Destroying the world as we know it, a Handbook

[Shadowleaf]

The problem with chicken-infested commoner is that the chicken appears IN-HAND. You drop it, which is a free action, but it's still in your proximity. After summoning a few thousand, you've got a chicken swarm, but they're still jam-packed tight around you, possibly in a chicken heap that covers your head. Well before you destroy the earth with this, the squeeze of chickens renders you incapable of reaching into your spell component pouch.

(Rule-wise, in order to get so many chickens out that they're jam-packed in even, say, a mile radius, all in a single round, you will need to have the physical strength to propel, shove, or otherwise move millions of chickens a mile IN SIX SECONDS. That's as hard as throwing something with the weight, bulk, and aerodynamic properties of a chicken at a speed of 600 mph, before factoring in air resistance... and make this same strength check millions of times over, because you'll have millions, if not billions, of chickens out that far. I don't know what kind of strength check is needed to get that many chickens out that far, that fast, but it's definitely outside of the reach of an EL 1 commoner.)

This is where FLAMING TRIBBLES OF DOOM wins. The wishes don't require the efreeti to appear in your proximity.

PS: Someone needs to stat out a chicken swarm.

EDIT: Also, with chicken-infested commoner, sometimes you SUCCEED at getting what you reach for. I forget whether it's a 50% chance or a save. Let's say it's a save and you've dumped the save so you need a nat 20. That's still 1 time in 20 that you get what you reach for, and putting it BACK is not a free action. In other words, to summon a million chickens, you need (on average) 50 thousand things in your spell-component pouch. If it's the 50% odds, you need a million things in your pouch. And it will take a lot more than a million chickens.

I'm fairly certain they can't occupy the same space, so they are moved somewhere else (the next round?). I know there's something in the rules about it.

Sometimes a character ends its movement while moving through a space where it’s not allowed to stop. When that happens, put your miniature in the last legal position you occupied, or the closest legal position, if there’s a legal position that’s closer.

Guess that kinda covers it.

[Bayar]

Sit somewhere 10 feet above the ground and drop the chickens. They will start dispersing faster that way.

[NowhereMan583]

Sit somewhere 10 feet above the ground and drop the chickens. They will start dispersing faster that way.

Stand on top of the tallest building in town and drown the city in chickens?

[Heliomance]

It's a 50% chance, not a save. The reason for using a spell component pouch, though, is that it is considered to have "enough" components - whenever you reach in for a component, it's there.

The other, similar way to do it is by crafting quarterstaves. They have a cost of 0gp, so they take no time to craft, and consume no resources. Stand by a tree and churn out an infinite number of quarterstaves as a free action.

It's possible that this can be combined with Chicken Infested for more hilarity.

[ShriekingDrake]

I vaguely recall a discussion about a year ago on the spell Rockburst from Shining South where at least some people argued that RAW the spell (which I believe is 2nd) could destroy the planet. IIRC, the issue was that the spell gives a minimum size of the rock it can explode but no limitation on the maximum. Assuming that the whole planet is one interconnected rock . . . BOOM. (I don't have shining south with me, so I might be misremembering.)

[Demonic_Spoon]

I vaguely recall a discussion about a year ago on the spell Rockburst from Shining South where at least some people argued that RAW the spell (which I believe is 2nd) could destroy the planet. IIRC, the issue was that the spell gives a minimum size of the rock it can explode but no limitation on the maximum. Assuming that the whole planet is one interconnected rock . . . BOOM. (I don't have shining south with me, so I might be misremembering.)

Huh, that seems to be the case, though the spell would probably only destroy a single tectonic plate at a time, which is still pretty awesome.

[Wings of Peace]

Here's an old thread comment where the numbers on True Creation: Box of Electrons get run. It seems relevant since you have TC up there already.

[Ancient Mage]

The tribble idea is excellent. Tell the DM you want to use magic to create a CR 1/8 creature the size of a large rat. Tell him that it breeds fast. And ask him if you can create a new 3rd level spell "rain of fluff." This spell creates 1d4+1/level tribbles (maximum +10 tribbles) who lie around and do nothing.
Tell the DM that they do breed quickly, and when his back is turned drown the world in infinite tribbles.

Or you create hundreds of demiplanes using Genesis, populate them with thousands or millions of tribbles, and position the gates to the tribble planes in the sky at strategic points around the world. Then open them all at once, drowning the world in tribbles, who create more tribbles, who create more tribbles. And the World dies!

-Ancient Mage
Author of "How do do destroy reality with cute, fuzzy animals"

[Waspinator]

I suggest that "the oozening" be renamed to "nothing can stop the smooze":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJXWN...layer_embedded

[Elemental]

The tribble idea is excellent. Tell the DM you want to use magic to create a CR 1/8 creature the size of a large rat. Tell him that it breeds fast. And ask him if you can create a new 3rd level spell "rain of fluff." This spell creates 1d4+1/level tribbles (maximum +10 tribbles) who lie around and do nothing.
Tell the DM that they do breed quickly, and when his back is turned drown the world in infinite tribbles.

Or you create hundreds of demiplanes using Genesis, populate them with thousands or millions of tribbles, and position the gates to the tribble planes in the sky at strategic points around the world. Then open them all at once, drowning the world in tribbles, who create more tribbles, who create more tribbles. And the World dies!

And a Klingon armada drops out of warp in orbit and obliterates the surface, thus exterminating the tribbles. They leave, and you get a free planet to do with as you please.

[Chilingsworth]

I just looked at this page for the first time in several months. Looks like I came up with a couple elaborations on the brown mold-explosion idea.

[Sith_Happens]

I just looked at this page for the first time in several months. Looks like I came up with a couple elaborations on the brown mold-explosion idea.

Spoiler

Show

Also, I seem to be the first person in the Playground to notice that the Creation line of spells specifically create matter. Which means no antimatter bomb. The electrons still work though.

[killem2]

Just a question about the wall of force end.

Due to the size difference and limitations of the wall of force, wouldn't this make the planet more of a Swiss cheese sphere?

[PetterTomBos]

Commoner rocket-engine.

Have the commoners commonly used in the commoner railgun actually earn ther pay! Line up a bunch of them, until you get reasonably close to the speed of light. Have them railgun away something as heavy as possible (passing it would still be a free action, and thus take no more time, making even moar power!). Make sure you have an ample supply of things (resetting traps of rocks falling? a really big quarry? Come up with something!).

They will function as a jet-engine! Given a long enough line of commoners (it wouldnt even need to be linear!) and a consistent aim you could push earth out of orbit. Cold or warm death, it's up to you ! Perhaps a plunge into Jupiter?

[Lateral]

Commoner rocket-engine.

Have the commoners commonly used in the commoner railgun actually earn ther pay! Line up a bunch of them, until you get reasonably close to the speed of light. Have them railgun away something as heavy as possible (passing it would still be a free action, and thus take no more time, making even moar power!). Make sure you have an ample supply of things (resetting traps of rocks falling? a really big quarry? Come up with something!).

The speed of light is 983 million feet/second. The number of commoners required to reach even .1c is roughly 120 million, or roughly twice the population of Europe in 1500. Good luck.

[Zale]

The speed of light is 983 million feet/second. The number of commoners required to reach even .1c is roughly 120 million, or roughly twice the population of Europe in 1500. Good luck.

Why not just have a smaller group in a circle, with a line leading off.

Keep passing it around until it reaches a nice speed, then send it off.

[nedz]

Why not just have a smaller group in a circle, with a line leading off.

Keep passing it around until it reaches a nice speed, then send it off.

Ah — the Commonertron Accelerator.
Best done with Bisons.

[Crinias]

This is going to sound wrong, but the very existence of this thread makes me happy. Seriously, a few of these are so evil and convoluted that the only creatures in the world that might be able to do it, regardless of how insane it might be, actually exist in D&D (I'm looking at you, Aboleths).

[Malroth]

Trick i thought up for another thread but works here

Human Draconic heraitage sorcerer 1 Bard 8 with Melodic Casting, Draconic Heritage Battle Dragon, Song of the Heart, Darkspeech and Dragonfire Inspiration, who owns a vest of legends, a badge of valor, a wand of lesser restoration that he gives to his familliar to UMD and an Alphorn. The Bard knows the spells Summon Swarm and Inspiration boost. He uses Darkspeech on the earth to reduce its hardness by 2, then begins his alphorn performance for +6d6 sonic damage to all attacks for every ally within a 7 mile radius which at the moment is only himself and his familliar. He then casts summon swarm to create a neutral 4 square spider swarm which he then uses Darkspeech to give 90 sorcorer levels to , evil intelligence and the objective to multiply and destroy the land. This lv 90 sorcorous intelligence also knows summon swarm and the darkspeech feat and can maintain concentration via a move action via the swift concentration skill trick. This evil swarm also passively deals a 1d6 physical+ 6d6 sonic attack (since it now counts as your ally) for every square it occupies for an average of 88 damage per round. This swarm Summons 2 other swarms and uses darkspeech to give them the same stats as itself and the same objective.

Round 1, 1 intelligent swarm that can summon, 88 dmg/rnd 88 total dmg
Round 2 3 intelligent swarms 2 can summon 264 dmg/rnd 352 total
Round 3 7 intelligent swarms 4 can summon 616 dmg/rnd 968 total
Round 4 15 intelligent swarms 8 can summon 1320 dmg/rnd 2288 total
round 5 31 Intelligent swarms 16 can summon 2728 dmg/rnd 5016 total
round 4 63 intelligent swarms 32 can summon 5544 damage/rnd 10568 tot

this exponential growth of vibrating death bugs will eventually max once they fill up the 7 mile radius your Alphorn bardic music fills, maxing out at 184,912,836 swarms at round 28 dealing 16,272,329,568 dmg per round or 2,343,215,457,792,000 per day. You will however have 134,217,728 swarms not mantaining concentration so are still free to cast as 90th lv sorcorers.

This 7 mile radius area of death will destroy solid rock aproximately 5 miles deep every hour you continue to play your bardic music, If any of the 134Million evil epic sorcorers in your bardic music range have access to Ventriloquism, Ghost sound, Minor Image, Clairaudiance or any other spell that could extend your audio range then this swarm could easily envelop the world in an additional 24 rounds

[Kazyan]

Why not just have a smaller group in a circle, with a line leading off.

Keep passing it around until it reaches a nice speed, then send it off.

Doesn't work because on the first go-around, the commoners have expended their readied actions. In addition to the all the other ways the commoner railgun doesn't work.

[UnoriginalGamer]

Method #19: Metabreath

The Premise:

Certain of the metabreath feats in the Draconomicon allow you stack their effects without limit, but increases the recovery times between uses of your breath weapon each time you apply the feat. As such some creature with a breath weapon could stack the Enlarge Breath feat ad nauseam to engulf the entire planet in a massive energystorm, though at the cost of probably never using their breath weapon ever again, but that's the price one has to pay for destroying the world.

Bonus points for using it in conjunction with Lingering Breath to make said energystorm last a few centuries/millennia. Further bonus points for adding in the Breath Weapon Admixture power to also effect those creatures that are immune to your breath's energy type. Even more bonus points for using a Pyroclastic Dragon's disintegrating breath instead.

The build:
Bobo the Mouth Breather
Level 1: Human Dragonfire Adept (from Dragon Magic) with Enlarge Breath (Draconomicon p70) and Clinging Breath (also from Draconomicon). We'll give him an 18 Con, and pick a breath weapon with a cone shape. No magic items or anything else is important. We'll give him minimum stats in everything else, just because it's funny.
Level 4 (alternate build): Human Dragon Shaman (from PHB2) with Enlarge Breath, Clinging Breath, and Lingering Breath.
Alternatively, we can play as any other class or race that gets breath weapons.
At higher levels, we'll take (in order): Heighten Breath, Shape Breath, Spreading Breath, Maximize Breath

The Nova Round (literally):
We breathe. Our breath weapon covers the world, and the world dies. End of story.

Explanation:
Enlarge Breath is a metabreath feat that explicitly allows itself to stack any number of times. Each time you do it, you get to increase the range of your power by 50% in exchange for waiting another round for your breath weapon to recover. For something the size of the Earth, it will need 48 million stacks of Enlarge Breath (yes, I calculated it), and then we will have to wait 5 years to be able to do it again.

At level 1, this will deal roughly 1d6(+1d3 from Clinging Breath) fire damage to all things on the surface of the earth. People with full cover naturally won't be affected, but this will set fire to all buildings, kill most low level creatures, destroy all the farms in the world, and generally be a world-ending event. All Caused by a level 1 adventurer.

...who will probably gain significant amounts of XP from killing all that stuff, and so will be better prepared for the retribution headed his way. Oh, and he's immune to his own breath weapon, so that's not a worry, either. Though he should probably pack some lunch.

At level 4, we gain lingering breath, which allows us to leave behind a cloud that deals half the damage of the original attack (2d6 now) in the same area. The cost is two rounds of cooldown per one round of duration added. So if we had 5 more years of duration, we gain 10 years of cooldown. Not bad - the world becomes a burning firescape for 5 years, with all creatures on the surface taking 1d6 damage. Eventually it will burn though most enclosed spaces, leading to a more total devestation. The only survivors on the surface will be people with evasion (and no need to sleep) and/or those with at least 6 points of fire resistance.

Also, since we'd be a dragon shaman at this point, we can choose acid or cold as our breath weapon. (As the poet said: Will the world end in fire or in ice? You decide!)

1: The Dragonfire Adepts breath weapon DOES NOT have a cooldown, and therefore cannot actually qualify for Metabreath feats without a house rule (http://rpg.stackexchange.com/questio...tabreath-feats)

2:While some metabreath feats do explicitly state that you can enlarge multiple times Enlarge Breath is:

"The length of your breath weapon increases by 50% (round down to the nearest multiple of 5). For example, an old silver dragon breathing an enlarged cone of cold produces a 75-foot cone instead of a 50-foot cone. Cone-shaped breath weapons get wider when they get longer, but lineshaped breath weapons do not. When you use this feat, add +1 to the number of rounds you must wait before using your breath weapon again."

While some (Lingering Breath being one) have something under "Special" like this "You can apply this feat more than once to the same breath weapon. Each time you do, the lingering breath lasts an additional round."

3: Just for fun my DM and I did some approximations and the experience from all the LVL 0 commoners would be (At max) roughly 45.5 Billion

4: SOMEONE FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE THIS WORK CAUSE I REALLY WANTED IT TOOOOOOOOOOO

[Darrin]

Hitting the earth ad infinitum with a 1d2 Crusader who uses an Adamantine Greatsword also does it. Not very refined but does indeed work without magic!

You need to use a weapon that only does 1d2 damage, so an adamantine greatsword won't work. The adamantine material is somewhat irrelevent, as infinite damage quickly exceeds any hardness or DR your target might have. A small-sized character wielding a gauntlet or light shield should work.

Also, it involves some magic, at least indirectly: you have to cast at least a cure light wounds spell to get the carrier effect from Imbued Healing.

(Rule-wise, in order to get so many chickens out that they're jam-packed in even, say, a mile radius, all in a single round, you will need to have the physical strength to propel, shove, or otherwise move millions of chickens a mile IN SIX SECONDS.

My Lightning Thief build can redistribute any number of chickens to any open contiguous space as a free action.

[Werephilosopher]

Me like.

Also, anyone wishing to summon an Elder Evil doesn't have to follow the guidelines presented in the book if they're a powerful enough spellcaster.

[A Tad Insane]

It would take a while, but the Cthulhu epic vestige allows you to summon a sphere of annihilation everyday, which can be used as many rounds as you have ebl. It would take a while, but you could hollow out the earth that way, or at the very least kill the core, getting rid of the magnetic field, leading to solar winds scorching the earth.

[Zetapup]

1: The Dragonfire Adepts breath weapon DOES NOT have a cooldown, and therefore cannot actually qualify for Metabreath feats without a house rule (http://rpg.stackexchange.com/questio...tabreath-feats)

I believe the standard way to do it is to use a feat from one of the dragon magazines which gives it a cooldown (AFAIK the feat is called power surge. Not sure which magazine).

Also, please note that thread necromancy is frowned upon in these forums.

[unseenmage]

Spell Clock abuse can end the world pretty efficiently.

I personally like setting them up in rings with one making material via True Creation, another animating that material, and others buffing the subsequent creatures.
Awaken Sand from Sandstorm is fantastic for this process as the resultant creatures are friendly to the caster and could be left a note to just go out and buy/commission/make more Spellclocks of the above.

With the 'Constructs are Magic Items' rules interpretation it gets even easier. (Golems are explicitly Magic Items, other Constructs might be depending on interpretation.)
Get a Spellclock set to Wish: Custom Magic Item. Make that Custom Magic Item be a Construct that is also a Spellclock of Wish: Custom Magic Item. (See 'Combining Magic Items' in the SRD and MIC.) Etc, etc.

I'm sure there are less Construct-centric methods to end everything with Spellclocks, those are just my favorites.

Edit: Like a dummy I forgot to add that the War Spell virtual metamagic feat speeds this process up by 25 creatures per CL per casting. (It might even be necessary to accomplish the goal in anything resembling a timely fashion.) Adding other Metamagics, like Twin Spell and Repeat Spell help too.

[PsyBomb]

Red Wizard CL abuse plus a spherical wall of force plus Create Water equals a Black Hole. Create Water does not have a CL cap, just generating 2 gallons per level. Once you get enough of a caster level (I think is was about 2.5 million, though I could be wrong), you cast Create Water within the sphere and the sheer density takes over.