imbue with spell ability choices

[Venger]

here's how it works

my question is, does anyone ever actually use this spell? if so, what kind if spells do you load up your friends with?

I thought it would be kind of cool to give other party members some buffs and stuff, but the restrictions are pretty harsh. my first thought was spells that are personal, but the only one I can really think of is grave strike (still great for the party rogue)

that'll take care of two firsts, but what's a good 2nd level spell that's abj/div/conj(healing) that a rogue (or anyone else, really) would enjoy having from ISA? I figure it ought to be personal too (otherwise, I could just save the 4th and cast it on her myself)

[Thespianus]

I was pretty sure Sign(SpC, lvl 1) could be useful to give a +4 on your next initiative roll, but for some obscure reason, it is an Enchantment (Compulsion)[Mind-Affecting] spell with a Personal range.

It lets you "see into the future", which has got Divination written all over it.

Oh well.

Close Wounds (SpC, lvl 2) can be a life saver, but kind of circumstantial.

Divine Insight (SpC, lvl2) can give someone a decent boost to one skill check.

But yeah, it's a conceptually cool spell, but it lacks in usefulness. For a while we missed the school limitations on the spells, which made it a lot more fun, but now? No.

[dextercorvia]

It is an artifact from 2e at least, and I'm guessing it appeared before that, as well. That explains a lot of the really out of place spells in the PHB -- like Tensor's Transformation.

The limitations of school and list are pretty restrictive. You can't even grant domain spells like True Strike that way. The only use for it I've ever conceived of is for an NPC cleric quest giver with a no healing party. A healing belt is a better investment now, but I could see it working in a low level/low op* core only environment.

*By low-op, here I mean fighter/monk/rogue party in core only** with no ranks in UMD between them.

**Yes I have said core only three times now. I can't stress how much better a healing belt is if you are outside of core.

[ericgrau]

It might not transfer big flashy spells when the cleric can cast 4th level spells or higher, but it seems like a good way to bust action economy. The two above spells work great on builds who aren't using their swift/immediate anyway. Or somebody who runs away can cure mod himself freely without worrying about his budget. You may not be able to hit the same creature more than once, but you can get further economy by hitting multiple party members. A close wounds for all is like 7 more hp each.

[MidgetMarine]

It's been used a few times in my current campaign and has saved lives.
The only thing we've used it so far is imbuing the incredibly tanky dwarf with the Shield Other spell and then having him use it on the squishy party members in case they get hurt. It saved the rogue from death last session.

[Curmudgeon]

Deathwatch and Death Knell is a pretty nifty combo to Imbue when you've got a bunch of wimpy enemies.

[Jack_Simth]

Healing spells are handy - the cleric occasionally goes into the negatives, and it's useful when whoever happens to be by can get the Cleric back on his feet. Close Wounds (Spell Compendium) has already been mentioned in this vein.

Protection From Evil is a useful choice - because it suppresses Charm Person and Dominate Person for the duration. The normal fix-it person got the mind-whammy? Un-whammy them for long enough for them to fix themselves.

[ericgrau]

Originally Posted by MidgetMarine

It's been used a few times in my current campaign and has saved lives.
The only thing we've used it so far is imbuing the incredibly tanky dwarf with the Shield Other spell and then having him use it on the squishy party members in case they get hurt. It saved the rogue from death last session.

Oh why did I think shield other was ineligible? It's abjuration after all. Yeah this might be the best use. Shield other is amazing. If you have a tough back liner you can also give it to him to protect a front liner.

With damage distributed all over the place you can prevent all kinds of deaths without even healing. Then when everybody's slightly hurt you can use the efficient mass cure spells, or in pathfinder you can channel energy.

[Venger]

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

Deathwatch and Death Knell is a pretty nifty combo to Imbue when you've got a bunch of wimpy enemies.

I'd love to do that, but imbue doesn't allow necro (which both of those spells are) I was sure deathwatch was a divination spell

Originally Posted by Jack_Simth

Healing spells are handy - the cleric occasionally goes into the negatives, and it's useful when whoever happens to be by can get the Cleric back on his feet. Close Wounds (Spell Compendium) has already been mentioned in this vein.

Protection From Evil is a useful choice - because it suppresses Charm Person and Dominate Person for the duration. The normal fix-it person got the mind-whammy? Un-whammy them for long enough for them to fix themselves.

that's true. I'm a chameleon, the other party members are sacred fist, wizard, and psyrogue. I'm probably going to imbue the psyrogue, since the others don't need it.

prot from evil is a good idea.

resurgence is also an MVP and it'd save me from having to get over to her when she fails saves, or let her give someone another chance

Originally Posted by ericgrau

Oh why did I think shield other was ineligible? It's abjuration after all. Yeah this might be the best use. Shield other is amazing. If you have a tough back liner you can also give it to him to protect a front liner.

With damage distributed all over the place you can prevent all kinds of deaths without even healing. Then when everybody's slightly hurt you can use the efficient mass cure spells, or in pathfinder you can channel energy.

that spell's somehow slipped by me all these years. I've never even heard of it before. sometimes that happens, like with "statue" or something. great tip, I'll definitely add it to the list (though rogue will likely be the recipient instead of caster, being a glass cannon)

[Coidzor]

Guidance of the Avatar is nifty, but is touch-range.... Still, if the party X needs to go and be sure to accomplish a task that you're not going to be around for...