What a Sad Old Age (GLOG Wizard School)

    This one's from friend-of-the-blog Phlox, who did a draft trade with me (in return I sent him this monster hunter). It's a wizard school with a gimmick of greyhound-racing and fox-hunting.

Source: Bewilder by CanisAlbus

Courser Wizard

    Sighthounds, the companions of kings! Flop-eared, fat-nosed, wrinkle-faced sniffers are the domain of poachers and prison wardens. When a real ruler of men rode out for venerie, he brought with him a dog who outpaced his horse. The sport of coursing was an immediate success in the cities, not just because it's exciting, not just because it's modern, but because the song of the hounds is like the war-horns of the heroes of old, and inspires the same passions.
    And, of course, where there is money changing hands, where there are winners and losers, there is Power, and where Power is, there cometh the Wizard to take advantage of it.

Skills: 1. World records 2. Weather-predicting 3. Haruspicy
Starting Equipment: Top hat, raggedy patched suit (-1 to reactions with respectable folk, +1 to reaction with thugs and weirdos), dog whip (light), several pocketfuls of ginger (3 doses), spellbook (a much-used ledger with attached dull pencil on string)

Perk: Dogs follow your commands to attack a certain target or to desist. More complex commands, and commands to attack their owners, require a charisma check.
Drawback: When it comes to wagers, you vacillate between "veteran" and "inveterate." When given the opportunity to gamble, check wisdom to resist the urge.

Cantrips:

1. When someone offers a particular wager, you can tell exactly how far they've adjusted the odds.
2. When you would be hit by a ranged attack, you may have a nearby dog take the blow instead.
3. You can silence a pack with a wave of your hand, or provoke them into wails and whines as if they've been trapped in a burning building

Spells:

1. Expeditious Tear
   R: touch T: a creature D: [sum] minutes
       When the target spends their turn doing nothing but running, they move [dice]+1 times faster than normal.
   
2. Cone of Kerosene
   R: from hand T: [dice]*10' cone D: instant
       A blast of ice-cold jet fuel erupts from your hand and hoses the target area. Creatures in this area must save to avoid getting their eyes, nose and mouth full of the stuff, with the effect of temporarily blinding and de-smelling them. Obviously, anything covered in the kerosene becomes highly inflammable.
   
3. Hazardous Terrain
   R: sight T: up to [sum] 5' squares of terrain D: permanent
       Target terrain becomes extremely difficult to navigate. Ball-bearings, brambles, potholes, tripwires and 1/2 inch curbs appear as appropriate for the environment. Creatures who cannot levitate can move through the area at one 5' square per turn, or at normal speed, checking dexterity for every square they pass through and falling prone at the first failure. It takes one human being one minute per [dice] to clear away one 5' square of hazards.
   
4. Feather Feet
   R: 10' T: up to [dice] creatures D: [sum] minutes
       Target creatures become supernaturally agile and careful-footed. They can balance on any object or surface that bears their weight, they cannot slip or be tripped by hazardous terrain, and caltrops, broken glass and the like cannot harm them for the duration
   
5. Bite
   R: touch T: a creature with a mouth D: [sum] minutes
       Target's teeth grow long and yellow. Their bite attack is a medium weapon +[dice]. If [sum] is 6 or more, those they bite must save v. disease or suffer an infected wound. If [sum] is 18 or more, victims must also save v. rabies.
   
6. Mark of Dog Hatred
   R: sight T: intelligent non-dog creature D: [sum] days
       A mark shaped like a rolled-up newspaper appears on the target's body. Target rolls reaction with every dog they meet, with penalty equal to [dice]. Dogs who roll a non-positive reaction are aggressive.
       A dog is a beast that has teeth, a name, and a master. Coyotes and dingoes and the like do not have names, wolves do not have masters, but feral dogs have both (unless they were born feral, or have killed their master).
   
7. Fast Horse
   R: 20' T: an unoccupied area large enough for a horse D: one hour
       An incredibly ugly and mean horse (4HD, morale 13, hooves/hooves/bite 1d8/1d8/1d6) arrives. Only you or someone holding onto you may ride it; any other creature who attempts to approach within 10' of the horse is promptly savaged. If summoned with one [die] the horse is as fast as a fast horse (about 20mph), at two it's faster than the fastest horse (some 60mph), at three it's faster than the wind (about 120mph) and at four [dice] it's faster than its own mocking whinny (about 800mph). Disappears in a poof of smoke at the end of duration or upon being ridden [sum] miles.
8. Frighten Animal
   R: n/a T: self D: instant
       Caster produces an extremely loud and unpleasant noise, an extremely bright and unpleasant sequence of flashing lights, and an extremely noisome and unpleasant smell. Unintelligent or unprepared creatures who can perceive the caster make a morale check at [dice] penalty.
   
9. Crypticize
   R: T: D: something
       The opposite of Literal Translation. Turn a piece of text into a simple substitution cipher you know the solution to. At 2 or more [dice], the cipher becomes more complex, requiring days of effort to solve. With 3 or more, you may code up to 3 distinct meanings into the cipher. With 4 or more [dice], the cipher ignores translation magic of all kinds. With 5 or more [dice], the cipher is completely unbreakable. You may designate up to [dice] specific creatures who may immediately bypass the cipher.
   
10. Summon Dog
    R: 30' T: an unoccupied area large enough for a dog D: one hour
        A dog arrives. It has the appearance and statistics of the largest, most dangerous dog the caster has ever personally killed (that is, struck the killing blow upon). It is no more friendly or loyal than it would be, given its nature. For every creature of at least 1HD the dog kills, it is granted an extra hour of false-immortality. Upon death, or when it runs out of time, the dog disappears in a puff of smoke.
    
11. Maze
    R: sight T: a creature D: [sum] minutes
        Target is transported to the Demiplane of Dogracing, without a save. This Demiplane consists of an infinite greyhound track, down which a small mechanical rabbit passes every thirty seconds. Close behind are the enormous and monstrous dogs which are the native inhabitants of this plane. The target must pass a move check to avoid being trampled by the dogs; if they fail, they take 1 point of damage. If at any point they roll a natural 20 on their move check, they catch the rabbit and are freed. The target is aware of this stipulation. When they free themselves, or the spell ends, the target returns trampled and exhausted (or trampled and dead as the case may be) in the location they departed from or the nearest unoccupied space. If they won, they are wearing a golden medal worth 15gp. Cats are immune to this spell, as they are unwelcome in the Demiplane of Dogracing.
    
12. Call the Wild Hunt
    R: n/a T: n/a D: n/a
        Caster summons the Wild Hunt to their location. The Hunters resemble men, except for their absent faces, and their spiffy red jackets and black jodhpurs. They hunt unarmed, and leave the killing to their dogs. The Wild Hunt generally ignores wizards as unsuitable prey (poor cardio and conditioning in general), and prefers to target fast, dangerous foes.
        At one [die] their dogs are beagles, and [best] Hunters appear. At two [dice] their dogs are vicious foxhounds with great teeth and sharp eyes, and [sum] Hunters appear. At three [dice], their dogs are creatures of the Feywild, somewhere between a tiger and a bear, and enough Hunters appear to darken the sky. At four [dice], their dogs are men in metal collars, carrying saw-toothed weapons of black iron, and the Hunters are led by their master, the Devil.
    

Source: Wilde Jagd by Franz von Stuck

Mishaps:

1. MD only return on a 1–2 for 24 hours.
2.  Take 1d6 damage as your stomach turns.
3. Random mutation for 1d6 rounds, then make a save. Permanent if you fail.
4. Any critical successes you have in the next 24 hours are instead critical fumbles.
5. You become a canine for 1 hour.
6. You suffer Undeniable Urge to Run at Top Speed for 1d6 rounds.

Dooms:

1. A pang of conscience mars you. You cannot regain burnt die for 24 hours.
2. All unintelligent beasts who see you instinctively hate you, as the effect of Mark of Dog Hatred.
3. Your time is up; your master, the Devil, claps a collar around your neck. You will run as part of the Wild Hunt forever.

    You can escape these dooms by donating all your money to an animal shelter and swearing off gambling forever, by winning the hand of a princess in a bet with a king, or by finding a way to live in the Demiplane of Dogracing forever (the Devil is a poor loser, and has been banned from that Demiplane since an incident with a flammable bookie).