Let's Talk About Spells!


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It's a playtest of Ultimate Magic and no one is talking about spells, let's correct this. This thread will be about what is everybody hoping will in be included, what could be done with old spells, and general ideas.

I'll get started. APG realized alot of what I thought could be done with a bard and then some. BUT the bard's spell list has always irked me, alot of useful spells but never really the bite I was looking for. I've been thinking about this ever since I found out that the assassin didn't have spell-casting anymore, why not take all those spells and give 'em to the bard? Now, I'm not just talking about the old standard spell list but the expanded list that included many unique assassin only spells. Some of those spells could be re-used and influence a line of spells following similar lines of thought. I think this gives alot to the bard without really taking away what it is to be a bard while adding a sinister aspect a player could really enjoy and explore.

This might be wishful thinking but I'm hopeful it's considered. A bard varient did get half-progression sneak attack...

Sovereign Court

I hope we continue to get more interesting spells that aren't really 100% related to combat. Nothing that helps emulate a lot of feats or stacks up in a bad way, though I suppose that's what we'd have to play test if they decide to do more then just the Magus.

Maybe a couple of new form spells, or things dealing with mid-to-high level inter-planer travel.


I hearby request a spell called cone of excrement! Fort saves all around.


How about a level 1-3 spell that deals cold damage. I've always felt that was lacking in the core rules.

Torger

Dark Archive

How about a level 1 bard spell that does sonic damage, like in the wotc splat books there was lesser orb of (element), they att did 1d8 but the lesser sonic orb did 1d6, the bard can have the lesser sonic or a version of burning hands that does sonic damage.

Dark Archive

There's tons of room for low level spells that impose minor conditions. We've got stinking cloud to cover the nauseated condition, but a lower level spell that imposed the sickened condition to a single target, or to a group of targets, could be a handy debuff.

Similarly, there are spells to blind people, and to dazzle them (more of an insult than a debuff), but nothing in-between. A 'clouded' or 'obscured' or 'blurry' or 'bleary-eyed' condition that affected someone's vision and gave all foes partial concealment (20% miss chance) against them could be a different way of imposing the defensive benefits of a blur spell as an offensive spell to affect one or several targets.

In addition to this made-up 'bleary-eyed' condition, there are other conditions scattered around, like the 'lamed' condition imposed by caltrops, that could also be played with.

Serpent's Stare could be the standard 'battle of wills' sort of deal (another movie/TV classic), where the spellcaster picks a target and locks eyes with it, forcing it into a psychic contest / arcane duel. Both the caster and the target remain dazed during the contest, and match Will saves or something against each other, with the loser of each round taking that much nonlethal damage or something. Perhaps there's no damage at all, until the round when the spell ends, because the spellcaster chose to break it off, or the target made a Will save by a certain number, and only then does the loser take a set amount of nonlethal damage. It would take a single target, preferably one with a low Will save (like an Ogre) out of the fight, but also result in the spellcaster essentially paralyzing himself, making it only useful in certain specific circumstances.

Thanks to TV and movie depictions of 'magic' as basically telekinesis (wave hands, people fly around, or get pinned to a wall and suffocated, or something), spells that cause Bull Rush, Trip, etc. actions, to one or multiple targets, or that can Grapple and Pin someone, could be fun.

The grapple/pin spell, at lower level, might even require the caster to take some sort of continuing action to maintain the effect, and if it is broken free, he might take 1d6 nonlethal damage from feedback! The slightly higher level version might affect multiple targets, and possibly be invisible, like the usual TV/movie stuff (like the demons do on Supernatural, waving their hands and slamming people into walls and holding them there), or colored lights, like Dr. Strange's Crimson Bands of Cytorrak.

Heck, a low level version of Black Tentacles that created only a single tentacle in a 5 ft. square selected by the caster (or generated from his own space, and able to extend only 15 ft. in any direction, could be kinda neat.

I'm obviously thinking in purely mechanical terms, but the 'feel' of being able to replicate TV/movie 'magic', with the gesture and throw people around stuff (at a much lower level of effect than the telekinesis spell, obviously), is important to me, since that's the kind of stuff that a newish player to D&D would expect a wizard to be able to do, no matter how much a grognard like myself wants to see chromatic orb and Melf's minute meteors or whatever.

A spell that duplicates the effects of a tanglefoot bag could be neat, particularly if it's also a utility spell, able to hurl a line of spider silk 30 ft. to stick to something for either offensive purposes, or to pull/drag something closer, or to use as a line to cross over a chasm or something.

For the warrior/mage type, a spell that allows a weapon to be pre-enspelled so that it appears in hand when needed, perhaps even as an immediate action (allowing the 'unarmed' wizard to suddenly have his staff in his hand when an enemy provokes an AoO, to give the beastie a bonk on the noggin), could be useful. Cast it at the beginning of the day, and for the next 24 hours, you have the equivalent of Quick-Draw for that single weapon, as often as you like, with the benefit of also being able to 'quick-stow' the weapon, when you don't want it in hand any longer (similar to the effect used by the wizard in the first D&D movie, who summoned his staff to his hand to fend off some sword attacks, and then just waved it away when he didn't need it anymore).

Spells to animate weapons seem a must-have. 'Dancing' swords, daggers, crossbows or even shields that fly around defending the spellcasting warrior/mage seem like fun possibilities. A swarm of animated daggers, using actual swarm rules, at higher levels, could be neat, while a low to mid-level spellcaster could benefit from a 'dancing' crossbow that hovers at their shoulder and loads and fires itself, or a spell that allows him to hurl a dagger and have it continue slashing away madly at the target for the next few rounds.

And then there's the potential of making spells inspired by other sources entirely. Gamma World, and later, GURPS Ultra-Tech, had the idea of high-tech force fields that changed color as they absorbed energy, heading up the visible spectrum until they overloaded and collapsed. A 2nd or 3rd level Chromatic Shield defensive spell that provided 70 pts of protection against most attacks, starting as a flickering violet field, and turning indigo after absorbing 10 pts of damage, blue after 20 pts, etc. all the way to a dull throbbing red at 61-70 pts, before collapsing explosively and inflicting 7d6 force damage to the user and all within the adjacent 5 ft. squares, could be neat. As long as the field is up, regardless of color, it sheds light like a torch, and as long as the field hasn't overloaded, the caster can take a move action to purge it of 10 pts of stored energy, inflicting 1d6 force damage to all within 5 ft. of him (but not himself, unlike an explosive collapse). If he can take a move + standard action, he can drop it two color levels, draining away 20 pts of stored energy and inflicting 2d6 force damage to all adjacent. Against foes that can't reliably do more than 20 pts of damage to him in a round, he can shed energy as fast as they can apply it, if he takes no other action (than a 5 ft. step, anyway), and he damages anyone near him with the shed energy. Against foes who can overload the shield, he still goes from taking 70 pts of damage to taking 7d6 (average 24ish), *and* gets to share that damage with anyone within 5 ft. of him when the field collapses (quite possibly his attacker among them).

It's got the whacky tracking mechanics, it's (literally) colorful, and it is a shout-out to Gamma World. What's not to love?


Pathfinder Lost Omens Subscriber

I loves me some DD spells. More direct damage please. Low, high and medium level. I want some more 'point-and-hurt' spells, i.e. there is one guy in a group of other guys and I only want to hurt him/it.

I definitely want new direct damage spells that cover both fortitude and reflex saves, as well as all five energy types.

I'm not a complex person and, when I do play a caster, I like to do one very simple thing: hurt monsters with direct damage spells, both single target and in groups.

I know the 3.5 orb spells have a lot of haters, but I loved them. I'm trying to stick with purely PF spells now, so something that worked similar would be stellar.

Good gaming to all

DJF


I would love to see a Magus only scalable set of spells. A scalable spell is one which changes its characteristics as you prepare it in higher slots.

My example is a spell I will call Touch of the Magus if prepared as a 1st level spell it does 1d4 points of energy damage (type selected at preparation) and capped at 5d4. If prepared at 2nd level the cap goes to 10d4. If prepared at 3rd level the damage changes to 1d6 per level with a 10d6 cap. At 5th level the damage goes to 1d8 per level and a cap of 15d8.

The advantage of a scalable spell is it can become the signature spell of a particular magus and useful for his/her whole career.

Doug


Would like to see spells with longer durations, more uses, or permanent durations.


Lots of Necromancy and a few Evocation spells of mass destruction (ie: large blast radius, low-moderate damage); spells that designed for the really wicked/insane.

The works…

Dark Archive

More Abjuration, Divination, Enchantment and Illusion spells. Mind-affecting spells that cause nonlethal damage through direct mental attacks, for instance, could make for some more offensive Enchantment options. A few divination spells that opened up a foes mind to disorienting amounts of sensory input could create a reason for someone to ever take Spell Focus (divination). Similarly, some abjuration spells that strip away defensive spells violently, or cause spells on a target to become unstable and 'burn away' painfully, could result in an offensive application of abjuration (sort of like a Reaving Dispel).

Conjuration, Evocation, Necromancy and Transmutation tend to get quite a bit of love already, particularly in 3rd party products, so I'd rather seem more of the other schools, particularly Abjuration and Divination.


Some Orb spells, please!

I liked the various Orb of X spells in 3.5/Sp.C. Not so much because they by-passed SR and only needed to hit a ranged touch AC (which can be annoying to a DM when a spontaneous caster PC spams them). The reason why I liked them is that they harkened back to 1e's Chromatic Orb spell by offering different types of damage and imposing a condition upon the target if it failed a saving throw (in the L 4 versions).

Surely some sort of happy medium can be reached, both in the options of energy/effects available, and in the SR-penetration issue?

Dark Archive

Dr. Johnny Fever wrote:

....

I know the 3.5 orb spells have a lot of haters, but I loved them. I'm trying to stick with purely PF spells now, so something that worked similar would be stellar.

DJF

I second the orb likeness, and to futher help the orb likeness a feat like weapon finesse that allows the spell caster use their spell casting modifier (int, wis, cha) in place or dex or str for spells that require an attack roll.

Lower level spells to help out against save or die spells, since at lower levels are where these spells kill you as you're starting out your chracter.

More weapon like spells, decastave and so on

Rally point was good and I'd like to see more spells that offered new mechanics and ways of changing gameplay.


Direct damage spells covering the whole spectrum of damage types. Currently at certain levels you are limited to only certain damage types due to a lack of spells of that level of other elemental types.

Direct damage spells that inflict appropriate damage. Alot of direct damage spells inflict damage that is laughable at the level they are obtained.

Flesh out the smaller schools. Enchantment, Illusion, Abjuration, Divination.

I would prefer spells that work off existing mechanics. There are already enough rules to keep in mind without having to factor in intirely new mechanics into the system.


Direct damage spells covering the whole spectrum of damage types. Currently at certain levels you are limited to only certain damage types due to a lack of spells of that level of other elemental types.

Direct damage spells that inflict appropriate damage. Alot of direct damage spells inflict damage that is laughable at the level they are obtained.

Flesh out the smaller schools. Enchantment, Illusion, Abjuration, Divination.

I would prefer spells that work off existing mechanics. There are already enough rules to keep in mind without having to factor in intirely new mechanics into the system.

Dark Archive

Kalyth wrote:

....

I would prefer spells that work off existing mechanics. There are already enough rules to keep in mind without having to factor in entirely new mechanics into the system.

May be I should clarify what I meant by changing game play, Rally Point really doesn't change the mechanics but how the game was played, rather than people sitting around and just swinging they'd run through the rally point and back to get the extra hit points & bonus sometimes even sacrificing that 2nd attack just to boost that main attack against an enemy. You are right mechanics should NOT change, one change may require another for balance then we can be overloaded. I just like how using the current rules and mechanics a different dish was made with the same ingredients. One spell shouldn't adruptly change the game system rules, change in mechanics should be well though out and planned....

...c'mon "words of power" I want to see what you look like


I would like to see a higher level versions of Mage Armor.

Adding to what others have said about the orb spells (and as a general thing), I would prefer if it was Orb of Energy, rather then 5 different spells with only slight variation. Also, I didn't like the conjuration= no SR aspect of those spells, it seemed contrived to me. There is plenty of room for no SR stuff without ripping off evocation.

How about some higher level buff spells that simplify things? I must admit I haven't worked out the details, but some kind of spell that takes the place of the half dozen buffs that always get cast before a combat (protection from evil, bulls strength, etc.)

A few Mass versions of spells that get cast en-mass anyway. Resist Energy jumps to mind, but some other buff spells like Protection from evil, and Fly would also work. Perhaps even a mass-spell template? Just an idea...

Some spells to mess with the more troublesome higher level magic. Anti teleport stuff, anti-charm/dominate stuff, anti-planar ally stuff, anti summoning stuff. I don't want to shut anyone down, just make 'em work for it.

I DON'T want to see a bunch of spells that mimic existing spells, except provide a different type of bonus. I don't want more spells that boost ability scores much. I don't really want things that make SR meaningless. I don't want to see a bunch of spells that interrupt things, and if I see a spell even close to Moment of Prescience, I'm going to organize a book burning!


Higher-level ray spells worth taking. Preferably including ones that do damage + something, because I want to make a zapper-caster sometime, and that concept really shouldn't be 20th level and still running off of a second-level spell.


Uff ... i am against Orb of Energy line of spells, cause its conjuration yet it deals direct damage - only other spell from core that deals direct damage and its conjuration is Acid Arrow. If you switch it to Evocation, than yes, go right ahead and add them, but i don't think evocation needs a boost.

Enchantment needs some more non-mind effect spells, Divination needs a boost, Illusion needs to become viable as battlefield control, Abjuration is perfectly fine also and please no Mage Armor, Greater - wizards shouldn't be able to have AC modifier 1 less than full plate without giving nothing of their gold into it, than fighters should get free full plate later on, especially how a Fighter from Wizards/Sors point of view is a MAD class.

I agree with Carpy, rays are somewhat lacking in Core and APG didn't address that problem fully neither.

As for divine spell casters, Cleric should get more party buff versatility as well as some more spells that allow him to be viable melee combatant, all through i am not so sure about 2nd.

What i am trying to say knowing full well that people will flame me is this: All through the name of the book is Ultimate Magic, please don't go around wishing for stronger spellcasters, they are strongest as it stands, no need to widen a gap between them and martial classes, cause lets be frank, there is more room for broken stuff in Ultimate Magic than there could possibly be in Ultimate Combat short of giving fighters 9th level spells. Instead look at what niche's of spellcasting aren't that represented - Illusion isn't as battlefield control for example(what little it is, its not worth it duo to conjuration), all through i think there is load of potential for it. Am i asking that Illusion trumps Conjuration when it comes to battlefield control ? No, am i asking that it becomes viable option next to Conjuration? Yes.
Mage Armor, Greater on other hand is just asking for unneeded boost, cause arcane spellcasters already got s@#$load of defensive buffs and this is boosting, not making something viable as an option.

Thats my 2 cents, and this is just my personal opinion


I think that I am in the minority when I say that I don't particularly want 100+ pages of damage-dealing spells. I think that between the Pathfinder Core and APG, there are quite a few to choose from already. Then again, if they're clever as some of the ones released in the APG, I won't cry myself to sleep at night.

The spells that I especially like are the ones that make spellcasters more versitile than two-dimensional blasters. For instance "Touch of the Sea" from APG or "Unseen Servant" aren't particularly great choices for the average dungeon delver, but in the right situation/environment, they could be incredibly useful (if not life-saving). Smart casters/players deserve more options than brute force.

Also, while it is nice that spells are often shared across a few classes, I would like to see a few easter eggs to specific classes and specialties - unique spells for existing schools/bloodlines/etc. to help widen the differences between the various options available to players. This would take some pressure of the notion that there have to be dozens of new sub-domains/specialty schools ~MUST BE~ packed in this volume.

Dark Archive

Zoddy wrote:

Uff ... I am against Orb of Energy line of spells, cause its conjuration yet it deals direct damage - only other spell from core that deals direct damage and its conjuration is Acid Arrow. If you switch it to Evocation, than yes, go right ahead and add them, but I don't think evocation needs a boost....

Is this an Roleplaying issue, I figured the conjuration is the summoning of the element for use to be thrown. I have to ask what would be a way that a conjuration spell can do direct damage? The spell isn't too far from Acid Arrow rules wise, except for the linger. From what I read above a lot of people are asking for direct damage, would it be better if the spell did 1d6 instead of 1d8?

I agree on the boost of AC, for the arcane classes to be magical there should be something more of a non-mundane defense than making their AC high. I'd suggest going incorporeal,an orb surrounding the caster that has a low AC but the orb has hit points ,a short teleport when attacked, healing the amount of mundane damage that would have been taken.


I would like to see some class specific spells that expand on the base abilities of the class.

Maybe a low level bard spell to boost bardic performance, or a paladin spell to make their lay on hands do more damage or maybe heal more people with a use.

I could see a spell to let lay on hands heal paladin level/d6 and another to let them heal normally but have it effect 1/2 paladin level number of people within 30 feet- each spell having a relatively short duration. The point of them being you cast it directly when you need it. (rather than as an ongoing effect)

Maybe a spell also that lets them act as though they had a specific mercy for the next time they use LoH, or whatnot.

I'd include rangers too but with gravity bow and such, I'm not sure what spells to give 'em. :)

-S


Souphin wrote:
Zoddy wrote:

Uff ... I am against Orb of Energy line of spells, cause its conjuration yet it deals direct damage - only other spell from core that deals direct damage and its conjuration is Acid Arrow. If you switch it to Evocation, than yes, go right ahead and add them, but I don't think evocation needs a boost....

Is this an Roleplaying issue, I figured the conjuration is the summoning of the element for use to be thrown. I have to ask what would be a way that a conjuration spell can do direct damage? The spell isn't too far from Acid Arrow rules wise, except for the linger. From what I read above a lot of people are asking for direct damage, would it be better if the spell did 1d6 instead of 1d8?

I agree on the boost of AC, for the arcane classes to be magical there should be something more of a non-mundane defense than making their AC high. I'd suggest going incorporeal,an orb surrounding the caster that has a low AC but the orb has hit points ,a short teleport when attacked, healing the amount of mundane damage that would have been taken.

My issue with the orb spells was that they were horribly unbalanced. 1d8/2 levels (5d8 max) No Save, No SR. Compare Lesser orb of electricity to shocking grasp and it blows shocking grasp out of the water.

A direct damage conjuration spell should not inflict more damage than a direct damage evocation spell and also by pass SR.

Damaging Conjuration spells should summon a physical medium by which they deliver damage. Damaging Conjuration spells bypass SR because they create a substance or object that is then used to inflict damage.

Examples
Acid, a physical substance.
A cloud of floating knives.
A rain of stones that fall upon enemies.

Direct Energy damage should be your fire/cold/lightning/sonic damaging spells.

I think the balance should be that Damaging Conjuration spells inflict less damage than Evocation spells but by pass SR.


I would like to see more ritualistic spells. Spells with longer casting times but extended effects.

Examples

Soul Shackle
Target: One Creature
Range: Touch
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: 1 day per level

For as long as this spell is in effect the caster need only picture the subject in his mind and focus to cause the target to begin traveling toward the caster. The target travel by usual means and generally will assume the compulsion is of his own accord. ect....

Another example

A ritual that binds a druids spirit to a tree. When ever the druid takes damage so does the tree and when ever the tree takes damage so does the druid. Also though whenever either is healed so is the other. Groups of druids would perform this ritual before a battle and leave a few less combat focused allies to tend the "Grove". healing them as needed while they fight.

I would also like to see Non-combat related spells. Spells that would be used to aid peoples lives and day to activities.


I would enjoy a bit of an expansion to low-level necromancy spells. If I recall, 3.5 added a summon undead series as, basically, a summon monster sub. Nothing better, just ...undeadier in flavor. I wouldn't really care which school it ended up in- Conjuation or Necromancy - it would just give lower level necromancers some great fluff.

Perhaps, at higher level, a Vapiric Touch-like ray effect.


Souphin wrote:

Is this an Roleplaying issue, I figured the conjuration is the summoning of the element for use to be thrown. I have to ask what would be a way that a conjuration spell can do direct damage? The spell isn't too far from Acid Arrow rules wise, except for the linger. From what I read above a lot of people are asking for direct damage, would it be better if the spell did 1d6 instead of 1d8?

I agree on the boost of AC, for the arcane classes to be magical there should be something more of a non-mundane defense than making their AC high. I'd suggest going incorporeal,an orb surrounding the caster that has a low AC but the orb has hit points ,a short teleport when attacked, healing the amount of mundane damage that would have been taken.

It is a mechanical issue and a Roleplaying issue. Issue is that orb as you said is meant to be made thrown at enemies, not fired, not cast, THROWN, meaning as its actually a subsentence it hurts the caster as well, even if its made via magic. Next problem is d8 points of damage, witch hands down beats 90% of level 4 evocation spells, so conjuration all of a sudden doesn't equal to evocation for damaging dealing, but surpasses it in certain areas (while only way Evocation can go vs Conjuration is via forcecage and hands, and they are susceptible to saves etc.), cause it got No SR, No Save for damage, so thats certain full damage (something you can't say about 90% of Evocation spells, cause they got saves and SR) deals very decent damage on top of that and with failed save they are blinded/stunned/etc, secondary effects most evocation spells don't have.

So lets see - it beats evocation in dice of damage, in saves, in SR's and it got secondary effects that work of via Save. I would say clear winner over evocation.

As for your defense options:
going incorporal - Ethreal Jaunt, closest thing possible, of course you can't do much of anything neither.
Orb Surrounding the caster: Stoneskin - gives DR, it doesn't have HP. It could also be Prismatic Wall, it also does not have HP.
Short teleport: dimension door, otherwise as an immediate interrupt it would prolly be high level spell

Dark Archive

On the orb issue...
So what would be fair 1d6 or 1d4, changing the level progression to 2 dice damage at 4th level and every 3 after that?
Keep in mind that there is the whole miss chance, and will loose the whole spell.
Also when the orb is 5d8 shocking grasp would be 10d6 is not for the cap, and when shocking grasp is 5d6 the orb is 3d8

Zoddy wrote:

As for your defense options:

going incorporeal - Ethreal Jaunt, closest thing possible, of course you can't do much of anything neither.
Orb Surrounding the caster: Stoneskin - gives DR, it doesn't have HP. It could also be Prismatic Wall,...

As for the defenses

going incorporeal -- as the old ghost form spell
Orb Surrounding -- I was thinking like Resilient Sphere but the caster floats inside, can move the sphere, the sphere has AC10, and hp 5 or 10 per caster level.
The teleport -- just something quick, when attacked and you know of the attack teleport 1/2 your movement, you are still subjected to the rules of casting in melee.

these are all just suggestions and haven't been worked out but just in my head


Well first would actually be that you get half the damage, no save, no reduction from energy resist and the like, but dices increase to d10 (over d6, what it was in 3.5's Spell Compendium), so increased dices harm you as much as it harms your target and you literally pay for having such a strong nuke.

Other would be, d6 damage, cap's on 10 (meaning 10d6), does not deal damage to you, but you add your ability casting modifier to damage (Int or Cha) so normal range would be from lets say +3 to +12 (+12 is max that you can get, 18 base +2 race +4 level +6 ench +4 tome, bringing us to 34, which is +12) and your cap is lowered to 10 instead of 15.
Just to clarify thoughts behind this - d6 average damage is 3.5, for 5 dice thats 17.5 damage, so even if you spend ALMOST your whole point buy into Int 18, and spend all your resources into getting as high Int as possible, you still won't reach +12 till level 15. Now on a more "normal" scale, you will prolly buy 16, bump it to 18 with race, and will never finnish with tomes nor anything, bringing your Int to lets say 26-28 ?

I know its not appropriate forum, but just for comparison, 15th level wizard is casting all of them, with 27 int (yea i know 26 or 27 doesn't matter but i think its appropriate, 16 base +2 race +6 enchantment +3 levels, no tome, no nothing) which is +8.

So SC one dealt 15d6: 52.5 average
d10 one would deal: 82.5, with 41,25 to caster, average
d6 + int one would deal: 43 average

However you look at it, you lose some damage with d6 one no matter how high your int, but you get higher lower damage in return.

As you see, its not that i am thinking of nerfing it into oblivion, but giving a spin to it, cause pure damage dealing with just dices is something that mainly Evocation do, nothing should be out right stronger than Evocation without a price so to speak.

It is stronger than lets say fireball that deals 10d6 damage and have Ref save if we are talking single target, but fireball is evocation and AoE spell 1 level lower. Orb is conjuration and pretty viable nuke, even without it being AoE, cause there is no save, no sr and it got secondary effect - blindness/sickness/etc.

I am no master of balance and this is something i made up along the way of writing this post, which is like 5 min ?

Dark Archive

This whole time I've been talking of the lesser orb......

.... I feel sheepish (bah)


If we are talking lesser, imho its easy, switch dice from d8 to d4 + int, or leave it at d8, but deals half the damage to you, like above example. Without any of the above, it deals 1d6 instead of 1d8 rest of the paragraph is fine, cause it will max at 5d6, same as grasp, but its ranged and there for it will reach its max later.

Dark Archive

Zoddy wrote:
Without any of the above, it deals 1d6 instead of 1d8 rest of the paragraph is fine, cause it will max at 5d6, same as grasp, but its ranged and there for it will reach its max later.

I think I can go with that.

That sound quite well to me.
What does everyone else think?


*) What i want to see for fun

I want more House building spells (( Both cleric & wizard versions )).

I want more House/building "destroying" spells that affect man-made/worked stone/wood for ((Druids)). ~~~rant: come on why does 5th level Transumute mud to rock or Rock to mud not effect worked stone. Why does Rusting Grasp not effect magic items. Soften earth and stone not effect farmers fields... arg. end of rant~~~

I want more Gardening spells (( Mainly cleric .... but druid could have them also )).

I want more Convenience spells (( Both cleric & Wizard )), like a freezer box spell, laundry washing spells, and VCR/DVD/TV mase scarying spell. I want modern convenience in spell form :D

I want more Off the wall, fun to use, not necessarily for battle spells.

----------------------------------------------------------

*) What i think classes need.

I do think wizard/sorcerer, only, need a few more damage spells in the 1-2 level range only. med-high level spells already are stuffed with damage spells.


While I agree that the Orb spells pretty much pushed the various equal level evocations to the side in popularity, I think that might have been because they addressed actual wizard needs better than traditional evocations did (perhaps for legacy issues that limited them).

Lets look at them for a moment though
1: 1d8/2 (mostly solo targets) levels versus 1d6/level (often to groups). The orbs are weaker versus energy resistance and rarely had much area effect at all. The max damage is lower (40 versus 60) but the lack of saving throw would means that you dont have to worry about evasion an increasing problem in 3.5. A blaster wizard to be viable needs to generate damage on a hit roll in the same way that a martial class needs to generate damage on a to hit roll, and the orb class of spells gave the wizards a way to finally do so.

2: No Save which of course meant no evasion but if you look at the max damage output of an orb is only 5 points more than the half damage of a fireball or lightning bolt, and its average damage of 22.5 is only 5 points more damage than a successfully save fireball (17.5) which is fairly close to the half damage of a spell one level lower.

3: NO SR, but if I remember right you did have to make a ranged touch attack roll, which granted was usually fairly easy despite the Wizards low B.A.B., but id did mean the wizard did not have to roll to hit, roll to see if punched through S.R., have the victim roll to see if it saved and then roll damage. To be honest I think a blaster build wizard needs a few spells like this on its list in order to be viable as a concept otherwise their are two many fail points for a damage output that is probably already lagging behind a martial or rogue class of the same level.


Oliver McShade wrote:


*) What i want to see for fun

I want more House building spells (( Both cleric & wizard versions )).

I want more House/building "destroying" spells that affect man-made/worked stone/wood for ((Druids)). ~~~rant: come on why does 5th level Transumute mud to rock or Rock to mud not effect worked stone. Why does Rusting Grasp not effect magic items. Soften earth and stone not effect farmers fields... arg. end of rant~~~

So... you want the Zelazny / Dilvish the Damned spell that destroyed small cities? :D Don't have my books to hand but there were 12 spells straight from H3ll... Awful Sayings? iirc. I now have the urge to re-read Dilvish the Damned and The Changing Land...

I'd favor useful non-combat spells as well... as much magic as there is in 3.5 / PF there have to be a lot of these being used for a lot or relatively mundane reasons... and off the wall stuff could be good too. Take the PCs minds out of the combat rut they sometimes get in.

Dark Archive

R_Chance wrote:
I'd favor useful non-combat spells as well... as much magic as there is in 3.5 / PF there have to be a lot of these being used for a lot or relatively mundane reasons... and off the wall stuff could be good too. Take the PCs minds out of the combat rut they sometimes get in.

Same here, I think this will require some reflection of the things that parties/PCs try to accomplish that can be assisted with spells but not creating spells that we already have. I can only think of the issues of travel, social, food/shelter, and production

Ex.
Earth Bounced -- sorc/wiz earth domain spell -- travel
The ground pops up in the form of a bubble throwing the caster 25ft + 5ft per 2/levels. in any one direction. This movement does not provoke an aoo. User must be on solid ground

counterfactual -- social (lower level Discern Lies)
The caster has an active internal alarm system that takes 15 plus caster level on Sense Motive, and triggers an internal alarm when
the check detects a bluff or lie

presidio -- shelter
This spell will have a long casting time, like 10 mins
Creatures already inside the area at casting are un affected, creatures that enter move as if in rough terrain and must make dc25 strength check to move or become encumbered
Inside temperature, air, & environmental effects can be regulated by the caster.

Magical workshop -- production
An unseen servant assist in working on a task you are currently working on. The servant can either assist another or uses your skill for the task at hand and add its own time working at the task at hand to the total time needed for the job. Every four levels you can add another assistant to the Magical workshop


Players usually demand a "Shield" (the 1st level spell) spell with range "Touch" instead of "Personal", because it is very useful for non-casters with two handed weapons or two weapons.
Atm some characters take ranks in Use Magic Device in order to use Wands of Shield.
What level should it be? Note that a non-Personal 3rd level spell can be made into a potion, which MAY change the balance of the game.


In Races of Destiny there was a bard/sorcerer/wizard spell I believed called Traverse City, I don't have my books with me. The spell acted similar to a teleport except it required a stone from the city as a focus and would teleport you to a random location in the streets of the city. The flavor was great for a bard, a sorc/wiz would never use it.
What I would like is a bard spell which did something similar. There are some great possiblities with this spell. Imagine the party teleporting in between two rival gangs as they square off to fight.

Doug


I'd like to see the return of Benign Transposition, a low-level spell (originally was 1st level in 3.5) which allows the caster to switch places with a cooperative ally within 30 feet of himself. Both the caster and target must be willing to switch places, and caster needs line of sight to the target. It was a very popular spell among my players!

Dark Archive

Metamagic Spells--

Empowerment
-- 4th level spell
-- swift action
effect -- the net spell cast up to 2nd level is to be treated as if empowered. Does not stack with the empowered feat.

the same can be done for other metamagic feats and level of spells

--also--
the orb spells shouldn't me limited to sor/wiz
each elemental domain ( earth, wind & fire, ect) should have access to the lesser orb of that elememt
there should be a lesser orb of evil ( lesser damage than the regular lesser orb , more damage to good outsiders and good dragons)
& lesser orb of good ( lesser damage than the regular lesser orb , more damage to evil outsiders and evil dragons)
(available to the paladin and anti-paladin)

Liberty's Edge

I wouldn't mind a few new varieties of shield spells and buffs, and not just at higher levels. Not to mention a few new types of Travel spells would be cool. Maybe a couple new types of transmutations and creations would be awesome as well. I do agree with the all purpose utility need from one of the above posters, those would be handy.


No new spells for already existing main casters.

I'm being serious.

Rather, a new style of spellcasting - let's call them rituals, as I believe both 4e and Monte Cook's Arcana Whatever and probably something in earlier editions as well used them - that lets any character do something magical, through not through a Vancian style.

This way we don't heighten the gap between spellcasters and non-spellcasters on "who can do cool things" but instead close it. The idea is that rituals are themselves inherently magical, not the person doing it - it's simply something that needs to be learned, which is honestly how magic works in no small amount of fiction and mythology.

That said, I wouldn't mind new spells for rangers and paladins. Screw wizards and clerics, they have enough. Lets show the other guys some love.


Looking for Cleric Domains: Void. To go with the Great Old Ones :)

Looking for wizard Circle magic: Very long casting times for very long effects or permanent effects like summoning creatures permanently to the prime material plane.

Oh just remembered: Summon Monster Chart : One for mainly Undead for the cleric/wiz necromancer to use. One for mainly Aberrations for the crazy otherworldly summoner to use.


1)More that are like cause fear Frightened for time or shakened for 1 round. That you get some thing.

2) Advance lerning feat that gives new spell on your spell list up to 3 spell off different list that fit a theme. Ie all Fire, Evil, Mindefect, or Teleaportation ect. That there Total level dose not reach of 15 combind for 9 level spell class or 10 for 6 or 5 for 4.

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Carpy DM wrote:

Higher-level ray spells worth taking. Preferably including ones that do damage + something, because I want to make a zapper-caster sometime, and that concept really shouldn't be 20th level and still running off of a second-level spell.

Polar Ray and Prismatic Ray not good enough for ye?

Personally I think the game is suffering most from a lack of a Summon Bartender spell

Dark Archive

Oliver McShade wrote:
Looking for Cleric Domains: Void. To go with the Great Old Ones :)

A non-official Void Domain. I tried to remain faithful to the version of Void in Gods & Magic, while 'Pathfinderizing' it to the new Domain structure.

Oliver McShade wrote:

Looking for wizard Circle magic: Very long casting times for very long effects or permanent effects like summoning creatures permanently to the prime material plane.

Oh just remembered: Summon Monster Chart : One for mainly Undead for the cleric/wiz necromancer to use. One for mainly Aberrations for the crazy otherworldly summoner to use.

Ooh, I like both of these ideas. Perhaps a really bare-bones (pun intended) 'undead' template that could be applied to the various animals for the former, so that someone using that version of Summon Monster could summon a small collection of actual undead, or skeleton / zombie versions of the various animals and whatever that are normally celestial or fiendish.

A similar 'aberrant' template that gives the various animals some appropriately freaky traits, combined with a few actual Aberrations at each level could also be very cool, for that 'alienist.'

Scarred Land's ceremonial / ritual magic system, from Relics & Rituals, might be similar to what you are looking for with Circle Magic. (There's also versions in the 3e Realms stuff, and other sources, I'm sure. Even the Metaconcert rules could perhaps be tweaked, from the Psionics Handbook.)

Dark Archive

ProfessorCirno wrote:

Rather, a new style of spellcasting - let's call them rituals, as I believe both 4e and Monte Cook's Arcana Whatever and probably something in earlier editions as well used them - that lets any character do something magical, through not through a Vancian style.

This way we don't heighten the gap between spellcasters and non-spellcasters on "who can do cool things" but instead close it. The idea is that rituals are themselves inherently magical, not the person doing it - it's simply something that needs to be learned, which is honestly how magic works in no small amount of fiction and mythology.

The

Incantation system, from Unearthed Arcana, does this and happens to be open license.

A very low-powered example from the Scarred Lands setting were their 'invocations,' which were short prayers to one of the 'big eight' dieties, that gave a smallish bonus to an ability relevant to that gods domains. Invocations to Corean, the god of paladins and smiths, fire and metal, might give a bonus to hit an evil foe, to craft a weapon or piece of armor or a bonus to the damage of a fire spell, cast in the round following the invocation. Tanil, a goddess of hunting and music (among other things) gave bonuses to uses of archery or musical performance, instead, if the appropriate invocation is made by one of her worshippers before the attempt is made.

It was clerical 'magic' for the common man.

ProfessorCirno wrote:
That said, I wouldn't mind new spells for rangers and paladins. Screw wizards and clerics, they have enough. Lets show the other guys some love.

Ditto Bards. More spells that have nothing to do with song / sonic abilities, would also suit my fancy. Some bard-friendly divination and illusion spells would be particularly cool, as they already have quite the array of enchantments.

Adding new spells to the Cleric and Druid lists, particularly, is problematic, since the classes arbitrarily learn every spell of each new level of spells when they 'level up,' unlike a Sorcerer or Wizard, who has to jump through hoops to add them to a spellbook, or has a relatively tiny selection of 'spells known.'


A few new domains/sub-domains to cover some of the nastier deities. Void has already been mentioned, but how about Pain? (Martyr sub-domain doesn't quite cut it for an evil diety.)

Come to think of it, I would like to see two different sorts of Void or Space domains. One for the Lovecraftian horrors, and one for planetary romance space travel (maybe à la Spelljammer).


Painful Bugger wrote:

It's a playtest of Ultimate Magic and no one is talking about spells, let's correct this.

You know, I started a thread talking about spells, a specific type of spells, and it got moved to product discussion.


Like many before me, I want more low-level damage spells. Today, there are far to many fire spells and too few of the other elementals.

-Small area of effect spell at 1st level (5ft radius)
-Minor cone of cold
-Ring of electricity centered on caster

-Shocking grasp: I would love to have more touch attack spells, but compared to magic missile I see no reason for using shocking grasp. Magic missile can be fired at range, can be fired at multiple targets, ignores elemental resistances, and does only slightly less damage...

Regarding orbs: I dont care much about the conj. school or the no spell resistance... But gives us a replacement for the lesser orbs atleast. Range touch spells which does 1d8/2nd level, but which does not ignore spell resistance, and is an evocation spell.

Spells which you can choose between fire or cold version when you are casting it...

The thing is, that if you want to create a fire mage or an electric mage or whatever, you should be able to do so and there is no reason why there isnt an cold based spell on every level.

-I would also like to rewrite an other idee I read here:
A third level spell which allows you to cast three first-level spell
simultainiusly on your on charachter as one action (including this spell)

5th level: cast up to three second level spells (or lower)
7th level: cast up to three third level spells on self (or lower)
(modified by play testing)

This would be realy nice for fighter/mages. It will quickly burn up the amount of spells you have, but you are able to buff your self as one action, and then you can start attacking with your sword!

Some spells which are spesificly designed to be able to be used for
-arcane archers imbue arrow ability. (ie fun low-level area effect)
-A feat which allow the arcane archer to cast range touch spells in combination with imbue arrow.
-spells which is desgined for low level arcane trickster.

-Regarding none-combat spells:You realy have to know what to expect to use many of them. For example knock. Therefore, it would have been nice with more wizards spells which can be replaced with any (or a limitied partion of) known spells spells.

A divination spell: Level X: In times of great danger, you get a of warning, and you automaticly cast summon monster Y. (ie the GM suddenly says: A wolf appear in service of the diviner)

-I dont know if this excist, but a bonus on knowledge chceks could be a nice divination spell.

Sovereign Court

Souphin wrote:
How about a level 1 bard spell that does sonic damage, like in the wotc splat books there was lesser orb of (element), they att did 1d8 but the lesser sonic orb did 1d6, the bard can have the lesser sonic or a version of burning hands that does sonic damage.

I agree.

More sonic spells for Bards in general would be good to see.

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