Sorcerer - Base Class

Duncehack Edition

So who are you?

Just some tosser with an over inflated sense of self importance.

Send verbal abuse via Minds.com

What is the Duncehack?

It emerged from a place of frustration. There's quite a number of areas where 5e could be improved but... it's not going to happen for various reasons.

The Duncehack is my attempt to fix these problems I have. Plan is to go through the whole game - all of it - and homebrew it into the game I think is should have been.

Feel free to disagree with me, but ultimately I think there's no harm in putting my thoughts out there, at the very least if even one DM decides to adopt these rules, then my job is done.

No DM Guild? No OGL Release?

I chafe under binding contracts and both of these are exactly that.

The DM Guild gives you more room to mess with established rules, but basically demands that all be under the service of flagship settings.

The SRD on the other hand gives more room for interesting settings but clamps down extremely hard on what established rules you're allowed to use. Their biggest contention is that they don't want someone to sell a sourcebook that removes the need for core books. Translation: they don't want Pathfinder to happen all over again.

More to the point, both assume money will change hands. I don't want money, I just want Wizards to fix their game.

Groundrules

Groundrules for the Duncehack are as follows:

• No Nerfs: the goal is to bring weaker archetypes on the level of the stronger ones.

• Remove Traps: incentives built into classes and archetypes should provide an active payoff, rather than be the suboptimal choice.

• Frontload Agency, Backend Power: Generally speaking, people like having more options to do things, rather than more raw power. As a design rule: things that feel like core class features, or are defining class mechanics, should happen in the first ten levels, sheer numeric increases in power should come after that.

No money changed hands here

This is a passion project. I want to keep it that way.

I also want to avoid legal issues for self-evident reasons.

No UA?

Too much changes between UA and official release.

The fewer corrections I have the do between UA changes, the better.

Obligatory Natural Crit Plug

http://www.naturalcrit.com/

Someone else made a thing that lets me make homebrews without having to post them on pastebin or something. They deserve a lot of credit for that.

Obligatory /tg/ Plug

The feedback I got from various Anons on this helped me build it into something that wasn't bad and stupid.

I love you all in a way only abused spouse can possibly understand.

No Images?

Needed to get it under 8mb so I could upload it literally anywhere.

So what in Sorcerer needs fixing?

This is to casters what Rangers are to martials.

The problem is that it's a bit more subtle in how badly broken it is.

See, martials are a bit more to the point, so it's more overt what broke. Casters on the other hand are complex by design.

The tl;dr of it all is that there's nothing Sorcerers can do that Wizards can't do better, except for a couple of the Metamagics.

If you want the full essay, next page has got you covered.

What if I think this goes too far?

Which is a reasonable stance.

If all you want is small scale changes and think I went wildly too far - do the following to the PHB Sorcerers:

• Move Sorcerer capstone to 6th level.
• Use Bard spell progression.
• Add a better capstone. You can use mine here if you want (Called Wellspring of Power).
• Give them Archetype spells. Minimum 5 (1 for each spell slot level up to 5th level slots).

What is Broken then?

A bunch of things, the main concern being that Sorcerers are little more than watered down Wizards who sacrifice far too much for half the utility.

Lacklustre Spell List

What this means for a caster is lack of utility.

Sorcerers have a decent range of utility spells, but combined with the other following problems, they're not worth learning or using due to the opportunity costs involved.

They also lack spells that make no sense for them to lack. An example would be melf's acid arrow - pretty much the only character who would benefit from going out of their way to pick that spell up is a Black Dragon Ancestory Sorcerer.

Instead Sorcerers don't have access to a dedicated Acid spell until 4th level with vitriolic sphere. Unless you count chromatic orb, there's nothing for them until that point.

Too Few Learnt Spells from Levelling

Sorcerers learn 15 spells levelling up. Bards learn 22.

For reference, Eldritch Knights get 13.

Why is a full caster competing with a 1/3rd caster for known spells?

Resource Issues

Sorcerers are designed to burn out fast, even a cursory read of the class demonstrates this.

This is fine in theory, as they can tap sorcery points to refresh spell slots and spell slots to bring back sorcery points on the fly.

The problem is, that in practice it's not that useful. Every other caster gets back a meaningful resource on short rest (clerics not so much, but they have channel divinity and their domain features give a lot of utility).

The Sorcerer equivalent is gained at level 20.

The Wizard equivalent? level 2.

Sorcery Point Management

Metamagic proves to be a huge utility boon that goes severely underutilised.

If used agressively, which is likely why you've picked up Sorcerer in the first place, you'll find yourself burnt down to cantrips before long.

On the other hand, if you want to keep pace with the Wizard over the duration of a dungeon crawl, you're spending those sorcery points to refresh spell slots, negating the unique utility that is the main selling point of Sorcerers in the first place.

Meanwhile, Wizards have archetype features that fill a similar, if more restrictive, role to metamagic but with no associated resources.

No Utility Outside of Spell Slot Usage

Druids have Wild Shape, Clerics have their domain features and their Channel Divinity, Bards have Bardic Inspiration and Jack of All Trades, Warlocks have Eldritch Invocations, Wizards aren't restricted to ritual casting only prepared spells.

Sorcerers have nothing outside of casting spell.

Perpetual feeling of uselessness

So, if you're saving your sorcery points to keep your spell slots up, it means that you're not offering metamagic utility to the party.

If you're using sorcery points for your metamagic, then you're going to burn out of spell slots long before you're able to take a long rest.

If you're trying to find a middle ground, you're using sorcery points on cantrips.

And you might even be tempted to fuel those sorcery points on powerful cantrips with your spell slots... except that just using the spells in those slots would be the better choice.

You could say 'but these just mean Sorcerers have to make meaningful choices', except no other caster is forced to make the choice between longevity and utility.

Being forced to sacrifice one for the other isn't a 'choice', it's a ransom imposed upon the player for picking the class.

Why pick Sorcerer at all?

At this point? Coffeelock builds.

Except that it's not all it's cracked up to be. It's directly countered by Rules as Written that state you need sleep or suffer exhaustion.

A janky multiclass should not be a class' sole reason to exist and be used.

Class Features

As a Sorcerer, you gain the following class features

Hit Points

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• Hit Dice: 1d6 per Sorcerer Level
• Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + Consitution Modifier
• Hit Points past 1st: 1d6 (4) + Constitution Modifier

Proficiencies

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• Armour: None
• Weapon: Daggers, Darts, Slings, Quarterstaves, Light Crossbows, one martial weapon of your choice.
• Tools: Any two tool proficiencies of your choice

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• Saving Throws: Constitution, Charisma
• Skills: Two of: Arcana, Deception, Insight, Intimidation, Persuasion, Religion.

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) A light crossbow with 20 bolts (b) any simple weapon
• (a) any simple weapon (b) a sling with 20 bullets
• (a) dungeoneer's pack (b) explorer's pack
• (a) two daggers (b) 10 darts
• Any martial weapon you're proficient in.
• Any tools of a kind you're proficient in.

Expanded known spells?

As said earlier, without spells, Sorcerers lack for utility options. What Sorcerer will pick up jump when the opportunity cost is chromatic orb?

Spellcasting

An event in your past, or in the life of a parent or ancestor, left an indelible mark on you, infusing you with arcane magic. This font of magic, whatever its origin, fuels your spells.

Cantrips

At 1st level, you know four cantrips of your choice from the sorcerer spell list. You learn an additional sorcerer cantrip of your choice at 4th level and another at 10th level.

Spell Slots

The Sorcerer table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your sorcerer spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these sorcerer spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.

For example, if you know the 1st-level spell burning hands and have a 1st-level and a 2nd-level spell slot available, you can cast burning hands using either slot.

Spells Known

You know four spells first level spells from the sorcerer spell list.

You learn an additional sorcerer spell of your choice as per the Spells Known column above. Each of these spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots. For instance, when you reach 3rd level in this class, you can learn one new spell of 1st or 2nd level.

Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the sorcerer spells you know and replace it with another spell from the sorcerer spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

Spellcasting Ability

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• Spell Save DC = 8 + Proficiency Modifier + Charisma Modifier.
• Spell Attack Modifier = Proficiency Modifier + Charisma Modifier

Innate Spellcasting

Your own body counts an arcane focus.

Spell Versatility

Whenever you finish a long rest, you can replace one spell you learned from this Spellcasting feature with another spell from the sorcerer spell list. The new spell must be the same level as the spell you replace.

Ritual Casting

You can cast any sorcerer spell you know as a ritual if that spell has the ritual tag.

Magical Blood

Your blood can substitute for other materials in a spell. Other spellcasters can utilise this blood in the absence of a focus or a component pouch.

Each fluid ounce of blood may be substituted for of material costs worth 1gp or less. The blood is consumed by this process.

This cannot replace materials that are normally consumed by the spell (such as a diamond for a resurrection spell). You cannot carry more than 100gp worth of blood at a time in this way.

You can spend a minute to draw 1d4 + Your Constitution Modifier fluid ounces of blood. You do not take damage from this feature as the amount you're drawing is measured in droplets.

When you use this feature, you cannot bloodlet like this again until you complete a long rest.

Innate Bond

You can spend an hour, which can be done during a short rest, to bond to a weapon. The weapon must be within your reach throughout the ritual, at the conclusion of which you touch the weapon and forge the bond.

Once you have bonded a weapon to yourself, you can't be disarmed of that weapon unless you are incapacitated. If it is on the same plane of existence, you can summon that weapon as a bonus action on your turn, causing it to teleport instantly to your hand.

You can have up to your Charisma modifier (minimum 1) in bonded weapons, but can summon only one at a time with your bonus action. If you attempt to bond with a weapon past this limit, you must break the bond with one of the others.

Innate Spellcasting?

Was already a houserule at most tables simply because... isn't this what sorcerers are supposed to be all about?

You still need free hands for somatic components.

Magical Blood?

It's mostly a fluff thing - Sorcerers are supposed to have magic flowing through their veins after all.

Also means that if you're strapped for gold and have a vial handy, selling it to an apothecary is an option.

Innate Bond

In order to better support Sorcerer gishes. Yeah sure, this is a buff to bladelocks and paladins who multiclass, but it's not like a weapon bond is going to snap the game in two.

Ritual Casting?

The Sorcerer spell list is a lot thinner than the Wizard's, and the Wizard can choose not to spend a spell slot on their utility spells.

Flavour wise, I like the idea one Anon used in that if casting for a Sorcerer is like sprinting, then ritual casting is like jogging.

Font of Magic

At 2nd level, you tap into a deep wellspring of magic within yourself.

This wellspring is represented by sorcery points, which allow you to create a variety of magical effects

Sorcery Points

You have 2 sorcery points, and you gain one additional point every time you level up, to a maximum of 20 at level 20.

You can never have more sorcery points than shown on the table for your level.

You regain all spent sorcery points when you finish a long rest.

Flexible Casting

You can convert sorcery points into spell slots and spell slots into sorcery points.

• Spell slots to sorcery points: As a bonus action you can convert a spell slot into a number of sorcery points equal to the slot's level (i.e. a 5th level slot becomes 5 sorcery points)

• Sorcery poins to spell slots: As a bonus action, you can create spell slots up to 5th level by spending the following amounts:

Spell Slot costs (in Sorcery Points)

Spell Slot Level	Sorcery Point Cost
1st	2
2nd	3
3rd	5
4th	6
5th	7

Any spell slots created this way vanish at the end of a long rest.

Imbuing Touch

As an action, you can touch one nonmagical weapon and spend 2 sorcery point to imbue it with magic for 1 minute. For the duration, the weapon is considered magical for the purpose of overcoming immunity and resistance to nonmagical attacks.

When you use this feature on a weapon that's bonded to you, it only costs 1 sorcery point, can be used on an already magical weapon, and can be performed without spending an action. At 5th level, when this feature is used on a bonded weapon, the weapon gains a +1 enchantment (added onto any enchantment the weapon might already have. This enchantment imrpoves by another +1 at 10th and 15th levels. No weapon can be improved past a +3 enchantment in this way.

Empowering Reserves

When you make an ability check on your turn, you can spend 2 sorcery points to gain advantage on the check.

Sorcerous Fortitude

As an action, you can spend any number of sorcery points to roll a d4 for each point expended. You gain a number of temporary hit points equal to the total rolled.

The die type for this feature increases as you attain levels in this class, to d6 at 5th level, d8 at 9th, d10 at 13th, and d12 at 17th.

Sorcerous Origin

Choose a sorcerous origin, which describes the source of your innate magical power, from the list of available origins.

Options are: Draconic Ancestory, Wild Magic, Storm Magic, Divine Soul, Shadow, Elementalist.

This origin grants you features at 1st, 6th, 14th and 18th levels.

Lesser Metamagic

At 3rd, you have a pool of Lesser Metamagic uses equal to your Charisma Modifier (Minimum 1).

You may spend 1 Lesser Metamagic charge to use any Metamagic feature you know on a cantrip, regardless of the Metamagic's sorcery point cost.

You regain usage of this feature after a short rest.

Font of Magic

Sorcerous Fortitude scales with level now. Imbuing Touch also scales with sorcerer level.

Elementalist Sorcerous Origin

Plane Shift: Kaladesh had the Pyromancer origin - Basically a template on which they could base the character Chandra Nalaar.

I decided to open it out mechanically to other elements here to save DMs from having to tweak this for say, a Cryomancer, down the road.

Lesser Metamagic?

So that Sorcerers aren't worthless when they inevitably run out of spell slots.

Metamagic

I specified Sorcerer spells so that opening Twinned Spell to more spells wouldn't turn into eldritch blast abuse.

Metamagic

At 3rd level, you gain the ability to twist your Sorcerer spells to suit your needs. You gain three of the following Metamagic options of your choice, gaining an extra option every two levels after this one. Unless otherwise stated, a spell can only have one metamagic used on it at a time.

Careful Spell

When you cast a spell that forces other creatures to make a saving throw, you can protect some of those creatures from the spell's full force. To do so, you spend 1 sorcery point and choose a number of those creatures up to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one creature). A chosen creature automatically succeeds on its saving throw against the spell.

Distant Spell

When you cast a spell that has a range of 5 feet or greater, you can spend 1 sorcery point to double the range of the spell. When you cast a spell that has a range of touch, you can spend 1 sorcery point to make the range of the spell 30 feet.

Empowered Spell

When you roll damage for a spell, you can spend 1 sorcery point to reroll a number of the damage dice up to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one). You must use the new rolls. You can use Empowered Spell even if you have already used a different Metamagic option during the casting of the spell.

Extended Spell

When you cast a spell that has a duration of 1 minute or longer, you can spend 1 sorcery point to double its duration, to a maximum duration of 24 hours.

Heightened Spell

When you cast a spell that forces a creature to make a saving throw to resist its effects, you can spend 3 sorcery points to give one target of the spell disadvantage on its first saving throw made against the spell.

Quickened Spell

When you cast a spell that has a casting time of 1 action, you can spend 2 sorcery points to change the casting time to 1 bonus action for this casting.

Subtle Spell

When you cast a spell, you can spend 1 sorcery point to cast it without any somatic or verbal components. It also allows you to ignore material components provided they have no cost and are not consumed by the spell.

Twinned Spell

When you cast a Sorcerer spell that doesn't have a range of self and only has a target of one creature, you can spend a number of sorcery points equal to the spell's level to target a second creature in range with the same spell (1 sorcery point if the spell is a cantrip).

Spells capable of targetting more then one creature may be used with this metamagic, provided they only target one creature when twinned. The Twinned spell, similarly may only target one seperate creature.

Elemental Spell

When you cast a spell that deals a type of damage from the following list, you can spend 1 sorcery point to change that damage type to one of the other listed types: acid, cold, fire, lightning, thunder.

Seeking Spell

When you cast a spell that requires you to make a spell attack roll or that forces a target to make a Dexterity saving throw, you can spend 1 sorcery point to ignore the effects of any cover, up to three quarters cover, against targets of the spell.

Unerring Spell

If you make an attack roll for a spell and miss, you can spend 2 sorcery points to reroll the attack roll. You must use the result of the second roll. You can use Unerring Spell even if you have already used a different Metamagic option during the casting of the spell.

Ability Score Increases

At 4th, 8th, 12th, 16th and 19th levels you gain +2 to one ability score, or +1 to two ability scores. You cannot raise an ability score above 20 this way.

Sorcerous Restoration

At 5th level, you recover your Charisma Modifier (minimum 1) Sorcery Points on a short rest. This cannot exceed your maximum sorcery point total.

Inborn Power

At 7th level, you start to gain more control over the innate manifestations of your magical bloodline.

You add your Charisma modifier to Sorcerer cantrip damage rolls.

Sorcerous Endurance

At 10th level, when you roll initiative, if you have no lesser metamagic charges remaining, you may regain one lesser metamagic charge.

Sorcerous Restoration

Moving the capstone here addresses the 'Sorcerers get shafted on longevity' thing, without removing the 'burn out quick' weakness.

Inborn Power

Sorcerers run out of resources faster than any other spellcaster, but have no Potent Cantrip equivalent to back them up when it happens.

Sorcerous Endurance

Probably not needed, but at the same time, at 10th level isn't exactly opening too many doors to abuse.

Wellspring of Power

At 20th level, the magic in your veins manifests the limits of its power. Your metamagics become more potent.

Lesser Metamagic is not improved this way.

• Careful Spell - Creatures you protect with this metamagic are now immune to the spell's effects. You can protect any number of creatures this way.

• Distant Spell - This metamagic now sets the range to Line of Sight. The target creature must be on the same plane of existence.

• Empowered Spell - Change a number of damage dice of the spell up to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one) to show the maximum number they can roll.

• Extended Spell - Now sets the duration of the spell up to 24 hours regardless of its initial duration. The minimum duration must still be 1 minute.

• Heightened Spell - The creature has disadvantage against all saves to resist your spell, not just the first.

• Quickened Spell - When you use this to change a spell to a bonus action spell, you may also use your action to cast another spell. The spell must be of a level equal to, or lower than the quickened spell.

• Subtle Spell - Your spell may also be cast in circumstances that otherwise would deny magic from occuring (i.e. such as in an antimagic zone).

• Twinned Spell - You may spend further sorcery points to keep duplicating the spell to new targets. This can be done as many times as you have targets and sorcery points to maintain it. Each new target costs the Twinned Spell cost again (i.e. a 3rd level spell, with three extra targets, costs 9 sorcery points).

• Elemental Spell - You may change the damage type of a spell to any damage type except Force.

• Seeking Spell - You ignore full cover.

• Unerring Spell - This metamagic now has a cost of 1 sorcery point.

Why This Capstone?

Because the old one was garbage and you know it.

A capstone should say 'this is why you should play this class!', not 'this is why you should dip fighter!'

At least this one is trying to drive home the point that "you are the scion of a greater power. This is why your heritage matters."

Mind the formatting

I've spent hours trying to get the spell list to look nicer and it just isn't working.

Added Spells:

1st Level: alarm, cause fear, find familiar, identify, longstrider, tasha's hideous laughter, tenser's floating disk

2nd Level: arcane lock, continual flame, magic weapon, melf's acid arrow, rope trick, skywrite

3rd Level: bestow curse, call lightning, glyph of warding, nondetection, phantom steed, remove curse, sending, wall of sand

4th Level: conjure minor elementals, control water, elemental bane, hallucinatory terrain, Otiluke's resilient sphere, phantasmal killer, stone shape

5th Level: conjure elemental, mislead, modify memory, negative energy flood, rary's telepathic bond, scrying, wall of force

6th Level: contingency, Otiluke's freezing sphere, wall of ice, wall of thorns

7th Level: forcecage, Mordekeinen's sword, symbol

8th Level: control weather, feeblemind, illusory dragon, maddening darkness, maze, telepathy, tsunami

9th Level: invulnerability, prismatic wall, shapechange, storm of vengeance, true polymorph, weird*