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Mystra
2013-01-05, 09:04 PM
I feel like making some spells, but I'm stuck for inspiration. Anyone out there need any spells created? Maybe a couple custom spells for a character concept? Or some spells for a setting?

Wyntonian
2013-01-06, 11:54 PM
I had an idea, actually.

So, I've been reading the Codex Alera books (it's the Roman Empire with Pokemon, but like 8x cooler and better-written than it sounds) and the magic system in it does some things that could be rewritten as spells.

For one, people who are bonded to an earth elemental (everyone's bonded to some kind of elemental thing, earth, air, fire, water, wood or metal) can do an "earthwave" where they make the ground beneath them carry them along, like they're surfing on a wave. They can also carry other people. It's generally done for long-distance travel, but it could be a neat spell.

There's one cool scene where a guy who's bonded to a fire elemental

(This is part of the climax of the first book)
Essentially enchants a torch to cause abject, screaming in terror, pants-soiling fear in everyone who looks at it to drive back a beseiging army. A spell that creates a massive wave of fear would be neat.

In another part, a woman who's bonded to a water elemental creates these big claw-things on her hands. A spell that makes elementally-themed claws would be cool.

AttilaTheGeek
2013-01-07, 09:44 AM
I feel like making some spells, but I'm stuck for inspiration. Anyone out there need any spells created? Maybe a couple custom spells for a character concept? Or some spells for a setting?

The way I get inspiration for spells is just by playing a caster and finding moments when I think "I wish I could do THAT". Whenever you do, even if you're in a game (which you usually will be), just write it down and build it later.


A spell that creates a massive wave of fear would be neat.

This seems more like a metamagic feat. I'm just making this up as I go, but call it something like Detonating Spell or Spread Spell, level increase +4, and makes the spell affect a 20' radius instead of a single target. Apply it to your basic fear, and it also works on things like Magic Missile or Scorching Ray.

Eldan
2013-01-07, 12:05 PM
I really need something quite specific I've been looking for for a while. For my personal wizard/sorcerer class fix, amongst other things, I grouped spells into schools of similar themes. I really wanted a divination-themed school (named the School of Stars, for now).

However, I more or less removed all the big "look into the future" spells, Divination, Augury, and so on, from the list. That leaves very few divinations.

SO, I was thinking. I need ideas for small-scale divinations with a more narrow focus than "ask any 10 questions you can think of". Either to see the future or the present. If anyone had any ideas, I'd be rather grateful.

Frathe
2013-01-07, 12:49 PM
Eldan--what about a divination spell that allows you to ask yes or no questions, and nothing else?

AttilaTheGeek
2013-01-07, 04:03 PM
Small-scale Divinations could add a really interesting flair to combat. For example, you could say "Where is enemy X going to be standing in 2 rounds?", and then use that information tactically. But the kicker is that how you use the information changes it (because 2 rounds in the future (obviously) hasn't happened yet), so it's really asking "Where does enemy X expect/want to be in 2 rounds", which gives GMs room to improvise as well as making a very interesting addition to a battlefield controller or summoner. It would let players literally play two steps ahead of everyone else.

Eldan
2013-01-07, 04:16 PM
Yeah. Things like that is what I mean. Pre-defined divinations. Not "Any yes or no question", but "What is in that container over there" or "Who is the next person to come through that door".

Frathe
2013-01-07, 04:43 PM
But doesn't that only give you one spell? I was trying to suggest a spell that would be limited in its answers the same way augury is limited to "weal" or "woe."

AttilaTheGeek
2013-01-07, 04:52 PM
But doesn't that only give you one spell? I was trying to suggest a spell that would be limited in its answers the same way augury is limited to "weal" or "woe."

What I was going for was a spell that can answer only one question, but had many potential answers, as opposed to answering any question with one of only two potential answers. The first method allows there to be different spells for different questions, like "Where will that goblin be in X seconds", "What will he be doing in Y minutes", or "How much HP will he have in Z rounds", whereas the second is more powerful and doesn't have to be limited by time.

Frathe
2013-01-07, 05:19 PM
What I was going for was a spell that can answer only one question, but had many potential answers, as opposed to answering any question with one of only two potential answers. The first method allows there to be different spells for different questions, like "Where will that goblin be in X seconds", "What will he be doing in Y minutes", or "How much HP will he have in Z rounds", whereas the second is more powerful and doesn't have to be limited by time.

So these would be absurdly specific spells. Maybe you could have a list like: what does this enemy want/expect to do in X rounds, what is this creature's current status, what general direction is this creature/object in, what is inside this nearby container/past this nearby door that I cannot see? You could have a line of greater/lesser versions of spells that extended the time they saw into the future, or their range (if they give information in the present).

Predicting future HP seems too difficult to deal with. How does the DM know how the players will attack? And some of these spells seem too specific--how often would you really want to divine what was inside a container? You could usually just check, unless you have reason to believe the contents are dangerous.

Eldan
2013-01-07, 05:38 PM
See, one of hte greatest problems in D&D, on the higher tiers, are absurdly versatile spells. Augury isn't a bad case, I guess. But look at contact other plane. There's pretty much no question you can't answer with it, given some creative asking.

I'm not saying they need to be that highly specific. But they should be more limited than that.

Also, a few of the things you suggest already exist.

AttilaTheGeek
2013-01-07, 09:28 PM
So these would be absurdly specific spells. Maybe you could have a list like: what does this enemy want/expect to do in X rounds, what is this creature's current status, what general direction is this creature/object in, what is inside this nearby container/past this nearby door that I cannot see? You could have a line of greater/lesser versions of spells that extended the time they saw into the future, or their range (if they give information in the present).

Exactly. I'm imagining a class that uses divinations to take advantage of tactical combat.


Predicting future HP seems too difficult to deal with. How does the DM know how the players will attack?

That's the beauty of it; the DM doesn't have to be right. (S)he can say "By gaining and using the knowledge of how much HP this creature will have in 30 seconds, you've changed the future, and that's why my guess answer was wrong." For example, if a player looks into the future and finds out that a monster's going to be dead in 4 rounds, but then tells the party "That one's going to be dead in 4 rounds, let's go attack the other one", then that's changed the future, and it won't be dead in four rounds. But only because a character knew it would be.

Isn't time manipulation great?

Zale
2013-01-07, 09:37 PM
That's the beauty of it; the DM doesn't have to be right. (S)he can say "By gaining and using the knowledge of how much HP this creature will have in 30 seconds, you've changed the future, and that's why my guess answer was wrong." For example, if a player looks into the future and finds out that a monster's going to be dead in 4 rounds, but then tells the party "That one's going to be dead in 4 rounds, let's go attack the other one", then that's changed the future, and it won't be dead in four rounds. But only because a character knew it would be.

Isn't time manipulation great?

Would you, as a player, feel cheated if you used a spell to get information that was both misleading and incorrect?

I know I would.

Why not make Divination spells that focus on the present state of things, rather than ones that are useless by virtue of being so specific to be easily subverted by DM whim or player accident?

AttilaTheGeek
2013-01-07, 11:15 PM
Would you, as a player, feel cheated if you used a spell to get information that was both misleading and incorrect?

I know I would.

Why not make Divination spells that focus on the present state of things, rather than ones that are useless by virtue of being so specific to be easily subverted by DM whim or player accident?

That is a good point. I was imagining it on a more basic scale; having the ability to say "Well, those goblins want to go to point A and the troll wants to go to point B, and they're going to surround the squishy wizard; I'd better make sure that doesn't happen". It would definitely be ruined by a bad DM, though, you're certainly right there.

toapat
2013-01-07, 11:17 PM
Transmute Horse to Sovereign Glue.

I just want to see how someone else would balance that

Frathe
2013-01-07, 11:42 PM
Transmute any object to gold
I'm kidding.

Wyntonian
2013-01-08, 12:39 AM
Transmute any object to gold
I'm kidding.

Or you could cast Evard's Spiked Tentacles of Forces Intrusion on the world economy and just cut out the middle step.

TuggyNE
2013-01-08, 12:56 AM
Transmute any object to gold

As long as you make it an automatically-triggered Su touch attack, it's totally balanced. :smalltongue:

Dalebert
2013-01-08, 02:11 AM
I recently got back into RPGs again. I'm playing in one D&D 3.5 game and DMing another. I used to have a growing list of spells and I've lost it. It makes me kind of sad. A lot of them were probably pretty unbalanced.


Death Mouth
Necromancy [Evil]
Level: Sor/Wiz 2, Clr 2
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Effect: Dead body conveys a message
Duration: Permanent until discharged*
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

This spell is much like a magic mouth but it requires a corpse or skeleton. The corpse will become animated as a skeleton or zombie, depending on the state of the corpse, and speak to deliver a message with the same limitations of Magic Mouth to the intended recipient(s) in the immediate area. The corpse will walk up to 30 ft if needed to deliver the message up close and personal but will not attack. Once the message has been delivered, the corpse collapses dead on the spot.

*Or until the body decays beyond the point of being possible to animate.

by Dale Everett


Prismatic Ray
Evocation
Level: Sorcerer 5, Wizard 5
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: 60 ft
Effect: One prismatic effect of caster's choice
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Special
Spell Resistance: Yes

A single color from the Prismatic Spray effect of the caster's choice is directed at an enemy who suffers the effect. The caster must succeed with a ranged touched attack. Some effects allow a saving throw. See the Prismatic Sphere for details of the effects.

by Dale Everett


Signal
Illusion (figment)
Level: Sor/Wiz 0,
Components: V
Casting Time: 1 swift action
Range: 0
Effect: Allies hear a loud signal
Duration: 1 round
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

The caster can generate a very brief but very loud sound of his choice (DC -10 for listen checks). Allies of the caster will hear it if they're in range, but only the caster's allies. The caster must mouth the words if she wants to create intelligible speech, giving opponents an opportunity to read her lips if they're paying close attention.

by Dale Everett

Mystra
2013-01-08, 02:34 AM
However, I more or less removed all the big "look into the future" spells, Divination, Augury, and so on, from the list. That leaves very few divinations.



What 'list' are you using? Between 3x/P there has to be at least 100 divination spells. Plus another 100 from third parties, plus another 100 homebrew.

How about Combat Readiness from Drow of the Underdark? It gives a nice simple insight bonus to initiative. Or Revelation from Dragons of Faeurn that is a one round flash of true seeing?

Midwoka
2013-01-08, 02:48 AM
Transmute any object to gold

HAND OF MIDAS
Transmutation
Level: Sor/Wiz 5
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Target: One object weighing no more than 1 lb./caster level
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates (object)
Spell Resistance: Yes (object)

The affected object changes into pure gold, expanding or contracting to retain its original weight. An object expanding from this change in density cannot burst enclosures and simply stops growing, resulting in a loss of weight from the change, while an object contracting in this way deals no damage to creatures or objects it encloses, and instead simply tears and deforms around them.

Material Component: A jewelled scepter of lead, worth at least 400 gp.

TuggyNE
2013-01-08, 05:17 AM
HAND OF MIDAS

Oooh! It gives you a touch attack?!?


Target: One object weighing no more than 1 lb./caster level

Bah, only one use. Also, no creatures? Son I am disappoint!


Material Component: A jewelled scepter of lead, worth at least 400 gp.

OK, that partially redeems the spell in my eyes. :smalltongue:

Dalebert
2013-01-22, 03:00 PM
Transmute any object to gold
I'm kidding.

Polymorph Any Object from AD&D, 8th level magic-user spell (that's what they were called then), based on how it was described, could transmute any metal into any other metal and it would be permanent. The spell only seemed limited by how much you could alter the size, material, etc. How radically you changed something reduced the duration of the spell, but metal to metal did not matter. It could be dispelled, however. A big change from 2.0 to 3.5 and later was spells that went from permanent to instantaneous. This was also true for things like a wall of stone. In 2.0 it was permanent and could therefore be dispelled. In 3.5, it's instantaneous. You conjure some rock which is now just ordinary rock like any other rock and can't be dispelled.

Dalebert
2013-01-22, 03:38 PM
Never-ending Song
Enchantment (Charm) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Bard 1, Wizard 2
Components: V
Casting Time: 1 round
Range: 0
Effect: 20' burst centered on the caster
Duration: Special
Saving Throw: Special
Spell Resistance: Yes

The caster begins to sing a catchy and repetitive toon. Non-allies in the area of effect must make a will-based save to avoid joining in after one round. If anyone willingly joins in singing, they forfeit any saving throw for 1d4 rounds. Otherwise they begin singing and continue singing. They may make a will-based saving throw each round to stop. Singing prevents any speech or spell-casting that requires verbal components. In addition, the distraction of singing causes them to suffer a -1 penalty to attacks and any skill checks. The caster makes a perform(singing) check when casting. The DC is 10 + 1 for every 3 points in the resulting roll rounded down, but never more than 16.

Example lyrics: “This is a song that never ends. It just goes on and on my friends. Somebody started singing it not knowing what it was, and now they go on singing it forever just because this is a song that never ends. It just goes on and on my friends. (etc.)”

by Dale Everett

Dalebert
2013-01-23, 12:07 PM
On further thought, I think it's a little under-powered. It seems likely that most people would make a save within just a round or two when they get to keep making saves. It should probably last 1d4 rounds after the initial failed save before they get to start making saving throws every round and 2d4 rounds for people who (having been duped) join in singing voluntarily.

I picture a less than completely ethical bard using this in a tavern where people are already drinking and relaxing and inclined to join into a good song. Then they're impaired and distracted while he goes around putting his arms around shoulders and picking pockets and such. I used a version of this with an NPC in a game I ran.

Deviston
2013-01-23, 07:54 PM
A series of low level teleport spells. Minimum 10 foot teleport with drawbacks and effects.

Ex: Static Blink- You teleport to a square adjacent to a target and deal 1d4+1 electric damage per caster level (maximum 5d4+5) to each adjacent square.

Ex: Disorienting Whirlwind- You may teleport yourself and up to three allies to any square within 30 feet of their starting position. All effected by this spell are dazed for two rounds after the teleportation.

Ex: Elusive Ward- For 1 round per level, everytime you receive at least 1 point of damage, the target who dealt this damage to you is teleported 5 feet away from you if space permits.

Alias
2013-01-23, 08:09 PM
I have a 9th level hole in this cleric domain...

Discord Domain
Deities: Berenash, Senda

Granted Power: You are charged with sowing discontent and discord among the people of the world and thrive on the strife they show.
Shadow of Paranoia: Diplomacy and sense motive checks done with 60' of you suffer a -2 penalty.

Paranoia's Gaze: At 8th level you can inflict paranoia as a gaze attack, with a save DC of 10 + 1/2 your cleric level + your wisdom modifier. You can use this power a number of times each day equal to your wisdom modifier.

Domain Spells: 1st - command, 2nd - paranoia, 3rd - puppet strings, 4th - dissension in the ranks, 5th - gratuitous violence, 6th - mass paranoia, 7th - eyebite, 8th - antipathy, 9th - ???


The custom spells already in this domain are...

Paranoia
Enchantment (Charm) [Sodra, Mind Affecting]
Level: Clr 2, Discord 2
Range: Close (25' + 5' / 2 levels)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 hour / level (D)
Saving Throw: Will Negates

The subject believes that every creature around him is a long time enemy and behaves appropriately for the duration of the spell. The spell does not over-ride other charm effects so if the subject is charmed by the caster then made paranoid he will honestly believe that the caster is his only true friend and that all others are enemies.


Puppet Strings
Enchantment (Charm) [Mind-Affecting, Sodra]
Level: Clr 4, Discord 3
Range: Close (25' + 5' / 2 levels)
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 hour / level (D)
Saving Throw: Will Negates
Spell Resistance: Yes

This spell simultaneously inflicts paranoia and charm person on the subject.


Dissension in the Ranks
Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting, Shunra]
Level: Clr 5, Discord 4
Range: Medium (100’+10’ / level)
Target: 1 creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will Negates

The creature you target attacks all creatures (friend or foe) it threatens with a melee weapon, as if it had the whirlwind attack feat.


Gratuitous Violence
Transmutation [Enhancement, Shunra]
Level: Magus 5, Sor/Wiz 5, Discord 5
Range: Close (25’ + 5’ / level)
Target: 1 creature
Duration: 1 round / level
Saving Throw: Will Neg.

All successful melee attacks dealt to or received by the target creature are treated as x2 critical hits. If a normal critical hit is rolled increase its multiplier by one.


Paranoia, Mass
Enchantment (Charm) [Sodra, Mind Affecting]
Level: Clr 7, Discord 6
Effect: 60' radius circle
Duration: 1 minute / level

As paranoia but on multiple targets.