Bards are a weird catch-all class and as time has gone by they've picked up more and more abilities that don't quite fit anywhere or aren't enough to fill up a whole class. They're minstrels, they're magicians, they're illusionists, they're thieves, they're fighters, they're Dirk Benedict from the A-Team, they're assassins and great at poison for some reason.....I wanted to make a bard that was a bard like Shakespeare was a bard, tying into some of my feelings about Magic-Users. I wanted an option for a class whose knowledge of magic is incidental to their real interests. I also wanted a class of adventurers from the opening of Monty Python's The Meaning of Life. I don't know that they quite work as a class to themselves and I think for the most part I'm just going to rely on Alternative Spellcasting for the same effect.
HD: d4
Save: as Magic User
Attack: as Magic User
Advance: as Thief
Requirements: Intelligence 9, Wisdom 9, Constitution 8 or lower
Prime Requisite: Intelligence; Scriveners with Intelligence 18 earn 5% bonus xp.
1 None/Enchant
2 Read Magic
3 Comprehend Languages
4 Locate Object
5 ESP
6 Clairvoyance
7 Dispel Magic
8 Charm Person, Charm Monster
9 Mirror Image, Remove Curse
10 Infravision, Contact Higher Plane
11 Confusion, Feeblemind
12 Sleep, Geas
Enchantment
Scriveners are sometimes called Scribes or Bards (in the master poet and storyteller sense not the Sister Golden Hair sense) and have the ability to Enchant a number of times per day equal to their level. Scriveners possess no unique magical aptitude and acquire their abilities through repetition over a long time. Eventually, they know certain stories, jokes, curses, legends, and riddles inside and out.
A Scrivener can Enchant a group equal in number to the Scrivener's total Hit Dice (or the Scrivener's Hit Die's value of non-HD peoples or creatures). A Scrivener must share a language with his audience at first level, but may cast Comprehend Languages as a free action after 3rd level to facilitate. A Scrivener may Enchant his audience for a number of minutes equal to the highest value of his combined Hit Dice. In this manner a level 12 Scrivener could Enchant 12HD worth of creatures 12 times per day for 48 minutes each, assuming he always shared a language with his audience.
Creatures who are thus Enchanted get a Save vs. Wands to resist. Otherwise, the creatures are captivated by the Scrivener, unable to leave or attack or do anything other than laugh, cry, or ask questions. This effect ends if the targets are attacked. After the Enchantment ends, affected targets must make a Morale save or else either leave the Scrivener in peace or treat him as 1 level better on a reaction table.
Scriveners are always old.
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| Bartleby Art by Rebecca Dart |
Save: as Magic User
Attack: as Magic User
Advance: as Thief
Requirements: Intelligence 9, Wisdom 9, Constitution 8 or lower
Prime Requisite: Intelligence; Scriveners with Intelligence 18 earn 5% bonus xp.
- Scriveners roll 1d6x10 for their starting gold.
- Scriveners do not receive a spell at 1st level, but are considered to have a spell slot for the purpose of Enchantment.
- Scriveners have a locked spell progression (see below, but not as far below).
- Scriveners can use Cleric spells inscribed on scrolls.
- Scriveners know one additional language. Scriveners can copy a book in a week or write a book in a month.
- Scriveners can create 1 one-spell scroll per day at level 3, and another at level 9.
- Scriveners of level 6+ are considered to have certain texts memorized; any text the Scrivener has copied 10 times or more (up to the Scrivener's level) may be denoted as Favorite Works. The Scrivener may expend Clairvoyance in order to recall a single fact from any of these texts.
- Scriveners have limited advancement opportunities and are usually poor or lower class; they advance to level 12 and cannot build keeps or hold domains.
- A Scrivener may expend a spell slot to Enchant.
1 None/Enchant
2 Read Magic
3 Comprehend Languages
4 Locate Object
5 ESP
6 Clairvoyance
7 Dispel Magic
8 Charm Person, Charm Monster
9 Mirror Image, Remove Curse
10 Infravision, Contact Higher Plane
11 Confusion, Feeblemind
12 Sleep, Geas
Scriveners are sometimes called Scribes or Bards (in the master poet and storyteller sense not the Sister Golden Hair sense) and have the ability to Enchant a number of times per day equal to their level. Scriveners possess no unique magical aptitude and acquire their abilities through repetition over a long time. Eventually, they know certain stories, jokes, curses, legends, and riddles inside and out.
A Scrivener can Enchant a group equal in number to the Scrivener's total Hit Dice (or the Scrivener's Hit Die's value of non-HD peoples or creatures). A Scrivener must share a language with his audience at first level, but may cast Comprehend Languages as a free action after 3rd level to facilitate. A Scrivener may Enchant his audience for a number of minutes equal to the highest value of his combined Hit Dice. In this manner a level 12 Scrivener could Enchant 12HD worth of creatures 12 times per day for 48 minutes each, assuming he always shared a language with his audience.
Creatures who are thus Enchanted get a Save vs. Wands to resist. Otherwise, the creatures are captivated by the Scrivener, unable to leave or attack or do anything other than laugh, cry, or ask questions. This effect ends if the targets are attacked. After the Enchantment ends, affected targets must make a Morale save or else either leave the Scrivener in peace or treat him as 1 level better on a reaction table.
Scriveners are always old.