Just out of curiosity, has anyone out there pondered some game rules for this "special material"? I ask because my players are looking to divination-proof some containers, but so far I haven't had the time to think about the costs beyond "cheap but heavy."
where may I find this statement on lead stopping magic?
Outsiders and elementals are not magical in themselves, but if they are summoned, the conjuration spell registers. Each round, you can turn to detect magic in a new area. The spell can penetrate barriers, but 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt blocks it.
detect magic spell
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I always assume that it's an extrapolation from "Each round, you can turn to detect evil in a new area. The spell can penetrate barriers, but 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt blocks it."
I've also seen lead or think stone used as a house rule to block teleportation and scrying as a defense again scy-and-fry attacks. That's why bad guys build their lairs underground and thus the prevalence of dungeons in magic worlds. But I don' think there's any RAW support for this.
I always assume that it's an extrapolation from "Each round, you can turn to detect evil in a new area. The spell can penetrate barriers, but 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt blocks it."
I've also seen lead or think stone used as a house rule to block teleportation and scrying as a defense again scy-and-fry attacks. That's why bad guys build their lairs underground and thus the prevalence of dungeons in magic worlds. But I don' think there's any RAW support for this.
In the Forgotten Realms campaing setting, magical radiation found in the Underdark disrupted teleportation magic, making it highly unreliable. This is why, as an evil GM, I like to drag my players into the Underdark when they get around level 10. :P
The one trouble is that rods of metal and mineral detection can detect lead, but this is easily gotten around by using lead everywhere--lead pipes, lead rain gutters, and of course lead-based paint can be used everywhere. In a previous campaign, I made a very careful point that all of the pawnbrokers--the main magic items dealers as well as fences for the thieves--had carefully lined the walls of all their shops with lead foil, making it so that adventurers with Scry couldn't just browse their wares from their crystal balls and figure out what to steal. If you wanted something from their "special vaults," you had to come in and ask about it.
where may I find this statement on lead stopping magic?
Specifically, there's a general rule (Core Rulebook 210) that "Lead sheeting or magical protection blocks a scrying spell, and you sense that the spell is blocked."
Certain spells also specifically call out mundane barriers that block them.
Detect aberration, detect animals or plants, detect chaos/evil/good/law, detect magic, detect poison, detect secret doors, detect snares and pits, detect the faithful, detect thoughts, detect undead, diagnose disease, and message are all specifically noted as being blocked by 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt.
Locate object specifically notes that it's blocked by a thin sheet of lead. Locate creature presumably is as well, since it's based on the former, but is also blocked by running water.
See through stone notes that it's blocked by 1 inch of metal or 3 feet of wood or dirt. So that one's a bit unusual, in that the lead would need to be unusually thick, but that's dwarves for you.
As divination (scrying) spells, arcane eye, clairaudience/clairvoyance, Irrisen mirror sight, scrying, greater scrying, share senses, symbol of scrying, track ship, traveling dream, and witness are all blocked by a thin sheet of lead by default, though they don't specifically note this in their spell descriptions.
Discern location seems to be the bunker-buster that penetrates all of these mundane barriers.
If anyone's curious, here's my players' situation (Legacy of Fire spoilers contained within):
As for my original question, I went with a quick, no-heavy-lifting solution. They wanted to add a thin layer of lead to a 3-foot-long scroll tube. I figured that a pound of lead should cost about 2 sp and would do the trick, so using that as the raw materials, total cost of the job would be 6 sp and would probably take a competent tinker no more than an hour to hammer out. Same day service!
It depends on the extent to which they take it...
To the player that wanted a lead-lined box to protect a small item... I'd quote his a price.
to the player that wants to line his clothing in lead to eternally protect himself from all these divination, I'd say either "hell no" or "now that character number one has died of heavy metal poisoning... what is your 2nd concept?"
to the player that wants to line his clothing in lead to eternally protect himself from all these divination, I'd say either "hell no" or "now that character number one has died of heavy metal poisoning... what is your 2nd concept?"
I'd require that the lead totally enclose an area to block it against scrying. A box or room? No prob. But to block a person, I don't think I'd allow anything short of lead-lined full plate. And even then, it would only be effective as long as the character were fully enclosed (helmet on, visor closed) and at that point I'd probably double the armor's weight.
Not to mention that one lightning bolt later and the wiseguy's suddenly coated in molten lead.
Even though lightning bolt doesn't melt any other metal in the game, like Chain Shirts? Or doesn't melt leather? That's something I wouldn't do to my player. I'd applaud them for thinking about it, let them have a lead lined cloak or whatever, and make every major NPC (kings and important people) very suspicious that they can't detect anything. They'd be guarded at all times in a palace or something. That's just me, though.
wow, that's something. Ok
Even though lightning bolt doesn't melt any other metal in the game, like Chain Shirts? Or doesn't melt leather? That's something I wouldn't do to my player. I'd applaud them for thinking about it, let them have a lead lined cloak or whatever, and make every major NPC (kings and important people) very suspicious that they can't detect anything. They'd be guarded at all times in a palace or something. That's just me, though.
The spells fireball, lightning arc (Ultimate Magic) lightning bolt (Core), ride the lightning (UM) specifically mention melting metals with a low melting point, as well as igniting combustibles. Lead is extremely common, soft, and easy to work with, as metals go, which is part of why it was such a common construction material (before its toxicity was understood), but it's not something you actually want covering your body, on multiple levels.
Even though lightning bolt doesn't melt any other metal in the game, like Chain Shirts? Or doesn't melt leather? That's something I wouldn't do to my player. I'd applaud them for thinking about it, let them have a lead lined cloak or whatever, and make every major NPC (kings and important people) very suspicious that they can't detect anything. They'd be guarded at all times in a palace or something. That's just me, though.The spells fireball, lightning arc (Ultimate Magic) lightning bolt (Core), ride the lightning (UM) specifically mention melting metals with a low melting point, as well as igniting combustibles. Lead is extremely common, soft, and easy to work with, as metals go, which is part of why it was such a common construction material (before its toxicity was understood), but it's not something you actually want covering your body, on multiple levels.
It can melt metals with low melting points, such as
lead, gold, copper, silver, and bronze.
So, to be fair, you're going to melt all their gold/silver pieces as well, right?
Also, it says a thin sheet of lead, those vests for x-rays are like 1/2", not thin sheets. Think Belkar. Belkar had a thin sheet of lead protecting him from the Detect Evil of the Paladin (forgot her name). A jacket with that lining the inside would weigh a few more pounds, yes, but I wouldn't think more than most light/med armor.
So, to be fair, you're going to melt all their gold/silver pieces as well, right?
In the same, rare circumstances, yes:
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/equipment---final/damaging-objects#Table-Items-Affe cted-by-Magical-Attacks
Difference being that gold and silver coins generally aren't exposed, and jewelry ranks down at number 9 or 10 of exposed gear that might get blasted on a failed, natural 1 saving throw, which would generally put it out of contention. Armor is right up there at item #2 to get blasted.
So you'd skip straight to 5th in that line and go to the cloak slot if the player was wearing a lead-lined cloak?
Skipping Shield, Armor, Headband/helmet (destroying a far more valuable piece), and Item in hand just to shut down a creative player (maybe a fighter, ranger, something like that) wanting to use mundane methods to block detect spells?
I rather like the lead blocks divination thing. It's the only cheap non-magic thing that non-magic folk can do. So if you have something to hide from the evil wizard king you can without being an archmage yourself. Magic is good, but you should give the common-folk something.
Stuff like this is why wizards don't all just rule the world.
So you'd skip straight to 5th in that line and go to the cloak slot if the player was wearing a lead-lined cloak?
No, because as I specifically mentioned earlier, I wouldn't allow the cloak in the first place.