Magister

“''Magic is my meat and drink. I travel through higher, more esoteric realms than you can imagine.''”

The magister is a spellcaster who devotes all his time and attention to the study of magic and spells. Magisters have greater access to spells than any other type of mage. Their powers are diverse, and there is little that a high-level magister cannot accomplish. All magisters begin the game with a staff, through which they focus their impressive might. Magisters approach magic from a logical and technical standpoint. Magic is a part of the way the world works, and they are its self-styled masters. To maintain their understanding—through which comes their power—they not only study ancient lore but also continually experiment with new techniques of spellcasting and unique applications of spells. Adventurers: Magisters seek lore and power. Magic can be addictive, and most magisters crave more and more. They undertake adventures to find magical treasure, monetary treasure (funds to put toward magic items or their studies), or magical knowledge. Many seek to show that magic is a tool capable of anything.

Background: Magisters train almost exclusively in schools, where students all learn rote methods of mastering the basics of magic. Only later does each individual break off to pursue his own specialization or unique talents and methods. Magisters come from all walks of life, from the wealthiest noble to the lowliest of the poor (schoolmasters admit worthy underprivileged students on scholarships). Once one masters the art of magic, social class becomes meaningless—for one joins an all-new class.

Races: Human magisters are often elemental mages, while faen (particularly loresong faen and sprytes) enjoy all types of magic. Litorian magisters are less common, and verrik magisters employ either psionic or energy-related spells. Giant magisters like to use magic to create things, while mojh enjoy summoning and enchantments. Sibeccai magisters enjoy the power of their role and use it to improve their station.

View of Magic: Magisters mentally store their readied spells in their staves, relying on those key items as a focus and a tool for shaping magic. Magisters see magic as a seething tide of unformed energy and indistinct shapes. Their spells give this energy definition and purpose. Magic is not an art to them, but a science. It is measurable and quantifiable. Just because others have no concept of its parameters does not deny its logic.

Other Classes: Magisters follow the “way of the staff” rather than the “way of the sword,” and thus often keep warmains, totem warriors, unfettered, champions, and even mage blades at arm’s length—although they are well aware of the value a warrior ally provides. They get along with runethanes well, and marvel at the abilities of the akashic, the witch, and the greenbond. Many magisters would sacrifice much to acquire their own oathsworn bodyguard/companion.

NPCs: The foul necromancer raising a legion of undead is a magister, as are the crazed cultists wielding strange powers and planning to sacrifice the duke’s kidnapped son. The wise council of elderly sages leaning heavily on their staves are magisters. The trickster performing feats of illusion and wonder in the city theatre also just might be a magister.

Hit Die: d6

Magister Archetypes
 * Doomspeaker: You specialize in curses and divinations, gaining a reputation as a mysterious and dangerous figure. Your command of magic, particularly magic that grants you knowledge or allows you to strike down enemies, earns you respect—and fear. You do not have a lot of friends, but many know of you. You are a bit of a loner, although if you could find some worthy allies, you’d certainly be loyal to them.
 * Priest: A faithful adherent of your chosen deity or religion, you are recognized by others as one ordained in ceremony to represent that god. Your love of lore has enabled you to learn much of the world, of history, and of philosophy. Others see your spells as an extension of your faith—your magic is a gift from your god.
 * Teacher: Magic is the way the world works. Magic is science. It is lore. There could be no better teacher than you, whether a teacher of the young or the master of a single apprentice. People can learn much from you; in turn, you recognize that you must not only gather more knowledge, but also communicate well so that others can understand. A teacher is nothing if not a diplomat of wisdom to the ignorant.

Skills

Skill Points at 1st Level: (2 + Intelligence bonus) ×4.

Skill Points at Higher Levels: 2 + Intelligence bonus. Class Skills: The magister’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Alchemy (Int), Concentration (Con), Craft (any) (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Innuendo (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Search (Int), Speak Language (none), and Spellcraft (Int).

Class Features Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Magisters are skilled with no weapons except staves; at 5th level, magisters acquire proficiency in sword staves as well. Magisters are not proficient with any type of armor, nor with shields.

Spells: A magister’s primary focus is casting spells. These characters have access to simple and complex spells. A magister is limited to a certain number of spells of each spell level per day, according to his class level. A magister may choose to ready any simple or complex spell, provided he can cast spells of that level. He readies spells ahead of time, any of which he can cast according to the maximum number of spell slots available to him for each given level. To ready or cast a spell, a magister must have a Intelligence score of at least 10 + the spell’s level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a magister’s spell is 10 + the spell’s level + the magister’s Intelligence modifier. Bonus spells for magisters rely on Intelligence. Magister spells always have both somatic and verbal components. Thus, magisters face spell failure chances when wearing armor. A magister needs his staff (see below) as a focus to cast spells. Without it, treat his caster level as one level lower and double casting times for all spells (standard-action spells become fullround spells, full-round spells take 2 rounds to cast, and so on).

The Magister’s Staff: The magister crafts a staff specifically attuned to him. Regardless of its construction or composition, it has a hardness of 12, 50 hit points, and a break DC of 30. The staff ’s hit points increase at a rate of 2 per magister level, and the hardness and break Difficulty Class increase at a rate of 1 point per three magister levels. If a magister’s staff breaks, he is stunned for 1d4 rounds. It takes a month and 1,000 gp in materials to create a new one. A magister can have only one staff attuned to him at a time. If the character finds a new staff he would rather become attuned to, switching staves requires no money. However, it does take a week of meditation. Should the magister die or take on a new staff, the old staff becomes normal (unless it had been given other magical properties, in which case they remain). A slain magister who comes back from the dead can immediately and automatically re-attune to his old staff as a free action.

Bonus Feats: Every five levels, a magister gains a bonus feat. These are in addition to the feats a character gets every third level. Draw these bonus feats from the following list: Aid Spellcasting, Attune to Magic Item, Battle Mage, Blessed Mage, Blood as Power, Brandish Magical Might, Conjure Mastery, Corrupt Mage, Craft Charged Item, Craft Constant Item, Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Craft Single-Use Item, Craft Spell- Completion Item, Creator Mage, Dragon Mage, Eldritch Training, Elemental Mage*, Energy Mage*, Exotic Spell*, Fey Mage, Giantish Mage, Hunter Mage, Infuse Weapon, Iron Will, Litorian Mage, Modify Spell, Peaceful Mage, Psion, Quicken Spell, Resistant Spell, Runecaster, Sanctum, Sibeccai Mage, Tattooed Spell, Unraveling Mage, and Wild Mage. Some of these feats are ceremonial feats. The character need not go through the ceremony (or pay for it) to get a bonus ceremonial feat; even an Unbound character can choose a ceremonial bonus feat in this way. A magister can select feats marked with an asterisk (*) more than once, but it must be for a different spell descriptor or spell level (depending on the feat) each time. The character must still meet all prerequisites for a bonus feat, including ability scores and prerequisite feats (but not truenames).

Familiarity With Magic (Ex): The 6th-level and higher magister gains a +2 competence bonus to all saving throws against spells and spell-like and supernatural abilities (including magic items). Further, he gains a +2 competence bonus to Armor Class against spells requiring attack rolls.

Lesser Aspect of Power (Su): Beginning at 12th level, the magister becomes so steeped in magic that it comes through as an everpresent side effect. The magister can choose one of the following abilities to call upon at will, as a free action (once he makes his selection, he cannot choose another):
 * Distinct Voice (Su): If he wishes, anyone within 100 feet can hear the magister, regardless of noise around him, even when whispering.
 * Glowing Footsteps (Su): Whenever he wishes, a magister can make his footsteps glow with a magical aura for 1 round.
 * Innate Spell (Su): The magister chooses a 0-level spell to cast once per day as a spell-like ability with no components or focus as a free action.
 * Skeletal Visage (Su): Whenever the magister casts a spell, for a brief second his skull and bones glow with a ghostly light, showing through his flesh.
 * Sparkles (Su): The magister creates a flash of sparkles at any time.
 * Special Eyes (Su): The magister can make his eyes glow a chosen color whenever he wishes. Alternatively, his eyes might have tiny symbols (skulls, crosses, etc.) in the pupils all the time. Or they might permanently be an unnatural color.

Lesser Mind Over Matter (Ex): At 14th level and beyond, a magister can use his uncanny intellect, coupled with secrets learned while studying magic, to gain an advantage in situations that usually demand brute force. In situations requiring a Strength check, he can make an Intelligence check instead. For example, when he must force open a stuck door, the magister can make an Intelligence check to best position himself for leverage and recall some secret knowledge about the magic stored within the wood of the door to get it open. This ability never affects attack or damage rolls, except that, when making an opposed grapple check to avoid being grappled, the magister can use his Intelligence modifier rather than his Strength modifier.

Greater Aspect of Power (Su): At 18th level, the magister becomes further steeped in magic that comes through as an ever-present side effect. The magister can choose another ability defined under lesser aspect of power, or one of the following abilities that he can call upon at will, as a free action:
 * Discard Staff (Su): The magister no longer needs his staff as a focus to cast spells.
 * Disdain Need (Su): The magister no longer needs to eat or drink. He gets all his nourishment from magic.
 * Display Power (Su): The magister can cause himself to grow more powerful and impressive at will, gaining a +4 circumstance bonus to Intimidate checks.
 * Innate Spell (Su): The magister can choose one 0- or 1st-level spell to cast once per day as a spell-like ability with no components or focus as a free action.
 * Magic Touch (Su): The magister can sense if an object touched has a magical aura (but he gains no further information).
 * Name of Power (Su): The magister becomes aware when anyone speaks his name (referring specifically to him). He knows when it happens and learns the name of the speaker.
 * Touch Not the Earth (Su): The magister’s feet no longer touch the ground. Instead, when he walks he floats 2 inches above any surface. While he cannot use this ability to float higher, and it does not save him from falls, it does allow him to leave no tracks and avoid traps triggered by weight placed upon a floor. This spell does not affect the magister’s weight.

Greater Mind Over Matter (Su): Similar to mind over matter, at 22nd level and above the magister can use his Intelligence bonus rather than Dexterity and Constitution to modify Reflex and Fortitude saving throws. Likewise, all skills modified by Strength, Constitution, or Dexterity are modified by Intelligence instead. This process still does not affect attack or damage rolls, nor does it affect Armor Class.

Master’s Aspect of Power: At 24th level, the magister becomes completely steeped in magic, which displays itself as an everpresent side-effect. The magister can choose another ability defined under either lesser or greater aspect of power, or one of the following abilities to call upon at will, as a free action:
 * Defender Staff (Su): If the magister is aware of an incoming ranged or melee attack and his staff is in hand, he can move to block the attack with his staff. This grants him a +3 deflection bonus to Armor Class.
 * Fiery Touch (Sp): At will, as a free action, the magister can make his hand or hands glow like a torch with flames that do not hurt him. The magister’s touch inflicts 1d6 points of fire damage.
 * Frosty Breath (Sp): The magister’s breath is extraordinarily cold. With a free action he can instantly extinguish nonmagical flames smaller than a campfire within 5 feet. With a standard action, he can breathe on an adjacent foe and inflict 2d6 points of cold damage (Reflex save for half damage, DC 10 + half magister’s level + his Intelligence modifier).
 * Innate Spell (Su): The magister can choose one 0-, 1st-, or 2nd-level spell to cast once per day as a spell-like ability with no components or focus as a free action.
 * Inorganic Flesh (Ex): The skin of the magister takes on a metallic or stony appearance at all times. He gains a +3 natural armor bonus to Armor Class, and his weight doubles. Speed is not affected, and there is no armor check penalty or spell failure chance involved.
 * Magical Blood (Su): The magister’s blood is replaced by pure magical energy. When wounded, he bleeds energy rather than fluid. He is immune to poison and disease as well as effects that prey upon his blood (such as a vampire’s blood drain ability or the wounding ability of certain magic weapons).
 * Magical Helper (Su): The magister gains the aid of a nearly invisible minor magical creature called a vortex. The creature takes the form of a Medium air elemental, except that it deals only force damage, not air damage. If it is slain, a new vortex appears at midnight the next day. Most magisters use their vortex helpers to carry equipment, open doors, deliver messages, and so on.