Talk:Black Mage (5e Subclass)

spells normaly dont land critical hits

Since the items that are created only last a day and are specific it is comparable to the artificer class so it doesn't go against downtime activities, however the Carapace doesn't say what sort of armour it is. The +2 DC is very strong and probably should be swapped with Intensified Black Magic. With Black Magic Detonation 2d10 damage per spell slot guaranteed is overpowered as you can see when it is compared to magic missile which is 1d4+1 per spell level +2d4 +2 (average 11 per spell level compared to 3 1/2 per spell level +7) and magic missile is already one of the best low level spells. Babosa (talk) 16:17, 19 October 2018 (MDT)

Any attack roll can crit, spell or otherwise. (Clarified by FAQ from Mearls & Crawford). Spells without an attack roll do not crit, that's probably what you're thinking of. That said, getting a triple damage crit is absolutely nuts, especially when you consider that the spells you can't crit with are already harder to shrug off because of the +2 DC at 2nd level. I could get behind the +2 if it were further down the line, or the triple damage once per long rest, but not both. The trouble is that 14 still seems a bit early for +2 to DC. A sorcerer or warlock could pull it off with an 18 level improvement, but the wizard is a bit full after 14th level. If nobody minds, I'll have a go and see if everyone likes how it turns out. I'm thinking that being able to change the required save on a spell would be almost as good as increasing the DC, but without increasing it. Trading a Dex save Fireball for a Con save one against an assassin, for example. It allows for the same thing without becoming overly powerful and could still allow for a triple crit at 14th level, I believe. Let's see how it goes. Zibby (talk) 02:57, 18 December 2018 (MST)

I feel like this balances the black mage, and I've addressed the concerns you have raised. Everything can be resisted, if not avoided all together, and the working of the various items are more specific. The triple damage is still there, but by switching instead of outright increasing the DC, it doesn't feel so bad. The armor is more specific and can be as high as 19 AC, but does not allow for any bonuses on top of that because it can shield. The armor deteriorates if you use the +5's from shield, so it doesn't just block everything forever. The crossbow requires an arcane focus, which seemed like the best choice in order to allow it to still count as one. All in all, I like it and I think it keeps the original intent. Thanks for letting me contribute! Zibby (talk) 04:15, 18 December 2018 (MST)

Ah yes your right. I like what you've done with it, it's much better now. The only thing I would change would be removing the limit on eldritch critical because criticals are already rare, or increase the critical range.

I'm good with it being a short rest, but every critical at 3x instead of 2x is nasty. Consider that casters can generally deal fighter-like damage at range, often with greater consistency. Having a 3x every time could put them over the top by quite a bit. I like the increased range, though. Perhaps an increased crit range on spell attacks and a 3x per long rest. Let's see how it looks. Zibby (talk) 02:48, 23 December 2018 (MST)

<3 that Eldritch Crit feature! ~ BigShotFancyMan (talk) 16:55, 30 December 2018 (MST)