Level Up (A5E) State of the Archetypes

[Faolyn]

That went through some iteration. There was a heritage in there at various points, but as it turned out, it works best as a culture. I'm just glad they're in there as a playable option, tbh. I lobbied hard for that and I'm so happy it made the final cut.

I'm glad as well. I don't mind them not being a heritage; I was mostly just surprised. I actually quite like the LU version of the grimlock--they're so much more interesting than just another subterranean monster.

And the traits for a blind PC are really nice as well. I have a player in one of my (o5e) games who is playing a blind hexblade and I had given their character a limited blindsight, but I just asked them if they wanted to "upgrade" their character with the new traits.

 

[Timespike]

The new grimlock lore is my favorite contribution to the core books. But that also means I want to be able to play one, and that turned out to be a thornier puzzle than initially expected. As I said, I'm so glad it worked out in the end.

 

[Larnievc]

What's PMG?

 

[xiphumor]

What's PMG?

Purple Martin Games. At present, they’ve done every third-party archetype for A5e.

 

[Timespike]

Purple Martin Games. At present, they’ve done every third-party archetype for A5e.

Only most of them. Don't forget Ravine! I haven't seen any new ones recently, but Ravine has an adept archetype, two for rangers, and one for warlocks over on itch.io: Ravine - itch.io

 

[xiphumor]

Only most of them. Don't forget Ravine! I haven't seen any new ones recently, but Ravine has an adept archetype, two for rangers, and one for warlocks over on itch.io: Ravine - itch.io

I wasn’t aware of them. I really gotta make a more official system for keeping track if I’m going to be updating this regularly.

 

[kerleth]

Question I’ve been mulling over: is a Savant 1/3 caster a bad idea? ........Thoughts?

Very small number of low level spells. Perhaps even gain 1 spell slot O5E warlock style that scales very slowly. The difference is that 1) spellcasting isn't your whole identity, just one of your tricks and 2) This spell can be rechosen from any list every short rest. Even if that is not exactly how it's handled, keep it a small number of relatively low level spells that are prepared from anywhere and can be adapted via short rest, long rest, a few hours of research or meditation, preparing an alchemical concoction that "quickens" your magic, by bashing together a knock off artificer-esque spell trinket, or some similar method.

At higher levels you gain the ability to prepare this spell with a metamagic option that it is cast with at no extra cost and is likewise regularly changeable. By scaling spell level very slowly it biases the archetype away from straight damage spells and towards more utility and tactical usage. By scaling both level and number of spells slowly it prevents overshadowing more dedicated spellcasters. This allows the savant to be the adaptable ace in the hole that has amassed lore from the entire magical world. With prep time and cleverness you can prepare for almost any circumstance but cannot brute force it. Makes a good hole filler in party capabilities and feels like the sort of thing a more scholarly character with clever schemes and savant tricks would have.

 

[xiphumor]

Very small number of low level spells. Perhaps even gain 1 spell slot O5E warlock style that scales very slowly. The difference is that 1) spellcasting isn't your whole identity, just one of your tricks and 2) This spell can be rechosen from any list every short rest. Even if that is not exactly how it's handled, keep it a small number of relatively low level spells that are prepared from anywhere and can be adapted via short rest, long rest, a few hours of research or meditation, preparing an alchemical concoction that "quickens" your magic, by bashing together a knock off artificer-esque spell trinket, or some similar method.

At higher levels you gain the ability to prepare this spell with a metamagic option that it is cast with at no extra cost and is likewise regularly changeable. By scaling spell level very slowly it biases the archetype away from straight damage spells and towards more utility and tactical usage. By scaling both level and number of spells slowly it prevents overshadowing more dedicated spellcasters. This allows the savant to be the adaptable ace in the hole that has amassed lore from the entire magical world. With prep time and cleverness you can prepare for almost any circumstance but cannot brute force it. Makes a good hole filler in party capabilities and feels like the sort of thing a more scholarly character with clever schemes and savant tricks would have.

Thanks for this! I’ve actually written up my draft for a savant caster now, and I came to some of the same ideas you did, but not all. Thank you for the suggestions! I’ll be dwelling on them before I go public.