counterpoint: nothing in the ranger's kit can explain the nonsense he is able to do with fireworks, yes magic item creation rules are very relaxed in 5e but still
counterpoint: nothing in the ranger's kit can explain the nonsense he is able to do with fireworks, yes magic item creation rules are very relaxed in 5e but still
So Gangalf is an artificer?
depends on how you are using the word, technically the word means somebody who does artificial things, but if you mean the class well artificers are dissapointingly bad at actiually making magic items using the magic item creation rules in that they are no more good at doing it than a ranger of their level assuming both are proficient in arcana (unless it is a common or uncommon magic item and the artificer in question is 10th level or higher, but those fireworks would be far beyond the scope of uncommon and common magic items), an illusionist wizard who uses tinker's tools as a spellcasting focus via artificer initiate would be most appropriate for that
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i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
Counter point: When Gandalf is in Dol Guldur (necromancer's tower) he uses Dispel magic to remove the illusions and Protection from evil when fight the smoke creature/necromancer/Sauron. Neither are which are ranger spells. I agree that Gandalf is probably a wizard/ranger multiclass but he is defiantly not just a ranger.
Counter point: When Gandalf is in Dol Guldur (necromancer's tower) he uses Dispel magic to remove the illusions and Protection from evil when fight the smoke creature/necromancer/Sauron. Neither are which are ranger spells. I agree that Gandalf is probably a wizard/ranger multiclass but he is defiantly not just a ranger.
Mark of warding human who happens to be either monster slayer or planar warrior (although lore wise gandalf would technically be a aasimar or a full on angel)
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i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
Wizards have access to pretty much all of the ranger spells? A wizard with high Int and has lived for centuries should have a very high bonus to history & arcana checks? He could have just cast spells to get around? Like a WIZARD? Just because someone knows the land doesn't mean he is a ranger. You are only choosing to focus on spells that can be s t r e t c h e d into ranger. He casts spells like fireball, silence, light, arcane lock, knock, wall of force, etc. Spells a ranger can't physically cast. A druid would be more appropriate if you insist on the nature connection, but I believe that Gandalf is an Abjuration wizard.
A wizard with a couple of feats or a well picked Arcane Tradition can do all those things you said.
speak with animals spell
he doesn’t necessarily show any of the “favored enemy traits”
he could have the weapon master feat, or be a “bladesinger” wizard, or he could just have trained with a longsword and got proficiency with it
with creative uses of spells, he could “pass without trace” and create some sort of “lightning arrow”
a limited number of healing spells are available to wizards, but there still are some
he could be a conjured and conjured the eagles
he could cast expeditious retreat to move quickly through the forest and he could also teleport
he could cast invisibility on himself
Finally, he could have just studies about the different lands, spending much of his time researching the races and terrain
plus, Gandalf has much greater spellcasting ability than a ranger does
I’m not hating, just stating a point
the only healing spell available to wizards capable of healing others is life transference, something that actively drains your vitality when you cast it, and speak with animals is simply not on the wizard spell list so you would have to pick a feat or multiclass to attain it
the whole point of favoured enemy and favoured terrain is that they are completely nonmagical and simply reflect years of researching a particular creature
this is by far the most accurate statement, NPC's can have whatever traits a DM says they have and then no more than that so just an celestial NPC with the Innate Spellcasting trait and a couple of special features. Also makes sense as gandalf is not really a main character, he simply aids the party whenever they are lost and then promptly ****s of to do important things
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i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
Gandalf doesn't have spell slots in any meaningful sense. Outside of his perfectly mundane abilities picked up from millennia of hanging out, like languages and hitting people with sticks, his remaining powers are racial/god-given (these are indistinguishable, since while his race directly translates as Wizard, in modern English a significantly more accurate translation is Angel).
In a sense, the PC class which is least wrong for him is Warlock, but that still has significant problems.
Who said he made the fireworks he buys them and sets them off not makes them.
the Fellowship of the Ring goes out of it's way to highlight how gandalf made those fireworks, to lift an quote directly from the first chapter "a long awaited party":
"the fireworks were by Gandalf: they were not only brought by him, but designed and made by him; and the special effects, set pieces, and flights of rockets were let off by him. But there was also an generous distribution of [...]. They were all superb. The art of Gandalf improved with age."
so to answer the question "who said he made the fireworks?", well J.R.R Tolkien
Who said he made the fireworks he buys them and sets them off not makes them.
the Fellowship of the Ring goes out of it's way to highlight how gandalf made those fireworks, to lift an quote directly from the first chapter "a long awaited party":
"the fireworks were by Gandalf: they were not only brought by him, but designed and made by him; and the special effects, set pieces, and flights of rockets were let off by him. But there was also an generous distribution of [...]. They were all superb. The art of Gandalf improved with age."
so to answer the question "who said he made the fireworks?", well J.R.R Tolkien
Who knows if Gandalf lied when he told Tolkien that? 🤪
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Wisea$$ DM and Player since 1979.
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So Gangalf is an artificer?
depends on how you are using the word, technically the word means somebody who does artificial things, but if you mean the class well artificers are dissapointingly bad at actiually making magic items using the magic item creation rules in that they are no more good at doing it than a ranger of their level assuming both are proficient in arcana (unless it is a common or uncommon magic item and the artificer in question is 10th level or higher, but those fireworks would be far beyond the scope of uncommon and common magic items), an illusionist wizard who uses tinker's tools as a spellcasting focus via artificer initiate would be most appropriate for that
i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
We should make a chart for each class and check off cells for each when a Gandalf trait, spell, proficiency, or ability is part of that class’s kit.
Gandalf is a bard/ranger/paladin/artificer/whatever else.
I have a weird sense of humor.
I also make maps.(That's a link)
Counter point: When Gandalf is in Dol Guldur (necromancer's tower) he uses Dispel magic to remove the illusions and Protection from evil when fight the smoke creature/necromancer/Sauron. Neither are which are ranger spells. I agree that Gandalf is probably a wizard/ranger multiclass but he is defiantly not just a ranger.
Mark of warding human who happens to be either monster slayer or planar warrior (although lore wise gandalf would technically be a aasimar or a full on angel)
i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
Wizards have access to pretty much all of the ranger spells? A wizard with high Int and has lived for centuries should have a very high bonus to history & arcana checks? He could have just cast spells to get around? Like a WIZARD? Just because someone knows the land doesn't mean he is a ranger. You are only choosing to focus on spells that can be s t r e t c h e d into ranger. He casts spells like fireball, silence, light, arcane lock, knock, wall of force, etc. Spells a ranger can't physically cast. A druid would be more appropriate if you insist on the nature connection, but I believe that Gandalf is an Abjuration wizard.
My only good homebrews: Races, Subclasses.
An aspiring DM and Homebrewer. Ask me if you need anything.
Grey or white Gandalf?
It brings me great joy to see how seriously folks are taking this thread.
oh yeah and we also see gandalf use like a light spell to enhance bilbo's little party trick with the ring in chapter 1 of the fellowship of the ring
i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
A wizard with a couple of feats or a well picked Arcane Tradition can do all those things you said.
speak with animals spell
he doesn’t necessarily show any of the “favored enemy traits”
he could have the weapon master feat, or be a “bladesinger” wizard, or he could just have trained with a longsword and got proficiency with it
with creative uses of spells, he could “pass without trace” and create some sort of “lightning arrow”
a limited number of healing spells are available to wizards, but there still are some
he could be a conjured and conjured the eagles
he could cast expeditious retreat to move quickly through the forest and he could also teleport
he could cast invisibility on himself
Finally, he could have just studies about the different lands, spending much of his time researching the races and terrain
plus, Gandalf has much greater spellcasting ability than a ranger does
I’m not hating, just stating a point
Gandalf is an NPC.
I have a weird sense of humor.
I also make maps.(That's a link)
the only healing spell available to wizards capable of healing others is life transference, something that actively drains your vitality when you cast it, and speak with animals is simply not on the wizard spell list so you would have to pick a feat or multiclass to attain it
the whole point of favoured enemy and favoured terrain is that they are completely nonmagical and simply reflect years of researching a particular creature
this is by far the most accurate statement, NPC's can have whatever traits a DM says they have and then no more than that so just an celestial NPC with the Innate Spellcasting trait and a couple of special features. Also makes sense as gandalf is not really a main character, he simply aids the party whenever they are lost and then promptly ****s of to do important things
i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
Gandalf doesn't have spell slots in any meaningful sense. Outside of his perfectly mundane abilities picked up from millennia of hanging out, like languages and hitting people with sticks, his remaining powers are racial/god-given (these are indistinguishable, since while his race directly translates as Wizard, in modern English a significantly more accurate translation is Angel).
In a sense, the PC class which is least wrong for him is Warlock, but that still has significant problems.
Who said he made the fireworks he buys them and sets them off not makes them.
Wisea$$ DM and Player since 1979.
the Fellowship of the Ring goes out of it's way to highlight how gandalf made those fireworks, to lift an quote directly from the first chapter "a long awaited party":
so to answer the question "who said he made the fireworks?", well J.R.R Tolkien
i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
Someone make a spreadsheet!
Way more things Gandalf does in the books/movies is rangerlike than wizardlike.
Who knows if Gandalf lied when he told Tolkien that? 🤪
Wisea$$ DM and Player since 1979.