The WarmageSome spellcasters care for only one thing: war. They dream of steel and mighty blasts of devastating magic, the march of troops, and the unleashed destruction found on battlefields everywhere. Graduates of special arcane war colleges, those known as warmages are drilled only and utterly in the casting of spells most useful for laying down destruction, confusing an enemy, or screening an allied action. The utilitarian spells used by wizards and sorcerers have little importance to a warmage's way of thinking. What are support casters for, after all? A warmage cares only for success on the battlefield, or, in some cases, in the series of smaller campaigns favored by adventuring companies.
Note: You can find more information on the mechanical aspects of this class on our wiki by
clicking here.
Adventures: Warmages sign up for stints with adventuring companies that require straightforward, military-style blasting magic. Warmages hone and develop their arts through action rather than study, so without prolonged use of their powers in combat they cannot reach the pinnacle of their profession. Good-aligned warmages are concerned with rebuffing the movements of warlike groups-who better to blast into smoking ruin than those who have it coming? Evil-aligned warmages feel no constraints on who might become the targets of their spells. They adventure to gain destructive power.
Characteristics: Warmages access their magic peculiarly, at least compared to the way wizards, sorcerers, and clerics do. A warmage selects his spells from a limited pool of knowledge that rarely changes. Early in their difficult training, warmages instill deep within themselves the knowledge of all the spells they will ever need. Warmages know fewer spells than wizards and even sorcerers, but the spells they do know are enhanced. Warmages do not need to study spellbooks, but they do need to prepare their spells each day by spending time to call up the knowledge from their unconscious minds. Warmages do not specialize in schools of magic the way wizards can.
In their training, warmages also learn a few mundane warlike skills. They develop proficiency with some weapons and armor, learning to use such items without incurring a risk of arcane spell failure.
Alignment: Because all alignments must be prepared to fight for their causes, warmages might be found among virtually any army that uses spellcasting as artillery on the battlefield.
Religion: While some warmages favor deities of magic and death, many revere no deities at all.
Background: Warmages are chosen (or apply) to attend special arcane war colleges. Such colleges are not for the weak of spirit. The rigors of both body and mind bear little resemblance to the apprenticeship undergone by regular wizards, or the self-taught fumbling of sorcerers. Warmage colleges are more similar to boot camps sponsored by large nation-states.
Throughout their training, warmages are forced to wear ponderous garments (meant to familiarize their bodies with the limitations of movement in armor) while drilling constantly with spells, most of which are too high in level to be cast by the student. This vigorous drilling instills the spells in a warmage's unconscious mind, so that as he grows in power later in life, those spells become available for his use without his needing a spellbook.
After their training, warmages share a deep feeling of camaraderie with their fellow students and continue to feel a slight affection for any well-run military outfit.
Personality: Magic's application to warfare is more than an academic's theory - it is the warmage's life! They dream of blasts of devastating magic, spells of steel, and the clarion horn calling the warriors to battle. The stamp of marching troops is the sound dearest to their ears, though the blast of a fireball ripping through the ranks of massed line of enemies has its place.
They graduate from war colleges, where every day they drilled in the dark predawn light, through the heat of the day, until the bugle played its nightly signal that today's training was done. The magic of war is ingrained in them, and they ache to release it on the battlefield, or in a smaller skirmish where their skills will be all the more visible.
One or more of the following character themes could apply to a warmage:
Foul-Tempered: A student of hard knocks, the character is given to bouts of abusive or venomous language, though he peppers his speech with choice bits of invective even when he's not blaming a subordinate, censuring a compatriot, or expressing his bitter and deep-seated ill will regarding all that walk on two and four legs.
Though he's been known to swear a blue streak, the character has also learned that using foul language is far more effective if rationed - a choice curse or shout at just the right moment has far more impact than a constant stream of epithets... though on occasion the situation calls for just such a string of slurs and imprecations. He's also found that it helps company unity if he swears mostly at foes and restrains from applying his venomous tongue to his compatriots.
"What are you looking at, cave creeper?"
"Where to, chief?"
"Idiocy drips from the fool's mouth."
Military Heritage, High Rank: The character comes from a military tradition, having served either in the king's army or in a large, respected mercenary company. He distinguished himself and even achieved a reasonably high rank. When he emerged from the war college he was commissioned as a company grade officer and thus began his service as a lieutenant, but soon advanced to captain.
He still proudly wears the rank insignia of a captain, despite having been discharged from the company he originally served. He wears the insignia as a shoulder patch. Others who served recognize his insignia, and he recognizes theirs.
Because of his military heritage, he is familiar with military jargon and makes use of it, as well as elements of military strategy.
Military Historian: The character is a student of conflict, an expert on the subject of the famous battles between prehistoric tribes, ancient militaries, and modern armies between kings and necromancers.
Tactician: While a military strategy is an overall plan for a large conflict, tactics are the actual means used to attain a goal in a particular fight. As someone who achieved the rank of captain, the character knows effective tactics and likes to employ them in a fight, depending on the situation.
Camouflage: When at all possible, the character attempts to hide his presence and his party's from potential enemies, hoping to discourage ranged weapon accuracy and targeting until he can close, or even completely hide from an enemy force until he is ready to attack.
"Change into your darkest clothes, and don't forget to rub charcoal across your faces."
Decoy: One of the character's favorite tactics is the use of a decoy. Whether a spell that provides the illusion of a powerful heroic ally or a monster in his thrall, or just a loud noise or fabricated conversation, he uses a decoy to distract a foe or foes from what is truly important - usually his group's true position and strength.
"We need the illusion of dragon charging their line - then we can sneak in around back."
Ambush: When possible, the character prefers to attack his foes from concealment when they least expect such an assault. Good options include striking from dense underbrush or firing ranged weapons from a high position.
"We have to establish a killing ground, position two groups to cut off any escape, and post someone to keep watch so we know when to launch the ambush."
Frontal Assault: Sometimes, the best tactic is a direct, hostile advance toward the foe. The hope is to overwhelm the enemy with strength. However, the character knows that it's rank stupidity to call for a frontal assault against a foe in a fortified position.
"We've run out of options. Time for a suicide strike ... er, frontal assault!"
Pincer Movement: If the character is with a group large enough to pull it off, and if he's fighting a foe in numbers large enough for it to matter, he likes to employ a tactic called the pincer movement, where he attacks the massed flanks of the opponent simultaneously in a pinching motion after his foe has committed forward. The character's forces ideally respond by moving out to surround the foes.
"Surround them, envelop them, don't let any escape!"
Flying Wedge: In some ways like a frontal assault but more refined, a flying wedge is a charge where all the character's allies are arrayed in a V shape. He puts a bruiser at the point of the V, hoping to breach the foe's line; then the following attackers can widen the gap. This maneuver carries a certain risk: If the foe can slow or pause the wedge, the character has given his foe an opportunity to try a pincer movement of its own.
"Beat him down, break the line, bowl them over!"
Most warmages are humans or half-elves. But the toughness of spirit needed to survive a term at an arcane war college can manifest itself in any of the common races. It is rare for savage humanoids to be accepted into a war college, though some of the more organized societies might set up their own war colleges for arcane spellcasters.
Other Classes: Warmages find they have little in common with sorcerers and wizards, who learn their craft without the rigors or discipline of a warmage's apprenticeship. In fact, warmages are likely to be more comfortable with the regimented classes-those that appreciate military training- such as paladins, monks, and fighters.
"Sorcerers? Dilettantes. Why dabble in parlor tricks when you can become a master of the battlefield?" - Ferno the warmage
Role: The warmage's spell selection is already determined. He is the ranged magical artillery that military troops rely on, or the center of a smaller adventuring company's offensive power. An adventuring company with a warmage should strongly consider including a second spellcaster, such as a bard, cleric, druid, or even a wizard, to complement the warmage's offensive focus with defensive and utilitarian abilities.
Warmages also make excellent shipboard artillerists, launching deadly evocations at enemy vessels. This arcane caster is also well equipped to defend himself in the event of a boarding party attacking his ship, thanks to his armor and shield proficiencies.
Warmages from RavenloftTraditionally, Warmages are trained in academies. In Ravenloft, such institutions are rather rare. The domain of Tovag hosts a great military college, which trains warmages to fight in their lord's Kas never-ending war with Vecna. Those who survived the war and managed to desert now roam the Core, offering their services to professional armies and mercenary bands alike.
In recent years, the Ministry of the Arcane has started training warmages in the Radiant Tower, though Vlad Drakov remains skeptical of their military use. These warmages are fiercely loyal to Vlad Drakov and are given a wide berth from other soldiers who rightfully fear their power on the battlefield. In response to this, the late Joséphine Chantreaux sponsored the creation of a joint academic program between the Faculties of Arcane Sciences and Military Studies of the Université de Port-ą-Lucine to produce warmages to bolster the nation's small military. Their arrival hasn't been well received in the academic world. Professors and students alike look down on the warmages as simple craftsmen rather than as peers, though none would dare tell them that, and with the memories of Falkovnian invasions never far from their mind, they can't deny the usefulness of having a contingent of these casters in their army.
The Red Academy in Hazlan has also been training a small contingent of warmages since the Great Upheaval; these limited casters are employed by Hazlik to put down Rashemi rebellions. Several tales tell of Rashemi villages razed to the ground by Hazlik's warmages. Much like Dementlieuse, the Mulan look down on warmages as narrow-minded louts, good for one thing only, inflicting damage, but hardly worth the respect real wizards merit.
It is rumored that a small warmage academy may exist in the foreign land of Sri Raji, where the intense discipline needed to become a warmage is compared to that of the fakir.
Finally, Invidia's ruler, Malocchio Aderre has been known to employ Falkovnian warmages either as mercenaries or loaned soldiers, to bolster his armies, despite his troops' fear of arcane magic.
To the common man and woman in most of the Core, warmages, like other arcane casters, inspire nothing but terror. And those who have seen the destructive power of their magic know that the presence of a warmage means that death is fast approaching. As such, warmages tend to keep a low profile, not revealing their presence unless necessary, lest they be killed by a fearful mob. Even among the military of the Core, they are given a wide berth by other soldiers. Because of this isolation, they generally prefer the company of other warmages.
The way that arcane spellcasting is looked upon in the Demiplane colors the attitudes of the locals and prohibits any large-scale efforts to train these mystics more openly.
Warmages from AthasWarmages are unheard of on Athas, but this may simply be that most Athasian would not know the difference between them and other arcane casters. Magic is still magic, and it is outlawed in most city-states. The nature and purpose of their spells also makes them naturally inclined toward defiling magic so they must take extra care to keep their talents hidden. Most would be members of secret cabals that may be part of the Veiled Alliances. It is likely that sorcerer-kings would also employ small retinues of warmages for use in their incessant skirmishes against each other. However, such warmages thread on a doubly perilous path. The sorcerer-kings don't want further defiling (other than by themselves), and theyre loath to support potential future rivals. They would make use of their warmages up to a certain point, then make sure they are destroyed lest they grow too powerful.
Warmages from EberronTrue to their name, most warmages were trained to serve in the Last War. Lacking the versatility and scholarly bent of wizards and the mysticism of sorcerers, warmages wield magic as a tool for a single purpose: the annihilation of enemy forces. Cyre made the most use of warmages during the Last War, and the greatest warmage college in Khorvaire was leveled on the Day of Mourning. The tradition survives among Cyran warmages in exile, however, particularly in New Cyre in eastern Breland.
Rekkenmark Academy in Karrnath also trains spellcasters for war, producing a number of warmages in continuation of the tradition begun in Cyre during the Last War.
Warmages from OerthSome Oerthian warmages favor Boccob (deity of magic), while others follow Wee Jas (deity of death and magic). Many warmages revere no deity at all.
A handful of warmagic academies are scattered on the surface; though one among them stands out. On the arid hills of the Abbor-Alz stands the old fortress of Tarth Moorda, once used by the garrisons of Urnst where they guarded against gnoll and nomad raids from the Bright Desert, but falling into eventual abandonment and ruin when adventurers drove away the humanoid tribes. Fifteen years ago, the Duke of Urnst gave the fortress over to the Order of the Fire Hawk, a society of warmages loyal to the realm who desired an isolated stronghold where new initiates could be trained in solitude.
With its dun-colored walls rising forbiddingly above the rockstrewn hills and the sweeping view of the Bright Desert to the south, Tarth Moorda is now the principal academy in which warmages loyal to the Duchy of Urnst are trained, and the emptiness around it rings with the sounds of martial exercises and mighty battle-magic. The uncomfortable climate of the citadel is seen as a distinct advantage by the order; the heat and rugged terrain serve to increase the rigorous nature of the initiates' exercises and training.
The Fire Hawks adhere to a strictly ordered martial hierarchy and vigorously patrol the hills and sands near their stronghold. Initiates who have not yet learned to cast their first spells serve as footsoldiers and sentries under the command of more senior students. As High Warmaster, the formidable warmage Sereda Ostarte is head of the order, and six warmasters under her directly oversee the training of new initiates. Sereda is quite concerned with the rise of Rary's sinister realm in the Bright Desert, and aggressively questions any adventurers found passing through her lands as she seeks word of events deep in the desert (even while hoping to ferret out any spies in the service of the fallen archmage).
Typical Day: In Tarth Moorda, the day begins at dawn, with a wakeup call from the bell outside the armorer's shop. After breakfast, the students divide into groups, with some going to class in the Warmasters' Hall, some participating in outdoor weapon or spell practice, some on guard duty, and the rest sleeping. These positions rotate throughout the day. Lunch occurs at midday, and supper at dusk. The students have the opportunity to talk and play games in the lobby of the Students' Quarters in the evenings and between their other engagements.
Sereda Ostarte spends some time each day observing the students, as do the other warmasters. Each keeps notes on the students' progress, and the council members compare notes weekly.
The senior students are those who have spent some time in the armed forces or adventuring, but returned to the academy for private tutoring from the instructors. In return for this service, they act as guards, advisors, and residence hall monitors.
Warmages from FaerūnWarmages are the undisputed magical lords of the battlefield, equipped with a greater array of destructive evocation and conjuration spells than any other class. Despite their great power, warmages suffer from a fundamental lack of versatility. They are unable to cast the breadth of utility spells - protection, concealing, information gathering, transportation, and other magics - that make wizards powerful. To some of the cultures of Faerūn, the ability to destroy in a variety of ways is (or was) too much to ignore. To other cultures, warmages serve as elite battlefield generals, espousing the old adage that the best defense is overwhelming offense.
The ancient Raumathari battlemages were some of the most fearsome examples of warmages in Faerūnian history. While many of the battlemages were wizards and sorcerers, a significant portion was made up of warmages. The art of this forlorn empire may be mostly lost, but those few who still practice it are extremely dangerous. Raumathari battlemagic involves a mixture of both destructive arcane magic with swordplay, blending the two in terrifying destructive synergy. When the Bronze Battletower (UnE -- the home of the powerful Raumathari battlemage Vostas) was under siege, her lover, a warmage by the name of Welbohn Khuul, defended it to his last breath. It is believed that Welbohn's spirit was absorbed into the tower after his death, leaving the warmage to haunt the tower forever. Locals whisper that the current resident, a renegade Wychlaran by the name of Iaokhna Nuchlev, is being driven mad by Welbohn Khuul's spirit. Khuul is trying to drive out the durthan in the hopes of bringing students back to the Bronze Battletower to study battlemagic. He can't drive her out himself, because she hides in a room that is shielded from him in his undead state.
While many Thayans look down on warmages as narrow-minded louts, they can't deny the usefulness of having a contingent of these casters in their armies. From the perspective of the Red Wizards, warmages make excellent subjects because they are powerful weapons but lack the magical protections to defend themselves against mental control. A band of politically neutral warmages has arisen in Thay in recent years under the leadership of Norano Reked. Calling itself Daarthos Koruna after a strange magical artifact the members discovered in the Sunrise Mountains, the band serves Thay as mercenaries for hire. The Daarthos Koruna are seven circlets that render their wearers undetectable by magical and psionic means. For the most part, the band clears out the ruins of the Sunrise Mountains and Delhumide, but they have been known to perform special missions for a number of zulkirs.
Warmagic traditions have developed among a number of other races and lands. A small number of warmages are found among the War Wizards of Cormyr, though the order generally looks askance at the narrow focus of these members. The Shoon Imperium kept an elite cadre of warmages known as the sihirbalak. Many members fled to the Heartlands and Inner Sea lands after the fall of the Shoon Empire in 450 DR. Among the sun, moon, star, and wild elves, warmages are uncommon but do exist. They were instrumental in a number of battles against demonic hoards before the fall of Myth Drannor.
Currently, several warmagic academies are scattered across Faerūn. A small academy, appropriately known as the School of Warmagic, has been open for the last three years in Halarahh, the capital city of Halruaa. Though boasting only 50 students, this academy doesn't have the negative reputation that warmage schools have in other parts of Faerūn. A small department at the Wizard College of Gheldaneth in Mulhorand teaches warmages, though only 75 are enrolled. Some of the other students in the college look down on the warmagic students, but the nation sees them as an important line of defense in its continued existence. Small private academies also exist in Waterdeep, Silverymoon, and Suzail.
Warmages from Gothic EarthOnly the earliest civilizations, those which existed prior to the arrival of the Red Death or that came to be shortly after, would count warmages among their ranks. With the advent of the Red Death, and the corruption of magic, this pursuit became increasingly dangerous over the years and was soon abandoned, along with the last remaining great schools of magic.
Warmages from KrynnWarmages are the masters of magical warface, using their arcane might to turn the tide of battle. They use their talents for a variety of causes and against a variety of foes, dating back to the time of Magius and beyond.
In the Age of Mortals, warmages are found in many groups throughout Ansalon, whether they are White-Robed Mages fighting for the Whitestone forces, Black-Robed Mages fighting for the dragonarmies, Thorn Knights in the service of the Knights of Takhisis, or Legion Sorcerers fighting against the forces of the Dragon Overlords. Warmages may also be independent operators, acting as mercenaries, joining the ranks of various military organizations.
Warmages from WildspaceFor all its emptiness, space is as much a place of war as the surface of any inhabited world. Every spelljamming vessel must be prepared to defend itself against the natural hazards and intelligent enemies that infest the spaces between the stars. In every sphere, there are those who have dedicated their lives to the art of battle. None are more feared than the warmages.
Arcane casters who have dedicated themselves to learning the tactics and techniques of spelljamming ship-to-ship combat, they are employed by military ships as experts on battle. On the ships they serve they play two roles: expert helmsman and magical artillery. They are familiar with the tactics of ship-to-ship combat and are often combat officers on the ships where they travel.
They are seen by many wizards as ferrymen who have sold out their magical talent for the glories of war.
Races: Elves have many fine warmages; the elven Imperial Fleet maintains a strong corps of these specialists, and one can be found on any major elven spelljamming vessel. They hold a special place in spacegoing elvish society, and are viewed so highly that some half-elves have gained acceptance by pursuing the life of a warmage.
The rastipedes and the xixchil have little use for warmages. The rastipedes consider dedication to a life of war to be needlessly wasteful, while the xixchil do not see the personal benefit in such pursuits. Those few scro casters who are not multi-classed cleric/wizards, however, are almost all warmages, as the scro need such specialists to improve their tactical spelljamming.
Drow WarmagesThough they rank lower than clerics, drow wizards and their ilk are important to the survival of dark elf society. Their ingenuity and magical talent make possible many of the luxuries found in the cities. It is tradition for a matriarch to send her second or third son to study magic. The apprentice returns home only after he has learned enough to lend his power to the defense of the house and to fulfill his mother's wishes.
Many house wizards study to become warmages. However, the eldest among them are more likely to be wizards or specialist wizards, preferring versatility to the raw destruction wielded by the younger upstarts.
Wizards and sorcerers are found in nearly equal numbers among the drow, and the race's superior Intelligence and Charisma works well for both. There are many magical societies and schools that tutor and train wizards, and sorcerous talent runs strong through the chaotic and inherently magical drow. Warmages are embraced and trained to serve as house wizards, and the most prestigious universities and noble houses turn out master wizards, archmages of power that rivals that of the high priestesses. Necromancers are not unheard of, but are always viewed somewhat distastefully-why work to manipulate the dead, when manipulating the living is so much more infinitely interesting?
Sources: Complete Arcane, Player's Handbook II, Player's Guide to Eberron, Class Chronicles: Warmages and Favored Souls, Stormwarck, Complete Arcane Supplement: Tarth Moodra
