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I'm just wondering say you found a pile of gems with peoples souls trapped in them is there anyway you can release the souls and possibly keep the gems early or do you just need to hang onto them till the spell runs out to ensure the gems crumble to dust and release the soul trapped inside to travel to judgement?
Create Soul Gem
School necromancy [death, evil]; Level cleric 3, occultist 3, shaman 3, sorcerer/wizard 3, spiritualist 3, witch 3
CASTING
Casting Time 1 round
Components V, S, F (crystal lens worth 500 gp)EFFECT
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target one dying or recently dead creature
Duration 1 day/level
Saving Throw Will negates; Spell Resistance yesDESCRIPTION
You draw forth the ebbing life force of a dying creature or one that has died in the past round, focusing it through a crystal lens focus to transform into a soul gem. If the creature is alive and fails its saving throw, it dies and you capture its soul in the gem. If the creature is dead, it can still resist the spell effect by attempting a Will save as if it were still alive. The value of the soul gem created depends on the nature of the creature it is made from. Soul gems created by this spell crumble to dust once the spell’s duration expires, releasing the trapped soul to travel on to judgment in the Great Beyond.
Only one soul gem can be created from a dying creature. Any attempt to resurrect a body whose soul is trapped in a soul gem requires a caster check against create soul gem’s save DC. Failure results in the resurrection spell having no effect, while success shatters the target’s soul gem and returns the creature to life as normal. If the soul gem resides in an unholy location, such as that created by the unhallow spell, the DC of this check increases by 2.
If you are a souldrinker, you can cast this spell and expend 5 soul points to fill the gem with the equivalent of one basic soul.
Trap the Soul
School conjuration (summoning); Level sorcerer/wizard 8, witch 8; Subdomain psychopomp (death, repose) 8, souls 9; Mystery juju(PAP39/PZO9039) 8
CASTING
Casting Time 1 standard action or see text
Components V, S, M (gem worth 1,000 gp per HD of the trapped creature)EFFECT
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target one creature
Duration permanent; see text
Saving Throw see text; Spell Resistance yes; see textDESCRIPTION
Trap the soul forces a creature’s life force (and its material body) into a gem. The gem holds the trapped entity indefinitely or until the gem is broken and the life force is released, which allows the material body to reform. If the trapped creature is a powerful creature from another plane, it can be required to perform a service immediately upon being freed. Otherwise, the creature can go free once the gem imprisoning it is broken.
Depending on the version selected, the spell can be triggered in one of two ways.
Spell Completion: First, the spell can be completed by speaking its final word as a standard action as if you were casting a regular spell at the subject. This allows Spell Resistance (if any) and a Will save to avoid the effect. If the creature’s name is spoken as well, any spell resistance is ignored and the save DC increases by 2. If the save or Spell Resistance is successful, the gem shatters.
Trigger Object: The second method is far more insidious, for it tricks the subject into accepting a trigger object inscribed with the final spell word, automatically placing the creature’s soul in the trap. To use this method, both the creature’s name and the trigger word must be inscribed on the trigger object when the gem is enspelled. A sympathy spell can also be placed on the trigger object. As soon as the subject picks up or accepts the trigger object, its life force is automatically transferred to the gem without the benefit of spell resistance or a save.
If you want to stay true to RAW, these gems are consumed as part of the spell, either they shatter, or crumble to dust, w/e, but the 500gp or 1,000gp component is consumed. So if you find a pile of these gems, how they break/shatter/crumble is dependent upon which spell was used, and how the spell ends. But, if you're the GM and it makes more sense for the gems to survive for storyline purposes, you can do w/e you want.
Soul Gem lists the gem as a focus not a material component. A focus is not consumed by casting the spell and could normally be able to be reused, but the description of the spell states that it crumbles to dust when the duration expires. Since Dispel magic states that ends as if it duration had expired it would crumple to dust even though it is a focus and should survive the spell. They should have made the gem a material component not a focus. If you can find a way to remove the magic that does not work like dispel magic the gem should remain after the spell is gone. A wish might be able to accomplish this.
Trap the soul lists the gem as a material component so it is consumed by the spell.
Soul Transfer looks like it would work, but that has the same requirements as trap the soul. About the only thing this would be useful for would be if for some reason you wanted to use the specific gem a soul was trapped in. Soul Gem should work even on a soul that was imprisoned by trap the soul. That is what the spell was designed for.
If you are looking to release the souls and not worried about keeping the gems dispel magic should work. Neither spell is instantaneous, so both are subject to dispel magic and the like.
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Trap the soul
"Shattered (or broken)" + "Mending" = Whole gem
Mending can repair destroyed objects if you have all the parts. And crumpled to dust isn't "warped or otherwise transmuted".
It never says that to end the spell you need to break the gem. It says if you break the gem the spell ends.
If you dispel Trap the soul the gem should be unharmed.
Soul gem
The lens crumbles to dust. The dust can be repaired with mending.
As it says that it crumbles to dust when the spell ends, Dispel will make it crumble.
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Trap the soul
"Shattered (or broken)" + "Mending" = Whole gem
Mending can repair destroyed objects if you have all the parts. And crumpled to dust isn't "warped or otherwise transmuted".
It never says that to end the spell you need to break the gem. It says if you break the gem the spell ends.
If you dispel Trap the soul the gem should be unharmed.
Soul gem
The lens crumbles to dust. The dust can be repaired with mending.
As it says that it crumbles to dust when the spell ends, Dispel will make it crumble.
Hmmm, interesting thoughts there.
Trap the soul
"Shattered (or broken)" + "Mending" = Whole gem
Mending can repair destroyed objects if you have all the parts. And crumpled to dust isn't "warped or otherwise transmuted".
It never says that to end the spell you need to break the gem. It says if you break the gem the spell ends.
If you dispel Trap the soul the gem should be unharmed.
Soul gem
The lens crumbles to dust. The dust can be repaired with mending.
As it says that it crumbles to dust when the spell ends, Dispel will make it crumble.
You're just going to tell EVERYONE?!?!
I guess it's fine... it's not like PF1 is going to get any new FAQ/errata that will close that little loophole.
Granted, I'm not in the business of ever releasing the souls I trap. Lol.
Alternatively it’s possible that a jeweller/gem cutter could split and recut the gems thereby “destroying” the gems and releasing the souls yet leaving the pieces a saleable condition.
My players figured that years ago.
It's been done, yes. But now, everyone knows. Or, at least, the half a dozen people involved with this discussion. Lol.
Yes the black market trade in soul gems will never be the same ;)
Trap the soul lists the gem as a material component not a focus. A material component is consumed when the spell is cast. That would indicate that the spell actually transforms the gem into something else. At that point it is no longer the same gem it was and is probably worthless other than for holding the trapped creature. While it may look like the original gem it is not.
Create Soul Gem does list it as a focus, but as I pointed out earlier the spell also specifies what happens when the duration runs out. Since dispel magic ends the spell as if the duration ran out it also crumbles when the spell is dispelled. Every other spell that is capable of ending a spell all say they work like dispel magic except possibly a wish.
Personally I would consider something that crumbled to dust as being warped or otherwise transmuted. So casting mending on the dust would probably not work.