Disintegration Defense

[Elrihm]

Hey, guys. Another question. My wizard is currently building a stronghold, and it would really piss him off to have all that work undone in a single casting. Is there anything to protect a tower against magical assaults, i.e. earthquake, stoneshape, rock to mud, disintegration. The inside could be warded against teleportation, so thats not a concern, and yeah, illusions could disguise it, but i'm looking for something to defend against an assault.

[NichG]

Make the fortress out of golems, joined together to form the brickwork.
Alternately, find some magic resistant mineral in your setting and make the fortress out of that, or at least the outer walls of it.

[jguy]

Well, Disintegrate only effects one object if I remember correctly. What you could do is have either large tarps of paper or cloth colored to look exactly like stone and have it laid over the front of the walls. Zapping it will only hit the layer of paper/tarp. Even better if you stagger it with shingles of paper/tarp so it will only hit 1 square without revealing any stone beneath it. Make it fire and acid resistant so it doesn't burn down and use sovereign glue so it can't be torn down.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Permanency (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/permanency.htm) + Mage(nkeinen)'s Private Sanctum (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/magesPrivateSanctum.htm), with the outer edge of it less than an inch from the outer edge of the wall. You cannot see the castle unless your face is pressed against the wall, or unless you're in the castle; those inside can see out normally. Put a Permanent Image (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/permanency.htm) of the surrounding area around the castle in front of it on all sides, so that looking at it you'll only see the illusion of what's just past it so it won't even be noticeable. The only way to detect the castle is to bump into it. Targeted effects which don't require an attack roll cannot be used against it due to total concealment from the Private Sanctum.

Use Animate Objects (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/animateObjects.htm) + Permanency on the walls so they count as creatures, thus they cannot be affected by most wall-destroying spells. Effects which require an attack roll such as Disintegrate have a 50% miss chance due to total concealment, even though it's like shooting a ray at the broad side of a castle.

[Cartigan]

Use Animate Objects (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/animateObjects.htm) + Permanency on the walls so they count as creatures, thus they cannot be affected by most wall-destroying spells. Effects which require an attack roll such as Disintegrate have a 50% miss chance due to total concealment, even though it's like shooting a ray at the broad side of a castle.
Your wall proceeds to chase the bandits through the countryside...

[TroubleBrewing]

Not unless you order it to.

[Tyndmyr]

Check SBG. "an object" affects a section of wall, not the entire wall. Note that layers count as separate sections, and you may have as many layers as you like. Now, note that the first level walls of wood are free. First level underground walls of stone are free.

Alter the level of the group. Create walls until bored. Also, cast wall of iron, permanencied walls of force, prismatic walls, or whatever else you want. It's ablative armor. It takes them lots of time and casting to get in. Have some sort of response readied for people blasting your walls over and over again. Note that also in SBG is a lovely section on magic traps.

[Hirax]

Living walls of some sort. Then give them mettle, high fort saves, and luck related things for rerolls.

[Cartigan]

Cover the outerwall of the castle with wood planks. Prismatic wall is a good idea.

[Tyndmyr]

I'm a big fan of the prismatic spells. I also like making the castle fly, to keep out the riff raff.

[dextercorvia]

Energy Transformation Field (SpC) can go a long way to making your stronghold impervious to (most) magic. You can even use the spell energy stored to Repair Damage on your Animated walls.

[Gamer Girl]

Hey, guys. Another question. My wizard is currently building a stronghold, and it would really piss him off to have all that work undone in a single casting. Is there anything to protect a tower against magical assaults, i.e. earthquake, stoneshape, rock to mud, disintegration. The inside could be warded against teleportation, so thats not a concern, and yeah, illusions could disguise it, but i'm looking for something to defend against an assault.

Yes, tons and tons of defenses for each attack.

1.Earthquake--The easy and obvious defense is a flying stronghold.
2.Stoneshape/rock to mud--only effect stone and rock(and unworked rock, at that), so don't build out of them. Use Permanent Walls of Force, for example.
3.Disintegration--this is what anti-magic is for...


4.Animated Objects are great for strongholds. Have animated walls, not that they 'animate' or go anywhere, but they will be resistant to object effecting spells.

5.Polymorph Any Object. Build a normal stone wall, then polymorph it in to whatever else is not stone and won't be effected by 'earth' spells.

6.Wall of Iron alone makes for a great stronghold wall....

[Telonius]

I might be imagining this, but I think there's a special material (from a campaign setting? SBG? DMG2?) that's particularly resistant to magic. Basically a magic-fortified kind of stone. No time to research it now, but I'd have sworn that it exists somewhere...

[Geigan]

Living walls of some sort. Then give them mettle, high fort saves, and luck related things for rerolls.

Walls with 3+ levels in hexblade... This frightens me. I can just imagine them being lined with their raven familiars. Who needs sentries?

[Elrihm]

Walls with 3+ levels in hexblade... This frightens me. I can just imagine them being lined with their raven familiars. Who needs sentries?

OH MY GOD! That is awesome. You'd have to burn a LOT of awaken construct but w/e. Awakened animated walls with caster lvls specializing in abjuration magic and conj/trans. OH MY GOD!

"Come on men, let's take those walls!"

"Archers, FIRE!" *reverse arrows*
"OW OW OW WHY ARE THEY COMING BACK!"

"Well, lets get seige ladders up. Oh, why is the wall covered in grease? OWOWOW BURNING HOT OW!"

"SCREW THIS! Caster, disintegrate that wall." *anti-magic*

LOL. Or walls with the repair spell. lol.

[Tvtyrant]

Hide the castle underground under the ocean where people can't find it through multiple uses of Stone Wall and Iron Wall.

[Jack_Simth]

Hey, guys. Another question. My wizard is currently building a stronghold, and it would really piss him off to have all that work undone in a single casting. Is there anything to protect a tower against magical assaults, i.e. earthquake, stoneshape, rock to mud, disintegration. The inside could be warded against teleportation, so thats not a concern, and yeah, illusions could disguise it, but i'm looking for something to defend against an assault.
Specifically magical?

I'm assuming you're using stronghold builder's guide, and have lots of money to set on fire....

1) Make it a *flying* fortress, so it's not in contact with the ground.
2) Don't make it out of rock, and don't make it out of normal metal or wood.
3) Coat it in Walls of Force.
4) Use Wondrous Architecture to put up an AMF outside the Walls of Force.
5) Teleport interdict the inside by way of a magical item (so it can be suppressed by Dispel Magic).
6) Have a triggerable "trap" that dispels the teleport interdiction.

Now, in order to do anything about the place, you either need Initiate of Mystra (or some other way to cast spells in an AMF), or Disjunction. Nothing shore of that will breach your flying walls. Wish can theoretically put people inside, too.

To get in yourself, you keep some form of mind-linked critter on the inside, with the ability to trigger the trap which will suppress the teleport interdiction for a few rounds. A Homunculus (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/homunculus.htm) is a decent choice. Just make sure it doesn't have any way out (note that if your an Evil cleric, just Command a human skeleton. If you're a divine caster with an Elemental domain, just Command an appropriate memphit).