him through the planes, landing him on Toril where he found himself unable to get home. Lost, alone, possessing only what was on his person, he found himself feared and misunderstood, mistaken time and again for a golem, and puzzled why his magic did not work quite as he remembered it. He eventually found his way into the tutelage of a native wizard who accepted him as a very unique student, studied his War Forge physiology, and helped him understand how magic worked on Toril. He joined the campaign party when they came calling on the elder wizard for assistance on a quest.

The character was unique as a wizard because he was able to heal himself through the use of the Repair spells - essentially Cure-x Wounds renamed and given an arcane base so that they could affect magical constructs - which is what the War Forge 'evolved' from.

Because of his ability to self-heal, we agreed upon a 10% initial chance of a Spell Misfire due to his unfamiliarity with magic in the Realms. The chance of a Spell Misfire reduced at 1% per level so that at level 10 his chance of a misfire was gone under the premise he was able to adapt and learn how to make magical energies work here on Toril. A misfire was handled by a randomized chart the DM generated and had results from simple Arcane Spell Failure to effects generated somewhere other than targeted, to elemental changes (fireball manifesting as sonic), to size/shape differences. Basically, it was a form of Wild Magic where all kinds of craziness could happen due to similar but not identical weaves between Toril and Eberron.

Regardless, it made for a very interesting character.

Good Hunting!
TheHermit Posted - 29 Dec 2011 : 03:21:24
"Tangleweed" Boljang was a 1st Ed (circa Unearthed Arcana) gnome illusionist famous for two things - he used exclusively entangling and tripping weapons (bolas, lassos, caltrops, marbles, etc.) and he REALLY loved money. ("Money? MONEY? moneymoneymoneymoney...") Early in his career, I got into a row with my DM because he was sure that Tangleweed would blindly snatch a number of gold coins floating in a dungeon corridor. (And suffer the effects of the gelatinous cube they were in, of course) As I pointed out, the gnome knew many things about gold coins - he knew how much they weighed, how they sounded in your pocket, he could name the kings stamped on them, he knew how to best polish them, but most importantly, he knew they didn't float. He once used FOUR wishes in two minutes - he wanted wings, then he wanted bigger wings, then he wanted feathery wings, then... "You know what, I just wish I had a flying carpet instead." He was an awful lot of fun to play, and he still shows up in my games as a patron for new adventuring groups now and again. He can be persuaded to loosen his group on his gold if he thinks there might be a good return on his money. ("Money? MONEY? moneymoneymoneymoney...")
Kyrel Posted - 13 Dec 2011 : 22:01:39
I'm currently playing a 7th level Transmuter in a trade- and shipfocused 3.5 campaign. Venn Shaelin is a 27yo male who grew up in Thay, and was on the path to become a Red Wizard. Before he could be properly inducted into their ranks, his master was killed, and political fall-out (and a lack of political interest) led him to make himself "go away", and headed for Waterdeep where he fell in with a merchant company as a Shipmage, and married the daughter of one of the owners.
His goal is basically wealth and freedom enough to be able to persue his love of any and all forms of spells and arcane lore. He has reestablished some connections with some of the members of Red Enclave in Waterdeep, so who knows what the future might hold for him. A return to the ranks of the Red Wizards, or life as a ship mage and partial owner of a merchant company...
Marc Posted - 24 Aug 2011 : 10:57:00
My favorite is from the last campaign I played as a PC. Chaotic human illusionist, actually a hedge wizard from Alaron with a bit of fey blood who's life was going from one mage or goblin fair to another performing cons, inventing and investing in new scams. Specialized in making various spells like the fool's gold, or ray of stupidity against his rivals. He also had a few beguiler and spellthief abilities, the cloaked casting and steal spell, then learned a few shadowcaster mysteries. Feats, don't recall them all, Force of Personality, Mastery of Twisted Shadow ... His greatest achievement was causing a blood mage to explode from an infuriating illusion, on the bloated mage's island. He freed large-sized rune giant, smaller cause of the tortures and blood draining, who became his bodyguard. Later in Xin-Shalast they caused the giant-lamia war, which led to slaver raids of the denizens of Leng on both weakened sides.
Marc Posted - 23 Aug 2011 : 16:13:09
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

The half-elf's closest thing to a signature spell was his heavy use of cantrips. We were using a variant rule (also from Dragon) that made cantrips a proficiency, which I still think was the best way I've seen D&D handle cantrips, in all editions. Because of that rule, my character was able to toss off multiple cantrips a day, and he very much took advantage of that.

He used his cantrips mostly for utility stuff: drying/fixing his clothes, starting a fire more easily, adding flavor to his food, etc.



I wanted to keep that rule in the third edition and Pathfinder. Makes lower levels a lot more enjoyable. Right now each of four spellcasters in the party has ten or more different cantrips.
shandiris Posted - 13 Jun 2011 : 18:12:05
Currently playing a very young wizard prodigy from Halruaa in a solo campaign. He's named Asak Sakur but has already been given several nicknames such as Kaupaer the Second, Quickeyes and the next Karsus. He uses magic to disguise himself as someone older although that doesn't do him much good in Halruaa. He's audacious against older mages and is doing everything in his power to become a better mage as fast as possible. His alignment is somewhere between LN and LE and he has taken an interest in the dogmas of the "Red Knight" and "Mask". His relationship with the church of Mystra hasn't been good so far. Mostly because the church wants to limit his learning curve in magic, saying that someone so young shouldn't be casting such powerful spells. He entered in the annual spellduel tournament of Halruaa where he came in second, although he did use some nasty/unsportsmanlike tricks. Recently he has found one of the famed Nether Scrolls (completly by chance). After disappearing for a year to study the scroll, I decided to give the scroll to candlekeep. I've given it to them and I'm now inside Candlekeep.

After that, I will wait and see!
Fizilbert Posted - 13 Jun 2011 : 14:21:08
I usually play mages, since they are more difficult to play, typically. All of them are 2E since that is all I play.

My longest running mage is a 16th level drow mage named Drak'Kar. I started him as part of an online (back in the days of Prodigy) drow adventure based in the underdark. He was the House mage of a middle ranked House. His House was destroyed by another House attempting to move up in ranking. He was out in the Underdark when the attack occurred. This left him without a House and hunted by members of the other House. He fled through the Underdark and eventually made his way to the surface where he has been roaming ever since.

My other favorite mage is a 4th level human mage named Dr Alexander Tollar. Unlike most adventurers, he is in his 40s. When he was young, he had aspired to become a mage, but he found love, married and had a family. With his knowledge of necromancy and anatomy, he opened up a practice as a doctor helping those who could not afford, or didn't want, magical healing. Unfortunately he could not save his own family from the plague. He had to watch his wife and child die while he could do nothing to help them. After his family died, he vowed to find a way to bring them back, and so he resumed his study of magic. However, as he gets more powerful, he is becoming more obsessed with finding any way to bring his family back, and he is slipping more into the dark side of necromancy. When I created this character I used proficiencies found in the 2E Necromancy book.

And then there is Fizilbert, an addle-brained gnome mage. No one really knows the story behind him, including Fizilbert. Some believe he was once a powerful mage that somehow suffered some injury or curse which has left him befuddled, and prone to setting his beard on fire. He currently has the stats of a low-level mage. While not a wild mage, he has similar chances of generating a wild surge as he attempts to cast a spell, but somehow manages to mess it up. He is fun to play, and serves as a source of comic relief (or despair as some would say).
Ayrik Posted - 02 Jun 2011 : 22:33:33
My fave would've been Richter Viagro de Medici, aka Richter Thunderstaff (no relation to Khelben) ... a truly feeble yet astonishingly dangerous 92 year old CE human wild archmage who's main reason for becoming an adventurer was his immediate and pressing need to locate any kind of youth or longevity magics he could get his withered arthritic grasping old hands on. I generated him (with my DM's permission) at age 90+ to get the stat modifiers ... lol, bonus spells and points, y'know. :)

Alas, he and his accidentally summoned rust monster familiar kinda blew up rather irrevocably when his attempt to fashion an entire wizard tower out of wildfire worked a little bit better than planned.
Alystra Illianniis Posted - 02 Jun 2011 : 04:33:33
I've had two that were faves of mine. (both half-elves, though one is also half-gold dragon)

Shallandra is/was my half(Moon in Faerunian terms)elf fighter/mage(2nd ed) who, among other things, went through White Plume Mountain, and used a Sunburst spell in the crypt of the vampire in that adventure, then promptly slammed the door on him with the spell still active! Then when he filtered through the holes in the door, she finished him off with a Burning Hands- To rounds later, one vampire ashed. That was just one of her clever ideas off the cuff. She was a bit of a blaster, using Fireball and Magic Missile frequently. She also had a habit of casting Levitate or Displacement whenever possible.

Vala (who is here at the inn, BTW) is a half-(Moon)elf/gold dragon sorceress/bard/bladesinger, who is big on force and protection spells, in no particular order. Magic Missile, Shield, Mage Armor, and Dispell Magic are among her favorites, as are some of the Bigby spells and a few selected sonic ones. She has used Bigby's Smashing Fist on more than one occasion to end a fight, and has no qualms about using a Wall of Force or Hold to keep an opponent from doing harm.

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