Talk:Mystic Geometrist (5e Sorcerous Origin)

First Thoughts

The wording of Basial Magic seems needlessly convoluted, unless I'm missing something this should be identical:

"Starting at 1st level, you gain two cantrips of your choice from any classes. For you, these cantrips count as sorcerer cantrips. You gain an additional such cantrip at 14th level."

The big problem with Extra Spellcasting is that cantrips are already intended to mostly keep pace with the fighter's Extra attack; that's why they improve at 5th and 11th levels (arguably the fighter should have gotten Extra Attack 3 at 17th but I suspect that was an eleventh hour design change). What's generally missing from this trick is the extra 3-5 damage per die of spellcasting modifier. Warlocks manage this trick with eldritch blast, so I'd suggest a similar solution in this case. With Extra Spellcasting as written, a 14th level Mystic Geometrist can make 3 attacks for 3d10 fire damage with no cost.

I'm unhappy with the Shape of Magic and Master of Cantrips just wholesale ransacking all the spell lists. Not only does it not really make any thematic statements about the Origin, it somewhat tramples the niche of other Origins that used a more limited version of the same trick (like the Divine Soul). Where I would have liked this to go is something about preparation and shapes. Maybe getting glyph of warding as a sorcerer spell with some improvement or variation (can cast it as a ritual, can apply metamagic to the spell glyph, etc). --Vaegrim (talk) 22:33, 25 April 2019 (MDT)

Thank you for your constructive comments Vaegrim! I will think on this. My initial goal was to have a sorcerer subclass that 1) Relies on cantrips more than higher level spells. 2) Has access to a wider variety of cantrips. 3) Removes necessity to vocalize spells. --Rlyehable (talk) 12:06, 15 October 2019 (MDT)

Balance

I think this class is a bit too much. Here are a few points:

• Unlike fighters, cantrips naturally gain scaling as levels progress. Giving them that many in one action will take forever in combat, and also be too strong. I could see one additional at level 14, and even that's pretty damn good, especially as you can multiclass into warlock for Agonizing Blast and combine the strongest cantrip in the game into your arsenal.
• One of the biggest restraints on spellcasters, keeping them relatively balanced, is their limited spell list. Gaining the ability to dip into others not only crushes the lore bard's shtick, but is a bit much when half your spell list is not from your class. It's the reason that Divine Soul is one of the best subclasses, but even with that you're limited to one other list, and it's a fairly subpar one as spell lists go.

Fixing these two things would go a long way IMO to balancing the subclass. --Ghostwheel (talk) 11:34, 30 January 2021 (UTC)

Suggestion

At 1st level: I think it might be more in balance if you only allow half (rounded down) of the new cantrips to be cantrips from other spell lists. Perhaps you could alow new cantrips based upon the Proficiancy bonus +1 at first level. --Huinelassir Areste (talk) 14:49, 2 October 2023 (UTC)

Flavour suggestion

Spectral Geometric shapes hover behind them. --Huinelassir Areste (talk) 21:04, 2 October 2023 (UTC)