Feedback wanted: priest of Mystra cleric/mage kit

[subtledoctor]

I'm thinking about converting my specialty priest of Mystra kit into a multiclass kit, and I'd like some advice from the fine folks here at G3 to hash out the vision.

 

My first, basic idea was to allow the kit to use wizard spell slots to cast priest spells, and priest spell slots to cast wizard spells, making it more versatile than a standard cleric/mage. Easy enough to convert 5 or 6 spells of each type at each level to appear in the other spellbook... but those spellbooks will get very crowded very fast, and I don't think EE users can use the TobEx scroll bars.

 

So now I'm considering making some new "metaspells," kind of like Nahal's Reckless Dweomer. They would represent the priest's more intimate connection to the Weave, allowing the direct and improvisational casting of spells regardless of memorization. There would be 6 cleric spells from level 2 to level 7, called Arcane Magic I through VI; each one would allow the kit to cast from a list of maybe 6 wizard spells of one level lower. (So you could use this 2nd-level cleric spell to cast Magic Missile.)

 

And there would be 6 wizard spells from level 2 to level 7, called Divine Magic I through VI, that would do the same thing, in reverse. (So you could use a 2nd level wizard spell to cast Cure Light Wounds.). It wouldn't work for spells of 7th level or higher, you would have use normal memorization for them.

 

You could choose how many memorization slots to devote to these spells. You could devote all of your slots to Arcane Magic and Divine Magic, and have an incredibly versatile caster, even more versatile in many ways than a sorcerer or a wild mage... but you would only be able to cast lower-level magic, and you're already advancing slower as a multiclass. Or you could only devote one slot per spell level to these spells, allowing for some flexibility in an emergency... whatever you want.

 

What do you think? Crazy overpowered? Useless? Okay? Also, what spells should be included in each metaspell?

 

Blast away, let me know what you think if the idea.

[Jarno Mikkola]

Well, I have made a Divine Wizard kit a while a go:

DIVINE WIZARD:

Advantages:
- Learn spells like a cleric
- Your Divine spells are spreaded around in arcane spellbook
- Immunity to Mind Flayer intellegence drain

Disadvantages:
- Cannot Dualclass
- Cannot learn any additional spells from scrolls
- Intellegence set to 8

Also the mod makes the intelligence 8 wizard unable to learn spells from scrolls, via this edit:

//0% learn spells at int in 8
COPY_EXISTING ~intmod.2da~ ~override~
  SET_2DA_ENTRY 8 1 5 ~0~
BUT_ONLY_IF_IT_CHANGES

There's other such classes, Druidic Sorcerer, Geomantic Sorcerer, The TDD mod also has a Priest of Mystra kit:

 

Advantages:

• Can cast wizard spells from the school of evocation
• Has +2 saves vs. death bonus

Disadvantages:

• Requires 14 Intelligence
• Requires 12 Wisdom
• Wears a max of splint mail armor

 

I would rethink the name.

[subtledoctor]

The name is going to be "Monitor of Mystra," which is real kit in a real 2E Forgotten Realms sourcebook. It's a sect that specializes in helping Mystra police the use of magic. My current implementation is a pure cleric kit, which can effectively challenge evil wizards by having access to Magic Missile and the various metamagic spells: Spell Deflection, Spell Thrust/Secret Word/Ruby Ray, Contingency, and Sequencers (which it can fill with cleric spells).

 

But I made that kit before I started making multiclass kits, and it now occurs to me that, of course any priest of Mystra would learn about wizardly magic as well as divine magic, making this a perfect kit for a cleric/mage. The question then becomes, what abilities do you give to a cleric/mage (already the most versatile spellcaster in the game) to make the kit special and interesting without being unbalanced?

 

I have an 'Elven High Mage' kit for cleric/mages that has bonuses to caster level to make up for the slower pace of development. Monitor of Mystra would be a good cleric/mage kit for non-elves... so what do you think of the proposed abilities? Unbalanced? Okay?

[Jarno Mikkola]

... so what do you think of the proposed abilities? Unbalanced? Okay?

Well it could obviously work quite ok. I would have to test it though.

It would be also good to restrict something from the multi class kit... so it's not just more powerful version of the regular cleric/mage. I don't know what you should remove though.

[Shaitan]

Chosen of Mystra or a follower of Mystra always seemed like a good idea as a NPC. I'm rather thrilled with the thought of playing a follower somehow, but I'm afraid it would be overpowered due to the manner of wielding magic (like you describe in the first post).

 

Perhaps not allowing certain spells could balance it.

 

Cheers

[subtledoctor]

Restricting spells is possible. I could give it a specialist tag(s) to remove access to certain wizard spell schools (necromancy? conjuration? both?), and manually remove some cleric spells.

 

Beyond that, if you use all your 2nd-level slots to cast 1st-level spells you are giving up a serious amount of power in exchange for that versatility. Lower casting level + lower-level spells = still way behind the power of a basic sorcerer. And this will compare with my other cleric/mage kit, the Elven High Mage... the High Mage strictly adheres to the defined realms of arcane and divine magic, and memorization rules, and in return gets caster level bonuses to keep up with single-class wizards as far as the outright power of spells.

 

Hmmm, I wonder if those shouldn't be switched around. Since Mystra is the goddess who protects the Weave and enforces memorization rules, her followers should have to follow those rules but act as more powerful casters in response; whereas, with elves' fey blood and closer connection to magical energies, they can use these improvisational techniques for casting. Yeah, I think that's the way to go... but anyway no difference in a technical sense.