Archivist

The gnome stares at the huge demon while going through his notes, he anxiously reviews them trying to figure out a weakness suddenly in a flash of genius the savvy scholar recalls a textbook diagram detailing weaknesses in the demon's armor behind its knees. Quickly, he relays this information to his teammates informing them of the vulnerability and allowing them to strike a crippling blow.

Holding herself from the ceiling with a rope tied around her waist, the elf studies the walls of the ancient temple. She frowns for a moment, then mutters a quiet incantation, causing glowing words to appear on the stone surface. Reaching for the worn, leather-bound book on her belt, the elf smiles and begins transcribing her discovery.

Hiding in the shadows, a human man summons an arcane eye to spy upon the enemy encampments, taking notes for the coming battle. He studies their arms and armor to gather enough information on their possible strategy, he then notices that their armor will crack easily with extreme cold. A small grin comes to his face, he has read a spell that will surely help with this battle.

What is information if it is never used? While librarians dedicate their lives to organize, read old books and having information handy, an archivist has a different mindset, they dedicate their lives to obtaining purposely hidden knowledge and applying it. Transcribing ages old tomes hidden inside long forgotten libraries might not seem as a flashy job, but these men and women go beyond that by going to the most dangerous reaches of the world looking up for the long forgotten treasure or book that will show the path to their hearts desire.

Creating an Archivist

Archivist might seem like cloistered people but they are not, they strive to find the knowledge amongst ruins of long lost libraries. Where did you learn most of your lost knowledge? What long forgotten treasure are you seeking? Why do you seek such information? How far are you willing to go to find what you long for?

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Archivist by Drunken Yoda

Quick Build

You can make an Archivist quickly by following these suggestions. First, Intelligence should be your highest ability score, followed by Dexterity. Second, choose the sage background.

Hit Points

• Hit Dice: 1d6 per archivist level
• Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + your Constitution modifier
• Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d6 (or 4) + your Constitution modifier per archivist level after 1st

Proficiencies

• Armor: Light armor
• Weapons: Simple weapons, hand crossbows, rapiers, scimitars, shortswords, whips
• Tools: Calligrapher's supplies

• Saving Throws: Constitution, Intelligence
• Skills: Choose two from Arcana, History, Insight, Investigation, Medicine, Nature, Percerption, and Religion.

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) a rapier or (b) a shortsword
• (a) a light crossbow or (b) a whip
• (a) a component pouch or (b) calligrapher's supplies
• (a) a scholar's pack or (b) an explorer's pack
• Leather armor

Spellcasting

As a student of magic and esoteric knowledge, you have spent your time training and learning spells from long forgotten places. Although your study of magic is similar to that of a traditional wizard, you forgo some of their spellcasting prowess to gather long forgotten knowledge. See chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting.

Cantrips

At 1st level, you know three cantrips of your choice from the Archivist spell list. You learn additional cantrips of your choice at higher levels, as shown in the Cantrips Known column of the Archivist table.

When you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of the Archivist cantrips you know with another cantrip from the Archivists spell list.

Spell Slots

The Archivist table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.

For example, if you know the 1st-level spell burning hands and have a 1st-level and a 2nd-level spell slot available, you can cast burning hands using either slot.

Spellcasting Ability

Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for your Archivist spells, since you learn your spells through dedicated study and memorization. You use your Intelligence whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability.

In addition, you use your Intelligence modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a Archivist spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Ritual Casting

You can cast a Archivist spell as a ritual if that spell has the ritual tag and you have it as part of your known spells.

Spellcasting Focus

You can use your Calligrapher's Supplies (PHB, chapter 5) as a spellcasting focus for your Archivist spells.

Replacing Known Spells

Archivist can decide that they can replace their known spells by spending 2 hours and 50 gp. for each level of the spell they wish to learn, the previous spell is forgotten by them and are not able to cast it in anyway possible.

The cost represents material components you expend as you experiment with the spell to master it, but in addition to this they must have a scroll, spellbook or any other written way of studying the spell.

Writting down spells

Any Archivist can have their spells known written down in any scroll by spending 1 hour and costs 25 gp. per level of the spell they are writing down. In addition to this they must succeed an Intelligence (Arcana) skill check against a DC 10 + the spells level to write down the spell without any error.

Archivist and their spells

Archivist learn their spells not from formal studies or colleges, they learned their spellcasting abilities form reading books, studying tomes of ancient spellcasters or even exploring ancient crypts with hidden secrets.

As such, Archivist can have spells learned as part of their reading materials and every day they must spend part of their day reading up on they spellcasting.

Researcher

At 1st level, you are an avid researcher and have learned how to understand lost languages. You know the comprehend languages spell and can cast it using one of your spell slots, or as a ritual. It does not count as part of your known spells, and Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for it.

Additionally, whenever you make an Intelligence (Investigation) check to look up information in books, you are considered proficient in the Investigation skill and add double your proficiency bonus to the check, instead of your normal proficiency bonus.

Esoteric Applications

When reaching 2nd level, you manage to figure out how to apply your arcane magic to protect and enhance your allies talents.

Whenever an ally within 30 feet of you makes an ability check, attack, or spell attack roll, you can use your reaction to grant advantage to it. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest and only once per turn.

Scholarly Specialization

Your studies have expanded to specialize in a specific area of known studies.

At 3rd level, you choose a scholarly specialization, which form the foundation of your advance studies. These specializations are: Ambassador, Arcanist, Herbalist, or War Marshal, each of which are detailed bellow.

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Archivist by Drunken Yoda

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Source of Knowledge

Beginning at 5th level, you regain all of your expended uses of Esoteric Applications when you finish a short or long rest.

Advanced Research

Upon reaching 6th level, you can research monsters and spells by channeling your arcane magic to remember details about them. Whenever you face aberrations, beasts, celestials, constructs, dragons, elementals, fey, fiends, giants, monstrosities, oozes, plants, or undead, as action you can expend one use of your Esoteric Applications to make an Intelligence (Investigation) check against a DC of 10 + Challenge Rating of the monster to know two things about the monster from among: Resistances, Vulnerabilities, Immunities, Abilities, HP, AC, or Actions.

Advanced Applications

At 10th level, your studies into the arcane arts have advanced allowing you to hamper your foes attacks with your magical abilities.

Whenever an enemy within 30 feet of you makes an ability check, attack, or spell attack roll, you can use your reaction to grant disadvantage to it. To use this ability you have to expend a use of your Esoteric Applications.

Esoteric Master

At 20th level, your dominion magic has allowed you to channel your magic through your allies granting them what ever they were needing to succeed. When any ally within 30 feet of you makes an ability check, attack roll, or saving throw, once per long rest you can use two uses of your Esoteric Applications to treat the result of the die roll as if it had been a 20.

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Archivist by Drunken Yoda

Arcanist

This is by far the most common specialization by Archivists since most people believe the secrets of the world can be unlocked with help of arcane knowledge, so this men and women dedicate their lives studying the ability to learn the arcane secrets of the world and learning a few of those spells this way.

Herbalist

Most of these student are fascinated by the inner workings of the human body and have spent endless times analyzing them, their curiosity has allowed them to understand what the body needs to fend of different maladies and as such they are considered among the best physicians in the world.

While they gather information about many subjects, they are more interested in an specific one and they choose to specialize in it. This could be could be one of many, but the most popular lines of study are: Diplomacy, Magic, Medicine, or Warfare.

Restorative Power

At 14st level, once per short or long rest, as an action you can apply one of the following benefits to a creature you touch:

• End a reduction to one of the target’s ability scores.
• End an effect reducing the target’s hit point maximum.
• Reduce the creature’s exhaustion level by one.

Preventive Care

At 18th level, you have reached a pinnacle of medicinal care and so can now apply preventive care to any ally. Once per long rest, you can spend 10 minutes practicing preventative medical care on a number of creatures up to your Intelligence modifier (including yourself).

Each treated creature gains temporary hit points equal to their Constitution score plus your Intelligence Score. While a creature has temporary hit points granted by this feature, they have resistance to nonmagical bludgeoning, piercing, poison, and slashing damage.

War Marshal

While most Archivists some find comfort studying in colleges or libraries, others find comfort not only researching about but being part of it. These men enjoy being part of the frail and so they they have trained and learned how to direct combat to the best of their abilities.

Esoteric Application: Signal the Attack

Upon reaching 9th level, Archivist have learned how to apply in combat what they have learned in many books and use mishap to attack an opponent.

As reaction to an enemy missing an ally with a melee attack, you can expend a use of your Esoteric Applications to allow that ally to use his reaction.

Mark the Target

At 14th level, you have learned how detect enemies worthy of being signaled out and as such you can use some of your spellcasting power to help your allies take them out. Intelligence modifier times per long rest, you can mark a creature until the start of your next turn, whenever anyone attacks the marked creature he can deal an additional 2d8 psychic damage.

Rallying Surge

at 18th level, you can use an action on your turn to let out a rallying cry. Each friendly creature you choose up to a number equivalent to your Intelligence modifier within 60 feet that can hear you gains an additional action on its next turn. That action can be used only to take the Attack (one weapon attack only), Dash, Disengage, Hide, or Use an Object action. You can use this feature again when you finish a long rest.

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Archivist by Drunken Yoda

Archivist Spell List