Please comment and review. I went for a variety of styles with the Karach spells.
Shape the Blade
Transmutation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 1
Components: V, F
Casting Time: 1 Swift Action
Range: Touch
Target: One Karach
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: No
Forcing a burst of arcane energies through the sword, it rapidly changes to meet your needs.
When you cast this spell, the kharach instantly changes form as if you had spent a standard action to do it. However, as the spell is a swift action, you can then go on to do other things.
Focus: The Karach.
Designers Notes: This seems fair to me; a first level slot to speed up something I could do anyway.
Violent Lunge
Transmutation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 2
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: 60ft
Effect: 60ft Line
Target: One Piercing Weapon
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: No
Spell Resistance: No
Pointing the blade at your foes, it streaks forward from your hand in a flash, impaling several of them before it floats back into your hand.
This spell functions as Whirling Blade (Spell Compendium, pp 238) except it effects piercing weapons.
Focus: Any piercing weapon.
Designers Notes: Whirling Blade uses slashing weapons only, but this is completely arbitrary, in my opinion; if I'd, say, chosen longsword instead of rapier, it probably wouldn't be an issue. So I see no problem with copying it pretty much exactly.
Anarchic Derivative
Evocation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 3
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Target: You
Duration: 1 Round/Level
Holding the sword like a wand, you can feel your spells start flowing through it as you cast them.
Whenever you cast a weaponlike spell, it gains the attributes of the kharach blade, as long as they are valid for that type of weapon (for instance, no Keen Scorching Rays). The enhancement bonus doesn't apply to the spells regardless.
Focus: The Karach.
Designers Notes: I figure there was precedent set here, and this is a very, VERY handy ability to have. Potential modifications could be to have it as a swift action and apply to only one spell. Another way of approaching design would be to have specific spells for specific weapon traits- I delved into that a little below.
Chaos Stance
Transmutation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 3
Components: V, F
Casting Time: 1 Swift Action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 Round
The sword quivers in your grip, and magically guides your hand towards your foes.
Until the end of the round, your base attack bonus equates to your caster level, and you can substitute your intelligence bonus for strength when calculating your attack and damage. These bonuses only apply when you're using the kharach.
Focus: The Karach.
Designers Notes: This is a bit tricky, but it allows me to spontaneously bust out the sword in a melee without totally sucking. I think wraithstrike is kind of broken and don't want to set precedent for it, but this seems about right. Compare it to Steeldance if you want any balance justification (that spell remains better in like every way.)
Theft of Edges
Abjuration
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 3
Components: V, F
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Touch
Target: One magical weapon
Duration: 1 round/level
Reaching out to your opponent, you feint, and strike his weapon. In an instant, your blade crackles with new power, while your opponents fades and loses it's glow.
You make an opposed attack roll against your opponent. If you succeed, your weapon comes into contact with his, and you can steal the enchantments upon it. However, you cannot 'double up' on existing enchantments, and you can't transmute enchantments you have stolen into new ones. Use the larger enhancement bonus of the two weapons.
For instance, if the kharach is presently a +2 flaming rapier , and you use Theft of Edges on a +3 frost longsword, it will become a flaming frost +3 rapier. You could alter the Karach enchantment already present, perhaps, and make it into a +3 flaming frost shock rapier. However, you couldn't use the 'extra' enhancement bonus, nor could you reduce the 'Karach' enhancement bonus below one (even though it doesn't apply because the stolen enhancement bonus is larger.)
While Theft of Edges is in effect, the enchantments on your opponents weapon function as if they were dispelled.
Focus: The Karach
Designers Notes: The first spell that really draws upon the Kharach's anarchic, shifting quality. It is a powerful nerf against enemy fighters with potent weapons. I deliberately made it so no caster check or anything was required- the way I see it, the artifact status of the weapon accounts for that.
If some kind of secondary check was required on top of actually arranging to hit my opponents weapon (which I have a good chance of doing if I use Chaos Stance, I admit, but that's another 3rd level slot blown), I'd argue that the spell should become 2nd level.
Inspiring the Steel
Transmutation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 4
Components: V, F, S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Touch
Target: One Magical Weapon
Duration: 1 minute/level
Tapping your allies weapon with the kharach, you can see his weapon's enchantments twist into a new form, whilst your own loses it's allure.
In exchange for temproarily losing your blade's effectiveness, you can allow your allies a more suitable weapon for the problem at hand. You can effectively replace your allies weapon's enchantments with whatever the kharach's enchantments are at the time. The new enchantments 'overwrite' the ones your ally had until the duration ends.
Your kharach can't be used as a focus while this spell is in effect.
Focus: The Karach
Designers Notes: Alveria isn't a hardcore warrior, but her friends totally are! This is a cool little buff that'll let us take on whatever we need to.
The flexibility can be powerful, particularly with bane weapons. But I wouldn't be adverse to having a 'limit' on the power of the enchantments I can transfer. A 'Greater' Variant could be researched if necessary.
Improvised Substitution
Evocation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 1-3
Components: V, F
Casting Time: 1 Swift Action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous
Focusing on the mystical energy running through the blade, the spell that rises in your mind takes on a new form.
If the Karach is presently enchanted with a fiery, frost, acidic or shock enchantment, you can channel these energies into the next elemental spell you cast. You can apply the Energy Substitution feat to such a spell, using the appropriate element.
Like a sorcerer, you need to spend a full-round action to apply this metamagic.
Focus: The Karach, tuned to the appropriate elemental enchantment.
Designers Notes: Another enchantment designed to allow spontaneous flexibility. The full-round action casting time caveat seemed fair. If it's necessary, the spell could need to be keyed to a single element, but then I think it should be level 1.
Discharge
Evocation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 1
Components: V, F, S
Casting Time: 1 Standrad Action
Your sword holds a spell. With a shout and wave, magic lurches out towards your opponent.
When using a Spell-Storing weapon, you can cast the spell within without needing to touch your opponent. It resolves just as if it had been cast normally (by the original caster).
Focus: One Spell-Storing weapon, which is loaded.
Designers Notes: A gimmicky little thing. I thought it was cool.
Fencer's Transformation
Transmutation
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 6
Components: V, F, M, S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round/level
Your mind goes blank for a moment, and only the sword looms large within. In a flash, your spells twist into the deadly game of thrust and parry.
You give up your magical power temproarily for the sake of a lower, yet perhaps more refined, form of violence.
You get a +4 enhancement bonus to your dexterity and +4 enhancement bonus to your intelligence score. You can use your intelligence instead of strength to to determine your attack and damage values. Your base attack bonus becomes equal to your caster level, and this may give you multiple attacks. You can add your intelligence modifer as an insight bonus to your AC. You lose this bonus under any circumstances where you can't use your dex bonus to AC.
For the duration of the spell, you can the benefits of the Combat Expertise feat. Also, you can't cast other spells or use spell trigger blah blah blah etc.
Material Component: A potion of Fox's Cunning, which you drink (and who's effects are subsumed by the spell's effects).
Designers Notes: Ah, our old favourite. I wanted to create a variant that didn't blow for Alveria, and her epicly low strength score. It may be somewhat powerful, but it *is* a sixth level spell. The bonus to Int is not actually that hot as most Wizards will have a headband of int anyway. I think it stacks well against the original. (And for the record, polymorph would be worse, anyway.) Obvious gets way more awesome when you stack on the buffs beforehand, but so did the other one.
Chaos Forge
School: Conjuration
Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 5
Components: V, F, S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Effect: 60-ft emnation, centered on the kharach
Duration: 1 Round/Level
The sword emnates a dazzling, multicoloured light for a moment, and the very essence of magic begins to fluctuate all about.
This spell creates a wild magic zone. The energies of the sword are fully dedicated to this and it cannot be used as a focus for the duration. All spells cast from the area are subject to wild magic rolls, as if in Limbo.
Designers notes: An alternate method to use this spell could be to give it a 10-ft radius, but not nuke the ability to use the sword otherwise. It is clearly designed to rape enemy spellcasters, however, with a greatly reduced risk to Alveria herself.
Shape The Blade: This is fine.
Violent Lunge: Yeah, I don't mind swapping a slashing-only spell for a piercing-only, or even bludgeoning-only if necessary.
Anarchic Derivative: To be honest I'd prefer your suggestion of making it a swift action and having it only apply to the next spell, rather than having a longer duration. I'd allow it as such, though.
Chaos Stance: Yes, Steeldance is better, especially since it has a longer duration. I'd knock this spell down to 2nd level, but rather than setting bab equal to caster level, I'd prefer to give an insight bonus to hit equal to caster level. That actually would give you a way better to hit, but no extra iteratives, so I think that's fair. Only lasts a single round, so I'm not too worried about it.
Theft of Edges: Have to deny this one. It's a buff and a debuff all in one, and the duration also makes it way better than simply dispelling the target's weapon.
Inspiring the Steel: I was all set to deny this one, then I saw that it overwrites the enchantment currently on your target's weapon. Since I'm starting to toss out +4 and higher weapons more often, I'm not overly concerned about it. There's a 3rd level spell in Spell Compendium that lets you add a particular energy damage onto a weapon, so having a bit more flexibility for a 4th level one isn't too bad, and the focus limit means you can't beef up everyone's weapons all at once, anyway. Note that if you transfer a spell-storing enchantment, I won't let the stored spell carry over as well.
Improvised Substitution: Not going to allow this. If you want to change a spell's element on the fly, become an Archmage.
Discharge: It's basically one extra spell of 1-3rd level for the price of a 1st level slot, but since you'll need to keep the weapon in spell-storing configuration all the time, so it has its own burdens. No problems with this.
Fencer's Transformation: Tenser's Transformation doesn't give you a free feat. I might say that it's balanced because Tenser's gives +4 con, but really, you're totally going to have a +4 con belt by the time you're casting this. Remove the freebie Combat Expertise and it's fine. You can even add in a +5 competence bonus to reflex saves in there.
Chaos Forge: This could be hilarious. Totally allowed.
Cool stuff. wrt to Chaos Stance, that's like exactly the change I was going to propose if you didn't like it (right down to the type of bonus. o-o)
Anyway, no arguments with anything else.
Further slight change to Chaos Stance - Nix the adding of Int to hit, but keep the Int to damage.
That's a pretty big change. Do I still take a strength penalty to hit?
(One mathematical moment later...)
Ooooooh. I see, yes, it is fine.
Still wanna know about the strength thing.
You'll use the appropriate modifier to hit, so yes, you'll still take a penalty due to low strength unless you have weapon finesse.
Time go find and kill a 15th level fighter, I see.
Speaking of that, another change to Fencer's Transformation. Nix the Int to hit but keep Int to damage, and give a freebie Weapon Finesse for the duration.
wrt Anarchic Derivative, if it was a swift action spell, would anything change (exluding the duration, which would presumably be one round).
Just the duration, the rest is fine as is.