Post/Author/DateTime	Post
reij 09-20-05, 05:17 AM	ok I've got a gnome level 3 sorc. well he just made level 3. heres what I've got for his stats str10 dex 15 con 13 int 17 wis 15 cha 16 for skills I have concentration 6 ranks craft alchemy 4 ranks hide 1 rank knowledge arcana 6 ranks knowledge draconic 2 ranks knoledge history 1 rank spell craft 6 ranks feats combat casting need 3rd level feat. spells(not able to chose due to dm hr) 0 detect magic ghost sound open/close daze mage hand 1 color spray magic missle silent image any ideas on the feats?
Eidolon Faer 09-20-05, 09:52 AM	It might be helpful if you told us what you were looking to do with this Gnome eventually. Any ideas as to Prestige Class? Planning to go pure spellcaster or do a Gish (a fighter-mage mix)? Focus on illusion magic or maybe do something else like loading up on Constructs? Frankly, I'm not a big fan of Combat Casting unless it's required for a build. I'm also kinda baffled by the whole "DM picked my spells" thing. Careful spell selection is more critical to Sorcerers than is feat selection in most cases. It's kinda hard to optimize a character until I know what you want it to be optimized FOR. If YOU don't know that, try poking around on the boards and seeing what is possible. There are quite a few good Sorcerer builds that have been discussed here.
jameswilliamogle 09-20-05, 10:27 AM	The DM picked your spells?! You poor, poor man... he might be picking totally randomly. How long do you expect to play the character (what level will the campaign end, otherwise you'll get a lot of 1-20 level builds which won't mean squat to you). Anyways, I recomend shooting for Draconic Breath from CA, since you have no control over the spells you can get, which means you'd need Draconic Heritage at 3rd. EF had a point: more info means more feedback. ie What books are allowed? What campaign setting are you using (if any)? Are Psionics allowed (you could spend like 1500 gp to reformat your feat selection, which most here will find sub-par)? What other tricky rules does your DM play with?
solbergb 09-20-05, 12:04 PM	Actually the DM did a pretty good job. That's a good spell selection for a level 3 sorc: spells(not able to chose due to dm hr) 0 detect magic <---one of the better divinations ghost sound <--complements silent image open/close <---I used this cantrip more than anything but prestidigitation with my last sorc. The ability to open doors without touching them can not be underestimated daze <---Good in baby levels. Replace with "Read Magic" at level 4 (all sorcs need read magic, it lets you use scrolls) mage hand <---versitile and useful, less powerful than open/close but more flexible 1 color spray <--- best low level save or XXX in the game. At level 6, replace with something else magic missle <--at level 3, any sorc not doing draconic breath needs this spell, as a "steady damage" fallback if none of their other stuff is working. Until level 6, this spell does damage output similar to a pretty good archer (the archer does more per round if they all hit, but they miss half the time) silent image <--extremely flexible spell, one that may be with you your entire career. It can block gaze attack, make a "one-way" fog cloud (if your friends make saves), let you open a door while making it appear still closed (if it opens in your direction and provide target dummies for mindless creatures. The only gap I see is "read magic". But for future growth, we need to know more what you see the character as like, the kind of magic he likes to use. We can build you a generic sorcerer, but that's not as fun as one that does the spells you like most, all the time.
PhoenixInferno 09-20-05, 12:18 PM	Combat Casting. Yuck. If you INSIST on casting in combat, then take Skill Focus (Concentration) - +3 to Concentrate all the time vs +4 only in combat. Nothing about your DM's spell selection strikes me as particularly bad. Is it for all levels or was it just to start? Where did Knowledge(Draconic) come from? Knowledge about Dragons comes from Know(Arcana) if I remember correctly. Do you mean you can SPEAK Draconic? We'll need to know more about how you want to play your character in order to help you flesh your build out.
Eidolon Faer 09-20-05, 09:05 PM	Oh, I'll admit, the spell selection isn't horrible. A little illusion heavy maybe, but the character IS a gnome. I'd have taken Spell Focus (Illusion) over Combat Casting if I was planning to continue the theme however, and I'd suggest that gnome-only PrC from Races of Stone as a starting point if I wanted to be an illusion specialist. In general, though, having the DM choose spells for me would be difficult, as a sorcerer's spell list is actually a roleplaying tool. Your available spells determine your strategic options. For example, an illusion-sorcerer is going to be very different in playstyle...far more proactive and creative...than a sorcerer who relies on, say, damage causing spells or even charms and enchantments. It's like the DM saying "play any character you want, so long as he wears tweed, smokes a pipe, and has a sidekick named Watson."
cynical 09-21-05, 01:34 AM	Does you dm select everyone spells for them? Or is it just sorc? This rule of his seems execsive and unfair. It takeing an allready underpowered class and bashing it with a 2 ton nerf stick. Sorc optimization is about spell selection and thats been taken away from you. I would play something else that he has less control over.
MechaboyDos 09-21-05, 01:38 AM	If you check the description for Knowledge (Arcana) you'll see that it covers dragons, so the Knowledge (Draconic) seems a bit redundant. Stick those skill points into something else.