Which armor spell should a sorcerer (dragon disciple) learn?

Chronicler

So I'm playing a dragon disciple, and I don't plan on making use of the armor class bonus extensively but it seems a waste not to learn an armor spell if the kit's so neatly set up for it.

There's Armor at level 1

By means of this spell, the wizard creates a magical field of force that serves as if it were scale mail armor (Armor Class: 6). It is cumulative with Dexterity and, in the case of Fighter/Mages, with the shield bonus. The Armor spell does not hinder movement, adds no weight or encumbrance, and does not prevent spellcasting. It lasts until successfully dispelled or until the duration runs out.

Lasts for 8 hours.

Then there's Ghost Armor at level 3

By means of this spell, the wizard creates a magical field of force that serves as if it were field plate armor (Armor Class: 2). It is cumulative with Dexterity and, in the case of Fighter/Mages, with the shield bonus. The Ghost Armor spell does not hinder movement, adds no weight or encumbrance, and does not prevent spellcasting. It lasts until successfully dispelled or until the duration runs out.

Lasts for 1 hour.

Then there's Spirit Armor at level 4.

This is very similar to the 3rd-level spell Ghost Armor in that it creates a corporeal barrier around the target's body for the duration of the spell. This spell, however, actually taps in to the target's life force in order to create the barrier. The armor itself is weightless and does not hinder movement or spellcasting at all. The spirit armour does not work cumulatively with any other armor, however, Dexterity bonuses still apply as well as magic rings and shields. While in effect, the base Armor Class of the recipient will be set to 1, as if he were wearing full plate armour. Also, due to the magical nature of the spell, he will also receive a +3 bonus on Saving Throws against magical attacks. There is a danger however, as when the spell runs out, the external portion of the spirit is temporarily lost, inflicting 2d4 points of damage upon the target, unless he makes a Saving Throw vs. Spel

And it lasts for 2 hours. Unlike the others, it can also be cast on others, which is a perk, since I plan on running with Rasaad, though I'm sure he'll manage either way.

And maybe there's some other spells I'm missing that mimic the effect of wearing armor. Which one do you think I should learn?

OlvynChuru

I recommend using Shield and not Armor. Shield provides better Armor Class, especially against missile weapons, which are much more threatening to mages. Although it lasts shorter, its duration is still really long (1 hour). I'd say go with Shield.

jmerry

Keep in mind the equipment options for AC. In BGEE, there are bracers for AC 8, 7, and 6, then archmage robes with AC 5 once you have the cash. In BG2EE, bracers go up to AC 3, archmage robes are still there, the Robe of Vecna has AC 5, and there's a set of mage robes you can get in the stronghold with AC 3 but no other bonuses.

As such, the level 1 Armor spell will go obsolete like many other level 1 spells do. If you get it, it's something you'll use early on and stop using eventually.

At level 2, your divine caster friends can cast Barkskin on you; 3+1/level rounds, for an AC that improves with caster level (1 at level 20) and a small save bonus. If you've got druids around, it's not like they were spending their level 2 slots on anything else worthwhile.

Also at level 2, Blur comes with a nice AC bonus and a long duration. Dragon disciples can make good use of this.

The best level 4 spell for AC? Improved Invisibility. Shadow Door at level 5 essentially duplicates it, and Mass Invisibility at level 7 spreads it to the whole party.

Shapeshifting is also an option; the various polymorph options set natural AC, so they stack with the DD bonus.

Nothing wrong with taking one of the armor spells, of course. I didn't when I played a DD all the way; equipment, Barkskin, and illusions were enough for me. [Edit - forgot about Shield. I had that one.]

Grond0

It partly depends how you intend to play the character. If you're intending them to act as a tank then AC protection may be more valuable to supplement other protections. If you just want to make them safer on the odd occasion they're exposed then stoneskin is a much better option than any of the armor spells. However, you might still want to consider shield (as early protection and to nullify magic missiles) and spirit armor (can both be used on others and gives a valuable saving throw bonus).

Chronicler

OlvynChuru wrote: »

I recommend using Shield and not Armor. Shield provides better Armor Class, especially against missile weapons, which are much more threatening to mages. Although it lasts shorter, its duration is still really long (1 hour). I'd say go with Shield.

Does Shield not stack with Armor spells?

jmerry

With AC-setting spells and equipment, only the best one applies. If you have Armor (AC 6), archmage robes (AC 5), and Shield (AC 4), your base AC is 4.

Shield also gives you a modifier to AC versus missiles; that applies regardless. If you have Shield and the AC 3 bracers, that's base AC 3 with an additional -2 versus missiles.

And, something I just remembered ... on the occasions you really want good AC, you can drink a potion of defense. Two hours of base AC zero, better than any other option a pure mage can access.

Pokota

Considering Shield and Armor together would represent 50% of your level 1 spell selection, that shouldn't be a factor.

jmerry

Dragon disciples don't have a penalty to the number of spells known; they reach five level 1 spells known at character level 7 like any other sorcerer. Still, you do want to minimize redundancy in your spell choices - you'd better have a very good reason if you're taking two spells that fill the same role at the same level.

Chronicler

jmerry wrote: »

With AC-setting spells and equipment, only the best one applies. If you have Armor (AC 6), archmage robes (AC 5), and Shield (AC 4), your base AC is 4.

Shield also gives you a modifier to AC versus missiles; that applies regardless. If you have Shield and the AC 3 bracers, that's base AC 3 with an additional -2 versus missiles.

And, something I just remembered ... on the occasions you really want good AC, you can drink a potion of defense. Two hours of base AC zero, better than any other option a pure mage can access.

Weird. Based on their spell descriptions you'd think you'd be able to utilize a magic shield and a magic suit of armor in conjunction with eachother. No different from any warrior who does the mundane version of that.

Pokota

Which is why 3rd edition subdivided AC modifiers into types - deflection, shield, etc.

Physical armor doesn't stack with armor spells (as explained above). The Shield spell should logically stack with either since per flavor text it behaves like a shield (and has other benefits, too!) but I'm not the guy who wrote the rules. You'll notice that physical shields modify your AC instead of setting it, so there is a discontinuity in the magic effects.


@jmerry Right, the DD gets fewer spells per day, not spells per level. I always get that backwards