Spellbinder

A spellbinder casts spells which are drawn primarily from the spells cast by others as well as from the list of Spellbinder Spells. As a spellbinder, you have three distinct sources for spells you can cast: Spells Known, Bound Spells, and Echoes.

To learn or cast a spellbinder spell, you must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against your spellbinder spells is 10 + the spell level + your Charisma modifier. This applies to all your spellbinder spells, regardless of source.

You can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Your base daily spell allotment is given on the table. In addition, you receive bonus spells per day if you have a high Charisma score.

A spellbinder casts both arcane and divine spells, depending on the source, and follow all rules for that type of spell (arcane spell failure chance, need for a divine focus, and so forth).

Spells Known

You need not prepare your spells known in advance. You can cast any spell you know at any time, assuming you have not yet used up your spells per day for that spell level. You do not have to decide ahead of time which spells known you’ll cast.

Your selection of spells known is extremely limited. You begin play knowing one 1st-level spell of your choice. At each new spellbinder level, you may gain additional spells known, as indicated on the Table: Spellbinder Spells Known.

Spells known are always cast as arcane spells.

Upon reaching 4th level, and at every even-numbered spellbinder level after that (6th, 8th, and so on), you can choose to learn a new spell in place of one you already know. In effect, you “lose” the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell’s level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged, and it must be at least one level lower than the highest-level spellbinder spell you can cast. You may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that you gain new spells known for the level.

Bound Spells

When you use your Spellbinding ability (see below), the bound spell is prepared in an unused spell slot, much as a wizard or cleric prepares a spell. This spell can be cast later, just as any other prepared spell can be. The slot with the prepared spell can no longer be used to spontaneously cast from your list of spells known.

If you possess any metamagic feats, you may apply them to the bound spell when you prepare it, adjusting the spell slot used as normal. However, you are still treated as a spontaneous spellcaster, so casting the metamagicked spell is a full-round action.

A bound spell retains its original type, whether arcane or divine, and is cast as that type of spell. A bound spell is considered to be a spell on your spell list as long as you have it prepared.

When you gain new spell slots for the day, any bound spells you have not cast are lost, gaining those spell slots back as normal.

Echoes

When you use your Echoes ability (see below), you gain a pseudo spell known which can be used as a prepared spell or as a spontaneous spell.

When you regain your spell slots after a Long Rest, you may prepare any of your echoes in your spell slots with one hour of focused meditation, much as a wizard prepares spells. The slot with the prepared spell can no longer be used to spontaneously cast from your list of spells known. You retain the echo for future use.

Alternatively, you may cast an echo spontaneously as if it were a spell known. You must have an available spell slot of the appropriate level (and it may not have a spell prepared in it). However, hastily using an echo in this manner disrupts the binding, causing the echo to be lost.

If you possess any metamagic feats, you may apply them to an echoed spell when you prepare it or when you cast it spontaneously, adjusting the spell slot used as normal. However, you are still treated as a spontaneous spellcaster, even if the spell has been prepared, so casting the metamagicked spell is a full-round action.

An echoed spell retains its original type, whether arcane or divine, and is cast as that type of spell. An echoed spell is considered to be a spell on your spell list as long as you possess it as an echo.

When you gain new spell slots for the day, any prepared echoes you have not cast are lost, gaining those spell slots back as normal. You do not lose the echo itself and may prepare it again if you choose.

At 1st level, you learn a number of simple spell-like abilities called knacks. You know a number of knacks equal to your Charisma bonus. If your Charisma bonus increases, you learn additional knacks. If it decreases, you lose access to knacks that you know.

Knacks mimic 0-level spells and may be used at will. You may select your knacks known from the following list.

Acid Splash, Bleed, Create Water, Detect Magic, Detect Poison, Light, Mage Hand, Mending, Message, Prestidigitation, Purify Food and Drink, Ray of Frost, Resistance, Stabilize, Virtue

All spellbinders bind magic into a special token, giving them a focus that helps them to use their abilities. As long as you actively wield your token in hand, you gain the benefits of the Eschew Materials feat, and the token acts as the divine focus for any divine spell you cast. You may use the hand wielding the token to perform somatic spell components without penalty. The token has a faint magical aura with no associated school, but it is otherwise treated as a nonmagical object.

If your token is lost or destroyed, you may attune a new token to yourself with a one hour ritual. You may only have one spellbound token attuned to you at a time.

While you wield your spellbound token, you may use read magic at will.

You gain the ability to bind the magic of others to yourself, robbing their spells of power and storing their energy for your own use. Spellbinding functions as if you were countering a spell, with a few small differences.

You ready an action to counterspell and select a target for your counter as normal. If the target tries to cast a spell, make the appropriate skill check as normal (Arcane Lore for arcane spells or Theology for divine spells). If you successfully identify the spell being cast, you make a dispel check (1d20 + your caster level) to counter the spell, similar to casting dispel magic when countering.

If you successfully counter the spell, it has no effect, but you gain the option to bind it in one of two ways. You may immediately prepare it in an unused spell slot as a Bound Spell (as described above), or you may use an immediate action to bind it as an Echo (see below); however, you can’t do both. You may also choose to simply allow the spell to be countered with no further benefits. Whether you bind the spell to a spell slot or as an echo, you only gain the normal version of the spell, ignoring any metamagic that may have been applied.

You may use spellbinding a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier. Failing to counter a spell due to a failed check does not consume a daily use of this ability.

When you bind a spell, you have the option of storing that spell energy as an echo, allowing you to call on that energy to later repeat the spell. Storing a spell as an echo is done as part of the spellbinding ability.

You can possess a maximum number of echoes of each spell level based on your spellbinder level, as shown on Table: Spellbinder Echoes. When binding a spell as an echo, you must have an available echo of that spell’s level or higher. However, you may choose to overwrite an existing echo with a new one at any time, effectively losing the old echo in favor of the new one.

You may use your echoes when you prepare spells or cast them spontaneously, as described above.

Starting at 2nd level, your ability to manipulate magic expands to wands and similar spell trigger items. When using a skill check to activate a wand, you add half your spellbinder level to the skill check as a competence bonus.

At 4th level, you can apply this ability to scrolls and similar spell completion items, and at 7th level, you can apply this ability to magic staves.

Because you treat bound and echoed spells as being on your spell list, you may activate a wand or scroll containing one of those spells as normal without the need for a skill check.

Your control of magic gives you nearly absolute dominion over magic cast in a small area around you. At 3rd level, you gain a 10-foot aura of spellbinding. You treat any square within your aura as threatened, but only against spellcasters attempting to cast a spell. This applies whether or not you are armed.

If a spellcaster provokes an attack of opportunity by casting a spell within your aura of spellbinding, you can use an attack of opportunity to activate your spellbinding ability as if you had readied an action to counterspell and selected that spellcaster as the target. This expends a daily use of spellbinding as normal.

The aura of spellbinding increases by 5 feet at 5th level and every 3 levels thereafter to a maximum of 40 feet at 20th level.

This aura is always active but may be suppressed or reactivated as a move action.

Upon reaching 6th level, you learn how to directly access the magic stored within items and take it for yourself. After successfully identifying the spell stored in a wand, scroll, staff, potion, or oil (or other spell trigger, spell completion, or potion-like magic items), you can bind the magic within, binding the spell as either a bound spell or an echo.

You must drink the potion, apply the oil, or successfully activate the wand, staff, or scroll to use this ability. Using this ability expends a daily use of spellbinding and consumes the magic item or one of its charges as normal for using the item.