I've been ignoring blood money because most people seem not to like the concept. Though if it is available...
I was thinking a robe of components might work out for her. 2500 for me to make and it would allow her 50 gp per day. That's one bloody skeleton a day, in the long run.
I love blood money. It's such an amazingly stylish and flavorful spell. It turns magic into an actual ritual. Sure, you only really add 6 seconds to the overall time (I'd be fine if it were longer) but then you cut yourself and bleed for your spell rather than just lighting money on fire.
It fixes a lot of the issues with Animate Dead in particular. The onyx cost makes no sense. The component is a single onyx worth an arbitrary amount based on Hit Dice (which is itself an abstraction). So how, in game, does a caster know what size onyx to use? Are necromancers expected to carry a whole bunch of different sized onyx gems? What if all they have is one that is too big?
It really doesn't make sense. Blood money fixes it, and makes it thematically interesting.
ya I also shied away from bloody money. That spell just seems to OP for a lvl 1 spell. As Nahia said it would be an absolute no brainer to make an item of blood money (or equivalent) if the spell is available, works thematically, and I kind of like the idea of bracers of Blood Onyx. but based on magic item creation... you could make one with 3 uses/day for like 1200 GP base price. Seems like a crazy good deal.
@Seren: Unnamed bonus.
Pretty much stacks with everything.
Blood money is an interesting concept, but has way too many potential balance problems. Not that all the variable based gemstone requirements for spells aren't also busted, but swinging that far in the other direction isn't a good idea either, at least in my opinion.
And as for how to determine the required GP, while this isn't official, I always thought the Soul Bind spell gave a pretty good precedent:
The focus for this spell is a black sapphire of at least 1,000 gp value for every HD possessed by the creature whose soul is to be bound. If the gem is not valuable enough, it shatters when the binding is attempted. (While creatures have no concept of level or HD as such, the value of the gem needed to trap an individual can be researched.)
Anyway, I think we've had this discussion before, but I've always allowed casters to provide multiple gems, including gem dust, for spells with gem components. That way if a caster had time, they could just keep trying until there was enough. Or, if they were pressed for time, dump a lot of it and risk wasting some in order to get the thing up and moving now.
and I really don't mind the onyx cost. I knew it was a factor going in, and I'm perfectly happy to pay it. Thus why I have craft magic arms and armor to offset my Onyx cost. I even sort of have an issue with the dust idea. its not like I'm going to sit over a skeleton slowly pouring dust until I see it stir and wake up... I'm going to take an estimate in how powerful I think the skeleton is, and go for it!.
*Munches popcorn intently at the unfolding scene*
My computer went and broke itself!
Anyway , I'm trying to have it fixed today or tomorrow.
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Sorry to hear that Aku... I hope things get better!
That scene was adorable and scary. We must have a pic of them kssing while holding daggers behind their backs.
Rose, that was a very nice finish.
Hound, that would be a great picture indeed. : )
Also, I liked your Conan style poem there. I may steal that for the motto of a Spartan-like nomadic tribe in another game.
Please do. :)
Thanks. I really enjoyed that scene. :)
You make yourself—including clothing, armor, weapons, and equipment—look different. You can seem 1 foot shorter or taller, thin, fat, or in between. You cannot change your creature type (although you can appear as another subtype). Otherwise, the extent of the apparent change is up to you. You could add or obscure a minor feature or look like an entirely different person or gender.
Ok, Disguise Self (which is what the crowns use) doesn't care about your size category, just your height. Now, it seems that I am the only one that lists their height in their character page, but I'm pretty sure I'm the shortest one in the party, after Mysty, at 5'6"
Dwarves are listed to have the following heights:
Dwarf, male 3 ft. 9 in. + 2d4
Dwarf, female 3 ft. 7 in. + 2d4
So the tallest normal dwarf is 4'5" tall, with most averaging between 4'-4'2".
So even Nahia would be a freakishly tall dwarf, much less Hound, who I am pretty sure is well over 6' tall normally, and would probably be almost a foot taller than most dwarves in that disguise.
That's a really good point.
Rose is short to begin with. She's actually only 5' 1". I didn't include her height in my sheet, but I describe her stature quite a bit in my appearance tab and in a few posts. Rose is pretty tiny. (It's a pet peeve of hers. She wears heeled boots a lot)
So she can be a dwarf if neccessary. Hound, not so much.
Huh, some how I missed that. Funny that the one person who can actually make herself into a dwarf is also the only one (other than the halfling) that can disguise herself as one.
Related to my most recent post, I've always been at odds on how to describe spells. In normal history, distances weren't really agreed upon and time was rarely broken up into such small slices.
But magic changes things, and there are such things as a 6 second 'hourglass'.
Yeah, I don't really have any point to make or anything, just kind of rambling.
...what are you trying to say here? --.--
I just find it a little ironic that you have both while the rest of us have none. Kind of like when the cleric gets level drained and loses the ability to cast restoration. ^_^
Ready to move on?
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Ready!
Me too!
I can't think of anything else that needs to be gone over.
All set!
Related to my most recent post, I've always been at odds on how to describe spells. In normal history, distances weren't really agreed upon and time was rarely broken up into such small slices. But magic changes things, and there are such things as a 6 second 'hourglass'. Yeah, I don't really have any point to make or anything, just kind of rambling.
You can always use heartbeats as time unit.
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The problem with heartbeats is that they change frequency... a lot.
Also, once Seren becomes a lich that doesn't work...
Pec Flexes
A friend of mine had a great idea for a spell that we have never quite figured out how to give it mechanical bonuses.
But all it did was act as a Heads-Up-Display for a caster. For example, if a caster was thinking of casting fireball, it would show a ring showing the maximum range and a tinted sphere showing the caster what would be hit by it if it landed where they were looking (at that exact moment).
Also, it would keep timers on effects that the caster had not detected a saving throw against.
Again, a really neat idea, but hard to put into mechanics.
It will take some time until I'm able to update the game. Currently without my notebook, notes and not at home. Sorry.
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Nahia, that is a fantastic idea, and should really be a cantrip, or just folded into something like Detect Magic.
agree, making a spell knowledge cantrip or similar would be an awesome addition to the game.
See, that's the thing. Yes, we have a description of what it does, but how does that effect the game?
There are currently no rules for keeping track of spell statuses or judging spell distances. So, mechanically, it isn't preventing a penalty.
It could just be a fluff spell, but cantrips already don't get bonus slots for high scores or anything like that, so they tend to be kind of precious.
Don't get me wrong, I would always have that spell prepared, just for flavor reasons. But, say, a sorcerer might prefer something with some more utility, and I'd hate to limit spontaneous casters even further when it comes to choosing between fluffy goodness or helping out the party.
- - - - -
As for what kind of bonuses it could give, so far my friend and I have come up with the following concepts:
- +1 to hit with spells - due to better aiming.
- +1 to allies saving throw versus the casters spell - due to better aiming.
- +2 to the check to go first when multiple people try to use a readied action at the same time
- Your initiative after using a readied action to cast a spell is one better than when you acted.
At one point we actually made it a level one spell that did all of that and lasted 1 hour/level.
We also debated about making a "mass" version, that would let your allies see the same thing (for your spells), and essentially gave you precise shot with regards to your allies providing cover, and gave them a +4 to saves versus your spells.
- - - - -
I am perfectly willing to take suggestions though. Maybe DM Aku will let me research it for this game. : )
Other option would be to make it a feat...That way it doesn't take up valuable spell slots, and would also make it a viable character building thing. So a ranger/paladin might not care where his spell effects hit, but for dedicated casters it would be valuable as you start going into riskier spells.
Keep the bonuses you mentioned just tie it into a feat:
FEAT
Spell Knowledge
You're studies into the the inner workings of your magic have given you additional insight into the effect of your spells.
Benefit +1 to hit with spells, +1 to allies saving throw against your spells.
As a swift action you can activate a vision overlay that shows you maximum range, target location, and timers for lingering effects for spells on your known spell-list. Overlay stays into effect until cancelled. This is treated as an at-will spell-like ability.
Special:Your knowledge also allows you to automatically identify any spell or spell effects if the spell is one of your known spells.
The feat thing isn't a bad idea. But it seems an odd thing for a feat to grant.
Also, it still isn't balanced. While it is kind of weak, Weapon Focus only gives you a +1 to hit with rays, and this gives you that and more.
But that is another reason why giving those bonuses as a cantrip doesn't work either, because guidance only gives a +1 once within a minute, much less a +1 to hit for the duration of the spell.
A couple of thoughts though.
What about not having the spell provide any bonus, normally, but you can end the spell early to give you the bonuses for a single spell? This puts it more in line with guidance, because while the duration is longer (I figured an hour, like prestidigitation), the bonuses are not as varied and useful.
Or you could ditch the bonuses to saves and to hit and just leave the odd initiative stuff. That whole "Your initiative after using a readied action to cast a spell is one better than when you acted." is pretty neat, and there isn't anything else like it in the game.
That would mean if you readied an action to cast spell to interrupt an enemy caster (for example), you would get to interrupt them, then go before they do on the next turn. Which would also make counter-spelling a little more useful too, since you could actually keep shutting out an enemy spell caster, or counter and then attack yourself.
other option I could see is maybe just give you the ability + say +1 to spellcraft or knowledge(Arcana), whichever one you pick becomes a class-skill and make it a trait. Total fluff and roughly in line with other traits.
Re:Overlays. Now I am seeing us going all Splinter Cell with those glowing goggles.
Whoever designed those doesn't really understand the concept of stealth.
Look at Rose and Nahia stat-line.
They were the ones who started it. :P
@Seren
I'm sorry, you asked some days ago how to deal with multiple minions initiative!
While I always remembered your questions, I always forgot to write up an answer!
Anyway, you can have them all moving in Seren initiative.
@Rose, I saw that deleted post! kkkkkk
I misunderstood your last description. I thought they had gone up and determined everything was alright.
I can repost it later after we figure out what the shapes are.
Don't worry. My fault for not describing in a easy way.
Since I only said what Mysty saw, I thought it would be clear that I was waiting for her to decide to go out or report what she saw.
:)
Nahia, have I brought up the Dreamweaver archetype to you yet?
You haven't mentioned it, but I do know about it. It is a neat archetype, just not quite what I imagined for Nahia. She is more of an 'in your... arms' manipulator.
I love it. The ability to add Modify Memory to slumber hexes is amazing, and the Magic Jar ability at tenth level is plain unfair.
with Sew Thought a witch could start Inception-ing things into their heads while they sleep.
In another game I used that trick to basically rewrite someone's personality over the course of a few weeks.
I love it. The ability to add Modify Memory to slumber hexes is amazing, and the Magic Jar ability at tenth level is plain unfair.
with Sew Thought a witch could start Inception-ing things into their heads while they sleep.
In another game I used that trick to basically rewrite someone's personality over the course of a few weeks.
But that's just... strange.
I mean, why pick up an template because it adds power instead of flavor?
To crush our foes,etc etc..