Word of Wizards - Excerpts: Cosmic Magic

Arcane Power Excerpts: Cosmic Magic

Sorcerers will have 2 new magic source options when Arcane Power is released. They are the Storm Magic and the Cosmic Magic. In today's excerpt, we take a look at what Cosmic magic can do.

Flavor wise, cosmic magic is suppose to draw its power from the sun, moon and stars. Your blood resonates with the cycle of these celestial bodies and your power is affected by their cycles.

A Cosmic sorcerer is strength based with its two class features using your Str mod for benefits which is weird in flavor but interesting in terms of mechanics. As you as you are not wearing heavy armor, Cosmic Persistence allows you to swap your Str mod with your Dex or Int mod to your AC. Cosmic Power adds your Str mod as a bonus to your damage rolls for your arcane powers that scales at the beginning of each tier level.

Another interesting aspect of the Cosmic sorcerer is that they have to choose a phase after every short or extended rest. There are 3 phases; sun, moon and stars, in that order. Whenever the sorcerer is bloodied, he automatically changes his cycle to the next one in order. So for example, when a sorcerer chooses to be start in a sun phase and gets bloodied, he enters into the moon phase. He can also switch to the next phase if he uses a daily.

Each phase grants the sorcerer a resistance, a special ability and an extra effect to certain spells.

For example, a Cosmic Sorcerer that is in the Stars phase gains resist 5 radiant. In addition, whenever an attack misses the sorcerer, he can teleport a number of squares equal to his Str mod. When he uses Dazzling Starlight (level 13, encounter), not only is the target unable to take immediate and opportunity actions, it is also dazed until the end of your next turn.

In the moon phase, the sorcerer gains resist 5 psychic and gains AC bonus equal to the number of conscious enemies adjacent to the sorcerer. When he uses Moon Cage (level 13, encounter), he gets to add his Str mod for damage.

Overall, it looks like a pretty neat concept with an interesting mechanics but keeping track of this might be an added hassle. Another thing to note is that this build seems to be made for the dragonborn which is a strange niche to fit since they already have the Dragon magic source.

Please share any thoughts that you have about this.