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In interest of disclosure, I did not receive a review copy of this product and this review is strictly about content via the PDF edition. I imagine, however, that the production quality of the hardback edition is on par with excellent standard set forth by other Pathfinder products.
Chapter 1: Spellcasters
The opening chapter of Ultimate Magic jumps immediately into the nittiest of gritties with new classes, archetypes, and abilities for each of the spellcasters in Pathfinder. It starts off with the newest full-on 20-level base class; The Magus. The Magus is quite simply…a sword mage. All the swashbuckling style of a non-heavy fighter with the spellcasting and flexibility of a wizard rolled up into one fun package. For those who tend to favor melee classes the Magus is a great way to break into a magical class. Magi fill nicely into the hybrid class category, though not really enough to fill a vacant spot in the core of any party (the Tank, Healer, Caster dynamic.) The Magus can know any number of spells, though his selection is limited compared to Wizard/Sorcerers, and most of the spells favor combat over utility. It’s also worth noting that the Magus can only cast up to 6th level spells, though he has a fairly high number to cast per day. As a fighter, the Magus holds his own, though clearly without the additional feats of the Fighter, range of the Barbarian, or subtlety of the Rogue. The real customization of the Magus comes from the Magus Arcana class feature, which works like the Rogue Talent feature, where upon the Magus learns new tricks and special abilities as he levels. What the Magus DOES excel at, however, is fun. The idea of leaping into melee with the monster, stabbing it in the stomach with your flaming burst sword, and then casting Magic Missile in its face is truly one with endless potential This reviewer was surprised to see alternatives and archetypes for the Magus, the APG was completely devoid of alternatives for the newly introduced classes, however Paizo seems to be ready for the Magus to enter the fray and reach its full potential with the release of Ultimate Magic. The rest of the first chapter deals with alternative and extra solutions for the existing case classes. Every single class that can do anything remotely resembling a spell is represented here including, oddly enough, the Monk. Most is what you would expect, more variations on Class Feature X, and lots of archetypes and abilities that grew out of a conversation that started with the line “Wouldn’t it be cool if….” For the most part these alternative class features aren’t game breakers and are aimed at those who really like to explore their class to the fullest. To make a point close to my heart, I am big fan of the Summoner class and while the new eidolon evolutions were disappointing, the variant archetypes were truly mind bending and opened up a world of possibilities I am excited to delve into. If you are a fan of stretching your class to the limit, the first chapter alone is worth the price of admission.
Chapter 2: Mastering Magic
Chapter two of Ultimate Magic delves into more fringe areas of magic use that go beyond the strict “I cast a spell on the goblin” everyday use. This chapter addresses dueling, magical constructs, the care and feeding of outsiders, the downside of magic, and the designing of new spells. Also in this chapter the reader is presented with a plethora of pre-made spellbooks and over a dozen brand new familiars (including one epic hedgehog). The concept of Spellblight is introduced into the world of Golarion with Ultimate Magic. Spellblight is a (usually) negative effect or susceptibility a magic user suffers, usually in the form of a curse or some other nastiness. Adventurous role-players will be excited for the challenge provided by spellblight, and overzealous GMs will enjoy the brand new shiny way to smite their PCs. The major draw of this chapter for the truly creative types is the section about Designing Spells. This is not to be confused with the Words of Power mechanic we’ll explore later, but this is a sincere, behind-the-curtain look at the process that the Paizo developers use when creating a new spell for play. This section should be carefully explored by both the player and the GM and all the options weighed out before allowing a new spell to be used in a game session. If you do create a new spell, however, be sure to post it on the Paizo boards for all to enjoy. This chapter is really for the GM and creative type players who want to test the boundaries of magic in Pathfinder.
Chapter 3: Feats
This chapter brings you the shining beacons of customization known as feats. There are no new feat types, simply a large array of increasingly circumstantial feats. While there are some that are immediately useful (Additional evolution points, extra cantrips known) and some that are so situational that they almost seem silly (glowing summons or performing in a band.) However, any caster is sure to find at least one feat they will find immediately beneficial.
Chapter 4: Words of Power
Words of Power is a new mechanic to spellcasting the Pathfinder. The object is simple: instead of learning defined spells, the character learns a whole vocabulary of magic words which can be strung together in near-infinite ways to produce near-infinite effects. Fans of White Wolf’s MAGE will get a kick out of this alternate magic system. While not for the uninitiated or the uncreative, the Words of Power mechanic opens up a whole playground for wrapping your head around the idea of magic. It’s too complicated to explain here, but in the hands of an open-minded player all manner of impressive magical goings-on will be going on.
Chapter 5: Spells
The closing chapter of Ultimate Magic features a ton of new spells for all casters. Much like the Feats chapter, the number of spells in this chapter managed to find that sweet spot where one doesn’t feel overwhelmed, but certainly doesn’t feel ripped off either. Paizo continues to use the same tried-and-true formatting of “spell blocks” which leave very little room for alternate interpretations which means less time debating and more time playing. All of these are good things. On a side note, this is the first book to REALLY get it right when it comes to PDF bookmarking. All of the spells are listed and grouped by alphabet. Twenty-four bookmarks spread across your spells instead of one for the entire spell description section (Core Rulebook) or a different bookmark for each individual spell (APG)
Conclusion
Ultimate Magic achieves its goals with a truly stylistic approach. These rules are clearly not for everyone. The variations in Ultimate Magic require a higher level of understanding of the Pathfinder rules and are best used by an experienced player. For those who still don’t quite grasp all the facets of their base class, it’s best to leave Ultimate Magic on the shelf for a while. However, if you are a player (or the GM of a player) who loves exploring possibilities and stretching the limits of your imagination, especially when it comes to magic, then you will easily find enough to keep your wheels a-turning for many many play sessions.
