The two spells are Hold Person and Shackle. Which spell is better early game say at level 4 and then again at level 12 (both heightened) and why?
|
For in combat, hold person restricts the target much more. They are limited to purely mental actions. They do get a save again each round, but the year are helpless while they are held.
Shackle requires both a roll to-hit and it grants a save. It does not prevent spellcasting or explicitly even require a concentration check, unless you make them fetters, which entangles the target. Unless you use a very expensive material component, a strong creature can potentially break free pretty easily. Anything with a bite attack can still attack, and depending on how their hands are bound, they might be able to continue to attack with a one-handed weapon. The spell seems more useful for restraining targets that you’ve already disarmed.
Ahh I see, I thought the DC of the Strength check would be high enough to give even giants a tough time breaking free? Rear restraints in particular (which I would think one would have the option to employ when casting?) seem very effective.
Rear Restraint: Manacles might be employed to keep a creature’s hands behind its back. In such cases, the creature cannot use its hands to effectively employ any weapon or shield. The creature can attempt to use its hands to perform a skill, but at a –10 penalty (–25 on Disable Device checks to pick the lock of manacles the creature is wearing). While manacled, a creature can attempt to flip its arms beneath its legs, bringing its hands in front of itself. This requires a successful DC 25 Escape Artist check (a separate Escape Artist check is then required to escape the manacles).
The trick to paralysing spells cast them when an ally is adjacent AND is between you and the enemy in initiative.
This allows your ally to coup de grace before the enemy get another save.
True good point. What are your views on the comparison? Some pros and cons to each? I see many good things about the Shackle spell.