Geometer

The Geometer is a specialist wizard in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition, first debuting in the splatbook "Players Option: Skills & Powers" before being reprinted in the follow-up "Player's Option: Spells & Magic".

Geometers specialize in studying and mastering the ways that designs, symbols, diagrams and similar geometric constructs can be used to channel, contain and unleash magical force. They are rune masters and glyph-casters, who view the somatic component of spells as a form of sketching which creates an extra-dimensional doorway through which magical energy is drawn and shaped. They are experts in the aspect of the somatic component, just as Song Mages focus on mastery of verbal components and Alchemists strive to master material components. They naturally gravitate towards spells that involve marks, runes and diagrams, but they also have learned to cast variants of common spells by using designs to imprint the magic into a physical object, and their somatic casting often makes itself visible, as their gestures trace eldritch sigils in mystical energy.

Spells of the school of geometry tend to be defensive or utilitarian in nature, since they specialize in creating long-term magical effects and imbuing magic into physical items. They most closely tend to reflect spells used by the Abjurer, Conjurer or even Necromancer. For obvious reasons, they lack verbal components, although material components are fairly common.

Mechanically, a Geometer has the following traits:

Allowed Races: Human, Elf, Half-Elf

Ability Score Requirements: Intelligence 15, Wisdom 14

Prohibited Schools of Magic: Enchantment and Illusion

A geometer can memorize one bonus spell of the School of Geometry per spell level each day.

A geometer gains a +15% bonus to learning spells from the School of Geometry and suffers a -15% penalty to attempts to learn spells of other schools.

Whenever a geometer gains access to a new spell level, they automatically learn one spell from the School of Geometry.

When attempting to create a new spell from the School of Geometry, the geometer treats its spell level as being 1 level lower.

Scribe Scrolls: From 4th level onwards, the geometer can transcribe spells they know to scrolls, a process that requires 1 full day per spell level and 100 gold pieces per spell level. These transcribed scrolls must either be from the School of Geometry, or specially researched variants of spells from other schools - creating these "geometric variants" is handled as researching a normal spell, and makes that spell be considered part of the School of Geometry for that wizard from then on. Successfully transcribing a spell requires passing a Learn Spells check. A geometer can only have a number of scribed spells equal to their character level.

Scribe Protective Scrolls: From 7th level onwards, a geometer can use spell research to reverse-engineer protection scrolls; the mechanics for this differ between Skills & Potions and Spells & Magic.

The Skills & Options version works like this:

Scrolls with an XP value of 1,000 are considered equal to 4th level spells, those with an XP value of 1,500 are equal to 5th level spells, those with an XP value of 2,000 are equal to 6th level spells, and those with an XP value of 2,500 are equal to 7th level spells. Researching a protection scroll formula requires 2 weeks and 1,000 gold pieces per effective spell level, and culminates in a learn spells check. If successful, the geometer masters that particular scroll's formula, and can attempt to scribe that form of protection scroll at will. This requires 300-1800 gold pieces in materials, a week's work, and a successful learn spells check.

The Spells & Magic version works like this:

The effective spell level of a scroll is determined by dividing its XP value by 500 and then adding 2. Research time requires 2 weeks and 1,000 GP per spell level, followed by a successful learn spells check. Once a diagram has been researched, the geometer can attempt to create that scroll at will, but scribing a protection scroll requires 3d6*100 gold pieces, a week of uninterrupted work, and a successful learn spells check.

School of Geometry Spells

• Alarm (1st)
• Copy (1st)
• Dictation (1st)
• Erase (1st)
• Shield (1st)
• Hornung's Baneful Deflector (1st)
• Hypnotic Pattern (2nd)
• Moon Rune (2nd)
• Bone Club (3rd)
• Explosive Runes (3rd)
• Lesser Sign of Sealing (3rd)
• Secret Page (3rd)
• Sepia Snake Sigil (3rd)
• Conjure Elemental-Kin (4th)
• Fire Trap (4th)
• Minor Globe of Invulnerability (4th)
• Rainbow Pattern (4th)
• There/Not There (4th)
• Thunder Staff (4th)
• Animate Dead (5th)
• Avoidance (5th)
• Conjure Elemental (5th)
• Invulnerability to Normal Weapons (5th)
• Khazid's Procurement (5th)
• Mordenkainen's Private Sanctum (5th)
• Von Gasik's Refusal (5th)
• Ensnarement (6th)
• Globe of Invulnerability (6th)
• Greater Sign of Sealing (6th)
• Guards and Wards (6th)
• Invulnerability to Magical Weapons (6th)
• Fear Ward (7th)
• Phase Door (7th)
• Sequester (7th)
• Vanish (7th)
• Binding (8th)
• Maze (8th)
• Symbol (8th)
• Trap the Soul (8th)
• Gate (9th)
• Shape Change (9th)