05-18-2013, 05:25 PM
(05-18-2013, 05:02 PM)flammos200 Wrote: [ -> ]Better(In my opinion, at least) solution to Blood Mages:
Water down their power level, rather than removing abilities:
-Verdant Spheres = Just Chaos Bolt level of power.
-Phoenixes = The exact same 'power level' and size as a Water Elemental/Voidwalker. Except instead of being made of water/Shadow, they're made of fire and shaped like a bird.
-Banish = We already got that.
-Drain Life/Mana = Already got that too.
-Flamestrike = Need I say anything?
By following the above, Blood Mages can be just an influential Magister, and don't have to cut out the abilities that give the variant its flavor, while maintaining the exact same power level as any other mage or warlock.
And it works well with the Variant system, since it's just a reinterpretation of existing class abilities.
I suggested the same thing about a year back(07-01-2012). Didn't get an answer then. The above is all that really matters. What's below is the suggestion of a year ago, gently dropped in favor of the aforementioned.
Spoiler:
flammos200 Wrote:[...]
I'm writing to you to discuss a particular spell for a particular class. Namely, Summon Phoenix, for Blood Magi.
To my understanding, summoning a phoenix was nixed somewhere along the way, but I would very much enjoy it if it were made possible once more. I believe that the Free-form system allows for it, and these are the arguments I make:
The Blood Mage, should they be of the Mage class, can simply swap Summon Water Elemental(which entails summoning and controling an elemental from the elemental plane of Water), with summoning a phoenix, which is a fire elemental, from the elemental plane of fire. Just like a Water Elemental, it can be a permanent pet(with the appropriate glyph) or a temporary summon. The Phoenix and Water Elemental have effectively the same characteristics, both being made almost entirely out of their element, and being capable of ranged attacks.
Now, should the Blood Mage be of the Warlock class, they already have the usual demon summons. It would be very easy for a player to forgo those in favor of a Phoenix.
Summoning sentient elementals happens already in the case of Magi, and it's pretty much the same(power-wise) as a Shaman's elemental-summoning totems. I believe that swapping a water elemental(traditional mage) with a fire one, namely a phoenix(In the case of a Blood Mage) could be done. Phoenixes would obviously be equal in all aspects with the summon they replace.
We've already treated classes <Like X but Y>, such as Lightslayers using Shadow to fuel their Roguish powers, or Warriors using the Arcane/Divine to add that little extra oomph to their blows(I recall the discussion in the OOC area when Grak mentioned a certain Champion of the Light NPC to that effect), and so forth, even to extremes like Fel-sworn Rogues using Fel, or Infiltrators having a measure of psionic ability(to Sap/Blind only, of course), so I see no reason why a Blood Mage couldn't swap the aesthetics of a Water Elemental with those of a Phoenix any more than I see reason to treat Demon Hunters as anything but effectively Melee Warlocks.
But in the case in which dealing with a sentient elemental(like the Water one a Mage summons, or those summoned by Shaman) is too much, would shaping a bird out of arcane fire be all right? It'd only be a construct. We know fire can be shaped into a lot of ways - heck, even into complex things as a Dragon's head in the case of the Dragonfire spell that Magi can use - so I'm sure shaping it into the vague shape of a bird would be all right, no?
Again, I'm thinking of it only being used by Blood Mages, who(due to political influence) are Special Profiles, and thus under the scrutiny of the GM team, and not us Forum Helpers. It's more or less the symbol of being a Blood Mage, just like visions of the future are for Far Seers, for instance.
[...]
Thank you kindly for your time.