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It's a cleric/oracle 5, sorcerer/wizard 5 spell that's substancially less powerful than it's 9th level companion. "This spell functions as astral projection, except you cannot leave the Astral Plane and explore other planes (though you can still return to the plane you were on when you cast this spell)."
The Astral Plane has the following traits:
- Subjective Directional Gravity
- Timeless: Age, hunger, thirst, afflictions (such as diseases, curses, and poisons), and natural healing don't function in the Astral Plane, though they resume functioning when the traveler leaves the Astral Plane.
- Mildly Neutral-Aligned
- Enhanced Magic: All spells and spell-like abilities used within the Astral Plane may be employed as if they were improved by the Quicken Spell or Quicken Spell-Like Ability feats. Already quickened spells and spell-like abilities are unaffected, as are spells from magic items. Spells so quickened are still prepared and cast at their unmodified level. As with the Quicken Spell feat, only one quickened spell or spell-like ability can be cast per round.
What is the point? I've been trying to figure out any valid use of this spell. So far I only have the following:
- Vacation - You like to travel and you've never been there. But once you've seen "a great, endless expanse of clear silvery sky, both above and below, with only occasional bits of solid matter", I don't really think you'd want to vacation there again.
- Dying of old age - Sure, I guess you could prolong life, but you'd die of boredom instead.
- Dying of hunger/thirst - Makes more sense. Somehow contact somebody and tell them where your physical body is (hopefully safe), and then retreat to the Astral Plane until help arrives. That doesn't come up too often in my experience...
- Escape an affliction (such as diseases, curses, and poisons) - OK, almost plausible/feasible. Somebody has something bad and you take them to the Astral Plane until another compatriot can memorize a spell to help them. Very situational.
- All spells are Quickened - Maybe you could use this to buff in 1/2 the time, but since all spells are quickened and you can only cast one quickened spell in a round, I'm not sure how that works. And, Quicken only works on casting times 1 full round or less. But, assuming you could cast a quickened spell and a non-quickened one, you could halve your prep time. It would have to be timed just right - the Astral Projection spell itself takes 30 minutes to cast.
Has anyone found a use for this spell? Am I missing something obvious?
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Because if you cast Lesser Astral Projection on the Material Plane, you can leave the Astral Plane, returning to the Material Plane (as it is the plane you were on when you cast it). Since your Astral Projection can travel to the plane you are on, you can adventure with the Astral Projection, while keeping your body safe.
Remember, you gain experience while in your Astral form. So you can go out, adventure, and if you die, you simply loose two levels which can be returned via Restoration magic. Then cast Lesser Astral Projection again, followed by Teleport and return to the Adventure.
This also prevents you from using up your gear or losing it. When you create an Astral Projection, a new body forms, including all the gear you're wearing. So if you have a Wand with 50 charges, and cast AP, then use up all 50 charges while projecting, you can end the spell, and then recast it and now you have a fully charged Wand because you used up the charges of the Projection's wand, not the real one.
Hmm, makes me think that finding and securing a Ring of Wishes should be mandatory once you get this spell.
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To be fair, a GM would likely unleash a smackdown on a person abusing Lesser Astral Projection in such a way. That's if s/he even allowed it in the first place.
Also, anything you, as the player, can do, the bad guys can do too. What's to stop a 15th level Wizard using the same spell, to do the same thing, to you on a regular basis?
Abuse not, and don't be abused.
The spell lasts until you desire to end it, or until it is terminated by some outside means, such as dispel magic cast upon either the physical body or the astral form, the breaking of the silver cord, or the destruction of your body back on the Material Plane (which kills you).
The spell lasts until you desire to end it, or until it is terminated by some outside means, such as dispel magic cast upon either the physical body or the astral form, the breaking of the silver cord, or the destruction of your body back on the Material Plane (which kills you).
Both 3rd edition and Pathfinder have almost a word for word same copy of Astral Projection, and their clauses for the ending of the spell are exactly the same.