Potential Uses:
Shapeshifters. The moment you're dead, your form reverts, and you go out with a bang.
Prisoners: Put the runes on their foreheads and stick bags over their heads. When you get killed and the adventurers go to release them...
Make your enemies regret those gaze attacks.
If a caster were to devise a special version of this spell for such purposes, what level would it be? Any suggestions on modifications to balance/enhance its versatility?
I am both intrigued...and terrified. Hoping this isn't for AoW, I give advice. =)
I'd say it should be a level higher, maybe two. So 4th or 5th.
Damage scales based on level as most other blast spells. Max 15d6. 12d6 if it's a 4th.
Deals damage to the "Bomb" in equal measure as the poor schmuck who triggers it, except the schmuck at least gets a Ref save for half, much like Detonate.
Not really sure of any way to make it more versatle. As a general rule of thumb "This goes boom if you read it" and "Versatility this thing has, yes" are mutually exclusive.
Though perhaps let it have a trigger word/detonator as an option instead.
Makes it an interesting mining spell in that case. Place rune, move to safe distance, detonate.
Perhaps the ability to "shape the charge"? Can be a cone or explosion as the caster desires upon placing it.
Nah, this isn't for Hall of Harsh Reflections. Just a kinda "in hindsight" idea. Maybe if I run it again sometime...
An important theme of explosive runes does have to be that it blows up when read, but I think being able to put it on mobile targets could help with that. I also think you should keep it at non-scaling damage (maybe 8d6), but also keep the no-save for those within immediate vicinity. That's one of the big edges the original spell has, isn't it?
Shaping the charge is a neat idea. That gives some nice versatility. Maybe some limited means of altering the charge right when it explodes? Or would that be too much?
I could also see this being cast on expendable units like goblins, who are then herded right at unsuspecting adventurers. Goblins, being a generally illiterate species, would be immune to such trickery, so there wouldn't be any "whoops I read your thing, everybody dies" embarrassments.
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You could make it a sort of "reverse singing telegram girl" thing, in which rather than it being something the victim reads, it's a message the bearer speaks to the recipient....