Author Topic: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook  (Read 109233 times)

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Sinfire Titan

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #40 on: October 21, 2009, 02:37:40 PM »
Eberron Specific Material that breaks the Shadowcraft Mage even more: Echo Spell. Because when you can cast Shadow Miracles, why not go the extra mile and do it all day long too?


[spoiler][/spoiler]

PhaedrusXY

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #41 on: October 21, 2009, 02:45:01 PM »
Regarding Cleric Entry,

Quote
Cons: Requires the use of an Eberron domain (Shadow) - likely not going to happen except in an Eberron game. Pretty much requires the use of Domain Spontaneity from PHB2 for the Illusion domain.

Unless I'm misinterpreting the need for the Shadow Domain, I'd like to point out that you can get into Shadowcraft Mage by heightening Dark Way (SpC 58), a Cleric 2 spell, as a requirement for the ability to cast a fourth level Shadow Spell.
That's right. I'm playing one based on that right now. It was either missed or not available when the original thread was written.
[spoiler]
A couple of water benders, a dike, a flaming arrow, and a few barrels of blasting jelly?

Sounds like the makings of a gay porn film.
...thanks
[/spoiler]

PhaedrusXY

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #42 on: October 22, 2009, 05:28:16 PM »
So... what's a good PrC to take after shadowcraft mage for a cleric entry? Something with full casting progression, decent skills, and bonus feats would be ideal (I don't ask for much, do I? :P ). It seems there are so few decent divine PrCs for the "trickster" archetype.
[spoiler]
A couple of water benders, a dike, a flaming arrow, and a few barrels of blasting jelly?

Sounds like the makings of a gay porn film.
...thanks
[/spoiler]

Hallack

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #43 on: October 22, 2009, 06:49:10 PM »
I took some paragonistic apostle to fill in levels on mine but then I did not have early entry.  Shadowcrafter from FR of course could be awesome if allowed.
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Rebel7284

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #44 on: October 22, 2009, 07:13:30 PM »
I like dweomerkeeper or unseen seer personally.  Although both of those are likely to lose at least 1 caster level in prereqs.
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PhaedrusXY

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #45 on: October 22, 2009, 07:14:17 PM »
I like dweomerkeeper or unseen seer personally.  Although both of those are likely to lose at least 1 caster level in prereqs.
Unseen Seer progresses divine casting? Hmm... that would be nice... (Edit: It progresses arcane only. I'll probably just go with Shadowcrafter, or maybe dip into Mystic Wanderer for a familiar. ;) )


And while we're on the topic... I just had a realization about one way that a SCM is even better than a "normal" mage at BFC (above the huge amount of flexibility they have, and focus on a single spell, etc). As long as your % reality isn't jacked up to obscene levels, your allies can likely ignore your (low level) spell effects. So that shadow Web spell that you tie the enemies up in? Your allies only have a 30% chance of suffering from the cover that it grants when hitting them with missile fire. And they have an 80% chance of ignoring your shadow Grease spell, even if they get caught in the area and fail the Reflex save. And against a lot of enemies, this still may not clue them in that your spell is in fact an Illusion.
« Last Edit: October 23, 2009, 02:07:56 AM by PhaedrusXY »
[spoiler]
A couple of water benders, a dike, a flaming arrow, and a few barrels of blasting jelly?

Sounds like the makings of a gay porn film.
...thanks
[/spoiler]

gorfnad

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #46 on: February 18, 2010, 05:55:35 AM »
Nightmare Spinner
Benefit: The Nightmare Spinner provides a nice way to cap off a Shadowcraft Mage build. It doesn't provide any spellcasting advancement, so it should be taken only after ninth level spells have been acquired. However, for that one lost caster level, you get an extra spell slot of every level you can cast.
Only the first level of Nightmare Spinner does not advance spellcasting. The remaining 4 levels of the class do advance spellcasting.  

Endarire

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #47 on: April 15, 2010, 02:43:07 AM »
I'm considering going Dragonborn Whisper Gnome Illusionist1/SCM5/Incantatrix4/Master Illusionist1/Veil7/X+2.  Since skill reqs are no problem for me, I planned to take School Focus: Illusion, Heighten Spell, and Metamagic School Focus to enter at level 2.

How important is Veil in this combo?  It takes 3 icky feats to enter, but assumedly I'm invincible and I'm stylin'.
Hood - My first answer to all your build questions; past, present, and future.

Speaking of which:
Don't even need TO for this.  Any decent Hood build, especially one with Celerity, one-rounds [Azathoth, the most powerful greater deity from d20 Cthulu].
Does it bug anyone else that we've reached the point where characters who can obliterate a greater deity in one round are considered "decent?"

bearsarebrown

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #48 on: April 15, 2010, 02:47:21 AM »
I'm considering going Dragonborn Whisper Gnome Illusionist1/SCM5/Incantatrix4/Master Illusionist1/Veil7/X+2.  Since skill reqs are no problem for me, I planned to take School Focus: Illusion, Heighten Spell, and Metamagic School Focus to enter at level 2.

How important is Veil in this combo?  It takes 3 icky feats to enter, but assumedly I'm invincible and I'm stylin'.
Why Dragonborn? You loose out on all the racial bonuses!

And more importantly how the hell does that hit 4th level spells? It will let you get a free +1 Heighten 3/day... that's it. If you added Sanctum Spell, Precocious Apprentice to what you have then you'd hit 4th...

Endarire

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #49 on: April 15, 2010, 03:47:10 AM »
I assumed I could apply all 3 reductions to a Heightened net of shadows.
Hood - My first answer to all your build questions; past, present, and future.

Speaking of which:
Don't even need TO for this.  Any decent Hood build, especially one with Celerity, one-rounds [Azathoth, the most powerful greater deity from d20 Cthulu].
Does it bug anyone else that we've reached the point where characters who can obliterate a greater deity in one round are considered "decent?"

bearsarebrown

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #50 on: April 15, 2010, 03:51:45 AM »
I assumed I could apply all 3 reductions to a Heightened net of shadows.
So you're not applying Heighten +3, you're applying Heighten +1 three times? Eeeehh I disagree with the legality but I'm not positive on RAW. If the DM says that works then go for it though.

Endarire

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #51 on: April 15, 2010, 05:45:22 AM »
I always assumed I could apply the three 1/day reducers to the same spell.
Hood - My first answer to all your build questions; past, present, and future.

Speaking of which:
Don't even need TO for this.  Any decent Hood build, especially one with Celerity, one-rounds [Azathoth, the most powerful greater deity from d20 Cthulu].
Does it bug anyone else that we've reached the point where characters who can obliterate a greater deity in one round are considered "decent?"

The_Mad_Linguist

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #52 on: April 15, 2010, 04:25:38 PM »
I don't think you can.  If nothing else, IIRC you can't apply the same metamagic multiple times.
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Endarire

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #53 on: April 15, 2010, 06:46:58 PM »
Normally, one metamagic feat won't multi-apply.  No double-Empowering spells.  Reducing metamagic costs still seems viable.

Metamagic School Focus (Complete Mage 45)
Prerequisite: Spell Focus (chosen school) or specialist wizard in chosen school.

Benefit: Choose a school of magic for which you have the Spell Focus feat, or the school in which you have specialized.
Three times per day, you can reduce by one level the cost of a metamagic feat applied to a spell of the chosen school.  If you prepare spells, you can have only up to three such reduced cost spells prepared at any time.

Special: A wizard can select this feat as a wizard bonus feat.
This feat can be taken more than once. Each time you take it, it applies to a different school of magic.
Hood - My first answer to all your build questions; past, present, and future.

Speaking of which:
Don't even need TO for this.  Any decent Hood build, especially one with Celerity, one-rounds [Azathoth, the most powerful greater deity from d20 Cthulu].
Does it bug anyone else that we've reached the point where characters who can obliterate a greater deity in one round are considered "decent?"

Hallack

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #54 on: April 15, 2010, 07:02:10 PM »
Certainly seems a reasonable use of the feat.  Definitely no worse than DMM fun.
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NineInchNall

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #55 on: April 16, 2010, 01:59:10 PM »
Regarding Cleric Entry,

Quote
Cons: Requires the use of an Eberron domain (Shadow) - likely not going to happen except in an Eberron game. Pretty much requires the use of Domain Spontaneity from PHB2 for the Illusion domain.

Unless I'm misinterpreting the need for the Shadow Domain, I'd like to point out that you can get into Shadowcraft Mage by heightening Dark Way (SpC 58), a Cleric 2 spell, as a requirement for the ability to cast a fourth level Shadow Spell.
That's right. I'm playing one based on that right now. It was either missed or not available when the original thread was written.

The former, actually.  Newer versions of the post did not include that error.

Speaking of which ...

Wait.  There's a time limit on Edits?  LAME!  So it is thus unavoidable: use the WotC (pain) thread: http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19872354/Shadowcraft_Mage_Handbook
« Last Edit: April 16, 2010, 02:04:11 PM by NineInchNall »

Endarire

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #56 on: May 03, 2010, 01:18:22 AM »
The Shadowkeeper: A Psionic Clerical Shadowcraft Mage/Dweomerkeeper
Hood - My first answer to all your build questions; past, present, and future.

Speaking of which:
Don't even need TO for this.  Any decent Hood build, especially one with Celerity, one-rounds [Azathoth, the most powerful greater deity from d20 Cthulu].
Does it bug anyone else that we've reached the point where characters who can obliterate a greater deity in one round are considered "decent?"

Hand_of_Vecna

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #57 on: June 11, 2010, 12:02:36 PM »
So, I was planning to play a SCM in the near future, checking over the guide and something occured to me.

Is there a definition of native in the planar handbook, or somewhere else, that says native just means native outsider? Or can you have been born on the plane of shadow allowing you to cast planar bubble for shadow boosting at anytime?

I'm thinking my character will be from a long line of SCM's. Otherwise it's gonna be a very typical build with focused specialist illusionist and either shadowcrafter or incantrix.

Littha

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #58 on: June 11, 2010, 12:13:40 PM »
Unfortunately SRD says:
Quote
Native Subtype

A subtype applied only to outsiders

Hallack

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Re: Shadowcraft Mage Handbook
« Reply #59 on: December 19, 2010, 12:43:54 PM »
PROTEUS from Exemplars of Evil.

Is it just me or does this feat add a whole new dimension to a SCM's spontaneous awesomeness?

Adding it a SCM could now Spontaneously all the normal Shadow Evoc/Conj goodies and ANY Glamer!!!  Maybe even those not on his normal spell list (kinda like the RAW Spontaneous Diviner goodness) :D


Even better, you can cast a prepared Glamer as an Immediate Action!!!!  Hello Nurse!!!!

Am I missing something here?

« Last Edit: December 19, 2010, 12:50:05 PM by Hallack »
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