San-li (Spell Thrower)

Posted by EarthDragon on 10th January 2017.

A few unintelligible words and fleeting gestures carry more power than a battle-axe, when they are the words and gestures of a san-li. San-li depend on intensive study to create their magic. They examine musty old tomes, debate magical theory with their peers, and practice minor magics whenever they can. For a san-li, magic is not a talent but a difficult, rewarding art. The san-li’s strength is their spells. Everything else is secondary. They learn new spells as they experiment and grow in experience, and they can also learn them from other san-li. In addition to learning new spells, a san-li can, over time, learn to manipulate their spells so they go farther, work better, or are improved in some other way. Some san-li prefer to specialize in a certain type of magic. Specialization makes a san-li more powerful in her chosen field, but it denies access to some of the spells that lie outside that field. A san-li can call a familiar—a small, magical animal companion that serves her. For some san-li, their familiars are their only true friends.

  Adventures

San-li conduct their adventures with caution and forethought. When prepared and rested, they can use their spells to devastating effect. When caught by surprise, they can be vulnerable. They seek knowledge, power, and the resources to conduct their studies. They may also have any of the noble or ignoble motivations that other adventurers have.

  Alignment

Overall, san-li show a slight tendency toward law over chaos because the study of magic rewards those who are disciplined. Illusionists and transmuters, however, are masters of deception and change, respectively. They favour chaos over law.

  Background

San-li recognize each other as comrades or rivals. Even san-li from very different cultures or magical traditions have much in common because they all conform to the same laws of magic. Unlike some other classes, san-li see themselves as members of a distinct, if diverse, group. In civilized lands where san-li study in academies, schools, or guilds, san-li also identify themselves and others according to membership in these formal organizations. But while a guild magician may look down their nose at a rustic san-li who learned their arts from a doddering hermit, they nevertheless can’t deny the rustic’s identity as a san-li.

  Role

The san-li’s role depends somewhat on the spells they know, but most san-li share certain similarities in function. They are among the most offensively minded of the spellcasting classes, with a broad range of options available for neutralizing enemies. Some san-li provide great support to their comrades by way of their spells, while others may focus on divination or other facets of the san-li art.

  Game Rule Information

  Abilities

Intelligence determines how powerful a spell a san-li can cast, how many spells they can cast, and how hard those spells are to resist. A high Dexterity score is helpful for a san-li, who typically wears little or no armour, because it provides a bonus to Armor Class. A good Constitution score gives a san-li extra hit points, a resource that they are otherwise very low on.

  Alignment

Any.

  Vitality Points

d4.

  Class Skills

The san-li’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).

  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 san-li.

  Weapon and Armour Proficiency

San-li are proficient with the club, dagger, heavy crossbow, light crossbow, and quarterstaff, but not with any type of armour or shield. Armour of any type interferes with a san-li’s movements, which can cause spells with somatic components to fail.

  Spells

A san-li casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the san-li spell list. A san-li may cast a certain number of spells per day, depending on how many spell points they have left. To learn or cast a spell, the san-li must have an Intelligence score equal to at least 10 + the spell level (Int 10 for 0-level spells, Int 11 for 1st-level spells, and so forth). The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a san-li’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the san-li’s Intelligence modifier. The san-li may receive a certain number of bonus spell points per day for a high Intelligence score, as given in the section on abilities. A san-li may know any number of spells. Spell points are recovered by getting a good night’s sleep and spending 1 hour studying her spell book.

  Bonus Language

All san-li can read Draconic, the only language other than Basic and some of the other, secret languages of other classes such as the draetha, which has survived in any form through the cultural milieu of The Unification. Many ancient tomes of magic are written in Draconic, and apprentice san-li learn it as part of their studies.

  Familiar

A san-li 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. The san-li chooses the kind of familiar he gets. As the san-li advances in level, their familiar also increases in power. If the familiar dies or is dismissed by the san-li, the san-li must attempt a DC 15 Fortitude saving throw. Failure means the character loses 200 experience points per san-li level; success reduces the loss to one-half that amount. However, a san-li’s experience point total can never go below 0 as the result of a familiar’s demise or dismissal. 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.

  Bonus Feats

At 5th, 10th, 15th, and 20th level, a san-li gains a bonus feat. At each such opportunity, the character can choose a meta-magic feat, an item creation feat, or Spell Mastery. The san-li must still meet all prerequisites for a bonus feat, including caster level minimums. These bonus feats are in addition to the feat that a character of any class gets every three levels. The san-li is not limited to the categories of item creation feats, meta-magic feats, or Spell Mastery when choosing these normal feats. After 20th level, the character gains feats every 3rd level, and may choose from epic feats of the appropriate kind.

  Spell books

A san-li must study their spell book each day as part of the process of restoring spell points. They cannot cast any spell not recorded in their spell book, except for read magic, which all san-li can prepare from memory. A san-li begins play with a spell book containing all 0-level san-li spells (except those from any prohibited school or schools, if any) plus three 1st-level spells of the player’s choice. For each point of Intelligence bonus the san-li has, the spell book holds one additional 1st-level spell of the player’s choice. At each new san-li level, the character gains two new spells of any spell level or levels that the character can cast (based on their new san-li level) for their spell book. For example, when a san-li attains 5th level, they can cast 3rd-level spells. At this point, they can add two new 3rd-level spells to their spell book, or one 2nd-level spell and one 3rd-level spell, or any combination of two spells between 1st and 3rd level. At any time, a san-li can also add spells found in other san-lis’ spell books to their own.

  School Specialisation

A school is one of eight groupings of spells, each defined by a common theme, such as illusion or necromancy. If desired, a san-li may specialize in one school of magic (see below). Specialization allows a san-li to cast extra spells from their chosen school, but they can then never learns to cast spells from certain other schools (so-called “opposed” schools). Essentially, the san-li gains exceptional mastery over a single school by neglecting the study of other schools. A specialist san-li can cast one additional spell of their specialty school per spell level each day (they essentially get special school spell points which can only be used to cast specialty school spells and they can only cast one spell of each level per day – these spells need to be tracked very carefully, sloppy book-keeping will result in this ability being withdrawn). The character also gains a +2 bonus on Spellcraft checks to learn the spells of their chosen school. The san-li must choose whether to specialize and, if they do so, choose their specialty at 1st level. At this time, they must also give up two other schools of magic (unless they choose to specialize in divination; see below), which become their prohibited schools. For instance, if a character chooses to specialize in conjuration, they might decide to give up enchantment and necromancy, or evocation and transmutation. A san-li can never give up divination to fulfil this requirement. Spells of the prohibited school or schools are not available to the san-li, and they can’t even cast such spells from scrolls or fire them from wands. The character may not change either their specialization or their prohibited schools later. The eight schools of arcane magic are abjuration, conjuration, divination, enchantment, evocation, illusion, necromancy, and transmutation. Spells that do not fall into any of these schools are called universal spells.

Spells that protect, block, or banish. An abjuration specialist is called an abjurer.

Spells that bring creatures or materials to the caster. A conjuration specialist is called a conjurer.

Spells that reveal information. A divination specialist is called a diviner. Unlike the other specialists, a diviner must give up only one other school.

Spells that imbue the recipient with some property or grant the caster power over another being. An enchantment specialist is called an enchanter. Spells that manipulate energy or create something from nothing. An evocation specialist is called an evoker.

Spells that alter perception or create false images. An illusion specialist is called an illusionist.

Spells that manipulate, create, or destroy life or life force. A necromancy specialist is called a necromancer.

Spells that transform the recipient physically or change its properties in a more subtle way. A transmutation specialist is called a transmuter

Not a school, but a category for spells that all san-li can learn. A san-li cannot select universal as a specialty school or as a prohibited school. Only a limited number of spells fall into this category.

Not a school, but a category for spells that all san-li can learn. A san-li cannot select universal as a specialty school or as a prohibited school. Only a limited number of spells fall into this category.

  Ex-Members

There are no special rules for ex-san-li. Once a character is a san-li, they remain so.

* Base attack bonuses are handled differently for epic characters.

** Save bonuses are handled differently for epic characters.

*** Number of Spell Points per day, numbers of spells known, and maximum spell level does not increase past 20th level. Spell casters above 20th level gain access to Epic Level spells.