We finally retired that campaign, and we're starting fresh! I wanted to try out a wizard, now that I've got some basic grounding in magic. Read a ton of stuff on Wizards, including of course, the amazing work of Treantmonk
I saw awesome stuff like Beholder Mages as my key to power, but I didn't buy into the Polymorph Any Object twice equals permancy thing...
Then I came across Malconvoker, and that sounded equally fun and dangerous. Now I'm trying to line up everything I'm gonna do, and I'm kinda nervous. Nervous because I still feel new to the game (there's so much!) and because what I'm leaning toward doesn't seem to be what's tried and true.
I'm considering a Warforged character that's:
5Conjurer/8Malconvoker/7Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil
(UA Variant, so I have Rapid Summoning.)
We're playing Pathfinder, with D&D PrCs optional, so sticking out 5 in Wizard nets me a feat that 2 levels of Master Specialist would not (and since IotSV takes up the rest of my levels, doesn't seem prudent).
I haven't seen anyone else take that line, and I don't know much about Warforged (why take it? Because race doesn't seem to play too huge a role, but I like the idea of being totally unique in my party).
I'd love your input on the pros and cons I may not have known or considered!
Your build seems fine - hard to go wrong with Conjurer, given that you're aware of the handbooks.
That build will be super powerful, there really aren't any suggestions to give it.
I do want to suggest you have some default monsters you tend to summon frequently, and write their stats up ahead of time on an index card. In order to speed things up in actual play. A malconvoker can really bog the game down with all their summons.
so levels 1-5 you are a wizard using pathfinder and being human you end up with 4 feats i used those feats for
spell focus conjuration
augment summoning +4 str and con
augment elemental +2dmg/att bonus hp
rashemi elemental summoning.- adds a template to your air and earth elementals.
after that voila you are into your malconvoker and all your summons you bring out should be heavily buffed at this point with the changing everything to elementals giving and using the augment for stat boost then rashemi for even further boost.
now from 6-10 you get another 2 feats.
if your dm allows you to access dragon magazine a very harmless feat allows you to add the Evil subtype to all your summons this is called "corrupt summoning" this allows you to summon the elementals with the evil subtype so you can apply all your malconvoker abilities to these powerful buffed elementals.
the other feat i take is out of frostburn and its called beckon the frozen throne. it gives your elementals the cold subtype in addition to any other subtypes and gives them an additional 1d6 cold dmg.
now i also use 3 variants i use the rapid summoning and enhanced summoning all i lose is a familiar and one meta feat but +2 str and con cast as an SA and +2 to dispel dcs is OMG amazing.
also i use the Focused specialist Variant drop an additional school of magic but get 2 more spell slots to cast my summons. sacrificing one spell slot per level. this one is optional though the other 2 i say are must haves.
the schools i drop and reasons why are as follows
evocation- you still have orbs through conjuration so you can use those for dmg if you have too.
enchantment- yes dominating people is so much fun but its kinda side bar to my way of playing a conjurer i figured if i need pets ill make em not find and control them.
last one was a toss up i dropped illusion because invisibility is nice but being able to reduce peoples stats (necromancy) was way more useful to making my creatures not die.
there is only one thing that you cant get with this build without a feat book or being allowed to take a flaw for an extra feat. a feat i think is so much fun that given the chance do anything to get it.
its a reserve feat called "summon elemental" at level 10 its still just a small elemental but will be a medium soon. and it is treated as if summoned by your summon monster spell so all these feats go on top of it making your elemental a little bad ass. now this feat requires you to have a summoning spell prepared in a high spell slot but if you do that you can free cast these little guys all day long and use them for everything. breaking down doors finding traps and so on.
and of course skills to focus on are bluff, diplomacy, and concentration. with this build at 10th level i cast my highest summon monster got out 2 for the price of one (being malconvoker) threw in a free cast small elemental and stood back as they obliterated our 10th level fighter with 30k worth of gear and a legacy item.
Oh wow, well that's definitely encouraging! Thanks!
Nephril, that's an awesome amount of information! I want to make sure I understand what those feats do - it sounded like you were saying that Rashemi Elemental Summoning adds the elemental template to ALL your summons ("with the changing everything to elementals"). Is that right?
Your advice sounds really solid. I mapped out a similar route for those variants, gave up my familiar as well. I banned Evocation, Enchantment, and Necromancy (I'll miss out on those necro bennies to turn invisible, lol). I'll have to be careful with feat choices, though, because of the high cost to get into IofSV. But thanks for your awesome, advice!
EDIT: Oh, I get it. The Corupt thing let's me summon evil elementals. I think I was replying in a rush so I wasn't late for the Super Bowl, lol.
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Now, to add a little flavor to the conversation, I have a question regarding a spell called Trap the Soul I came across yesterday. (Description here: www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/trapthesoul.ht... )
So the spell puts the body and soul of a creature into a gem indefinitely, or until released by breaking the gem. "If the trapped creature is a powerful creature from another plane it can be required to perform a service immediately upon being freed. Otherwise, the creature can go free once the gem imprisoning it is broken."
So does that mean that I, as an amazing Malconvoker, can use Greater Planar Binding to summon a Balor, and enter into negotiations for a service. That service is to give me the Truename of another Balor, maybe a rival of his.
The next day, I summon that specific Balor. We negotiate the service that will release him from the Greater Planar Binding. Something along the lines of assisting me in some quest. We agree on terms, and I toss him the gem (with his truename inscribed on it). He becomes trapped indefinitely in the gem, no save. Now I can carry him around as I please, entering towns or whatever, until I'm ready for his help. That, in itself, is already awesome.
But then, when I do release him, I get to require a second service of him per Trap the Soul?! Oh man, it's like I'm an amazing Malconvoker before I even get started!
Lol, kidding aside, am I missing something here? Or does this all work out as nicely as it seems to?
(Created a topic to discuss this here: community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/758... )
Oh wow, well that's definitely encouraging!
Nephril, that's an awesome amount of information! I want to make sure I understand what those feats do - it sounded like you were saying that Rashemi Elemental Summoning adds the elemental template to ALL your summons ("with the changing everything to elementals"). Is that right?
Your advice sounds really solid. I mapped out a similar route for those variants, gave up my familiar as well. I banned Evocation, Enchantment, and Necromancy (I'll miss out on those necro bennies to turn invisible, lol). I'll have to be careful with feat choices, though, because of the high cost to get into IofSV. But thanks for your awesome, advice!
EDIT: Oh, I get it. The Corupt thing let's me summon evil elementals. I think I was replying in a rush so I wasn't late for the Super Bowl, lol.
your welcome however the rashemi elemental summoning feat actually adds a template to your elementals see dnd.savannahsoft.eu/feat-2383-rashemi-el... makes your earth and air elementals much more bad ass. the corrupt thing lets you apply the evil subtype to anything you summon. so that everything you summon qualifies for your malconvoker abilities. to summon elementals they are actually just on your summon monster list already.
Trap the soul kicks in then.
You also have to have the balor touch the gem, and fail his auto-passing spellcraft check to realize you might be giving him a trapped item. I.e. you toss it at him, he lets it go by, the binding circle is broken, and he's all over you.
Not that easy. Play the monsters with their intellect, please! after all, would you trust some filthy mortal mage who dared to summon YOU up and make you his slave?
==+Aelryinth
I created a seperate thread to discuss the Trap the Soul spell and its use. I quoted your post and replied to it here:
community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/758...
If anyone has advice on the Malconvoker build here, please keep them coming! And toss in your thoughts on the spell topic, as well