A worthy spell sword class that gives loads of fun and unique options, though does suffer slightly from power creep.
This week, Sterling Vermin released the Magus class on D&D Beyond. This is a 3rd party class that fulfills the role of a wizardly half caster and the classic spell sword role.
Sterling Vermin isn’t a stranger to D&D Beyond. We’ve already been treated to the very well designed pugilist class which I covered as well and thought did a great job of producing a brawler archetype that packs a punch.
I’ve had my hands on the PDF version which released a few months ago and have been performing deep dive analyses on the class, its subclasses and the included spells. I’ve scratched every corner of the release and am now ready to give my verdict on this brand new half caster (though the 2014 version has been out for years now).
At a glance
- Innovative spell sword class
- Feels fun and shifts the balance of half casters more towards spellcasting than swordsmanship
- Subclasses are mechanically potent and shift the approach for certain archetypes
- Loads of interesting and unique spells
- The class does have some power creep, but not enough to be a problem at you table
- A few less potent spells and one overpowered spell tarnish a mostly great line up
4/5 – The magus is a great effort at a spell sword class and does a great job of fulfilling this fantasy. Leaning more heavily into the spellcasting side of a half caster, they can tend towards the more powerful side of design with some power creep, but I’d still happily include one at my table. The whole pack feels thoughtful, innovative and fun and I’d happily recommend it for anyone looking for a more wizardly warrior to play.
What to expect from the Magus Class Pack
| Contents | Magus Class Pack |
|---|---|
| Classes | 1 |
| Subclasses | 6 |
| Backgrounds | 0 |
| Feats | 0 |
| Spells | 31 |
| Mundane items | 2 |
| Magic iems | 20 (on D&D Beyond only) |
| Monsters | 0 |
| Maps | 0 |
| Adventures | 0 |
| Edition | 5.5e (D&D 2024) |
| Publisher | Sterling Vermin |
This release is purely about the Magus class. Don’t expect anything outside of that. It’s a highly focused product that gives you access to the class, 6 subclasses and an array of spells (many of which can be taken by other classes).
D&D Beyond mentions 20 magic items too. These weren’t in the PDF so I can’t comment on these but apparently they do exist on D&D Beyond.
I think the focused nature of the pack is fine though as it’s also got a cheaper price point at $15. This is half the price of the very poorly designed Bound By Blood supplement (which had a similar scope with a class focused release with a few more extras). I think for the magus, the amount of content is appropriate for the price point.
How good is the content?
The Magus is more spellcaster than martial, but is competent in both roles
Unlike other half casters like the paladin and ranger, the Magus is a spellcaster first and a martial secondary. This is accomplished by giving them more spells known, an option for 6th level spells and the ability to cast cantrips alongside the attack action (or bonus action attacks alongside the magic action) rather than simply giving them an extra attack and spells.
This is more like the eldritch knight, which makes sense for a wizardly warrior and I think helps distinguish the class a fair bit.
At times though, it did feel like the Magus can outperform full casters in certain ways. They can concentrate better and can hand out disadvantage on spell saves through esoteric eye. To some degree, a high concentration spell sword makes sense, but the more difficult to resist spell saves makes them a little more potent than full casters at times. This is partly balanced by their lower spell level and slower spell progression so they’re not genuinely better at spellcasting than a wizard, but they can be hard to resist. In this regard, you can feel an amount of power creep seeping into the design. Nothing too substantial, but it is there.
This is mitigated to a degree by being a less resilient half caster. They have a smaller hit die for starters and lack heavy armor proficiency. While they are quite durable against spells, I wouldn’t want them facing off against hordes as the main tank. They’re more of a secondary melee warrior or a ranged attacker.
Subclasses stick to familiar themes but also carve their own niche
There are 6 subclasses and each is basically themed after another class. There’s a wizardly order, a holy clerical option, a monk, diviner and druid. The exception is probably the Knights Stygian who are more like a dark paladin type, but the flavour is distinct enough here.
It’s not necessarily the most unique thematically but it’s not bad either. Fortunately, they do make up for this mechanically. The subclasses aren’t just nabbing features from the classes that inspire them, they very much carve their own niche. For example, the Shadow Court uses magic to be evasive rather than being evasive through skill alone. They have an enhanced mirror image and a reactionary teleport to manage this. The Sylvan Circle don’t have wild shape like druids, but they do have an enhanced polymorph.
Of course, this does lead to the fact that as unique and mechanically interesting as each subclass is, we again see elements of power creep in their features. Most are just on the stronger end of design, but I felt that the Sidereal Cabal and Sylvan Circle had more power creep than I’d like. It’s not game-breaking and I don’t think it should stop these subclasses being used at your table, but it is something to be aware of.
You can check out my guides for all the magus subclasses below:
Spells are inventive and there are loads of unique approaches to cantrips
There are 31 new spells in the magus pack. These not only pad out the Magus’ spell list, but also add to the spell lists of other classes. With the magus being quite cantrip-focused, it makes sense that a lot of these expand their cantrip repertoire and they do a lot that’s new and unique from healing with hit dice to causing localised blindness. There’s also some effort to improve on official spells that underwhelm, as is the case with animate weapon for spiritual weapon (which demands your bonus action and concentration for too little benefit).
I thought carrionette was particularly interesting. It balances out unevenly depending on what you’re fighting, but is a really fun way to deal with death. I quite liked forced hesitation too with its damage and debuff reaction when initiative is rolled. Other spells like demiplanar pitch are just pure fun to roleplay as you can just lob something random out of a bag of holding from somewhere in the multiverse.
It’s not all strong though. There are some instances of spells that underwhelm. grave bolt is this way. The damage/healing is pathetic and gives a very slim chance of raising a zombie with it. Spell and weapon aegis are a bit too fiddly in my opinion too.
On the other end of the spectrum is reflect magic which will automatically stop any spell (including 9th level spells) and may send them wherever you like (probably towards an enemy). It’s too powerful for a level 5 spell and I’d either ban this or diminish its effects at my table.
These are nitpicks though. Across the 31 spells available, I think this is one of the more interesting ranges of spells I’ve seen from a 3rd party.
Art and design is clean and functional
I don’t think it’s right to be negative about the art. This is mostly a solo production without the budgets for impressive art that Wizards of the Coast wields. The artwork is fine and does its job to showcase the character options and what they’re about. It’s not the level of quality, style or detail that 1st party or even larger 3rd party productions produce, but I don’t think we can expect that either. The design is clean and easy to read and I’d probably file this under functional. It does the job and that’s all I’d ask here.
Overview
I’m a big fan of the pugilist from Sterling Vermin (one of my players is playing one in my current campaign and having a blast). I’ve had no issues so far with power creep and it fulfils a nice niche in the current D&D roster. The same can largely be said for the magus. I do think there is more power creep on display here, but I’d happily use it at my table and don’t think it would cause imbalances in gameplay that would be concerning. Beyond that, it’s a genuinely well-designed and thoughtful class that also fills a niche in the class roster.
Would I have liked more thematic subclasses? Sure. Would I have toned down some of the features? Yes for a few of them. But nothing in here other than the reflect spell concerns me enough to ban it or adapt it for my table. I also think these are quibbles for what is largely a great package overall.
The most important question is, do I think the magus would be fun to play without unbalancing the game? The answer to that is a yes and I would recommend this pack for anyone looking for a competently designed spell sword class.
4/5
