Wizards Unite! (how do you defend you spell book)

[Itous]

as the question says, how would you defend your spell book i mean its one thing to keep it under lock and key but a high enough open lock check and BOOM they have your book, i know its something that normally doesn't happen but my DM is a good DM and had someone steal my spell book from my room while i was in the bar thinking it wouldn't happen to me!

so now i am on a quest to get it back and learn the error of my ways?

anyone got any tips at all?


Itous

[Lord Vukodlak]

Fake books is one,
I once used this cursed book[forgot the source] where if stolen it would trap the thief inside as the main character in a series of short stories about why stealing is wrong.

Symbol spells make good protective wards, they'll aren't going to destroy the book but can mess up the thief. Nothing like finding a sleeping thief next to your spellbook.

Arcane Lock obviously, if the thief doesn't have knock with him he won't be opening the door.

Force Chest
This handy 4th level evocation spell creates a chest made of pure force, the chest is locked via password so no open lock check will ever open it.
It last 24/hours a level so you have awhile to track down your spellbook should the thief.

He'll need a disintegrate spell to get the chest open.

Instant Summons,
Put an arcane mark on your spellbook, and while it can't whisk it away if its in another's possession it would tell you who the thief is and roughly where he is.

If your lucky the thief stashed it somewhere so its no longer in his possession and you get your book right back.

[Lysander]

The list of spells you can use is pretty much endless:

Instant Summons. 7th level spell, teleports an item to your hand or lets you know who has it and where it is. It's practically made to recover stolen spellbooks.

Sepia Snake Sigil immobilizes the reader. Put that on the cover or on the first page.

Illusory Script can cast suggestion on readers

Arcane Lock makes it harder for people to break into your room, or into your chest

Secret Chest stores items on the ethereal plane

A Rope Trick lets you put things in extradimensional space

Alarm alerts you to break-ins

Mage's Faithful Hound summons a guard dog

Guards and Wards can defend a room from intruders in a variety of ways

Animate Dead lets you give your book to a ogre skeleton to hold

You can leave your familiar to watch your book, and sense if something is wrong through your empathic link

There are also non-magical techniques. For example, title your spellbook "Interesting Ferns Of Northern Forests" and make the cover look as boring as possible.

Have a suitcase or chest with a secret compartment to hide the book in. Keep socks in the rest of it.

[Itous]

wow thanks for the positve responses you guys, i'm going to get hammered and make a video and put it on youtube.

[Eldonauran]

Tattoo your best spells on your body or the ones that you use all the time. Keep your misc spells in your book.

There are also a lot of other materials that can serve as an 'alternate spellbook'.

[Lysander]

You can also have backup spellbooks in case one gets lost. At least have backup divination spells so you can search for the main one. You don't necessarily have to have a backup "spellbook" either. You could use backup pamphlets each containing a single spell, hidden in different places.

[Debihuman]

Illusionary script on the cover of your spellbook. It lasts for one day per caster level so you don't need to cast it often.

"Any unauthorized creature attempting to read the script triggers a potent illusory effect and must make a saving throw. A successful saving throw means the creature can look away with only a mild sense of disorientation. Failure means the creature is subject to a suggestion implanted in the script by you at the time the illusory script spell was cast. The suggestion lasts only 30 minutes. Typical suggestions include “Close the book and leave,” “Forget the existence of the book,” and so forth. If successfully dispelled by dispel magic, the illusory script and its secret message disappear. The hidden message can be read by a combination of the true seeing spell with the read magic or comprehend languages spell."

Debby

[Lord Vukodlak]

Illusionary script on the cover of your spellbook. It lasts for one day per caster level so you don't need to cast it often.

"Any unauthorized creature attempting to read the script triggers a potent illusory effect and must make a saving throw. A successful saving throw means the creature can look away with only a mild sense of disorientation. Failure means the creature is subject to a suggestion implanted in the script by you at the time the illusory script spell was cast. The suggestion lasts only 30 minutes. Typical suggestions include “Close the book and leave,” “Forget the existence of the book,” and so forth. If successfully dispelled by dispel magic, the illusory script and its secret message disappear. The hidden message can be read by a combination of the true seeing spell with the read magic or comprehend languages spell."

Debby

Brilliant debby

[Eternal Drifter]

Illusionary script on the cover of your spellbook. It lasts for one day per caster level so you don't need to cast it often.

"Any unauthorized creature attempting to read the script triggers a potent illusory effect and must make a saving throw. A successful saving throw means the creature can look away with only a mild sense of disorientation. Failure means the creature is subject to a suggestion implanted in the script by you at the time the illusory script spell was cast. The suggestion lasts only 30 minutes. Typical suggestions include “Close the book and leave,” “Forget the existence of the book,” and so forth. If successfully dispelled by dispel magic, the illusory script and its secret message disappear. The hidden message can be read by a combination of the true seeing spell with the read magic or comprehend languages spell."

Debby

Small possible loophole:

Let's say you have the script have a suggestion of "Forget the existence of the book." The thief forgets all about the book, and if he has it in his hands... he won't know it is in his hands until someone points it out to him, whether it is one minute later or until he finally realizes it when he is setting up camp.

[Jack of Spades]

The chaotic evil solution that will make your dice-rolling hand hurt:

Aside from maintaining your own spellbook, hunt down every single wizard or bard you hear about, slaughter them, and steal their spellbooks until you have enough of them (as well as the sufficient ranks in Spellcraft) to simply prepare your spells out of those books instead of your own (failed a spellcraft check to prepare the spell? Find it in someone else's book). Then, find a suitably unreachable place to put your own spellbook (preferably an imposing doom citadel). Then, put a permanency'd alarm spell on it so that if someone thinks they're being clever and decides to steal your book, you can smash them with Albert the Coward's collection of spells instead of your own, absent ones.

Sounds like a pain, but hey: it'd be a fun ride.

[Doppelganger]

My favorite for gaurding anything is to put a geas/quest trap on it, with the quest being: guard this item agianst all but (your name here). I like to use it for phylacteries (you welcome the adventurers now) but it works for books. Another good one is: write down every arcane spell in the universe and bring the copy to (your name). They will have something to do as a hobby for all eternity.

[Lysander]

This is high level but nigh unbeatable.

Learn spell mastery freedom so you can prepare it without a book.

Create a simulacrum of yourself and give them a secret name that nobody will guess, like Vlurbkibbible. Give them the book you want guarded.

Cast imprisonment on them.

Congrats, the only way to reach them and the book now is by knowing their name and casting freedom.

[Lord Vukodlak]

This is high level but nigh unbeatable.

Learn spell mastery freedom so you can prepare it without a book.

Create a simulacrum of yourself and give them a secret name that nobody will guess, like Vlurbkibbible. Give them the book you want guarded.

Cast imprisonment on them.

Congrats, the only way to reach them and the book now is by knowing their name and casting freedom.

Or following you until you go to retrieve the book.

[Lysander]

Or following you until you go to retrieve the book.

That's why you cast extended Mindblank and teleport directly to your destination.

[Corporate M]

Perhaps lacing the cover with touch type poison. Undoutedly those who grab a spellbook won't be wearing gloves, and they'll regret it. It's effective since they'd use scrying and find no magical traps.

Possibly make the cover thorn riddled, when someone goes to grab it, it's like sticking your hand in caltrops. Might even get stuck to their hand... lulz!

A small chest the size of a shoebox would probably be cheaper then any enchantment.


Trying to think of ways that don't involve magic. Then again I've always had a bitterness against wizards and spellcasters as a whole and would love to see their wizard book get stolen. Magic be broken. Noncasters need to look too tech (homebrew obviously, lolz!) to keep up.

[Lysander]

One idea: PoA a loyal and powerful minion into a book jacket. Put them on the book. If it gets stolen they'll eventually turn back and attack the thieves.