[Sorcery] Those Other Spells...

[Kelly Pedersen]

Originally Posted by Rindis

Thanks for the write up Kelly! I ended up changing it to a -10% limitation with near 0 capacity, as the usual Can Carry Objects has No Encumbrance as a +10%, and it keeps the math in line.

Ah, yes, you're right. Good catch!

Originally Posted by Rindis

ETA: Also, is there any set modifier for Morph that says you can't imitate particular people? Just racial templates?

Well, Flawed, from Powers, says it "completely precludes impersonation", so I'd use it. Honestly, I think Flawed is actually pretty severely undervalued at only -10% - I feel the utility of the disguise is actually a big element of Morph. But that's the value. Honestly, if the flaw was just "always turn into a 'generic' member of the race, rather than a specific individual", it's probably worth even less than standard Flawed, which I tend to think shows you up as being a specific shapeshifter. So this hypothetical "Generic Form" limitation might only be worth -5%, at least if you agree with Flawed's value.

[Rindis]

Just posted the 8th set of spells:
Dungeons & Sorcery Spells 8

Levels (casting times) range from 1-3, with Blink being the main spell. Summon Swarm is also in there, and if you're going to have that, Protection From Vermin will come in handy.

[Rindis]

And after a long time away... I finally posted my ninth set of spells:
Dungeons & Sorcery Spells 9

Baneful Deflector and Metamorphose Liquids are probably my favorites from this set. Fool's Gold has some interesting limitations, which makes it better than untrammeled illusions, but it still a potential problem magnet.

[Rindis]

And now the tenth set:
Dungeons & Sorcery Spells 10

Fly finally shows up in this one, with the new modifier discussed at the end of page 8 of this thread.

[Rindis]

And somewhat unexpectedly, I'm thinking about this project again. Ended up trying to finish the write-up of Polymorph Other:

Polymorph Other (SC)
Alteration, Somatic, Verbal, Resisted (HT)
260 points + 20.75/level
Casting Time: 4 seconds
Casting Roll: Innate Attack (Gaze) to hit
Range: 20 yards
Duration: Permanent

This spell attempts to change the form of the subject into a different creature, absorbing all their gear (up to Heavy Encumbrance) into their body. This effectively swaps the subject’s racial template out for a new one specified by the caster. This must be a creature type that exists in the world, and the caster must be fairly familiar with the characteristics of the species, but doesn’t need a sample or other concrete example. The change itself takes ten seconds to happen, and is permanent unless dispelled or the subject is slain. This spell does not interfere with natural shapeshifters, who can simply transform back to one of their normal forms once the transformation completes.

Polymorph other will not (if all goes well) change the subject's mentality, so all IQ modifiers and mental abilities in the new racial template are ignored. Similarly, the subject will not gain any any magical powers of the target creature type (the GM will have to make the final call; most ‘supernatural’ abilities will not be gained, and any abilities with a ‘Magic’ modifier definitely won’t be gained; things like winged flight that would technically need magic to work because the wings are too small, but doesn't have the modifier, will work).

Also, ST should remain proportional to the new form. A ST 20 human will not turn into a ST 15 halfling or a ST 12 pixie. Instead, divide the subject’s ST by his racial ST and multiply that by the base racial ST of the new form. When going to a larger/stronger form, ST can optionally be translated directly (to save points).

At base level, attempting to polymorph to a form that costs more (after all the above adjustments) than the subject's base form will fail. Each level of the spell past the first raises this limit by 10 character points.

This spell has a complicated execution: First, it has a 30 yard range, and uses Innate Attack (Gaze) (plus Talent) to hit the subject. Assuming success, this spell requires two Quick Contests against the subject. First, to see if the spell works at all, roll your Will+Talent versus the subject’s HT; if you win, the subject will be transformed; the subject may choose to not resist this part of the spell, and let it automatically be successful, but this will not happen without a high degree of trust. If the spell is successful, the subject must make a second Quick Contest of the caster’s Will+Talent vs his Will. If the subject fails this Quick Contest, they will forget their previous life, and believe they’ve always been this new creature!

This last effect is permanent, and will persist even if the polymorph is dispelled (the subject will then believe they’ve been transformed from their “true” form, and may go to some lengths to get it back). Note that this could basically turn a player character into an NPC. The old person is gone, and the new creature will act accordingly, including knowing that the caster just attempted a spell on them, and strenuously resisting any attempt at a “cure” for the condition. (At this point, the lack of mental effects should be scrapped, with all appropriate mental advantages/disadvantages being swapped out, and IQ subject to the same guidelines given for ST above. Other special abilities are also on the table, especially if there were leftover character points in the initial polymorph. The GM may also elect to not follow character point guidelines very strictly, as the new creature may easily be hostile; in fact, the more likely the creature is to be hostile to the caster, the more it should be allowed to exceed the old point total to gain abilities.)

Affliction (HT; Advantage: Morph (Absorptive Change (Heavy), +20%; Accessibility: No Supernatural Advantages, -10%; Flawed, -10%; Limited Use 1 (Fast Reload), ‑20%; Magical, -10%; No Memorization Required, +50%; Once On, Stays On (Not On Death, -10%), +45%), +1650%; Extended Duration, Permanent, +150%; Malediction 2, +150%; Reduced Range, 1/5, -20%; Requires Gestures, -10%; Requires Magic Words, -10%; Sorcery, -15%; Takes Extra Time, x4, -20%). [20.75x10] + Affliction (Will +20%; Disadvantage: Delusion: “I Really Am A [Blank]” +15%; Extended Duration, Permanent, +300%; Follow-Up, +100; Requires Gestures, -10%; Requires Magic Words, -10%; Sorcery, -15%) [5.2x10]

I'd like to figure some ways to get the cost of this down a bit, though it's probably fair. Of course, I'd be happy if someone can just check over the math and build there; it's complicated enough for me to easily miss something.

One feature of the original is the more powerful the creature turned into, the more likely forgetting who you really are is. I'm thinking that could be done by adding an alternate ability that either adds to the subject's will for resisting that effect, or adds points to the Morph, if more are needed, but I haven't gotten around to figuring out that build.

[Infornific]

Interesting project. Somehow I missed this the first time around.

Have you considered at all using multiplicative modifiers? Looking over your spells, that would tend to reduce the cost. Dramatically in some cases. Because of the way afflictions work, Limitations tend to matter less and less the more powerful the buff is. Multiplicative modifiers change that but also put a cap on total limitations.

Apologies if you've addressed this already. I looked through this thread and your blog posts and couldn't find anything.

[Rindis]

I haven't directly addressed that in writing, no.

However, I'm generally sticking with RAW, and not using any alternative methods like that, so that the writeups are as generally applicable as possible. (i.e., if someone is using that, then they know it, and know they may want to re-calculate costs based on their house rules. Someone not using house rules or optional rules should not need to reverse-engineer something back to basic RAW.)

If you have any thoughts on particular writeups (even old ones), please don't hesitate to comment though.

[Rindis]

And now, the eleventh set of spells is out:
Dungeons & Sorcery Spells 11

Possibly the most famous spell in this set is Hallucinatory Terrain, though three undead-related spells, and Scare are in there as a nod to October.

[Rindis]

Okay... found another spell that's giving me pause. It doesn't help that the original spell description is not entirely clear as to what's happening either.

Melf's Minute Meteors allows a mage to throw a number of small fireballs around (equal to character level), up to five per round, with extras being thrown on the next round. They either explode in a one-foot diameter (if they hit something), or one yard (if they don't).

Given the length of time of a D&D round, I'm figuring they're thrown sequentially, and each is about 1/5 round to fire off.

So, the mechanics I'm looking at here is a RoF 1 attack (so it can be a separate target each time, instead of Rapid Fire all at one), with, say, five attacks. Which is explicitly not how Sorcery attacks work....

I'm also thinking of a one-hex AoE. Basically, it generally gets one target, but will also hurt both sides in a close combat situation.

But, I'm not aware of anything that allows either part of that build. Anything I'm missing? Suggestions?

[zoncxs]

Area of effect of 1 yard is worth +25%, you can find info on that in another old thread.

Rapid fire and Limited use, When used together you get "shots" equal to your RoF. So with Rapid Fire 2 (giving RoF 2) and Limited use 1, you can use the attack 2 times in 24hrs. The higher the RoF the more shots. That is the best way I can think of.