You all realise that the bladesinger didn't get an a buff right they lost their light armour proficiency. They could always add their int modifier to ac whilst in blade song
That's a pretty minimalist summary of the Bladesinger changes. I feel like they are a net positive under the new UA.
You all realise that the bladesinger didn't get an a buff right they lost their light armour proficiency. They could always add their int modifier to ac whilst in blade song
Yeah but so what? Mage Armor > light armor in most games anyway, so that's not an issue.
And they did get buffed - you don't need to dip Battlesmith anymore to be SAD, you get proficiency with more than one martial weapon, you don't need the War Caster tax, and you aren't stuck with a single type of weapon anymore.
After more consideration of the Bladesinger I think I do like the changes if they are as I understand them, especially if the Level 14 ability allows you to attack, cast cantrip, then BA attack again.
The only thing I wish they'd take another look at is the Level 10 feature. While on the one hand it IS a way to mitigate unavoidable damage, which the Bladesinger is vulnerable to attacks that do not have an attack roll, I am with many others that I think an ability that allows the Bladesinger once per long rest add their INT modifier to their saving throw and if they make the save they take no damage and half if they fail with the option to recharge it by burning a high level spell slot after the fact might be something to consider. While it wouldn't be fullproof, I mean half of an ancient dragon's breath weapon or a upcast level 9 fireball would still be devastating on a failed saving throw it doesn't cap the mitigation to an absolute maximum of 45 hit points once, 40 points once, etc.
Proficiency in all martial weapons (as opposed to picking one) is great news for when a bladesinger finds a magic weapon that they might not have expected. And now, if it's a STR-based weapon, then no problem!
It also feeds into the old archetype of the Bladesinger fighting with a long sword from 2nd Edition. To make it work in 5th you needed to go with a Rapier, Short Sword, or Scimitar, which while the Rapier worked almost as well it just "feels" more right with a long sword.
It also feeds into the old archetype of the Bladesinger fighting with a long sword from 2nd Edition. To make it work in 5th you needed to go with a Rapier, Short Sword, or Scimitar, which while the Rapier worked almost as well it just "feels" more right with a long sword.
Would you promote restricting Bladesinger to the old "Elf weapons" of 2nd Ed.? (Longsword, short sword, Longbow, short bow; for wood 'wild' elves Scimitar in place of Longsword), and no other for Bladesinger? Or add in Rapiers, as they're useful?
If utility is your watchword for class design, might one suggest adding to Bladesinger Second Wind, Action Surge, another ASI at 6th and 13th level, and more Extra Attacks at 11th, 16th and 20th level?
I don't understand why they are already trying to introduce new sub classes when a lot of folks still haven't even transitioned out of 2014.
That ranger is lackluster too. They already get access to Pass without a Trace as a spell, plus any concentration effects are going to mess with hunter's mark.
Personally, I think some of these are fine. (Spellfire and Moon Bards) both match the lore and look to be fun. (Although the healing option needs to be bumped to 2x bardic inspiration die. mirth overclasses the other two options, even with the level 14 upgrade) (Spellfire looks fun and powerful enough, I worry it will take the Divine Soul's place).
Now for the criticism. Scion of the Three is awful. I hate evil subclasses and this one drips with EVILNESS. Kill stealing, aligning with evil gods, the whole thing is pretty awful.
Purple Dragon is good mechanically, but awful thematically. Purple Dragons are called such because of the very, very, very ancient BLACK dragon Thauglor, who used to reign over the forests of Corymr before elves and men came. When men came, the black scales of the dragon had faded into a deep purple and so the men of Corymr called it the PURPLE DRAGON. So Purple Dragon Knights have nothing to do with Purple Dragons because there really aren't purple dragons. To use amethyst dragons because they are closest thing to purple and we want the color to match the name (lazy design) is asinine and insults our intelligence. Tell me you don't know the lore without telling me you don't know the lore. If WOTC gives a good enough reason why Corymr uses intelligent neutral amethyst dragonlings for their flying mounts, I can accept that. But it had better be good.
The new knowledge is good, like the old one was. The mind powers are fine and being able to cast powerful divination spells without a spell slot or material component is even better. My only gripe is the inclusion of nondetection on the domain spell list. sending or clairvoyance would be better.
The genie paladin is weird and way too powerful. elemental resistance without an action for your entire party? The other features seem pretty strong as well. But mostly, I can't wrap my head around what kind of oath they are swearing that involves the Noble Genies.
Bladesinger is what bladesinger is. Not a fan, as it is better than any other gish in almost every way.
I don't understand why they are already trying to introduce new sub classes when a lot of folks still haven't even transitioned out of 2014.
That ranger is lackluster too. They already get access to Pass without a Trace as a spell, plus any concentration effects are going to mess with hunter's mark.
I assume they are hoping increasing the amount of content explicitly updated to 2024 will improve adoption of the 2024 rules. We may see 2024 games pick up with the release of the 2025 Monster Manual. Maybe not.
I don't understand why they are already trying to introduce new sub classes when a lot of folks still haven't even transitioned out of 2014.
That ranger is lackluster too. They already get access to Pass without a Trace as a spell, plus any concentration effects are going to mess with hunter's mark.
Personally I am very excited for most of the new books coming this year and hope for lots of new or updated subclasses and feats.
The new knowledge is good, like the old one was. The mind powers are fine and being able to cast powerful divination spells without a spell slot or material component is even better. My only gripe is the inclusion of nondetection on the domain spell list. sending or clairvoyance would be better.
The genie paladin is weird and way too powerful. elemental resistance without an action for your entire party? The other features seem pretty strong as well. But mostly, I can't wrap my head around what kind of oath they are swearing that involves the Noble Genies.
I had a bit of a gripe with Knowledge, in the way that it is weirdly counter-synergistic. It gives you all these extra skills and expertise, and then it gives you an ability where you benefit from dumping intelligence and not investing in intelligence skills? Sure, with moderate INT and expertise in, say Religion, you're going to roll above your Wisdom stat half of the time... but you could've as easily put those points into another stat instead? And if you go Thaumaturge and add your WIS to your Religion checks... well, won't that just make your Unfettered Mind ability weaker? (EDIT: Maybe they should've just gone the Reliable Talent route here?)
It's a bit like the paradox of Bard's Jack-of-all, where it becomes less impactful the more skill proficiencies the Bard acquires. Kinda weird design, right? But, hey, since I don't have any better ideas, I guess it's fine.
The Genie Paladin's ability to give a blanket of situationally appropriate resistance also came across as strong - right up until I considered that it requires the party to bunch up, which just invites a breath weapon attack from a monster, or area blast from an enemy caster. Spreading out would reduce the number of characters getting hit, but clumping up would mean everyone get hit for a lesser amount. It kinda balances out in the end, I feel?
The new knowledge is good, like the old one was. The mind powers are fine and being able to cast powerful divination spells without a spell slot or material component is even better. My only gripe is the inclusion of nondetection on the domain spell list. sending or clairvoyance would be better.
The genie paladin is weird and way too powerful. elemental resistance without an action for your entire party? The other features seem pretty strong as well. But mostly, I can't wrap my head around what kind of oath they are swearing that involves the Noble Genies.
I had a bit of a gripe with Knowledge, in the way that it is weirdly counter-synergistic. It gives you all these extra skills and expertise, and then it gives you an ability where you benefit from dumping intelligence and not investing in intelligence skills? Sure, with moderate INT and expertise in, say Religion, you're going to roll above your Wisdom stat half of the time... but you could've as easily put those points into another stat instead? And if you go Thaumaturge and add your WIS to your Religion checks... well, won't that just make your Unfettered Mind ability weaker? (EDIT: Maybe they should've just gone the Reliable Talent route here?)
It's a bit like the paradox of Bard's Jack-of-all, where it becomes less impactful the more skill proficiencies the Bard acquires. Kinda weird design, right? But, hey, since I don't have any better ideas, I guess it's fine.
The Genie Paladin's ability to give a blanket of situationally appropriate resistance also came across as strong - right up until I considered that it requires the party to bunch up, which just invites a breath weapon attack from a monster, or area blast from an enemy caster. Spreading out would reduce the number of characters getting hit, but clumping up would mean everyone get hit for a lesser amount. It kinda balances out in the end, I feel?
Id say unfettered mind and the other stuff works fine together. Its not really about getting highest difference in numbers, its about assuring a minimum level of success, which is a pretty big deal. The other stuff then becomes focused on raising your max rolls. And thaum only applies to one skill.
And if you want to actually roll big brained stuff, having some int is still very useful.
comparing reliable talent to unfettered, you can get a minimum roll of 20 by level 8 with unfettered, reliable talent reaches that at 13 for regular proficiency. it also works on things you arent proficient in. which is probably 2/4 of the int skills, and general intelligence checks with no skill attached. So its pretty good. reliable works better with expertise, but this one has its own strngths.
It also feeds into the old archetype of the Bladesinger fighting with a long sword from 2nd Edition. To make it work in 5th you needed to go with a Rapier, Short Sword, or Scimitar, which while the Rapier worked almost as well it just "feels" more right with a long sword.
Would you promote restricting Bladesinger to the old "Elf weapons" of 2nd Ed.? (Longsword, short sword, Longbow, short bow; for wood 'wild' elves Scimitar in place of Longsword), and no other for Bladesinger? Or add in Rapiers, as they're useful?
If utility is your watchword for class design, might one suggest adding to Bladesinger Second Wind, Action Surge, another ASI at 6th and 13th level, and more Extra Attacks at 11th, 16th and 20th level?
I wouldn't mind restricting weapons if there is something in return like a fighting style or weapon mastery.
It also feeds into the old archetype of the Bladesinger fighting with a long sword from 2nd Edition. To make it work in 5th you needed to go with a Rapier, Short Sword, or Scimitar, which while the Rapier worked almost as well it just "feels" more right with a long sword.
Would you promote restricting Bladesinger to the old "Elf weapons" of 2nd Ed.? (Longsword, short sword, Longbow, short bow; for wood 'wild' elves Scimitar in place of Longsword), and no other for Bladesinger? Or add in Rapiers, as they're useful?
If utility is your watchword for class design, might one suggest adding to Bladesinger Second Wind, Action Surge, another ASI at 6th and 13th level, and more Extra Attacks at 11th, 16th and 20th level?
I wouldn't mind restricting weapons if there is something in return like a fighting style or weapon mastery.
At level 4, you can get Weapon Mastery by taking the feat. A Bladesinger doesn't really need more than one.
Right. I completed the survey, gave UA my views, and now await the machineries of joy to churn out game content.
I have to tell you, forcing myself through a five level solo test of the Noble Genie Paladin subclass was way more fun than I expected. Charlatan Dexadin has never been so exciting. James Bond meets Walter Mitty meets Legolas. I have never seen Command have such pivotal effect in roleplay, in 44 years of gaming. And using Lay on Hands as a diversionary tactic? And Detect Poison and Disease to locate an apothecary's sick courier being chased through the lower districts of Calimport by the Shadow Hand before they caught him? What thrilling tales the Elements weave.
I don't care that it's mechanically S-tier. I like the story the subclass enables.
I don't understand why they are already trying to introduce new sub classes when a lot of folks still haven't even transitioned out of 2014.
That ranger is lackluster too. They already get access to Pass without a Trace as a spell, plus any concentration effects are going to mess with hunter's mark.
They made 2024 rules so it doesn't make sense to make decisions on older rules. It makes more sense to continue developing the newer rules and entice more players to move forward.
Giving a ranger pass without trace automatically frees up preparing another spell in it's place. This is not a bad thing.
Concentration has been an thing for everyone casting spells regardless of edition. Ranger have a smaller percentage of concentration spells than most spell casters. According to the developers in their release videos, they found rangers to be overpowered when they tried removing concentration from hunter's mark so the concentration seems to be working as intended. Players who wanted more were told "no".
Right. I completed the survey, gave UA my views, and now await the machineries of joy to churn out game content.
I have to tell you, forcing myself through a five level solo test of the Noble Genie Paladin subclass was way more fun than I expected. Charlatan Dexadin has never been so exciting. James Bond meets Walter Mitty meets Legolas. I have never seen Command have such pivotal effect in roleplay, in 44 years of gaming. And using Lay on Hands as a diversionary tactic? And Detect Poison and Disease to locate an apothecary's sick courier being chased through the lower districts of Calimport by the Shadow Hand before they caught him? What thrilling tales the Elements weave.
I don't care that it's mechanically S-tier. I like the story the subclass enables.
And I want to more! When does this blockbuster release?
Did you use a published resource for the solo test?
For the solo test, I took the controversial path to use ScholarGTP to generate and DM a custom adventure in a custom Forgotten Realms setting based in Calimport. Taking the time to set the parameters for the AI to work with paid off, in a suitable game experience. A patient DM who contrived a passable simulation of tabletop action, with fewer hiccups than previous AI attempts, mostly around the AI escalating violence and then worrying that it was violating its own community conduct guidelines. It created ambience well, moderated combats in a balanced way, ran NPCs smoothly, and handled unconventional player tactics without panic. In particular, the method of working out the DC of challenges with the DM before rolling to determine whether or not the character succeeded seemed more RPG-like than letting the AI just decide on success of attempts itself (I suspect it doesn't know how to do this without manual intervention yet).
I can tell you, it let my plan to heal the eyes of the famous Blind Apothecary of Calimport as a diversionary tactic work to delay the Shadow Hand, so maybe AI does have a sense of humour.
Spellfire Sorcery may very well be one of my new favorite subclasses, though it has its flaws.
I like Spellfire Burst only working with a Magic action or Bonus Action because a Reaction would slow things down in the middle of another's turn. As has been pointed out, the Bolstering Flames ability is really good, but Radiant Fire is quite lacking. I hope for Radiant Fire, either the damage increases, the save is removed outright, or both.
The Spellfire Spells finally grant me the healing Sorcerer I have wanted- yes the Divine Soul exists and it's great, but now I can use the Extended Spell Metamagic on Aura of Vitality without a Cleric or Paladin dip. 20d6 of healing for 1 minute, Extended Spell for a total of 40d6 of healing in two minutes: that's on average about 140 Hit Points if I'm not mistaken- practically two Heal spells with a 5th level Sorcerer! Talk about restoration! Additionally, with Innate Sorcery, Guiding Bolt and Scorching Ray can now be rolled at Advantage. Also nice!
Absorb Spells is cool in theme and mechanics: essentially, absorbing an opponent's magic to restore some of your own. This is a Counterspell I wouldn't mind using the Heightened Spell Metamagic on quite often. Is it enough for 6th level? I could see a Resistance to Fire/Radiant being added, but honestly, I'm okay with where it's at.
I would like Honed Spellfire more if its scaling was something built into Spellfire Burst. Again, the Bolstering Flames ability is great with this improvement, but only 3d6 Fire or Radiant damage on a save or suck DEX save? Not really worth it. If this feature did get built into Spellfire Burst, I don't know enough about Spellfire lore to say what should go in its place. I am glad for the scaling though.
Lastly, Crown of Spellfire. First, cool name, nice reference to the books. Second, what a capstone, seriously. A tanky Sorcerer with Evasion against any spell of any saving throw type? A Fly Speed? The ability to reduce incoming damage with Hit Dice? And I can spend Sorcery Points to reuse it if absolutely need be? I think this is in the running for one of the best capstones- well-deserved for this subclass. If there was anything that I would add it's maybe letting it activate alongside Innate Sorcery, but I understand why they may not want to do that (it is already quite potent after all).
I seriously hope this subclass makes it to print, with just a few adjustments as mentioned. It may very well be what comes to mind anytime I think of what a Sorcerer is from here on. Well done on this subclass designers, truly.
That's a pretty minimalist summary of the Bladesinger changes. I feel like they are a net positive under the new UA.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
Yeah but so what? Mage Armor > light armor in most games anyway, so that's not an issue.
And they did get buffed - you don't need to dip Battlesmith anymore to be SAD, you get proficiency with more than one martial weapon, you don't need the War Caster tax, and you aren't stuck with a single type of weapon anymore.
After more consideration of the Bladesinger I think I do like the changes if they are as I understand them, especially if the Level 14 ability allows you to attack, cast cantrip, then BA attack again.
The only thing I wish they'd take another look at is the Level 10 feature. While on the one hand it IS a way to mitigate unavoidable damage, which the Bladesinger is vulnerable to attacks that do not have an attack roll, I am with many others that I think an ability that allows the Bladesinger once per long rest add their INT modifier to their saving throw and if they make the save they take no damage and half if they fail with the option to recharge it by burning a high level spell slot after the fact might be something to consider. While it wouldn't be fullproof, I mean half of an ancient dragon's breath weapon or a upcast level 9 fireball would still be devastating on a failed saving throw it doesn't cap the mitigation to an absolute maximum of 45 hit points once, 40 points once, etc.
Proficiency in all martial weapons (as opposed to picking one) is great news for when a bladesinger finds a magic weapon that they might not have expected. And now, if it's a STR-based weapon, then no problem!
"Not all those who wander are lost"
It also feeds into the old archetype of the Bladesinger fighting with a long sword from 2nd Edition. To make it work in 5th you needed to go with a Rapier, Short Sword, or Scimitar, which while the Rapier worked almost as well it just "feels" more right with a long sword.
Would you promote restricting Bladesinger to the old "Elf weapons" of 2nd Ed.? (Longsword, short sword, Longbow, short bow; for wood 'wild' elves Scimitar in place of Longsword), and no other for Bladesinger? Or add in Rapiers, as they're useful?
If utility is your watchword for class design, might one suggest adding to Bladesinger Second Wind, Action Surge, another ASI at 6th and 13th level, and more Extra Attacks at 11th, 16th and 20th level?
I don't understand why they are already trying to introduce new sub classes when a lot of folks still haven't even transitioned out of 2014.
That ranger is lackluster too. They already get access to Pass without a Trace as a spell, plus any concentration effects are going to mess with hunter's mark.
Personally, I think some of these are fine. (Spellfire and Moon Bards) both match the lore and look to be fun. (Although the healing option needs to be bumped to 2x bardic inspiration die. mirth overclasses the other two options, even with the level 14 upgrade) (Spellfire looks fun and powerful enough, I worry it will take the Divine Soul's place).
Now for the criticism. Scion of the Three is awful. I hate evil subclasses and this one drips with EVILNESS. Kill stealing, aligning with evil gods, the whole thing is pretty awful.
Purple Dragon is good mechanically, but awful thematically. Purple Dragons are called such because of the very, very, very ancient BLACK dragon Thauglor, who used to reign over the forests of Corymr before elves and men came. When men came, the black scales of the dragon had faded into a deep purple and so the men of Corymr called it the PURPLE DRAGON. So Purple Dragon Knights have nothing to do with Purple Dragons because there really aren't purple dragons. To use amethyst dragons because they are closest thing to purple and we want the color to match the name (lazy design) is asinine and insults our intelligence. Tell me you don't know the lore without telling me you don't know the lore. If WOTC gives a good enough reason why Corymr uses intelligent neutral amethyst dragonlings for their flying mounts, I can accept that. But it had better be good.
The new knowledge is good, like the old one was. The mind powers are fine and being able to cast powerful divination spells without a spell slot or material component is even better. My only gripe is the inclusion of nondetection on the domain spell list. sending or clairvoyance would be better.
The genie paladin is weird and way too powerful. elemental resistance without an action for your entire party? The other features seem pretty strong as well. But mostly, I can't wrap my head around what kind of oath they are swearing that involves the Noble Genies.
Bladesinger is what bladesinger is. Not a fan, as it is better than any other gish in almost every way.
Beyond the subclasses, I'd like to see more Backgrounds!!!!
I assume they are hoping increasing the amount of content explicitly updated to 2024 will improve adoption of the 2024 rules. We may see 2024 games pick up with the release of the 2025 Monster Manual. Maybe not.
How to add Tooltips.
Personally I am very excited for most of the new books coming this year and hope for lots of new or updated subclasses and feats.
She/Her Player and Dungeon Master
I had a bit of a gripe with Knowledge, in the way that it is weirdly counter-synergistic. It gives you all these extra skills and expertise, and then it gives you an ability where you benefit from dumping intelligence and not investing in intelligence skills? Sure, with moderate INT and expertise in, say Religion, you're going to roll above your Wisdom stat half of the time... but you could've as easily put those points into another stat instead? And if you go Thaumaturge and add your WIS to your Religion checks... well, won't that just make your Unfettered Mind ability weaker?
(EDIT: Maybe they should've just gone the Reliable Talent route here?)
It's a bit like the paradox of Bard's Jack-of-all, where it becomes less impactful the more skill proficiencies the Bard acquires. Kinda weird design, right? But, hey, since I don't have any better ideas, I guess it's fine.
The Genie Paladin's ability to give a blanket of situationally appropriate resistance also came across as strong - right up until I considered that it requires the party to bunch up, which just invites a breath weapon attack from a monster, or area blast from an enemy caster. Spreading out would reduce the number of characters getting hit, but clumping up would mean everyone get hit for a lesser amount. It kinda balances out in the end, I feel?
Id say unfettered mind and the other stuff works fine together. Its not really about getting highest difference in numbers, its about assuring a minimum level of success, which is a pretty big deal. The other stuff then becomes focused on raising your max rolls. And thaum only applies to one skill.
And if you want to actually roll big brained stuff, having some int is still very useful.
comparing reliable talent to unfettered, you can get a minimum roll of 20 by level 8 with unfettered, reliable talent reaches that at 13 for regular proficiency. it also works on things you arent proficient in. which is probably 2/4 of the int skills, and general intelligence checks with no skill attached. So its pretty good. reliable works better with expertise, but this one has its own strngths.
I wouldn't mind restricting weapons if there is something in return like a fighting style or weapon mastery.
At level 4, you can get Weapon Mastery by taking the feat. A Bladesinger doesn't really need more than one.
How to add Tooltips.
Right. I completed the survey, gave UA my views, and now await the machineries of joy to churn out game content.
I have to tell you, forcing myself through a five level solo test of the Noble Genie Paladin subclass was way more fun than I expected. Charlatan Dexadin has never been so exciting. James Bond meets Walter Mitty meets Legolas. I have never seen Command have such pivotal effect in roleplay, in 44 years of gaming. And using Lay on Hands as a diversionary tactic? And Detect Poison and Disease to locate an apothecary's sick courier being chased through the lower districts of Calimport by the Shadow Hand before they caught him? What thrilling tales the Elements weave.
I don't care that it's mechanically S-tier. I like the story the subclass enables.
They made 2024 rules so it doesn't make sense to make decisions on older rules. It makes more sense to continue developing the newer rules and entice more players to move forward.
Giving a ranger pass without trace automatically frees up preparing another spell in it's place. This is not a bad thing.
Concentration has been an thing for everyone casting spells regardless of edition. Ranger have a smaller percentage of concentration spells than most spell casters. According to the developers in their release videos, they found rangers to be overpowered when they tried removing concentration from hunter's mark so the concentration seems to be working as intended. Players who wanted more were told "no".
Grabs popcorn
And I want to more! When does this blockbuster release?
Did you use a published resource for the solo test?
How to add Tooltips.
For the solo test, I took the controversial path to use ScholarGTP to generate and DM a custom adventure in a custom Forgotten Realms setting based in Calimport. Taking the time to set the parameters for the AI to work with paid off, in a suitable game experience. A patient DM who contrived a passable simulation of tabletop action, with fewer hiccups than previous AI attempts, mostly around the AI escalating violence and then worrying that it was violating its own community conduct guidelines. It created ambience well, moderated combats in a balanced way, ran NPCs smoothly, and handled unconventional player tactics without panic. In particular, the method of working out the DC of challenges with the DM before rolling to determine whether or not the character succeeded seemed more RPG-like than letting the AI just decide on success of attempts itself (I suspect it doesn't know how to do this without manual intervention yet).
I can tell you, it let my plan to heal the eyes of the famous Blind Apothecary of Calimport as a diversionary tactic work to delay the Shadow Hand, so maybe AI does have a sense of humour.
Spellfire Sorcery may very well be one of my new favorite subclasses, though it has its flaws.
I like Spellfire Burst only working with a Magic action or Bonus Action because a Reaction would slow things down in the middle of another's turn. As has been pointed out, the Bolstering Flames ability is really good, but Radiant Fire is quite lacking. I hope for Radiant Fire, either the damage increases, the save is removed outright, or both.
The Spellfire Spells finally grant me the healing Sorcerer I have wanted- yes the Divine Soul exists and it's great, but now I can use the Extended Spell Metamagic on Aura of Vitality without a Cleric or Paladin dip. 20d6 of healing for 1 minute, Extended Spell for a total of 40d6 of healing in two minutes: that's on average about 140 Hit Points if I'm not mistaken- practically two Heal spells with a 5th level Sorcerer! Talk about restoration! Additionally, with Innate Sorcery, Guiding Bolt and Scorching Ray can now be rolled at Advantage. Also nice!
Absorb Spells is cool in theme and mechanics: essentially, absorbing an opponent's magic to restore some of your own. This is a Counterspell I wouldn't mind using the Heightened Spell Metamagic on quite often. Is it enough for 6th level? I could see a Resistance to Fire/Radiant being added, but honestly, I'm okay with where it's at.
I would like Honed Spellfire more if its scaling was something built into Spellfire Burst. Again, the Bolstering Flames ability is great with this improvement, but only 3d6 Fire or Radiant damage on a save or suck DEX save? Not really worth it. If this feature did get built into Spellfire Burst, I don't know enough about Spellfire lore to say what should go in its place. I am glad for the scaling though.
Lastly, Crown of Spellfire. First, cool name, nice reference to the books. Second, what a capstone, seriously. A tanky Sorcerer with Evasion against any spell of any saving throw type? A Fly Speed? The ability to reduce incoming damage with Hit Dice? And I can spend Sorcery Points to reuse it if absolutely need be? I think this is in the running for one of the best capstones- well-deserved for this subclass. If there was anything that I would add it's maybe letting it activate alongside Innate Sorcery, but I understand why they may not want to do that (it is already quite potent after all).
I seriously hope this subclass makes it to print, with just a few adjustments as mentioned. It may very well be what comes to mind anytime I think of what a Sorcerer is from here on. Well done on this subclass designers, truly.