Archwizard

Arcane casters that are smart (or lucky) enough to have long and impressive careers often branch off into different fields of specializations.

Some study ancient secrets and haunt long-forgotten libraries, yearning to glean any lost bit of lore. Some combine their arcane talents with martial skills, and become spell-wielding knights or archers or even trickster rogues. Some few of these wizards dabble in alchemy, or even combine their skills with the divine to become masters of both types of magic.

And, there are those that follow a pure path of arcane crafting, studying the magic for no purpose other than the magic itself, raw power, the ability to transform, or to charm and beguile, or create objects from nothing more than whim; these are the true arcane masters, these are the wizards and sorcerers that command the mightiest of magical abilities. These are the archwizards.

Role: The archwizard is often in a position to determine whatever role they choose. As a master of spellcasting, an archwizard may fulfill many roles for the party in attack, defense or utility. Archwizards are often traveling the world, on some great quest for a rare or imagined spell component. Archwizards usually have a high opinion of themselves, and tend to look down on other classes, though this is not always the case.

Alignment: Archwizards tend to be polarizing characters, frequently being powerful members of their alignment arch. While they may be of any alignment, most tends to the extremes (lawful good, lawful evil, chaotic good, chaotic evil).

Hit Die: d6.

Requirements

To qualify to become an archwizard, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.

Class Skills

The archwizard’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Craft (Int), Fly (Dex), Knowledge (all skills taken individually) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Ranks at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier.

Table: Archwizard
Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Spells per Day
1st +0 +0 +0 +1 Forgo Materials, Metamagic Enhancement +1 level of spellcasting class
2nd +1 +1 +1 +1 Spellcasting Master, Arcane Servant +1 level of spellcasting class
3rd +1 +1 +1 +2 Detect Expertise +1 level of spellcasting class
4th +2 +1 +1 +2 Spell Echo +1 level of spellcasting class
5th +2 +2 +2 +3 Spell-Like Ability, Epic Crafter +1 level of spellcasting class
6th +3 +2 +2 +3 Overcome School, Restriction +1 level of spellcasting class
7th +3 +2 +2 +4 Shaped Area +1 level of spellcasting class
8th +4 +3 +3 +4 Selective Targets +1 level of spellcasting class
9th +4 +3 +3 +5 Bypass Spell Resistance +1 level of spellcasting class
10th +5 +3 +3 +5 Archwizardry +1 level of spellcasting class

Class Features

All the following are Class Features of the archwizard prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

Archwizards gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.

Spells per Day/Spells Known

When a new archwizard level is gained, the character gains new spells per day (and spells known, if applicable) as if he had also gained a level in whatever arcane spellcasting class in which he could cast 8th level spells before he added the prestige class level. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character with that class would have gained. If a character had more than one arcane spellcasting class in which he could cast 7th-level spells before he became an archwizard, he must decide to which class he adds each level of archwizard for the purpose of determining spells per day.

Forgo Materials

A first level archwizard no longer needs mundane material components to fuel his spells, and acts as if he has the Eschew Materials feat. The archwizard may cast any spell with a material component cost of up to 10 gp per archwizard level without needing the actual component.

Metamagic Enhancement (Su)

An archwizard is a master at manipulating magical forces. At first level, he reduces the cost of any metamagic feat known by one level less than standard i.e. a first level archwizard casts a spell with the Empower feat at one spell slot higher than the original spell. The metamagic enhancement can only be applied to one enhancement per spell. This ability does not affect the Heighten Spell feat. At 5th level and 10th level, the adjusted level is reduced one additional spell level. The adjusted enhancement can never reduce the base spell below its original level i.e. a flesh to stone spell can never be lower than 6th level, no matter the level of the archwizard casting it. This ability replaces metamagic mastery, if the base creature possesses that ability.

Spellcasting Master

At 2nd level, the archwizard gains a +5 insight bonus to Knowledge (arcana), Spellcraft, and Use Magic Device.

Arcane Servant (Su)

All archwizards of 2nd and higher level are treated as if they have a permanent unseen servant near them at all times.

The servant can go no further than 100 ft., but otherwise confer to the rules of normal unseen servants. If destroyed, the servant reappears the following round.

Detect Expertise

All of a 3rd level archwizards detect spells are treated as if using the Detect Expertise feat. In addition, the archwizard gains information one round earlier than normal, if the detect is round-dependent.

At 6th level, the archwizard gains information 2 rounds earlier.

Spell Echo

A 4th level archwizard holds on to some of the arcane energy in a cast spell. One spell per 2 archwizard levels/ day, is treated as if under the Echoing Spell feat, with no increase in casting level.

Spell-Like Ability (Sp)

An archwizard can use one of his arcane spell slots to permanently prepare one of his arcane spells as a spell-like ability that can be used twice per day. The spell slot is permanently removed for the spellcaster’s use i.e. if a wizard has five 3rd level spells available, and chooses to make fly a spell-like ability, he will only have four slots available until a new level is gained. The archwizard does not use any components when casting the spell. Note that this ability may only be used with spells that qualify under the Forgo Materials ability, above.

The spell-like ability normally uses a spell slot of the spell’s level, although the archwizard can choose to make a spell modified by a metamagic feat into a spell-like ability at the appropriate spell level. This ability may not be combined with the Metamagic Enhancement ability, above.

Epic Crafter

An archwizard of 5th level may craft magic weapons with the Epic descriptor, to bypass DR/Epic.

Overcome School Restriction

A 6th level archwizard is no longer required to use 2 spell slots to memorize spells of their opposition schools, if any.

Shaped Area (Su)

The 7th level archwizard can alter areas of effect for spells that use one of the following shapes: burst, cone, cylinder, emanation, or spread. The alteration consists of creating spaces within the spell’s area or effect that are not subject to the spell. The minimum dimension for these spaces is a 5 ft. cube. Furthermore, any shapeable spells have a minimum dimension of 5 ft. instead of 10 ft.

Selective Targets (Su)

At 8th level, the archwizard may select up to one target per point of Intelligence bonus to exclude from any area-of-effect spell cast, or double the number of targets affected by a spell. In the first application, the targets are engulfed in the effect, but do not suffer any of the effects. This is a target-based exclusion; other opponents sharing the excluded target’s space are still affected by the spell. In the second case, when a spell description specifies an effect of “one creature/level,” the archwizard may instead affect up to two creatures/level.

Bypass Spell Resistance (Ex)

At 9th level, the archwizard’s command of magic is such that he may unravel a creature’s natural resistance to magic. An archwizard may reduce a target’s spell resistance by his archwizard level, once per day per target. In addition, an archwizard ignores energy resistance equal to his combined spellcasting levels.

Archwizardry (Ex)

At 10th level, an archwizard is truly the master of magic and its weavings. An archwizard of this level may cast 2 spells with a casting time of “1 standard action” in a single round. The archwizard may do this 1 time per 6 spellcaster levels per day. This ability does not stack with Quicken Spell or any other ability that increases spells per round. The archwizard must still expend spell slots or prepared spells normally, as if the spells were cast on two consecutive rounds.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Rappan Athuk Copyright 2012 Bill Webb, Frog God Games

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