Sorcerer

Sorcerers create magic the way a poet creates poems, with inborn talent honed by practice. They have no books, no mentors, no theories - just raw power that they direct at will.

Some sorcerers claim that the blood of dragons courses through their veins. It may even be true - it is common knowledge that certain powerful dragons can take humanoid form and even have humanoid lovers, and it's difficult to prove that a given sorcerer does not have a dragon ancestor. Sorcerers even often have striking good looks, usually with a touch of the exotic that hints at an unusual heritage. Still, the claim that sorcerers are partially draconic is either an unsubstantiated boast on the part of certain sorcerers or envious gossip on the part of those who lack the sorcerer's gift.

Adventures: The typical sorcerer adventures in order to improve his abilities. Only by testing his limits can he expand them. A sorcerer's power is inborn, and part of his soul. Developing this power is a quest in itself for many sorcerers, regardless of how they wish to use their power.

Some good sorcerers are driven by the need to prove themselves. Marked as different by their power, they seek to win a place in society and to prove themselves to others. Evil sorcerers, however, also feel themselves set apart from others - apart and above. They adventure to gain power over those they look down on.

Characteristics: Sorcerers cast spells through innate power rather than through carefully trained skills. Their magic is intuitive rather than logical. They know fewer spells than wizards do and acquire powerful spells more slowly than wizards, but they can cast spells more often and have no need to select and prepare them ahead of time. Nor do sorcerers specialize in certain schools of magic the way wizards may.

Since sorcerers gain their powers without undergoing the years of rigorous study that wizards go through, they have more time to learn fighting skills. They are proficient with simple weapons.

Alignment: For a sorcerer, magic is an intuitive art, not a science. Sorcery favors the free, chaotic, creative spirit over the disciplined mind, so sorcerers tend slightly toward chaos over law.

Religion: Some sorcerers favor Boccob, god of magic, while others revere Wee Jas, goddess of death magic. However, many sorcerers follow some other deity, or none at all (wizards typically learn to follow Boccob or Wee Jas from their mentors, but most sorcerers are self-taught, having no master to induct them into a religion).

Background: Sorcerers develop rudimentary powers at puberty. Their first spells are incomplete, spontaneous, uncontrolled, and sometimes dangerous. A household with a budding sorcerer in it may be troubled by strange sounds or lights, creating the impression that the place is haunted. Eventually, the young sorcerer understands the power that he has been wielding unintentionally. From that point on, he can begin practicing and improving his powers.

Sometimes a sorcerer is fortunate enough to come under the care of an older, experienced sorcerer, someone to help him understand and use his new powers. More often, however, sorcerers are on their own, feared by erstwhile friends and misunderstood by family

Sorcerers have no sense of identity as a group. Unlike wizards, they gain little by sharing their knowledge and have no strong incentive to work together.

Races: Most sorcerers are humans or half-elves. The innate talent for sorcery however, is unpredictable, and it can show up in any of the common races.

Arcane spellcasters from savage lands or from among the brutal humanoids are more likely to be sorcerers than wizards. Kobolds are especially likely to be sorcerers, and they are fierce, if inarticulate, proponents of the "blood of the dragons" theory.

Other Classes: Sorcerers find they have the most in common with members of other self-taught classes, such as druids and rogues. They sometimes find themselves at odds with members of the more disciplined classes, such as paladins and monks. Since they cast the same spells as wizards but do so in a different way, they are sometimes competitive toward them.

Since sorcerers often have a powerful presence that gives them a way with people, they frequently serve as the "face" for an adventuring party, negotiating, bargaining, and speaking for others. The sorcerer's spells often help him sway others or gain information, so he makes an excellent spy or diplomat for an adventuring party.

Role: A sorcerer tends to define his role based on his spell selection. A sorcerer who focuses on damage-dealing spells becomes a center of the party's offensive power. Another may rely on more subtle magics, such as charms and illusions, and thus take a quieter role. A party with a sorcerer should strongly consider including a second spellcaster, such as a bard, cleric, druid, or even a wizard, to make up for the sorcerer's lack of versatility. Since a sorcerer often has a powerful presence that gives him a way with people, he may serve as the "face" for an adventuring party, negotiating, bargaining, and speaking for others. The sorcerer's spells often help him sway others or gain information, so he makes an excellent spy or diplomat for an adventuring group.

Game Rule Information

Sorcerers have the following game statistics.

Abilities: Charisma determines how powerful a spell a sorcerer can cast, how many spells the sorcerer can cast per day and how hard those spells are to resist. To cast a spell, a sorcerer must have a Charisma score of 10 + the spell's level. A sorcerer gets bonus spells based on Charisma. The Difficulty Class of a saving throw against a sorcerer's spell is 10 + the spell's level + the sorcerer's Charisma modifier. Like a wizard, a sorcerer benefits from high Dexterity and Constitution scores.

Alignment: Any

Class Skills

The sorcerer's class skills are Bluff, Concentration, Craft, Knowledge (arcana), Profession, and Spellcraft.

Skill Points at 1st Level: (2 + Int modifier) x 4.

Skill Points at each additional level: 2 + Int modifier.

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the sorcerer.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Sorcerers are proficient with all simple weapons. They are not proficient with any type of armor or shield, Armor of any type interferes with a sorcerers arcane gestures, which can cause his spells with somatic components to fail.

Spells: A sorcerer casts arcane spells (the same type of spells available to bards and wizards), which are drawn primarily from the sorcerer/wizard spell list. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time, the way a wizard or a cleric must (see below).

To learn or cast a spell, a sorcerer must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level (Cha 10 for 0-level spells, Cha 11 for 1st-level spells, and so forth). The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a sorcerer's spell is 10 + the spell level + the sorcerer's Charisma modifier.

Like other spellcasters, a sorcerer can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on the table below. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score (see Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells). A sorcerer's selection of spells is extremely limited. A sorcerer begins play knowing four 0-level spells (also called cantrips) and two 1st-level spells of your choice. At each new sorcerer level, he gains one or more new spells, as indicated on the Sorcerer Spells Known table below. (Unlike spells per day, the number of spells a sorcerer knows is not affected by his Charisma score; the numbers on the table are fixed.) These new spells can be common spells chosen from the sorcerer/wizard spell list, or they can be unusual spells that the sorcerer has gained some understanding of by study. For example, a sorcerer with a scroll or spellbook detailing an unusual sorcerer/wizard spell (one not on the sorcerer/wizard spell list in this book) could select that spell as one of his new spells for attaining a new level, provided that it is of the right spell level. The sorcerer can't use this method of spell acquisition to learn spells at a faster rate, however.

Upon reaching 4th level, and at every even-numbered sorcerer level after that (6th, 8th, and so on), a sorcerer can choose to learn a new spell in place of one he already knows, in effect, the sorcerer "loses" the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell's level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged and it must be at least two levels lower than the highest-level sorcerer spell the sorcerer can cast. For instance, upon reaching 4th level, a sorcerer could trade in a single 0-level spell (two spell levels below the highest-level sorcerer spell he can cast, which is 2nd) for a different 0-level spell. At 6th level, he could trade in a single 0-level or 1st-level spell (since he now can cast 3rd-level sorcerer spells) for a different spell of the same level. A sorcerer may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that he gains new spells known for the level.

Unlike a wizard or a cleric, a sorcerer need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his spells per day for that spell level. For example, at 1st level, the sorcerer Hennet can cast four 1st-level spells per day - three for being 1st level (see Sorcerer, below), plus one thanks to his Charisma score of 15 (see Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells). However, he knows only two 1st-level spells: magic missile and sleep (see Sorcerer Spells Known). Thus, on any given day, he can cast some combination of the two spells a total of four times. He does not have to decide ahead of time which spells he'll cast.

Familiar: A sorcerer can obtain a familiar. Doing so takes 24 hours and uses up magical materials that cost 100 gp. A familiar is a magical beast that resembles a small animal and is unusually tough and intelligent. The creature serves as a companion and servant. See Familiars.

The sorcerer chooses the kind of familiar he gets. As the sorcerer advances in level, his familiar also increases in power.

If the familiar dies or is dismissed by the sorcerer, the sorcerer must attempt a DC 15 Fortitude saving throw. Failure means he loses 200 experience points per sorcerer level; success reduces the loss to one-half that amount. However, a sorcerer's experience point total can never go below 0 as the result of a familiar's demise or dismissal. For example, suppose that Hennet is a 3rd-level sorcerer with 3,230 XP when his owl familiar is killed by a bugbear. Hennet makes a successful saving throw, so he loses 300 XP, dropping him below 3,000 XP and back to 2nd level (see Level Loss for rules for losing levels). A slain or dismissed familiar cannot be replaced for a year and day. A slain familiar can be raised from the dead just as a character can be, and it does not lose a level or a Constitution point when this happy event occurs.

A character with more than one class that grants a familiar may have only one familiar at a time.

SorcererHit Die: d4Spells per day
LvlBABFortRefWillSpecial01st2nd3d4th5th6th7th8th9th
1st+0+0+0+2Summon familiar53--------
2nd+1+0+0+3-64--------
3rd+1+1+1+3-65--------
4th+2+1+1+4-663-------
5th+2+1+1+4-664-------
6th+3+2+2+5-6653------
7th+3+2+2+5-6664------
8th+4+2+2+6-66653-----
9th+4+3+3+6-66664-----
10th+5+3+3+7-666653----
11th+5+3+3+7-666664----
12th+6/+1+4+4+8-6666653---
13th+6/+1+4+4+8-6666664---
14th+7/+2+4+4+9-66666653--
15th+7/+2+5+5+9-66666664--
16th+8/+3+5+5+10-666666653-
17th+8/+3+5+5+10-666666664-
18th+9/+4+6+6+11-6666666653
19th+9/+4+6+6+11-6666666664
20th+10/+5+6+6+12-6666666666
Spells Known
Lvl01st2nd3rd4th5th6th7th8th9th
1st42--------
2nd52--------
3rd53--------
4th631-------
5th642-------
6th7421------
7th7532------
8th85321-----
9th85432-----
10th954321----
11th955432----
12th9554321---
13th9554432---
14th95544321--
15th95544432--
16th955444321-
17th955444332-
18th9554443321
19th9554443332
20th9554443333

Sorcerer Spells

In the Realms

Sorcerers are (along with wizards) the foremost practitioners of what Faerûnians refer to as the Art, the study and application of arcane magic. The common folk of Faerûn see little difference between the rigorous studies of the wizard and the mysterious ways of the sorcerer, but in some lands a fierce rivalry exists between the two traditions. Many wizards regard sorcerers as inexpert practitioners of the Art and servants of sinister powers better left alone. Some sorcerers see wizards as arrogant and pompous, deliberately cloaking the Art in mummery and obtuse lore.

Some areas of Faerûn are more tolerant than others of the presence of sorcerers. Aglarond, a forest kingdom ruled by the insuperable sorcerer-queen known as the Simbul, is perhaps the best example of such a place. Despite differing regional attitudes toward sorcerers, sorcerous talent seems to be spread nearly evenly through the world and the various races, with the exception of dwarves born before the Thunder Blessing.

True to their tendency toward chaos over law, sorcerers worship all types of deities. Mystra, Oghma, Selûne, and Shar are popular with sorcerers as deities who have something to do with magic. Lathander, Shaundakul, Sune, Tempus, and Tymora are popular with adventuring sorcerers.

In addition to the familiars available in the Player's Handbook, the following creatures are also available:

FamiliarSpecial
Hairy spiderPoisonous bite, darkvision
LizardMaster gains a +2 bonus on Climb checks
OctopusMaster gains a +2 bonus on Spot checks
* A hairy spider familiar gains an Intelligence score, becomes a magical beast (not vermin), and loses its immunity to mind-influencing effects.

The Improved Familiar feat allows a selection of more powerful familiars.

Preferred Character Regions: Sorcerers are found in Aglarond, Calimshan, the Dragon Coast, the Great Dale, the High Forest, the Lake of Steam, Mulhorand, the Nelanther Isles, the Shaar, Silverymoon, Tethyr, and the Western Heartlands. Gold dwarves, wild elves, and lightfoot halflings display a knack for the sorcerer's arts, too.

Mage Runes

Epic Sorcerer

The epic sorcerer has grown his natural arcane ability to mythical proportions, but the need for ever-greater power never abates.

Hit Die: d4.

Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier.

Spells: The sorcerer's caster level is equal to his class level. The sorcerer's number of spells per day does not increase after 20th level. The sorcerer does nor learn additional spells.

Familiar: The epic sorcerers familiar continues to increase in power. Every two levels higher than 20th (22nd, 24th, and so on) the familiar's natural armor bonus and Intelligence each increase by +1. The familiar's spell resistance is equal to the master's level + 5. At 21st level and again every ten levels higher than 21st, the familiar gains the benefit of the Familiar Spell epic feat for a spell of its master's choice.

Bonus Feats: The epic sorcerer gains a bonus feat every three levels higher than 20th (23rd, 26th, and so on).

Planar Substitution Levels

Though many claim a sorcerer's power derives from draconic heritage, a few sorcerers believe that their arcane prowess comes from an even purer source - the planes themselves. It isn't uncommon to see sorcerers traveling the multiverse in search of support for this belief

Unlike other spellcasters, the sorcerer has a limited ability to customize his talents for planar adventuring. With a small list of spells known, the sorcerer who wishes to adapt to life on the planes must choose his tools wisely. Even so, the wide variety of challenges awaiting the planar sorcerer demands a slightly more adaptable approach to spellcasting.

Requirements

To take a sorcerer planar substitution level, a character must be about to take her 5th, 9th, or 13th level of sorcerer.

Class Skills

Sorcerer planar substitution levels have the class skills of the standard sorcerer class plus Knowledge (the planes) (Int). Skill Points at Each level: 2 + Int modifier.

Class Features

All of the following are features of the sorcerer's planar substitution levels.

Force-Charged Energy (Su): At 5th level, a planar sorcerer can lace his spells with pure force, the better to affect the various energy-resistant elementals and outsiders he faces. At the sorcerer's option, half of the energy damage dealt by a spell he casts is replaced by force damage. This effect can be applied to any spell that deals acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic damage.

The maximum spell level to which a planar sorcerer can apply this effect is one lower than the highest level of sorcerer spell that he can cast. For instance, a 5th-level planar sorcerer can apply this effect to 0-level and 1st-level sorcerer spells, while an 18th-level planar sorcerer can apply it to spells of up to 8th level.

This benefit replaces the ability to learn a new 2nd-level spell gained by a standard sorcerer at 5th level. From now on, the sorcerer's number of 2nd-level spells known at any class level is one less than the value shown for Sorcerer.

Extraplanar Spell Penetration (Ex): A 9th-level planar sorcerer can imbue his spells with the ability to penetrate the spell resistance of extraplanar creatures more readily. Three times per day, for 1 round each time, the sorcerer can add his Charisma bonus to all his caster level checks made to overcome the spell resistance of extraplanar creatures.

This benefit replaces the ability to learn a new 4th-level spell gained by a standard sorcerer at 9th level. From now on, the sorcerer's number of 4th-level spells known at any class level is one less than the value shown above.

Spontaneous Planar Summoning (Su): A 13th-level planar sorcerer learns to summon extraplanar creatures spontaneously. When he chooses this planar substitution benefit, a sorcerer selects one of the following categories: elementals (creatures of the elemental type), celestial creatures (creatures with the celestial template), or fiendish creatures (creatures with the fiendish template). He can use any spell slot to spontaneously cast a summon monster spell of the same level, but he can use that spell to summon only creatures of the selected category.

For example, a 13th-level sorcerer who chose elementals could use one of his 6th-level spell slots to cast summon monster VI. He could use that spell to summon a single Large elemental, or 1d3 Medium elementals (from the 5th-level summoning list). He could not use the spell to summon creatures that weren't elementals.

This benefit replaces the ability to learn a new 6th-level spell gained by a standard sorcerer at 13th level. From now on, the sorcerer's number of 6th-level spells known at any class level is one less than the value shown above.

Sorcerer Planar Substitution Levels
LvlBABFortRefWillSpecial
5th+2+1+1+4Force-charged energy
9th+4+3+3+6Extraplanar spell penetration
13th+6/+1+4+4+8Spontaneous planar summoning

Aquatic Variation

Sorcerers in watery settings are often multiclass sorcerer/fighters or sorcerer/rogues, who provide valuable weather magic or offensive capability to boost the crews they serve with. Among underwater peoples, sorcerers obviously do not use much (if any) fire magic. Instead, they concentrate on sonic or electricity effects, direct-damage effects such as magic missile, or elemental magic dealing with water and cold.

Familiar: Sorcerers and wizards in aquatic regions can obtain a familiar appropriate to that environment; see Aquatic Familiars (below).

Treat each familiar as the kind of animal linked to for the purpose of HD, attacks, and other basic statistics. Costs and effort involved in obtaining aquatic familiars are identical to those required for other familiars.

Aquatic Familiars
FamiliarSpecial
AlbatrossMaster gains a +1 bonus on Spot checks
EelMaster gains a +3 bonus on Escape Artist checks
Fish owlMaster gains a +3 bonus on Spot checks in shadows
OctopusMaster gains a +3 bonus on grapple checks
Parrot*Master gains a +3 bonus on Appraise checks
Sea snakeMaster gains a +3 bonus on Bluff checks
* A parrot familiar can speak a language of its master's choice as a supernatural ability.

Alternative Class Feature: Spell Shield (Dungeonscape)

As a powerful spellcaster, you're likely to attract the attention of powerful opponents, and your teammates can't always protect you. Spell shield lets you use your spells' energy to offset damage that might otherwise kill you.

Level: 1st.

Replaces: If you select this alternative class feature, you do not gain a familiar.

Benefit: By achieving oneness with the magical energy from which you draw your power, you make it part of your life force. As an immediate action when you take damage from any source, you can attempt to sacrifice spell energy instead of losing hit points. Expend a spell slot as if you had cast a spell of that level. Then, make a Concentration check with a DC equal to 15 + the level of the sacrificed spell. If you succeed, you ignore an amount of damage equal to five times the level of the spell slot you gave up. If you fail, you still lose the spell, but the magical energy fails to negate any of the damage.

For example, Hennet finds himself in the way of a black dragon's breath. Although he succeeded on his saving throw, he is still going to take 22 points of acid damage. As a 7th-level sorcerer, Hennet can sacrifice a spell of up to 3rd level. He chooses a 3rd-level spell, so the DC of his Concentration check is 18. Hennet gets a result of 22 and magically negates 15 points of the acid damage, taking only 7 points.

Special: You can attempt to deflect damage as often as you wish, but you can make only one attempt per round.

Special: If an attack's damage has multiple sources (such as that of a flaming sword, which deals both weapon damage and fire damage), you must choose which source to negate.

Special: If an attack must deal damage to have a secondary effect (such as poison from a snake's bite), negating all the damage also prevents the secondary effect.

Source: Player's Handbook

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