Mage (5e Class)
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Mage
Through the remains of a camp, a human male walks through the sodden dirt, bandits lining the floor with fiery holes in their stomachs. A dwarf chants over a scroll, as magic runs through the crystal in its hand. An elven female assails her enemies with a motley collection of trinkets and techniques she picked up on her travels.
Mages are often eager and impatient to become the powerful master of the arcane they believe themselves to be. Beginning early, they pursue reckless powers without any official training or restraint, simply picking up bits and pieces of whatever lore and techniques they find appealing.
Creating a Mage
When choosing to be a mage, think about your reasoning. A mage is a spellcaster who rushed through the early onset tutelage of magic and doesn't possess an innate affinity for magic. A mage is a spellcaster who developed a shortcut to magic, so why would someone pursue these techniques? They are most likely a student who just didn't have the time to learn or study or needed power and magic quick without putting in the work. Mages are those with limited to know official instruction, who put them on this path? Were they students of magic before or a street rat that saw a wizard one day?
Want to use magic but don't have the patience?
Mages are spellcasters that often don't have the time or patience to prepare spells every day but lack the innate abilities of a sorcerer. By creating a shortcut to actual memorization, they store a limited number of spells in their mind as a sorcerer would, but also keep the spell effectively "prepared" in a focus. This way they only need a small gesture or word to finish the given spell and don't have to keep track of as much knowledge at once, allowing for free time like no wizard will ever know!
Class Features
As a Mage you gain the following class features.
- Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d6 per Mage level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d6 (or 4) + Constitution modifier per Mage level after 1st
- Proficiencies
Armor: None
Weapons: Daggers, darts, slings, quarterstaffs, light crossbows
Tools:
Saving Throws: intelligence, charisma
Skills: Choose two
- Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) a dagger or (b) a quarterstaff
- (a) a dungeoneer's pack or (b) an explorer's pack
- an arcane focus
| Level | Proficiency Bonus |
Spells Known | Cantrips Known | Features | —Spell Slots per Spell Level— | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | |||||
| 1st | +2 | 1 | 3 | Spellcasting, Arcane Bolt | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2nd | +2 | 1 | 3 | Layman's Imbued Spell | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 3rd | +2 | 2 | 3 | Tricks of The Trade Feature | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4th | +2 | 2 | 4 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5th | +3 | 3 | 4 | — | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6th | +3 | 3 | 4 | Practice Makes Perfect | 4 | 3 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7th | +3 | 4 | 5 | Tricks of The Trade Feature | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8th | +3 | 4 | 5 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 9th | +4 | 5 | 5 | — | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 10th | +4 | 5 | 6 | Tricks of The Trade Feature | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
| 11th | +4 | 6 | 6 | — | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 12th | +4 | 6 | 6 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 13th | +5 | 7 | 7 | — | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | — |
| 14th | +5 | 7 | 7 | Tricks of The Trade Feature | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | — |
| 15th | +5 | 8 | 7 | — | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 16th | +5 | 8 | 8 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 17th | +6 | 9 | 8 | Tricks of The Trade Feature | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 18th | +6 | 9 | 8 | Efficient Spell | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 19th | +6 | 9 | 9 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 20th | +6 | 9 | 9 | Permanency | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
Spellcasting
As a student of magic... you gave up using your spell book years ago. You can snap your fingers and do magic, what use is a dusty old tome? You can figure the rest out as you go.
- Cantrips
At 1st level, you know three cantrips which you may choose from the bard, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard spell lists. You learn additional cantrips of your choice at higher levels, as shown in the Cantrips Known column of the Mage table.
When gaining a new cantrip upon levelling up, a mage may turn this cantrip into a new spell of a spell level they have spell slots for. Spells learned this way replace the cantrip and does not count against a mage maximum number of spells they have imbued. this feature can only be used once and at the minimum level of 4. Upon gaining a new cantrip upon levelling up, A mage may choose to switch out the spell learned.
- Casting Spells
The Mage table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a spell slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest. You prepare each spell only once, imbuing it into your focus. An effective shortcut around the age-old practice of preparing spells each morning, you can cast each as many times as your spell slots will allow.
- Learning Spells of 1st Level and Higher
Each time you gain access to a new level of the spell, you learn a single spell chosen from the bard, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard spell list of the appropriate level.
Much like a wizard writing spells in their spellbook, you may use scrolls or other tomes you find along your way to change the imbued spells in your focus, but your focus may only carry one spell of each level.
- Spellcasting Ability
You use Charisma as your spellcasting ability for your Mage spells since the power of your spells relies on your ability to project your will into the world. You use your Charisma whenever a spell calls for your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Charisma modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a mage spell cast and for setting an attack roll for one.
Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier
- Spellcasting Focus
You can use an Arcane Focus as a spellcasting focus (See PH page 150) for your mage spells.
Arcane Bolt
Your signature and masterpiece.
At 1st level, you gain Arcane Bolt as a bonus spell which you may cast without using a spell slot. For purposes of Counterspell etc, this spell's level is equal to your proficiency bonus. This spell does not count against the number of imbued spells you have in your focus.
Casting time: 1 action
Range: 120 feet
Components: Somatic
Duration: Instantaneous
Make a spell attack against a creature you can see within range. On a hit, Arcane Bolt deals a number of damage dice to the target equal to half your proficiency bonus rounded up. Each time you cast Arcane Bolt, choose a unique damage type among acid, cold, fire, force, lightning, necrotic, poison, psychic, radiant, and thunder. You must complete a short or long rest before you can cast arcane bolt with the same damage type again.
Starting at 1st level, roll d6 for damage. Increase the damage die size by one at 6th (d8), 11th (d10), and 15th level (d12).
Imbuing and Casting Spells
The Mage table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a spell slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest. You prepare each spell only once, imbuing it into your focus. As an effective shortcut around the age-old practice of preparing spells each morning, you can cast each as many times as your spell slots will allow.
When you find a spell of 1st level or higher of a spell list you can imbue, if it is of a level for which you have a spell already imbued you can spare the time to decipher and prepare it in place of your current spell of the same level. This process involves deciphering the written spell and the channeling of magic between your focus and the object in which the found spell is inscribed. You perform the ritual over the course of 1 hour, which can be done during a short rest. At the ritual's completion, you have imbued the found spell in your focus and can cast it as such. The source of the inscribed spell (scroll, spellbook, etc.) now contains the spell that you had prepared previously, no longer imbued.
Layman's Imbued Spell
Without proper magic training, a Mage utilizes strange tricks and loopholes to perfect their magic casting. Once per long rest, she may trigger an item imbued with a spell, such as a spell scroll or her imbued items, casting the imbued spell or effect. The spell casted this way uses the creators (if it was created) or the Mages spell hit mod and spell save DC, whichever is higher. An item casted this way is not expended (scrolls do not lose their magic) but the item cannot be used normally for another 1d4 days.
At 6th level, the amount of times a Mage can cast a spell this way is increased by 1. At 12th level, the Mage requires a short rest in between uses rather than a long rest
Tricks of the Trade
Not being up to the usual study of schools and books, the Mage sets about a different means of getting by. Picking and choosing to find the best path for themselves.
At 3rd, 7th, 10th, 14th, and 17th levels, a mage can choose to gain a feature of any subclass from a fullcaster class, as long as a character with that subclass could do so at that level or lower, ignoring any other prerequisites associated to attaining a given feature.
A feature which grants access to a single spell automatically grants it as a bonus spell. You must still have your focus in order to cast such a spell.
A feature which grants access to more than one spell (Warlock patron spells, druid circle spells, etc) does not grant bonus spells, but if you choose such a feature you may choose from the spells it provides when learning spells of a new level.
Features which go off of levels in a class are substituted with levels in mage and progress as normal.
Alternatively, you can take feats instead of taking features. You must still meet the prerequisites of these feats.
Ability Score Increase
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.
Efficient Spell
At 18th level, casting some spells has simply become second nature.
When imbuing your focus, you may now have up to two spells that are reduced by one spell level. Each of those spells counts as being one spell level lower for figuring which spell slot to spend when casting it, but not for what spells you know.
If done on a 1st level spell, the spell becomes a cantrip that takes no slot or material components unless the spell is cast at higher levels for increased effect. Reducing a 1st level spell to a cantrip is permanent, as cantrips cannot be unlearned.
Permanency
You have been imbuing spells in your focus for so long that you don't even have to think about it much to get the magic flowing.
At 20th level, you may cast a spell which requires concentration and keep it permanent without concentrating. Alternatively, you can cast any spell which targets yourself and keep it permanent with the same conditions. Any condition that would end the spell other than time or concentration will still end it. If the spell would be forcibly dispelled or negated through means such as Counterspell or Dispel Magic, your opponent must roll for success no matter what level of spell slot they used to counter or dispel, if the spell slot your opponent used to counter or dispell your spell is equal to or lower than the spell level, the roll is made with disadvantage. The DC for your permanent spell equals 12 + the spell’s level. If the spell would be suppressed, such as by an Antimagic Field, You may roll vs. your spellsave DC using your spellcasting modifier. On a success, the spell is not suppressed and cannot be suppressed for 1 minute.
You may only have one permanent spell active at a time. Casting a second permanent spell ends the first.
Multiclassing
Prerequisites. To qualify for multiclassing into the Mage class, you must meet these prerequisites: Charisma 13
Proficiencies. When you multiclass into the Mage class, you gain the following proficiencies: Daggers, Quarterstaffs
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- Built for use with the Voidhaven campaign setting.
