I might play my ever first wizard in a Rime of the Frostmaiden campaign and I can't decide on whether I should play and evocation or abjuration wizard.
I like the idea of the abjuration wizard but do you really get to cast that much abjuration spells? Is RotF heavy in enemy spellcasters so you get to counterspell them or perhaps the opposite?
I really like the evocation trait of Sculpt Spells, it feels the most useful by far.
So you guys have any input? Have you played both and can say wich is better or more fun? Any wizards playing RotF?
I haven't read or played RofF, so your mileage may vary. I have watched some of the videos talking about it though, so I have some expectations that i think would be reasonable. Take that into account regarding my opinion moving forward.
Looking deeply at the abjuration spell list for wizards, it seems a bit barren. There's stuff you will use, and maybe use often but it's situational. Given the nature of the environment, you might use absorb elements a lot. You won't get the most out of it unless you're wading into battle, but it's there if you need to pick up resistance to damage for a big hit. Shield's a great spell and you will likely use it, but you're also likely going to attempt to limit the opportunities for enemies to /force/ you to use it. Mage Armor is good, you'll probably use it once or twice a day. There's some other stuff, but nothing I'd expect to use often enough to be of use in recharging your arcane ward.
For second level, Arcane Lock is not something I'd expect to use regularly.
Third level has Counterspell. You're likely going to need it. Occassionally. if you don't fight a spell caster /or/ the spellcaster isn't casting anything worth counterspelling, this won't be used. Dispel Magic is useful. You probably won't use it as much as Counterspell, but again...it's there to call on. Glyph of Warding could be useful. I dont think you'll use it often, but perhaps. Intellect fortress? I don't expect that psychic damage is common. I don't think this would be useful.
I could go on, but the pattern I am seeing with abjuration spells is that they're going to be situational. That means opportunities to recharge your ward are also situational, unless you delve into cheesier routes such as picking up the warlock invocation Armor of Shadows via a feat, MC two level of warlock to get the same invocation, or going svirfneblin and taking svirfneblin magic as a racial feat.
Evocation on the other hand...well you're going to blast things. You're going to want to use AoE, and your melee casters are going to stand in the blast pattern. I believe that sculpt spell will be used early, and used often, without resorting to tricks that may cause your DM to give you the stinkeye. if I could get my DM to buy off on me playing an abjuration wizard with the armor of shadows invocation? That's my first pick. Playing them more "honestly" my pick is evocation.
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Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
I have never played RoFM, but I know some tricks & tips from both Abjurer and Evoker.
If special races are allowed and you can (and want) to play a Mark of Warding Dwarf, go full Abjurer and never go back. This is the most resistant and powerful Wizard build out there (you can combine Armor of Agathys + Arcane Ward and destroy everyone in melee combat, which is usually the main weakness of Wizards).
What I would like to reinforce is that, regardless your school of specialization, you are a godslayer Wizard full of versatility, utility and cleverness. As an Abjurer, you’ll be more tough (Iron Wizard). As an Evoker, you’ll be better at AoE blasting (Nuclear Wizard). But you still need to do your job well by keeping yourself alive (Shield, Mage Armor, Absorb Elements, Mirror Image, etc) in order to ensure your party will thrive. So don’t neglect things like Sleep or Tasha’s Hideous Laugher by low levels. Do not forget that fire spells synergize well with Web. Levitate, Hold Person, Flaming Sphere and Misty Step are must haves for any Wizard. Hypnotic Pattern and Slow can increase the effectiveness of your Fireball big time.
Going specifics, I really like the combination of Projected Ward + Familiar with Dragon’s Breath. You can ensure your little fire breathing familiar can survive more once he attracts the attention of the enemies.
As an Evoker, you can never go wrong with Thunderwave, Shatter and later on Fireball, but don’t forget your Toll the Dead will be super reliable by level 6 once you get Potent Cantrip.
Thank you so much for your response! You've managed to put my thoughts and feelings down to text. I think, at the moment, I'm leaning towards the evocer subclass. Perhaps I could try out the abjurer in some one shot or something to see how it feels, before the campaign starts.
I haven't played Rime of the Frost Maiden either, but... while the Armor of Agathys Abjurer combo is pretty neat, it has the downside of being cold damage inside of an Icewind Dale story.
Simply based on the name and the location, I suspect that fire spells will be more attractive. At which point, maybe going tiefling? There's several tiefling feats that can help - resistance to cold and poison, or boost fire spells. And there's several different variations that could come with helpful spells for an evoker.
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Hey all!
I might play my ever first wizard in a Rime of the Frostmaiden campaign and I can't decide on whether I should play and evocation or abjuration wizard.
I like the idea of the abjuration wizard but do you really get to cast that much abjuration spells? Is RotF heavy in enemy spellcasters so you get to counterspell them or perhaps the opposite?
I really like the evocation trait of Sculpt Spells, it feels the most useful by far.
So you guys have any input? Have you played both and can say wich is better or more fun? Any wizards playing RotF?
I haven't read or played RofF, so your mileage may vary. I have watched some of the videos talking about it though, so I have some expectations that i think would be reasonable. Take that into account regarding my opinion moving forward.
Looking deeply at the abjuration spell list for wizards, it seems a bit barren. There's stuff you will use, and maybe use often but it's situational. Given the nature of the environment, you might use absorb elements a lot. You won't get the most out of it unless you're wading into battle, but it's there if you need to pick up resistance to damage for a big hit. Shield's a great spell and you will likely use it, but you're also likely going to attempt to limit the opportunities for enemies to /force/ you to use it. Mage Armor is good, you'll probably use it once or twice a day. There's some other stuff, but nothing I'd expect to use often enough to be of use in recharging your arcane ward.
For second level, Arcane Lock is not something I'd expect to use regularly.
Third level has Counterspell. You're likely going to need it. Occassionally. if you don't fight a spell caster /or/ the spellcaster isn't casting anything worth counterspelling, this won't be used. Dispel Magic is useful. You probably won't use it as much as Counterspell, but again...it's there to call on. Glyph of Warding could be useful. I dont think you'll use it often, but perhaps. Intellect fortress? I don't expect that psychic damage is common. I don't think this would be useful.
I could go on, but the pattern I am seeing with abjuration spells is that they're going to be situational. That means opportunities to recharge your ward are also situational, unless you delve into cheesier routes such as picking up the warlock invocation Armor of Shadows via a feat, MC two level of warlock to get the same invocation, or going svirfneblin and taking svirfneblin magic as a racial feat.
Evocation on the other hand...well you're going to blast things. You're going to want to use AoE, and your melee casters are going to stand in the blast pattern. I believe that sculpt spell will be used early, and used often, without resorting to tricks that may cause your DM to give you the stinkeye. if I could get my DM to buy off on me playing an abjuration wizard with the armor of shadows invocation? That's my first pick. Playing them more "honestly" my pick is evocation.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Tasha
I have never played RoFM, but I know some tricks & tips from both Abjurer and Evoker.
If special races are allowed and you can (and want) to play a Mark of Warding Dwarf, go full Abjurer and never go back. This is the most resistant and powerful Wizard build out there (you can combine Armor of Agathys + Arcane Ward and destroy everyone in melee combat, which is usually the main weakness of Wizards).
What I would like to reinforce is that, regardless your school of specialization, you are a godslayer Wizard full of versatility, utility and cleverness. As an Abjurer, you’ll be more tough (Iron Wizard). As an Evoker, you’ll be better at AoE blasting (Nuclear Wizard). But you still need to do your job well by keeping yourself alive (Shield, Mage Armor, Absorb Elements, Mirror Image, etc) in order to ensure your party will thrive. So don’t neglect things like Sleep or Tasha’s Hideous Laugher by low levels. Do not forget that fire spells synergize well with Web. Levitate, Hold Person, Flaming Sphere and Misty Step are must haves for any Wizard. Hypnotic Pattern and Slow can increase the effectiveness of your Fireball big time.
Going specifics, I really like the combination of Projected Ward + Familiar with Dragon’s Breath. You can ensure your little fire breathing familiar can survive more once he attracts the attention of the enemies.
As an Evoker, you can never go wrong with Thunderwave, Shatter and later on Fireball, but don’t forget your Toll the Dead will be super reliable by level 6 once you get Potent Cantrip.
Thank you so much for your response! You've managed to put my thoughts and feelings down to text. I think, at the moment, I'm leaning towards the evocer subclass. Perhaps I could try out the abjurer in some one shot or something to see how it feels, before the campaign starts.
Thank you again for your input!
I haven't played Rime of the Frost Maiden either, but... while the Armor of Agathys Abjurer combo is pretty neat, it has the downside of being cold damage inside of an Icewind Dale story.
Simply based on the name and the location, I suspect that fire spells will be more attractive. At which point, maybe going tiefling? There's several tiefling feats that can help - resistance to cold and poison, or boost fire spells. And there's several different variations that could come with helpful spells for an evoker.