RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32
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Level 0 Spells. Every heavy spellcasting class starts with 'em. Most people tend to use things like light and detect magic on a regular basis, but what about all those other 0-level spells? This thread is for you all to post the most profound use of one of these oft-neglected spells in your experiences.
Mine?
I was playing a level 4 sorcerer in a Forgotten Realms campaign when my associate (a rogue) ran afoul of the city guards. Unaware of his predicament, I was a bit surprised when he came running back to me at the inn we were staying at. Naturally, the guards soon followed. Because my character was a bit pompous and spent more money on fancy clothing than magic items, I was rather impressively dressed when they arrived. When they demanded that I hand my friend over, I said "I will do no such thing! My manservant was simply running an errand for me. On what grounds to you demand him to be arrested?" They told me he had been found sneaking around a local home and that they believed he had broken in to steal things. Again, they demanded that I had him over. This time, they threatened me too. That was the last straw. I said "Do you know who I AM?!? I am the Archmage Malagant of Waterdeep! Do not presume to threaten ME, officer. You know not what you trifle with." I used prestidigitation to create black lightning wrapping all around my fingers, crackling and sizzling threateningly. The DM awarded me a +2 bonus to my Bluff check, which I rolled a total result of 31 on, convincing them that I was, in fact, an Archmage of Waterdeep. Then, the success of the Bluff check gave me a +2 on the subsequent Intimidation check to scare them off and an additional +2 from the lightning effect. I got a total of 26 on that check and they went running, apologizing every step of the way. Naturally, we had to leave town before someone investigated the identity of Archmage Malagant, but we got away clean and easy. It was awesome.
I use prestidigitation for everything. Cleaning the party up after fights with icky things, making a sketched image come to life and dance around on the page, spicing up meals if necessary, or even just if my blonde character wants to be a redhead for an hour. (Yeah, I like playing bards)
I once got to use a Light Spell to particularly nice effect. My party was surrounded by a hunting party of sahuagin, and they wanted a bribe before they'd let us go. I talked the druid into giving me his old masterwork scimitar that he still had, and while the Paladin was talking to the brutes, I cast Light followed by Nystul's Magic Aura on the sheathed sword -- 35% or so of all magic weapons shed light when drawn, after all. I announced that I had "awakened its power" -- I was a bard with an absurdly high bluff modifier -- and we got away without hindrance. It wouldn't have worked without a first level spell, but the cantrip helped me out.
For a second edition Mage Duel, I used glitterdust followed by the cantrip Cat's feet (silent footsteps) and sting to make my opponent lose spells.
As an improvised weapon I once had a druid cast create water in a backpack, as that was basically all he had (for spells or equipment). It only lasted a couple of hits, but I managed to knock out the guards and escape - kinda.
TK
I use prestidigitation for everything.It's a floor wax and a dessert topping!
Wasn't that the very first SNL fake ad?
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Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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Wasn't that the very first SNL fake ad?I use prestidigitation for everything.It's a floor wax and a dessert topping!
If not the first, it's a very early one.
My all time favorite:
Happy FUN BALL!
-only $14.95-
Warning: Pregnant women, the elderly and children under 10 should avoid prolonged exposure to Happy Fun Ball.
Caution: Happy Fun Ball may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds.
Happy Fun Ball Contains a liquid core, which, if exposed due to rupture, should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at.
Do not use Happy Fun Ball on concrete.
Discontinue use of Happy Fun Ball if any of the following occurs:
Itching
Vertigo
Dizziness
Tingling in extremities
Loss of balance or coordination
Slurred speech
Temporary blindness
Profuse sweating
Heart palpitations
If Happy Fun Ball begins to smoke, get away immediately. Seek shelter and cover head.
Happy Fun Ball may stick to certain types of skin.
When not in use, Happy Fun Ball should be returned to its special container and kept under refrigeration...
Failure to do so relieves the makers of Happy Fun Ball, Wacky Products Incorporated, and its parent company Global Chemical Unlimited, of any and all liability.
Ingredients of Happy Fun Ball include an unknown glowing substance which fell to Earth, presumably from outer space.
Happy Fun Ball has been shipped to our troops in Saudi Arabia and is also being dropped by our warplanes on Iraq.
Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball.
Happy Fun Ball comes with a lifetime guarantee.
Happy Fun Ball
ACCEPT NO SUBSTITUTES!
If not the first, it's a very early one.
I love happy fun ball! Remember Dan Akroyd's slicko toy maker who'd go on talk shows to argue that there was nothing wrong with his new product 'Bag o' glass'?
I wasn't sure if the first was the desert topping/floor wax or this cold breakfast cereal which was actually just chunks of coal. I saw that first episode when it aired. I was six but my mother was kind of liberal to say the least.
As an improvised weapon I once had a druid cast create water in a backpack, as that was basically all he had (for spells or equipment). It only lasted a couple of hits, but I managed to knock out the guards and escape - kinda.
TK
I had a druid once, years ago, that was a member of a party who chased two villains into a house. We were all pretty sure that at least one of the baddies was in a back room, which had no windows and only one door, and a bed. So, no way out, only place to hide (that was apparently empty), but no baddies. We figured that they were invisible, but none of us had anything that would help (I was the only spellcaster and was almost out of spells from the prior battle).
So....I cast Create Water...at the ceiling. About 12 gallons of water poured down and promptly outlined one of the invisible baddies. After dispatching him, we simply watched the floor from the hallway and when we saw the second baddie crawl out from under the bed--thus disturbing the water pooled on the floor--we quickly dispatched him.
Bonus XP for ingenuity from the DM!
Unfortunately, none of my players have ever used their cantrips in a way that is surprisingly effective. Of course they use light when they enter the dark creepy dungeon and read magic before they use their scrolls, but I've never had one of them wow me with a surprising use of a cantrip.
The one thing that comes to mind most visibly when I think about cantrips is one time in a bygone year that one of my old players used an unseen servant to...well, let's see if I can say this correctly..."exert its few pounds of force upon a male red dragon's royal jewels" (you get the drift).
One guy (another old player that I haven't played with for years) labeled an NPC a "dumbass" in plain common...with an arcane mark. That sent everyone to the floor.
once used it to create a glowing sign over a thiefs head it read " Stop me, I stole something "
Back in 2nd edition... I had a 1st level Magic user who had no useful spells at all (DM rolled for spells, and his dice stunk). But his cantrips worked. So, forsaking the worthless level one spells (we had an int bonus to spells) I stocked up on cantrips.
The adventure starts with the King announcing the city sewers being over run by monsters. After our long winded DM got to page 5 of his 10 page monologue (yes, read in monotone) I could take no more. I then began pelting the king with cantrips making him burp, fart and itch as he gave his speech.
In the same adventure, we were attacked by several fighters. Still having no spells of use I fell back to my cantrips again. The fighter charged at me. Time for the combo of unswew, used on his leggings, and the sew to make them one tight, long skirt. So tight in fact that he promptly failed his check and fell flat on his face.
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My druid (the best class) cast Mending on our archer's bowstring after it broke (result of a critical failure) just before my turn in the line-up. Next round, he did the reversal and got a nat 20 and killed the BBEG. We shared the MVP for that one.
Recently in an on-line game, our group had to get into a underwater cave. My Necromancer has a raven familiar and one of the other party members has a beloved pet chick (yes, a baby chicken, don't ask) who would not enjoy making the trip. We put them in a backpack and I cast Prestidigitation to encircle it with an air bubble. Wasn't dramatic, but a good solution to annoying logistical problem.
In a different game, we holed up in a house to avoid some tuff grunts sent after us (while we were already pretty drained). They were in the house and getting close when inspiration struck. I wispered the plan to the gnome thief who was next to me. He cast Ghost Sound making a running noise, and I cast Close to slam the front door shut. Perfect diversion... the grunts immediately chased after the phantom runner.
That made me think of a semi-cursed magic item. Imagine a bag of holding that randomly contains; glass, nails, scorpions or sulfuric acid. Reach in to find out if it is empty or if it contains a surprise. New from Ronco!
New magic item, Bag o' plague. You open it up and you and town you're in become nothing more than a blotch of red on a casualty projection map.
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RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32
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New magic item, Bag o' plague. You open it up and you and town you're in become nothing more than a blotch of red on a casualty projection map.That made me think of a semi-cursed magic item. Imagine a bag of holding that randomly contains; glass, nails, scorpions or sulfuric acid. Reach in to find out if it is empty or if it contains a surprise. New from Ronco!
Heh, reminds me of something I did that was rather nasty to a party of adventurers. I gave them a bag of holding that contained an undead rust monster. Anything metal that went in never came back out. Everything else was just fine. Took them almost 3 months (12 sessions) to figure out what the hell the problem was. Finally, they dropped a +1 holy undead bane heavy mace in there and the critter killed itself trying to eat it.
Moral of the story: Rust monsters are not smart. Undead rust monsters are even less smart.
Heh, reminds me of something I did that was rather nasty to a party of adventurers. I gave them a bag of holding that contained an undead rust monster. Anything metal that went in never came back out. Everything else was just fine. Took them almost 3 months (12 sessions) to figure out what the hell the problem was. Finally, they dropped a +1 holy undead bane heavy mace in there and the critter killed itself trying to eat it.Moral of the story: Rust monsters are not smart. Undead rust monsters are even less smart.
That's a great story. Did they ever figure out what the problem was and why it suddenly went away?
Who acquires a bag of holding and doesn't look inside to see if the former owner left treasure behind?
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RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32
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That's a great story. Did they ever figure out what the problem was and why it suddenly went away?
Who acquires a bag of holding and doesn't look inside to see if the former owner left treasure behind?
As I recall, in the RAW, you can only call items out of the bag if you KNOW what is in there. You can't simply 'dump it out' to see what is in it. Anyway, the party eventually figured out what the problem was after they had sent the wizard's familiar inside to 'scout it out' (it was an Imp and had darkvision to see in there). When it came back, it said there was some strange creature surrounded by little piles of dust. Eventually, based on the description the imp gave, they figured out it must have been an undead rust monster and thus they decided to 'feed' it with a holy, undead bane mace. It worked.
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Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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As I recall, in the RAW, you can only call items out of the bag if you KNOW what is in there. You can't simply 'dump it out' to see what is in it.
Excellent story, but not entirely in line with the RAW (and I would say that the deviation from the RAW was well worth it). You can literally dump out a bag of holding. From the SRD:
Bag of Holding
This appears to be a common cloth sack about 2 feet by 4 feet in size. The bag of holding opens into a nondimensional space: Its inside is larger than its outside dimensions. Regardless of what is put into the bag, it weighs a fixed amount. This weight, and the limits in weight and volume of the bag’s contents, depend on the bag’s type, as shown on the table below.
Bag Bag Weight Contents
Weight Limit Contents
Volume Limit Market Price
Type I 15 lb. 250 lb. 30 cu. ft. 2,500 gp
Type II 25 lb. 500 lb. 70 cu. ft. 5,000 gp
Type III 35 lb. 1,000 lb. 150 cu. ft. 7,400 gp
Type IV 60 lb. 1,500 lb. 250 cu. ft. 10,000 gp
If the bag is overloaded, or if sharp objects pierce it (from inside or outside), the bag ruptures and is ruined. All contents are lost forever. If a bag of holding is turned inside out, its contents spill out, unharmed, but the bag must be put right before it can be used again. If living creatures are placed within the bag, they can survive for up to 10 minutes, after which time they suffocate. Retrieving a specific item from a bag of holding is a move action—unless the bag contains more than an ordinary backpack would hold, in which case retrieving a specific item is a full-round action.
If a bag of holding is placed within a portable hole a rift to the Astral Plane is torn in the space: Bag and hole alike are sucked into the void and forever lost. If a portable hole is placed within a bag of holding, it opens a gate to the Astral Plane: The hole, the bag, and any creatures within a 10-foot radius are drawn there, destroying the portable hole and bag of holding in the process.
Despite my players' high level of creativity, no one has ever really done anything abnormal with a cantrip in any of my games. They turned a Dwarf into a living torch once by casting Light on his helmet at his request and subsequently used Dancing Lights to hunt down vargouilles hiding in dark corners, but those are all perfectly normal uses.
A bard used Prestidigitation to entertain a bunch of Halfling kids once.