Unorthodox Wizards
By @homebrewlesbian
A collection of arcane traditions I have developed over the course of a year that haven't been published until now. Introducing my take on: The Hedge Mage— a scrappy self-taught wizard who doesn't really play by any rules. The Ritualist— a strategic wizard that specializes in ritual spells and creating magic circles to buff and benefit themselves and their allies. And lastly, the Atramentist— a wizard who has decided that their body is a more suitable template for repository of spells than any book.
Hedge Mage
Hedge Mages are self-taught wizards, determined to learn magic by sheer force of will. They are often wanderers, scavenging for spells and looking to learn from any source. Resourceful and used to their own magic blowing up in their faces, Hedge Mages are erratic and unpredictable but wield great power, and within that prove themselves to be up to snuff alongside their scholarly counterparts.
Hedge Mage Features
| Wizard Level | Feature |
|---|---|
| 2nd | Well-Traveled Wizard, Arcane Secrets |
| 6th | Volatile Casting, Instant Switch |
| 10th | Traveler's Boon |
| 14th | Harness Arcana |
Well-Traveled Wizard
At 2nd level, you may use any spell scroll regardless of class restriction, so long as it is a level of which you can cast.
Arcane Secrets
At 2nd level, your pursuit of magic has led you to research and learn magic from several disciplines. Choose a spell or from any class, including this one and add it to your Spellbook. A spell you choose must be of a level you can cast, as shown on the Wizard table.
The chosen spells count as wizard spells for you. You learn an additional spell in this manner on every even Wizard level you gain. These spells cannot be taken for your Spell Mastery or Signature Spell features.
Volatile Casting
At 6th level, your lack of formal training makes your magic unpredictable and reactive. When you cast a spell deals damage, you may choose to make a volatile spell. You declare this when you cast the spell. Roll a d20 and consult the chart to the right:
| d20 | Effect |
|---|---|
| 1 | The spell's energy backfires and wounds you in the process of casting. You take damage equal to twice the level the spell was cast at. |
| 2- 7 | The spell's effect fizzles and weakens. You subtract the damage dealt by a number equal your Wizard level. |
| 8 - 13 | There is no change. |
| 14 - 19 | The spell bursts with vigor and power. You deal additional damage equal to your Wizard level. |
| 20 | The spell is considered a critical hit for the purposes of calculating damage dealt to a number of targets up to or equal to your Intelligence modifier. |
If you roll a 1 or a 20 you cannot use this ability again until after you have completed a long rest.
Instant Switch
At 6th level, your lack of formal training makes you unpredictable and reactive. As a bonus action, you may swap out a prepared spell with an unprepared one. if the spell has a casting time of 1 action or 1 bonus action, you can cast it by expending a spell slot as part of the same bonus action. This spell remains prepared until your next long rest.
You regain this ability after a long rest.
Traveler's Boon
At 10th level, your wandering ways and experimental dives into magic have made you hearty. At the start of your day, choose one of the following benefits, which lasts until you are incapacitated or you take a long rest:
- Your walking speed increases by 5 ft. Additionally, whenever you finish a short rest, your exhaustion level, if any, is decreased by 1.
- You gain resistance to one of the following damage types: acid, cold, fire, lightning, poison, or thunder.
- You gain a bonus to saving throws against spells and other magical effects equal to half your proficiency bonus rounded down.
Harness Arcana
At 14th level, you have learned to recycle the energy of your spells when they fail and redirect it. When you cast a spell of 5th level or lower and all targets succeed their saving throw, the spell misses, or otherwise does not succeed its intended purpose (at the discretion of your DM), you may immediately cast a spell without expending a spell slot so long as it is of a spell slot lower than the one you cast and affects a creature within 60 ft of the original target.
You regain this ability after a long rest.
Ritualist
Ritualists are wizards that have chosen to specialize in ritual spells, taking their time to let the weave flourish in power around them and the effects they wish to cast. They also are the practitioners of a special form of ritual, creating magical circles to benefit themselves and their allies. Ritualists are often bookish scholars, but are often skilled tacticians and manipulators of their chosen arena.
Ritualist Features
| Wizard Level | Feature |
|---|---|
| 2nd | Ritual Savant, Arcanist's Circle |
| 6th | Circle Scan, Ritual Assistants |
| 10th | Best Laid Plans |
| 14th | Instant Ritual |
Ritual Savant
At 2nd level, you can learn any ritual spell regardless of spell list restrictions. Additionally, the gold and time you must spend to copy a ritual spell into your spellbook is halved.
Arcanist's Circle
At 2nd level, you can create a series of magic glyphs encompassing a 10 ft. radius circle over the course of 1 minute. This can be performed during a short or long rest and lasts until the end of your next long rest, until you create a new circle, or until you dismiss it (no action required). You can imbue this circle with an Annular Ritual, each with unique properties that affect you and those you consider allies (unless otherwise specified). You prepare these rituals similarly to how you prepare spells and can have a number prepared equal to your Proficiency Bonus. The circle's size increases up to 20 ft. at 8th level, and 30 ft. at 16th level.
Annular Rituals
You may choose from the following rituals:
Allure. Friendly creatures within the circle have advantage on persuasion, deception, and insight checks while in the radius.
Alert. You become aware of the presence of any creature within your circle or a creature that enters your circle's radius, including those that are scrying upon any person within your circle, or invisible. This awakens you if an unidentified creature enters the area when you are sleeping.
Celerity. When you create this circle, friendly creatures within the radius gain a 10 ft. bonus to their movement speed until the circle is dispelled or until they leave a circle.
Detection. Friendly creatures within the circle gain darkvision out to 60 ft. (or have their darkvision increased by 30 ft.), and have advantage on perception and investigation checks while in the radius.
Elemental Protection. Friendly creatures within the radius of your circle gain resistance to one damage type of your choice, except for force, psychic, bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing.
Vitality. Friendly creatures who start their turn within the circle gain temporary hit points equal to your Wizard level. As an action on subsequent turns you can grant these temporary hit points again to any creature that has gained hit points from this Annular Ritual.
Versatility. When you cast a spell with the Touch or Self range, you can extend that effect to one creature within the circle. If that spell requires concentration, the duration of your Arcanist's Circle becomes the duration of the spell.
Ward. You safeguard your circle from outsiders. Any creature attempting to cross into your circle must make a Wisdom saving throw contested by your Wizard Spell Save DC. Creatures already within the radius are not affected.
Circle Scan
At 6th level you learn a new ritual. You can take 1 minute to examine a location that has been affected by magic, such as an area under the effects of the Hallow spell, or the scorch marks left behind by a Fireball. Upon completing the ritual, you gain the following benefits:
- You learn all of the effects of the magic.
- You know the approximate time the magic was created, and if it has since faded, when it started to fade.
- You know the identities of all participants in the creation of that magic. This can range from the name of the caster or a description at the discretion of your DM.
Ritual Assistants
At 6th level, as an action, you may conjure two ethereal copies of yourself. They are translucent, clearly illusory, cannot speak, take actions, and if they take any damage they disappear. As a bonus action you can command them to move up to your movement speed in any direction. You can cast spells as if you were in their space. They can also aid you in creating your Arcanist's Circle, letting you create a circle in as an action. They disappear after 1 minute or after you create an Arcanist's Circle.
You regain this ability after a long rest.
Best Laid Plans
At 10th level, you add the Glyph of Warding spell to your spellbook, if it is not there already.
You can cast Glyph of Warding at 3rd level as an action without expending a spell slot or using material components. You regain the ability to cast it in this manner after a long rest.
Instant Ritual
At 14th level, you are a master of ritual spells. You may cast any spell with the ritual tag (regardless of casting time) you know and have spell slots for as an action. You regain this feature after a long rest.
You also add the Hallow spell to your spellbook. It is considered a wizard spell for you, but other wizards can't copy it from your spellbook into their own spellbooks.
Atramentist
Atramentists are few and far in between. These unique wizards choose, instead of using a spellbook, to tattoo their body with the secrets to the arcane they seek to master. It is rare to find an Atramentist, and those you do, typically think themselves the inventor of this newfound form of wizardry, or are (or formerly) the apprentice of another Atramentist.
Atramentist Features
| Wizard Level | Feature |
|---|---|
| 2nd | Tattoo Savant, Arcane Canvas |
| 6th | Enhanced Arcanum |
| 10th | Arcane Resilience |
| 14th | Tattoo Mastery |
Tattoo Savant
At 2nd level, because of the delicate nature of your style of casting, the process of learning a new spell takes four hours and 100 gold per level of the spell.
Arcane Canvas
Unlike most wizards, you scribe your spells onto your skin instead of a spellbook. At 2nd level, you may choose one of your spells known to become an Inked Spell. This spell is constantly prepared and does not count towards the spells you can prepare daily. You may choose a new Inked Spell every other wizard level you gain for a total of 10 at 20th level. Once you have chosen an Inked Spell you cannot change it.
Enhanced Arcanum
At 6th level, when you cast one of your Inked Spells you can empower it in one of the following ways:
- You have advantage on concentration checks for the duration of the spell.
- You may reroll 1's on the damage dice.
- You gain advantage on a spell attack or impose disadvantage on one creature's saving throw against your spell.
You can do this once per long rest. At 12th level, you may use this ability twice per long rest, and at 18th level three times.
Arcane Resilience
At 10th level, your body is covered in tattoos fortified by the weave of magic, granting you a +2 bonus to your AC and the following reaction:
- Deflect Magic. You can use your reaction to shield yourself from magical damage when you are hit by a spell attack or are subjected to an area of effect spell that deals damage. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d6 + your Intelligence modifier + half your wizard level. You cannot deflect Psychic damage with this feature.
Tattoo Mastery
At 14th level, casting your Inked Spells is almost second nature to you. You can cast one of your Inked Spells at its lowest level without expending a spell slot so long as that spell is a spell level equal to or below 1/4th of your wizard level. Once you have cast a spell using this feature you cannot cast that spell this way again until you have taken a long rest.
This is unofficial Fan Content permitted under the Fan Content Policy. Portions of the materials used are property of WotC. ©Wizards of the Coast LLC.