Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 daedhaed Jun 19, 2013 15:06:48	I'm building a gnome shadowcraft Mage using Focussed Illusionist 3/ Master Specialist 4/ ScM 3. I'm giving up my familiar but I need to know if Chains of Disbelief is worth it or if I should use Focussed Caster from a dragon magazine which give +1 CL for illusion spells and at 7th CHARACTER LEVEL not class lvl I get a bonus to caster level check equal to 1/2 my caster lvl for piercing SR. Which is better in this situation?
#2 Tempest_Stormwind Jun 19, 2013 15:44:39	I'm building a gnome shadowcraft Mage using Focussed Illusionist 3/ Master Specialist 4/ ScM 3. I'm giving up my familiar but I need to know if Chains of Disbelief is worth it or if I should use Focussed Caster from a dragon magazine which give +1 CL for illusion spells and at 7th CHARACTER LEVEL not class lvl I get a bonus to caster level check equal to 1/2 my caster lvl for piercing SR. Which is better in this situation? Alternative Class Features III gives other options. The Dragon ability is outstanding in general but of marginal utility for you: you already get insane caster level boosts if you're doing Shadowcraft right (look at Earth Spell again), so the benefits are minor, but most of the spells that you'd duplicate using Shadowcraft get better with more CL, and all of them that target enemies allow SR. Chains is a great ability, but it's only really great if you're focusing on illusions as illusions instead of as fuel for shadowcraft. Additionally, if you're doing Shadowcraft right, you (paradoxically) want people to disbelieve your spells, because if they believe the illusion it takes effect at normal levels, but if they disbelieve it, the spell takes effect at its quasireality levels, which for a good shadowcraft mage are over 100%. This is a dilemma for you, because everything you do to increase your spell DCs also makes quasireality gains over 100% less useful (since they're more likely to fail the save against the disbelief as well as the save vs the spell effect itself). In this regard, Chains is actually counterproductive for Shadowcraft mages.  I'd pick the Dragon ability if it's available, but don't underestimate the familiar itself if you consider it as a spellcasting partner rather than a combatant.
#3 daedhaed Jun 19, 2013 15:54:51	Basically I'm not playing a killer gnome I'm playing a god wizard who uses all of his shadow illusion to duplicate conjuration spells more then evocation. Evocation has a few gems for the god wizard but leans more favorably to a blaster. The main points being wall of force, forcecage, and contingency and as such this character does not focus on quasireality. Are there any super benefits a familiar would give a caster of this sort. Especially since he only has 3 lvls in wizard.