Delving Deeper The Illusionist.pdf

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T
HE
ILLUSIONIST
Revisiting the Classic Player Type
by Simon J. Bull
T
HE
ILLUSIONIST
Revisiting the Classic Player Type
The OD&D Illusionist
Peter Aronson’s original illusionist class appeared in The Strategic Review Vol 1 No
4 in winter 1975. It was said to be “a sub-class of magic-users” and was notable for
requiring both a “good” intelligence score and a dexterity score “not less than 15”.
The new sub-class had use of a limited range of magic items and could memorize
fewer spells per day at lower levels than could a magic-user. Even with these re-
strictions Aronson’s illusionist required approximately 150% as much XP as did a
magic-user for levels 2-12.
Most compelling was the illusionist’s new repetoire of spells across five spell levels
(compared to the magic-user’s six). Additional spells, and spell levels 6 and 7, were
added by the same author in The Dragon #1 June, 1976.
The AD&D Illusionist
EGG restated much of Aronson’s material in the AD&D Players Handbook (1978)
although the AD&D illusionist now required an intelligence score not less than 15
and a dexterity score not less than 16. Regardless of his unlikely ability scores he
would gain no XP bonus.
However, the AD&D illusionist’s XP requirements were adjusted downward; he
now required approximately 95% as much XP as did a magic-user for levels 2-12.
Meanwhile, his spell memory was slightly improved at lower levels so he could
memorize approximately as many spells per day as a regular magic-user across the
whole of the level range 1-12. Despite these improvements the AD&D illusionist
was still noted as being “possibly inferior to the magic-user”.
The DD Illusionist
The following interpretation of the illusionist is not a second-rate magic-user but
rather a first-class deceiver modelled after the Master Illusionists Eisenhem (The
Illusionist), Angier and Borden (The Prestige), and Blackwood (Sherlock Holmes)
as portrayed in recent cinema films.
Author/Production: Simon J. Bull
Reviewers/Proof readers: Ethan Sincox,
Peter Fröhlich, Mike Tremaine
Cover art: Timothy Ide
November 2014
http://forum.immersiveink.com/
Copyright © 2014 Simon J. Bull
0
e
MADE 4
GAMES
THE ILLUSIONIST
The illusionist is a fraud and a trickster. His magick is smoke and mirrors and half-
imagined frights, his many counterfeits based in simple tricks. But perception will
often pass for reality—real or merely believed to be real—
‘
tis all the same is it not?
Table 1 Illusionist Progression
Experience
Illusionist
Level
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Points
Required
0
2,250
4,500
9,000
18,000
33,000
55,000
90,000
180,000
270,000
360,000
450,000
Hit
Dice
1
1+1
2
3
3+1
4
5
5+1
6
7
7+1
7+2
Poison
13
12
12
11
11
10
10
9
9
8
8
7
Saving Throw Versus
Wands Paralysis
Rays
14
14
14
11
11
11
11
8
8
8
8
5
13
12
12
11
11
10
10
9
9
8
8
7
Breath
Spells
Petrification
Weapon
16
15
15
14
14
13
13
12
12
11
11
10
15
14
14
13
13
12
12
11
11
10
10
9
An illusionist requires 180,000 experience points per level beyond the 12th.
An illusionist adds one hit die per four levels beyond the 10th.
Intelligence and dexterity are an illusionist’s prime requisite abilities; his wisdom
score will adjust both these prime requisites, and any experience adjustments will
be cumulative. Because he is fundamentally a deceiver the illusionist cannot choose
the lawful alignment.
In performing their craft illusionists can wear no armor and can employ only dag-
gers, staves, and short swords as weapons. They share the magic-users’ attack
matrix. Illusionists have use of wands as well as magical daggers, short swords,
and staves that are not exclusive to magic-users or to clerics. Otherwise, they can
employ potions, magic rings, wards, miscellaneous magic items usable by any class,
as well as crystal balls and mirrors of life trapping.
An illusionist has an uncanny eye for spotting illusions. When actively enquiring
he will identify these for what they really are with a throw of 3-6 on a six-sided die.
When merely observing an illusion in passing he will do so with a throw of 5-6 on
a six-sided die. This perception extends to the Alter Self, Phantasm, and Hallucina-
tory Terrain magic-user spells and deceptions performed by other illusionists, but
excludes real effects such as hypnosis and the highest order illusionist tricks.
2
Illusionist Magick
Illusionist magick is deception and trickery. It is not the true magic of elves and
wizards and therefore
is not subject to detect magic or dispel magic.
It is, how-
ever, subject to clerical detect evil,
remove curse, and dispel evil as
Table 2 Illusionist “Spells” per Day
appropriate.
“Spells” Prepared per Day
Beginning at 3rd level, however, an
By Spell Level
illusionist can invoke magic-user
spell scrolls with a throw of 3-6 on
1
2
3
4
5
a six-sided die. These are proper
2
.
.
.
.
magic spells and are subject to de-
3
.
.
.
.
tect magic and dispel magic.
4
1
.
.
.
An illusionist does not memorise
4
2
.
.
.
spells as does a magic-user; instead
4
2
1
.
.
he must prepare his tricks in ad-
vance of using them each day. This
4
3
2
.
.
preparation takes a similar amount
4
3
2
1
.
of time as does a magic-user’s study,
4
3
3
2
.
and requires access to all the illu-
sionist’s paraphernalia.
4
4
3
2
1
4
4
4
4
4
4
3
4
4
3
3
3
2
2
3
The illusionist cannot construct
magic items or spell scrolls.
Illusionist “Spell” List
2nd
3rd
Conjuration
Fear
Feign Death
Haze
Pyrotechnics
Speak with Shadows
Spectral Forces
Suggestion
Table 3 Illusionist “Spells” by Spell Level
1st
Affect Fires
Change Self
Flashbang
Fog
Hypnotism
Prestidigitation
Vanishing Act
Ventriloquism
4th
Confusion
Death Mask
Mass Hypnosis
Phantasmal Killer
Shadow Walk
Shadows
Tempus
Vacancy
3
Alter Reality
Anything
Gloom
Mass Suggestion
Cloak
Darkvision
Houdini
Hypnotic Pattern
Phantom
Quickstep
Sense Invisible
Sense Magic
5th
Null Dimension
Project Shade
Shadow Walker
Unreal

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