I would still play an abjuration wizard as a control wizard. The only commonly used spells to mid-combat refuel your bubble(outside of mage armor/eldritch adept out of combat shenanigans) are shield, absorb elements, dispel magic, counterspell and banishment. Shield is fairly common use but only restores 2 points. Counterspell, dispel magic and banishment are all great but very situational... banishment at lvl 4 might only restore half of your bubble.
Alternatively you can do build shenanigans to get armor of agathys and update and try to play a tank - a niche build that I wasn't as impressed with in gameplay(creatures just didn't hit me as often). If your DM metagames too much you can play this style, but really be a control wizard in disguise that never gets hit
So, yes, like every wizard you should never just focus on the specific spells of your school specialization. The abjuration wizard is a strong subclass though, the biggest reason to play it is the improved counterspells and spell resistance in a higher level campaign... and until 17th level(+6), sorcerers are probably still better counterspellers with magical guidance.
Also, none of the abjuration wizard abilities are bad... in fact they're all good, which isn't common. Well except for the abjuration savant... but I don't really count those.
If you are dipping Warlock for AoA why not get Armor of Shadows invocation to replenish your ward for free whenever you want, best outside combat
I had the idea of having a paranoid Deep Gnome abjurer with the svirfneblin magic feat. Before level the feat, I'd have Alarm that I'd cast ritually to make sure I wasn't being followed. After the feat, I'd have Nondetection to be able to cast at will on myself to make sure I wasn't subject to divination magic or scrying. Having Armor of Shadows would be interesting as well. A two level lock dip for celestial patron to get some healing, Armor of Shadows, something like Fiendish Vigor, a couple more utility cantrips and a 1st level spell slot that resets on a short rest could be interesting, even if it does stall wizard progression and spell slot progression. It would be on flavor for the paranoia to drive the deep gnome to seek out additional protections.
I'm finishing out a 1-20 campaign on an Abjurer right now and I cannot recommend it enough. It's a very protective way to play a wizard, and your abilities can be clutch. There's something to be said for adding your Proficiency bonus on a counterspell when you don't know what they are casting or you don't want to risk a high level spell slot to forgo a roll to counter or dispel. Advantage on saves vs. spells and half damage from magic are great defensive tools too.
idk if its been said or not, but going stars druid 2 and abjuration wiz 10 leads to a basically always counterspell and dispel magic king. (min 10 rolled on int check if in dragon form, +5 int mod, + prof bonus =19 at lvl12). Another fun thing (as has been pointed out) is mark of warding dwarf and lvl 4 take eldritch adept for mage armor with 100% abj wiz. fun masochist build mwahahaha!
I've never played an Abjurer, but I play an enchantment wizard now. One of the things I like best about is that it encourages me to takes chances. Since Hypnotic Gaze requires such close range, I find myself frequently dashing in, which gives big, dramatic gameplay swings on whether I nail the gaze or not.
For me that's fun, big chance, big reward. Auto twin spells on enchantments are really fun, too. Mind Whip and Psychic lance both pack a punch like this.
I would still play an abjuration wizard as a control wizard. The only commonly used spells to mid-combat refuel your bubble(outside of mage armor/eldritch adept out of combat shenanigans) are shield, absorb elements, dispel magic, counterspell and banishment. Shield is fairly common use but only restores 2 points. Counterspell, dispel magic and banishment are all great but very situational... banishment at lvl 4 might only restore half of your bubble.
Alternatively you can do build shenanigans to get armor of agathys and update and try to play a tank - a niche build that I wasn't as impressed with in gameplay(creatures just didn't hit me as often). If your DM metagames too much you can play this style, but really be a control wizard in disguise that never gets hit
So, yes, like every wizard you should never just focus on the specific spells of your school specialization. The abjuration wizard is a strong subclass though, the biggest reason to play it is the improved counterspells and spell resistance in a higher level campaign... and until 17th level(+6), sorcerers are probably still better counterspellers with magical guidance.
Also, none of the abjuration wizard abilities are bad... in fact they're all good, which isn't common. Well except for the abjuration savant... but I don't really count those.
I had the idea of having a paranoid Deep Gnome abjurer with the svirfneblin magic feat. Before level the feat, I'd have Alarm that I'd cast ritually to make sure I wasn't being followed. After the feat, I'd have Nondetection to be able to cast at will on myself to make sure I wasn't subject to divination magic or scrying. Having Armor of Shadows would be interesting as well. A two level lock dip for celestial patron to get some healing, Armor of Shadows, something like Fiendish Vigor, a couple more utility cantrips and a 1st level spell slot that resets on a short rest could be interesting, even if it does stall wizard progression and spell slot progression. It would be on flavor for the paranoia to drive the deep gnome to seek out additional protections.
I'm finishing out a 1-20 campaign on an Abjurer right now and I cannot recommend it enough. It's a very protective way to play a wizard, and your abilities can be clutch. There's something to be said for adding your Proficiency bonus on a counterspell when you don't know what they are casting or you don't want to risk a high level spell slot to forgo a roll to counter or dispel. Advantage on saves vs. spells and half damage from magic are great defensive tools too.
idk if its been said or not, but going stars druid 2 and abjuration wiz 10 leads to a basically always counterspell and dispel magic king. (min 10 rolled on int check if in dragon form, +5 int mod, + prof bonus =19 at lvl12). Another fun thing (as has been pointed out) is mark of warding dwarf and lvl 4 take eldritch adept for mage armor with 100% abj wiz. fun masochist build mwahahaha!
I've never played an Abjurer, but I play an enchantment wizard now. One of the things I like best about is that it encourages me to takes chances. Since Hypnotic Gaze requires such close range, I find myself frequently dashing in, which gives big, dramatic gameplay swings on whether I nail the gaze or not.
For me that's fun, big chance, big reward. Auto twin spells on enchantments are really fun, too. Mind Whip and Psychic lance both pack a punch like this.
Illusion is fun once you can hit level 6 and use Nathair's Mischief to get 2 uses of it a round.