Wizard - Illusionist Description: Illusionists tend to be flamboyant, outgoing, and self-assured. Remarkably creative as a rule, they enjoy art, literature, poetry, and music, and as a general rule greatly prefer the urbane life and culture to be found in the cities over the desolate wilderness. They are often found as entertainers (often achieving considerable fame), performing at the homes of nobles and other wealthy folk, and Illusionists often take such opportunities to ingratiate themselves with the 'powers that be' in an area or to acquire choice bits of gossip or rumor. Less scrupulous Illusionists make the rounds as con men of extraordinary skill, using their powers to gather information about a potential mark and then play upon the hopes, dreams, and fears of that person to confound them with elaborate schemes or simply to infiltrate their hidden and secret places and flat-out rob them blind. Regardless of their degree of morality and ethics (and Illusionists can be found all across the board in this regard), Illusionists rely on their spells to assist them in their daily activities or even disguising their spellcasting as mere 'magic tricks' to amuse and amaze. Adventuring Illusionists use their spells to distract, confuse, demoralize, and (when necessary) harm their foes. Masters of deception and distraction, dancing between light and shadow, they ply the thoughts of those who oppose them with subtle strands of magical power, often drawing upon the power of an enemy's own mind to defeat him or her, or overwhelming mental defenses with empathic impulses of considerable power. Requirements: Illusionists use the Wizard advancement table and have four- sided hit dice. Illusionists use a Wizard's THAC0 and saving throw tables. Illusionists begin with 1 weapon and 4 non-weapon proficiencies, and they gain one weapon and two non-weapon slots every six levels of experience. Illusionists may be of any alignment but must have scores of at least 13 in Intelligence, Dexterity, and Charisma. Only humans, gnomes, half-elves, and tieflings can become Illusionists. Weapons & Armor: Like other wizards, Illusionists cannot wear armor or use shields. Illusionists are limited to the following weapons: bolas, blowgun, dart (any), knife/dagger (any), lasso, net, sap, sling (any), or whip. Magical Philosophy: The Primary Field of Study for this class is Illusion, which consists of disguising, distorting, hiding, or altering the appearance or the essential substance of reality primarily through manipulation thought, emotion, and perception, though the most powerful of illusions can fundamentally alter reality, space, and time. An Illusionist's spells are have the power to control or influence the minds and hearts of living creatures. Illusionists can be highly effective in combat, diverting and distracting enemies with false opponents and magical misdirection. Illusionists always seek creative and unusual uses for their magical powers, weaving a web of intrigue for their enemies. They are also expert at avoiding troublesome situations entirely through their mastery of stealth and disguise spells. While their spells are not as spectacular as many others, they are subtle and powerful in the extreme and often afford greater benefits in battle and in information-gathering than any other form of magic. In addition to their Primary FOS in Illusion, these mysterious wizards also have Major FOS in both Lore and Enchantment; however, Illusionists focus all of their attention on these fields and have no facility with other types of magic. Special Benefits: Illusionists are masters of deceit and trickery, dealing in subtleties and suggestion, and they are expert at all manner of magical applications that assist them in these regards. Illusionists receive the following standard Wizard abilities: - Have the option to leave any or all 'spell slots' open rather than memorizing spells immediately after rest. Such spell slots can then be used later in the day by reading and memorizing a particular spell from the Illusionist's spellbooks at the time it is needed (requiring the normal 10 minutes per spell level) and then casting it, allowing for greater flexibility but leaving him or her without a prememorized, ready-to- cast spell in that slot. - Receive bonus spells (and/or have a spell failure chance) based on their Intelligence score as a Priest would for a high Wisdom score; these bonus spells must be selected from the realm of Illusion. - Research and create spells and magical items (within the Realm of Illusion). - Scribe spells onto scrolls beginning at 6th level, provided appropriate spell inks can be bought or manufactured and the Calligraphy proficiency is known. In addition to these standard abilities, they gain the following skills unique to their class: Illusionary Enhancement: Illusionists are so skilled at the use of their powers of illusion that they are able to memorize one additional spell of every spell level they know, though this additional spell must be one from the Realm of Illusion (e.g., a 3rd level Illusionist could memorize 2 first and 1 second level spell of his or her choice, plus one additional Illusion spell of 1st level and of 2nd level). Illusionists also have the unique ability to make a particular spell effect from the Realm of Illusion 'persistent' upon themselves (i.e., only Illusion spells that affect the Illusionist him- or herself can be made persistent). This particular spell essentially becomes a permanent enchantment that functions on behalf of the Illusionist whenever he or she concentrates on it. The persistent effect can be invoked at any time by a silent act of will, but it lasts only as long as the Illusionist continues to concentrate. He or she can fight, flee, or even use most magical items while maintaining a persistent effect (and invoking it cannot be disrupted by being struck in combat), but cannot cast other spells or perform other activity requiring intense concentration while maintaining the effect. Falling victim to a mental attack, being stunned or knocked unconscious, and similar effects will disrupt a persistent effect. The spell to be made persistent must be from the Realm of Illusion, and it may not be a spell with an 'Instantaneous' or 'Special' duration. It may be any spell that the Illusionist knows, but he or she may never have more than one such spell in place at a time. If the Illusionist wishes to change the spell, he or she must spend one full week per level of the spell in meditation and study in a magical laboratory or library (which need not be owned by the Illusionist), at a cost in materials and reference works of 1d10 x 100 g.p. per level of the spell the first time it is performed; if an Illusionist wishes to 'reset' a persistent spell effect that he or she previously had in place, the cost is only one-tenth this amount. There is a drawback to using this ability to engender a persistent spell effect, and that is that an Illusionist loses the normal bonus spell slots for all spell levels up to and including the level of the spell made persistent. Example: An Illusionist who has made the change self spell persistent would lose his or her bonus 1st level spell. If instead the wraithform spell was made persistent, the Illusionist would forgo his or her bonus 1st, 2nd, and 3rd level spells. Any persistent effect can be 'renounced' at any time by the Illusionist, requiring only one round of concentration per level of the persistent spell. If this is done, he or she can again use his or her full normal allotment of bonus spell slots the next time spell memorization is undertaken, but replacing the persistent spell effect (even with the same spell as was in place before) must be undertaken before it can be used again. Illusionary Expertise: Illusionists are extremely skilled in the arts of illusion and the nature of illusionary magic. They therefore gain a +15% bonus to learn spells from the Realm of Illusion. In addition, Illusionists gain a +2 bonus to their saving throws vs. all forms of mental attack, whether magical or psionic, and they apply a -2 penalty to creatures attempting saving throws vs. spells they cast from the Realm of Illusion. It should be noted that Illusionists are so intimately familiar with the nature of illusions that they are entitled to an unmodified save vs. paralyzation to immediately recognize an illusion for what it is (though this does not allow automatic detection of invisible characters or creatures). On a similar note, they are so well-versed in mental attacks of all kinds that they are entitled to an unmodified save vs. paralyzation to resist mental attacks (whether magical or psionic) that normally allow no saving throw. Omit Components: Because Illusionists must often be very subtle in their spell use to avoid notice of those they are trying to fool, they have the ability to learn how to omit certain components from spells (most often somatic components). Once at each level of experience, an Illusionist can attempt to relearn a spell that he or she already knows in a slightly different format, omitting one normally required component. This requires one day per level of the spell and an outlay of 1d10 x 10 g.p. per level of the spell for research costs, and it has a chance equal to the Illusionist's Chance to Know Spells plus his or her level, minus twice the level of the spell being modified. If the roll succeeds, the Illusionist has managed to adjust his or her knowledge and casting of the spell so as to omit one of its normal components. If the roll fails, the research was unsuccessful but can be repeated after the Illusionist gains a level (or a different spell could be tried). This can be done with any spell he or she knows from the Realm of Illusion. At subsequent levels, an Illusionist can attempt the same feat with a new spell or can attempt to repeat research on a spell for which research to Omit Components has already been performed. This can be done, but at only half the normal chance of success. If the spell normally has three components and the Illusionist elects to research it a third time in order to omit all three components, research must be performed at only one-quarter the normal chance of success. Regardless of the initial number of components involved, if any spell is reduced to having no components, it can be cast by a silent act of will and cannot be disrupted by striking the Illusionist in combat or similar means, though dispel magic and similar effects have the usual chance of disrupting spell use. Special Hindrances: An Illusionist's greatest hindrance is his or her total dedication to his or her chosen art. Illusionists suffer a -15% penalty to learn spells outside the Realm of Illusion. In addition, they have no skill whatsoever with spells from the Realms of Conjuration, Elementalism, Necromancy, and Sorcery. In fact, an Illusionist is prohibited from even using magical items that use such powers. Only items that use powers of Enchantment, Illusion, Lore, or Universal Magic can be used by an Illusionist. In the case of items with multiple functions that include powers prohibited to an Illusionist, he or she will shun such items in general, though in extreme cases an Illusionist might use powers from an allowed Realm of Magic that such an item might possess. Bonus Proficiency: Observation Required Proficiencies: Artistic Ability (any), Reading/Writing Preferred Proficiencies: Astrology, Calligraphy, Etiquette, Gem Cutting, Glassblowing, Information Gathering, Juggling, Language (Modern), Lens Crafting, Prestidigitation, Reading Lips, Sign Language, Somatic Concealment, Spellcraft ***DISCLAIMER*** As with all postings by me of classes or races, it should be noted that portions of the information contained herein were inspired by or derived from information in published works of TSR, Inc., and may contain references to those works, quotations or passages of text (especially in the area of 'Character Description', where applicable sections from TSR works were often carried over more or less intact into my campaign world), or particular powers or abilities invented by TSR staff writers. No relationship with TSR, Inc., is to be implied by this use, nor is any attempt being made to solicit profit or remuneration of any kind. I have read the TSR Online Policy document, and have tried to accommodate the stipulations contained therein. In instances where I have lifted an essentially complete class or race without significant alteration, I have not included these in my postings but instead have inserted a reference to the appropriate D&D sourcebook for those curious in including it in their campaign. Only variations that include a significant component of original work, alteration, or reformulation (including the compositing elements from various TSR sources into new combinations) of have been included in this set of postings. Jason Eric Nelson < tjaden@u.washington.edu >