Does Swallow Your Fear Offer Ongoing Protection from NEW Fear Effects?

[Voomer]

Swallow Your Fear, which is a mass effect and lasts 10 minutes, provides "You make the affected subjects ready for battle despite their fear. If a target is suffering from a fear effect of any kind, he gains a +2 morale bonus to Strength and Constitution, a +1 morale bonus on Will saves, and a -2 penalty to AC. If the subject is frightened, he remains in place and gains the confused condition for the remainder of the fear effect, except he treats all results of 'attack self ' as 'do nothing' and treats 'attack nearest creature' as 'act normally.' If the subject is panicked, he remains in place and gains the confused condition for the duration of the fear effect."

Does this offer ongoing protection from NEW fear effects. That is, if a PC has this spell on him/her ongoing and then is subject to a fear effect, does he/she benefit from the spell, or is the spell completely irrelevant in that instance (that is, it only effects fear effects in existence at the moment of casting)?

Odd for it to have such a long duration if it only is relevant to effects in existence at the time of casting.

[Rysky]

I'd say yes, it would apply to fear effects gained as well.

[Voomer]

That's what I ruled at the table last night (in part because I was feeling lenient because it would have been a TPK otherwise, or at least a full retreat and I wanted to keep things moving forwards), but that seems a lot for a first level spell, especially compared to remove fear, which is also a first level spell. I guess the difference is that remove fear suppresses ALL fear effects, but it only gives a +4 bonus on NEW fear saves for 10 minutes. Also, the fact that Remove Fear is so explicit about new effects makes me think Swallow Your Fear does not apply to new effects.

Remove Fear:

You instill courage in the subject, granting it a +4 morale bonus against fear effects for 10 minutes. If the subject is under the influence of a fear effect when receiving the spell, that effect is suppressed for the duration of the spell.

Remove fear counters and dispels cause fear.

[Rysky]

*nods*

But Swallow Your Fear doesn't remove the Fear effect, it just changes them into Confusion.

[Voomer]

Yes, and partly negates shaken. But to guarantee the PCs won't run away (or drop their weapons) in a fear situation is pretty powerful...

[Rysky]

Well running away from the thing trying to kill you can be useful, as opposed to babbling incoherently...

[blahpers]

Yes, it functions with regard to any and all fear effects for the duration of the spell. Pretty sweet, if you ask me--I'd have limited it to bard and probably added a bit of expense to the components for that effect.

[Voomer]

Thanks. Good to have your views. Sounds like I made the right ruling.