There have been a total of two threads before on this subject before, but they are a getting older and don't necesarily answer the specific questions that I have on this spell.
I need someone to break down Windwalk for me. The spell is about as vague as can be in its desciptive text as to what exactly it allows. Specifically the magical winds carrying a player part. Here's a link to the spell itself for reference. I've reprinted the part of the main text below and marked the areas in bold that I am unsure about.
Normally, a wind walker flies at a speed of 10 feet with perfect maneuverability. (1)If desired by the subject, a magical wind (2)wafts a wind walker along (3)at up to 600 feet per round (60 mph) with poor maneuverability. Wind walkers are not invisible but rather appear misty and translucent. If fully clothed in white, they are 80% likely to be mistaken for clouds, fog, vapors, or the like.
1) "If Desired by the subject"- what sort of action is this exactly? It seems free, but if so, is there a limit to the number of times a turn? Like: turn up wind to 60 mph, go 600 feet, turn off wind? If not free, is it part of the movement (see below)
2)"Wafts"-Does this mean the character is required to make any sort of action here or does the wind do the moving for them? I've always thought it was a move action to do so, but dissecting the text makes it pretty unclear.
3)"At up to"- This seems to indicate that the speed is somehow variable, allowing the Windwalker to ride the wind at any speed up to 600 feet. Again, if its free actions to raise the wind speed, does a player have to worry about stating their intended speed and then complete their movement at the stated speed? Can they change their speed mid-flight? Also, the question of the actions required to 'ride the wind' come into play if you have players that can take advantage of gaseous form... like a sorcerer with the right meta-magic feats and blast spells. I mean, could a blaster poof around and drop meta-magiced fireballs at 120 squares of movement a turn? Would Fly-by-Attack be applicable? Cause... that seems kind of cheesy.
4) [i]"with poor maneuverability"[i/]- If the wind is a separate part of the spell itself, is the Windwalker affected by high winds? Would the wind have to be greater than 60 mph to override the spell or are Fly checks necessary for even minor winds?
Finally, how do DMs deal with this spell on an adventure level? Usually 11th level modules try to account for such things, but sometimes the authors forget, and what I've gotten in the past are gaseous PCs scouting entire dungeons at high speed and avoiding a lot of the adventure itself. Its hard to refute the logic of 'Why wouldn't our super-smart good guys buff like crazy, windwalk past all the random encounters, and find out where the BBEG is?'.
Help with this troublesome spell would be appreciated!
You're reading too much into this.
1 & 2) The spell normally grants you a speed of 10, but if you want, you can have a speed of 600 instead. It's that simple. You use your normal actions to move still, it changes your speed. Wind wafting up and crap is just fluff text.
3) Your speed can be 10 or 600. It's no different than when you have a speed of 30. You can move 30, but you don't have to. Fly-by Attack would work, but only if the caster had Still Spell, Silent Spell, and Eschew Materials. Hardly worth it. There are plenty of easier ways to cheese an encounter with 6th or 7th level spells.
4) Gaseous Form specifies that you automatically succeed on all Fly checks. In my opinion, the "Poor" maneuverability mentioned in Windwalk is an artifact of 3rd edition, when maneuverability didn't just modify the fly skill, it actually limited your ability to turn and whatnot. It's especially silly in Pathfinder since Gaseous Form has you auto-succeed on all Fly checks.
You didn't number it, but 5) I handle this spell in one of two ways:
1) Having players that hate Vancian magic and won't play classes with access to this spell
2) Running E6
If your players know about it and like to use it, then you're pretty boned. Spells like this ruin adventures, and as much as I hate spells like this, I hate layers upon layers of arbitrary defenses against spells like this all over every high level dungeon.
The obvious intention of the spell is to let the party travel at high speeds without teleporting. You're supposed to fight with it, or explore with it--you're supposed to go from point A to point B to save time and that's it. But obviously, that's not how it actually works.
Your best bet is probably just to say, "hey guys, I'm banning the following spells that are totally BS..." and handing them a massive list. Sigh, I hate high level nonsense like this...
Thanks for the dissection. I agree that I am probably reading too much into it, but as it is, its still friggin' powerful. My problem is that one could see its use as early as a 9th level AP module (usually the 4th one.) By the end of those, PCs are 11th level and usually have access to the spell, right in time for the final fight. The modules at that point are NEVER prepared for this tactic. This happened in "Age of Worms", "Savage Tide", "Rise of the Ruinlords", and I expect that it will be 'attempted' in Carrion Crown and Kingmaker.
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3) Fly by attack don't allow you to cast spell in mid movement, so you have to cast them at the start or end of your movement.
Notice that windwalk reference gaseous form that say: "It can't attack or cast spells with verbal, somatic, material, or focus components while in gaseous form. This does not rule out the use of certain spells that the subject may have prepared using the feats Silent Spell, Still Spell, and Eschew Materials. The subject also loses supernatural abilities while in gaseous form. If it has a touch spell ready to use, that spell is discharged harmlessly when the gaseous form spell takes effect."
So essentially you will have to stop and cast your spells to attack.
And every spell would have to be silent and still, so 2 extra levels for most of them and the caster need to have the Eschew Materials too. That is 3 feat for most builds
Maybe a kind GM would would allow a metamagic rod to work if it was in the hand of the spellcaster when he become gaseous but gaseous form say: "The creature is subject to the effects of wind, and it can't enter water or other liquid. It also can't manipulate objects or activate items, even those carried along with its gaseous form. Continuously active items remain active, though in some cases their effects may be moot." and metamagic rods are use activated items.
The creature is subject to the effects of wind, and it can't enter water or other liquid. It also can't manipulate objects or activate items, even those carried along with its gaseous form. Continuously active items remain active, though in some cases their effects may be moot.
Notice that a spontaneous spellcaster would need a full round action to cast a spell as he would have to add the metamagics, so it would be: "find a enemy, stop there, wait a round, then cast your spell the next round and move 5', then the next round you are free to move away". I hope you can kill everything you meet with one spell.
He would have a "wonderful" AC too: "Its material armor (including natural armor) becomes worthless, though its size, Dexterity, deflection bonuses, and armor bonuses from force effects still apply. The subject gains DR 10/magic and becomes immune to poison, sneak attacks, and critical hits".
The immunities are good but most character AC will suffer and DR 10/magic isn't of much help for foes appropriate for a level 11 character.
4) Gaseous form again: "The creature is subject to the effects of wind, and it can't enter water or other liquid. It also can't manipulate objects or activate items, even those carried along with its gaseous form. Continuously active items remain active, though in some cases their effects may be moot.", so the windwalker is subject to high winds and can't pass through water.
5) Exploring at wind walk speed. Ok, you are running a 60 mph around the dungeon. Sorry, you have around -60 to any perception check for things that aren't obvious and in the open.
You will not trigger most mechanical traps, but you will be a wonderful target for magical traps, you will be incapable to open doors, chest and so on (you could bypass most of them as they aren't air tight, but got luck retreating through a closed door if the need arise).
you are visible, so while you run around the dungeon you will alert most of the denizens. Unless the GM treat them as computer managed NPC that lose aggro when the PCs go away there should be consequence in alerting the whole dungeon.
In an outdoor area you can try to pass as a cloud, but a cloud running around the dungeon at 60 mph will be "a bit" noticeable and alert every intelligent creature. And a lot of creatures with animal intelligence too. Your specie don't survive in a world of magic if it hasn't developed some behavior to cope with unnatural presences.
After your first passage, when you probably will startle the creatures and get a surprise round (but you too would have troubles managing your perception if you are moving around a full speed), it is almost sure that every creature will try to hit you as you pass near them at high speed. Your velocity don't negate AoO.
Edit:
Flyby attack allow you to cast a spell mid action. "Small problem" you need to have a fly speed to get the feat.
Flyby Attack
This creature can make an attack before and after it moves while flying.
Prerequisite: Fly speed.
Benefit: When flying, the creature can take a move action and another standard action at any point during the move. The creature cannot take a second move action during a round when it makes a flyby attack.
Normal: Without this feat, the creature takes a standard action either before or after its move.
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16, Contributor
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It's difficult to abuse too much since you are in gaseous form and can't "attack or cast spells with verbal, somatic, material, or focus components while in gaseous form. ... The subject also loses supernatural abilities while in gaseous form. ... It also can't manipulate objects or activate items, even those carried along with its gaseous form. "
So your main methods of possible attack are limited to spell like abilities or spells which have a stack of metamagic applied. You can't even channel negative or positive energy since that is a supernatural power.
What exactly are people doing to abuse this?
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Thanks for the dissection. I agree that I am probably reading too much into it, but as it is, its still friggin' powerful. My problem is that one could see its use as early as a 9th level AP module (usually the 4th one.) By the end of those, PCs are 11th level and usually have access to the spell, right in time for the final fight. The modules at that point are NEVER prepared for this tactic. This happened in "Age of Worms", "Savage Tide", "Rise of the Ruinlords", and I expect that it will be 'attempted' in Carrion Crown and Kingmaker.
So only the spellcasters would be capable to act while gaseous, they will be limited to 4th level spells, will have expended 2 or 3 feats to use this tactic (4 if you get flyby attack too, and you need a fly speed to get it), spontaneous spellcasters would have to spend a full round action to cast and be limited to 3rd level spells.
Against enemies meant to be a challenge for a 11th level group of 4 characters.
With the martial character spending 5 turns to become solid.
Unconvinced that it is so troublesome.
If the spellcaster are willing to burn 3 or 4 feats of limited use to use this tactic at level 11 more power to them, but not allow them to create a character optimized for it at level 11, have them use it for all his career, from level 1 to 11. I would be interested to see how many of them will take eschew material, silent and still spell instead of other feats.