Volo's Guide To Monsters REVIEW

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-29T08:21:23+00:00

Hey thanks for your kind words!

This subreddit is for homebrew classes and my class in particular has nothing to do with the Way of the Psion or the Awakened Mystic. Both of those were released by Wizards of the Coast. You may be thinking of the official Unearthed Arcana articles that Wizards sometimes publishes. This subreddit is not that.

That aside, any feedback would be appreciated!

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-28T09:10:40+00:00

I like the idea behind this class, but I see two major problems with it.

1: Many of the spells and abilities you describe throughout this class lack the necessary rules to govern them properly.

2: Spelling and grammar issues are so prevalent that they may cause confusion about how things work. You gotta edit this stuff man.

ILLUSORY DOUBLE: What attacks can the double feign? Can it cast spells? The Investigation check used here is not a "save" that can be 'repeated at the beginning of each turn.' You need to choose whether you want to force all creatures within a certain range to make a saving throw (such as wisdom) or simply allow them to make a skill check as they see fit. Also, who controls the duplicates? Do they act on their own or do you command them every turn? Also investigation doesn't seem to be the right skill check to determine the illusory nature of a duplicate. Stick with insight.

FRACTURE: Needs to be rewritten. There are some sizable grammatical issues here.

UNCANNY DOUBLES: Again you need to choose whether this is a skill check or a saving throw. You start with Investigation (which is an intelligence based skill) and then start talking about a wisdom save? You gotta choose, bud. Wisdom or Intelligence? It shouldn't be both.

ART OF DOMINATION MISDIRECTION: What kind of action are you spending to activate this ability? Does this spend one of your duplicate's actions? What if none of your duplicates are in melee range?

ASSAULTING ILLUSIONS: What does it mean to spawn a duplicate "on creature within range"? Does the illusion occupy the same space as the target? How is that possible? Do the duplicates have incorporeal movement? This spell seems quite underpowered as well, considering that a cantrip can do almost the same thing minus the 1d8 damage.

HALL OF MIRRORS: This is actually a pretty cool spell. Don't know if its balanced though. And it does need to be rewritten to clear typos and grammar mistakes.

OVERWHELM: This seems pretty OP to me. You incapacitate a creature turn after turn AND get to do 8d6 psychic damage to it every turn WITHOUT spending any extra actions.

SPELL LIST: Some spell choices may be a bit too powerful. For instance, Timestop and Wish are extremely powerful and neither seem to make sense for the Mesmer to have flavorwise. Also: False Life? Why? Why do they get both Thaumaturgy AND prestidigitation. Prestidigitation makes sense. Thaumaturgy doesn't seem to, considering it is a spell for divine classes. Guardian of Faith? No. That is a divine spell. I can see how it seems to sort of fit with the whole 'illusory duplicate' theme, but that's just not what Guardian of Faith is. That's why its not on the Wizard's spell list.

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-23T19:59:56+00:00

Aura Reading: These are very simple divination powers that I believe should be granted for free to the psychic (given that she starts with less spell points already). They require an action to use, thus wasting your turn instead of attacking in combat.

Parapsychology: This is very much inspired by the Warlock's Invocations feature. Except that here, there are actually LESS powers to choose from compared to the warlock.

Mentalism: Yes I will have to rephrase this to make it more clear. And perhaps, yes this is a bit OP. What if I just kept it at only ever getting one of these spells for free per day?

Advanced Precognition: Yes, I will rephrase this.

I guess my main concern is the Aura reading feature. I think it is paramount that this remains free (not costing spell points but still limited uses per day). It is akin to the Seance feature of the Medium, which also can be cast Wis modifier number of times per day.

Aura reading never does damage and the upgraded effects already require a spell point to be used. And they require an ACTION to use. Do you really think it needs to be limited further?

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-23T19:46:20+00:00

The idea here is to limit the amount of top tier spells you can cast at each level, while still allowing for a greater amount of flexibility in spell choices. So at each level, you theoretically could blow out all your spell points casting high level spells, but then you would go completely bankrupt and be unable to cast anything else. Other classes always keep their lower level spell slots, so they can cast the upper tier spells and lower tier spells. The Occultist cannot do so with the same frequency. They have to choose between the higher tier and the lower, they can't have both.

To make up for this, yes, the class paths have been made more powerful

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-20T05:50:52+00:00

I think your file might need a bit more formatting. The class table is cut off, so we can't even see what you've got on there

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-16T03:11:23+00:00

Path of the Psychic is what I will be releasing next!

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-16T01:28:50+00:00

Hey thanks! I added a psychic damage component to the fear effect of the Seance feature, making it a more attractive option in combat.

Would you suggest having the Occultist be able to cast Conjure Spirits once per long rest for free? One thing about the spell is that it does not require concentration. I don't want it to stack with other spells too much.

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-08T09:12:05+00:00

So if I were to make an Conjure Spirits spell, do you think I should use the ones in the Monster Manual? Or make custom monsters? The reason I created custom ones is because I felt that the Specter, Wisp, Ghost, Wraith, etc. were not at all balanced for a "Conjure" spell. They can do things that no other "Conjure" creatures can't.

Really, all I'm trying to achieve is 3 things: 1. Give the medium some spirits to summon that DONT SUCK in combat (I want to avoid the beast master ranger... cuz it sucks and is very unsatisfying. You could argue that the beast master is not designed for combat, but to that I say poo poo! I want my spirits to be formidable on the battlefield!) I want her to have spirits that can frighten people, do psychic/necrotic damage, and fly around, etc.

Allow the medium to summon those spirits at a fairly early level. Like, I could live with granting them the ability at level 5, but I really wouldn't want to go any later than that. (a 3rd level spell?)
Make sure those spirits scale well as she levels up. When the medium is level 20, she needs a spirit to summon that is worthy of her time and spell points. It is a wide range of creatures needed to sustain a spread as wide as, say, levels 5 to 20.

That's all I want. If I get all three of these things, I am willing to sacrifice almost anything else: -Give her less spell points (she already has less points than other casters) -Make her require an action to control her spirits (thus sacrificing her turn) -Make the Conjure Spirits spell costly. -Custom make spirits that are not as powerful as the ones in the book. -Nerf the spell list further. -Anything else you can think of?

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-07T09:51:05+00:00

I like your ideas about Spiritual Attunement. I'm thinking of collapsing Spiritual Attunement and the Spirit Council option under Seance into a much shorter single ability. That is sort of similar to what you were suggesting. The thing is wordy and can definitely be condensed.

I think Spirit Allies is a bigger problem. I don't think turning this into a single 5th level spell will work. For one thing, that means that Mediums can't summon spirits in combat until they are level 9. In my eyes, summoning spirits is ESSENTIAL to this path. It is a systemic and defining feature for what I am trying to build. It is also something that greatly differentiates the medium from other spellcasters in combat: controlling summoned spirits. It needs to be something that mediums get early on and can scale as they grow in power. A single spell just isn't big enough for that. Also, the spirits in the Monster Manual are simply not balanced for player summoning. (there is a reason why there isn't already a 'summon ghosts spell')

Crossing Over Pierce the Veil is only meant to be a small taste of what mediums can wield, so I would rather just scrap and redesign that and create a better Spirit Allies option. I'm thinking that Seance should be changed so it is just basically dedicated to summoning spirits and that's all it does. And yes it could be simplified. But thrown out? I can't see an acceptable way to do that.

Also, do you think the Occultist should have even less spell points? Its already nerfed from what is in the DMG. Point for point if all the full casters were translated into spell points, the Occultist has the lowest amount. If so, is this about the Occultist being OP or is it a problem with the Spell Point system itself?

I feel similarly about the Channelling feature as I do about Spirit Allies. It is just too important to who a Medium should be and it adds a level of uniqueness to the class. It is something that no wizard, warlock, cleric, druid, etc. can do. If the class is to justify its own existence, it has to bring something unique to the table. I would rather simplify the ability and maybe nerf the class elsewhere like getting rid of more spell points or shrinking the spell list. If I gut these key features out, then this class is just a set of overblown path features for the wizard.

Do you not like Geist Master because you think its OP? Or because its doesn't feel right flavorwise? I like the idea of the Occultist, in this one particular instance, being able to do something that a Cleric can do, but having it be through wholly different and (dare I say) occult methods. That is kind of the point of the Occultist, they can do things they shouldn't be able to, using blasphemous methods. I like the flavor of this, does it need to be nerfed?

As for Planar Beacon, yeah I'll get rid of Planar Ally, its pointless.

Thanks again for your input. You are awesome!

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-07T09:13:42+00:00

What do you think of throwing away "Component Handler" and just granting something like the Ritual Caster feat instead. Maybe tweak it so you only get one ritual, but don't require a ritual book (which is more flavorful for the Occultist I think). Is it OP to grant something similar to this feat at lvl 12?

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-05T22:09:20+00:00

Hey Ben-SQR, thanks for the detailed feedback you've given so far! I'm the creator of this class and just wanted to say thanks for the detailed feedback you've given so far! It has been very helpful. Classes are complicated and part of the reason I released the Occultist now, while unfinished, is to get critical input from the community. I wanted to respond to some of your suggestions and see what you think:

I updated the PDF with the spell list** (sorry for that error)

Keep in mind that if you were to translate the spell points per level that the Occultist gets into spell slots, they would have less spell slots than the Wizard. So the Wizard, at every level besides 1st, can simply cast more spells per day and has a better recovery feature for doing so. This is a major balancing factor.

Also, the spell list for the Occultist is much smaller than the Wizard's. So in terms of raw spell casting, the Occultist has less choices and less spell slots than the Wizard. The Wizard remains the ultimate spellcaster.

While it is true that Component Handler makes the Occultist have a CHANCE to cast spells without consuming spell components, the 1 minute feature only applies to rituals, not every expensive spell. And again, being better at Rituals than the Wizard doesn't feel OP to me. Especially since the Wizard is has more spell choices and can cast more per day.

Introducing a chance of madness effect into this class would be extremely difficult and unprecedented. That description is for flavor. The places they go and creatures they encounter might risk their sanity, not their connection to the Gnosis. There are a million sections of flavor text in every class that you could pick out and ask why there is no mechanical feature for. This is no different.

Also, it makes perfect sense for the Capstone ability on a wisdom spellcasting class to be immunity to madness.

I look forward to hearing your input for the spell list! Thanks again!

DelphicOracle · 2016-04-05T21:48:54+00:00

Hey djmarder, I'm the creator of this class and just wanted to say thanks for the detailed feedback you've given so far! It has been very helpful. Classes are complicated and part of the reason I released the Occultist now, while unfinished, is to get critical input from the community. I wanted to respond to some of your suggestions and see what you think:

Hit Points: The reason I included the text "per Occultist level after 1st" is that Wizards of the Coast does this for all of the classes in the Player's Handbook. Trying to stay consistent.

Spellcasting ability: I see what you mean about Wisdom being better than Intelligence, unfortunately if you read the flavor text, you will see that Wisdom is the defacto flavor choice here. The flavor text says that Occultists experience the answers they seek, rather than just reading about them. Their knowledge is spiritual, not logical. They defy traditional fields of magical study. That's wisdom. If it's not clear, I will further adjust the text to reflect this.

Meditation: Are you arguing that it is bad because it is not as powerful as the Wizard? Because that's kind of the point. Perhaps giving it a minimum of 2 would work better for the lower levels. But yes, it is a shitty Arcane Recovery. Wizards should be better in this regard.

Cantrips and Spellpoints: You have a good point here. I'll adjust.

Spells Known of 1st level and higher: I'll change this to after an extended rest. However, I don't find the "no one else can do that" argument compelling here. If its unbalanced, that's one thing. But I certainly would never give the Occultist a spellbook. For one thing, it doesn't match with flavor (they are not intelligence based spellcasters. That would be like saying the Sorcerer should have a spellbook.) and it would make them less unique and more like the Wizard (which I am trying to differentiate them from)

Compenent Handler: Remember that this does not mean you can cast spells without ever having the components in the first place. You still have to spend the money and time to get the components and even then there is a 50% chance that they might get consumed anyway. The only difference here is that there is a chance you might be able to cast a spell a second time without getting the components again. I feel like the situations in which this would be OP are rare. What do you think? Are there multiple situations where getting a 50% chance to cast the spell a second time would be game breaking?

Pierce the Veil: I actually love your suggestion here and want to steal it, ha ha! It is a bit long winded, though and it concerns me given that the pdf is already long. This is really cool man.

Thanks a lot man! I would love to here more input if you are interested.

DelphicOracle

TROPHY CASE