Phase Other

[Nikich]

Hey, me and my GM are trying to understand what "Phase other" spell is. Is it just instead of my own defence i can phase my enemy, or maybe i can help my companions with avoiding someone's attack. If it's just for my own defence, can someone explain me the benefits it gives? Some situations, where it will be suitable? Also, i must say that Phase Other is a Very Hard spell, unlike Phase, which is Hard.

[Dinadon]

As the very short description implies, the spell works like Phase but with someone else as the subject. This is the same as the various Other spells that exist, all of which are variants of a spell that can only affect the caster, and are generally VH.

You can certainly use Phase Other on your enemies but as a Blocking spell that prevents damage, this may not be the desired outcome.

[Nikich]

Originally Posted by Dinadon

As the very short description implies, the spell works like Phase but with someone else as the subject. This is the same as the various Other spells that exist, all of which are variants of a spell that can only affect the caster, and are generally VH.

You can certainly use Phase Other on your enemies but as a Blocking spell that prevents damage, this may not be the desired outcome.

But what's the point of using Phase on enemy when i can just Phase myself? Even the skill will be higher.

[Magic_Octopus]

Originally Posted by Nikich

Hey, me and my GM are trying to understand what "Phase other" spell is. Is it just instead of my own defence i can phase my enemy, or maybe i can help my companions with avoiding someone's attack. If it's just for my own defence, can someone explain me the benefits it gives? Some situations, where it will be suitable? Also, i must say that Phase Other is a Very Hard spell, unlike Phase, which is Hard.

Protecting others is the point, not phasing your enemy.

[Nikich]

Originally Posted by Magic_Octopus

Protecting others is the point, not phasing your enemy.

Yeah, i think your are right, but how should it work then? Can i just use it infinetely on my companions when they defend themselves, so it's phase + their defence? I think it's not really broken ( the cost is 3 FP, and we can't decrease it ), but definitely pretty strong.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Nikich

But what's the point of using Phase on enemy when i can just Phase myself? Even the skill will be higher.

Using it on friends can be just what you need if there's a predictable attack, such as a trap, that they need to avoid. It's only going to be useful on enemies under strange circumstances, but it was an obvious consequence of the design methodology when the spell system was written, and GURPS tries to be open to player ingenuity.

The GURPS Magic spell list comes from a rationalised fantasy setting (Banestorm) and attempts to support more kinds of magic use than classic adventuring.

[Gnome]

This sees a lot of use in our more advanced DF games, particularly when there are attacks that cannot be defended against by normal means. For example, a dragon breathes on a fighter, which cannot be blocked, parried or dodged (since it's an area attack or cone), but somebody casts Phase Other to save them from the attack.

We also invented a super-secret uber-spell called "Mass Phase," which is an Area Blocking spell with base cost 3 (minimum area 2) that phases everyone in the area. It's very expensive energy-wise, but can be crucial for when that dragon tries to breathe on the entire party...

I like to invent spells like these that are logical extensions of the ones in Magic. This can be especially useful for very high-powered games, where wizards can actually start to lose their shine (believe it or not!), simply because mundane fighters can have such extreme damage outputs, resistance to everything (mundane and magic), general toughness and competence, and access to really good power-ups. Mages become buff machines and protectors against the most extreme of enemy attacks (like the aforementioned dragon's breath). I have also invented many power-ups specifically for casters, a lot of which act as superchargers for certain spells.

[Dinadon]

Originally Posted by Nikich

But what's the point of using Phase on enemy when i can just Phase myself? Even the skill will be higher.

I feel this ignores the fact that Phase and Phase Other are Blocking spells. These can only be cast as a defence. So no, you wouldn't use Phase Other against an enemy that you're attacking, as it would have to be cast in response to your own attacks. But against someone else's attacks? That just means you have some enemies you prefer more than others.

[JulianLW]

I think Phase Other would be an awesome way to Block an enemy's attack, i.e. his sword passes right through me, harmlessly, because I made him insubstantial for a moment. You could houserule that, like Plane Shift Other, it could be Resisted by Will+1. Note that Command (M136) is a Resisted Blocking Spell. Phase Other could work exactly this way. Pretty cool, I think. I can't immediately think of a reason why Phase Other on your attacker would be superior to Phase on yourself, but I'm sure there will be a circumstance where it's valuable - maybe against a Grand Disarm or something?

[Nikich]

Thank you guys for opinions. My GM decided to make it usable on your companions, so you can save them from an attack, but you can do it only once per turn cycle. I think it makes the spell more usable, and justifies its "very hard" category.