Immoveable Rod

[Karoht]

Immoveable Rod. Wonderous Item.
On command, it becomes unmoveable from it's current position. Lots of excellent uses. With multiple, you can make an excellent ladder that is portable. Some people have come up with some pretty crazy uses, like being swallowed on purpose by some large creature, activating the rod in the stomach, and escaping, thereby pinning the large creature in place by it's own entrails.

I like lists. Lets get a list going. How many uses are there for an Immoveable Rod?

[Shadowknight12]

Far too many.

[Drelua]

-making them permanently invisible and leaving them in random locations such as a well used road
-leaving them just below the surface of the water in a harbour
-locking your door
-locking someone else's door from the outside. then adding fire.
-chin ups
-leaving them between the spokes of a noble's carriage (I've done this one)
-making floating furniture

I could go on all day...

[Karoht]

-making them permanently invisible and leaving them in random locations such as a well used road
-leaving them just below the surface of the water in a harbour
-locking your door
-locking someone else's door from the outside. then adding fire.
-chin ups
-leaving them between the spokes of a noble's carriage (I've done this one)
-making floating furniture

I could go on all day...

By all means continue. That is sort of the point.

EDIT: A house made with an immoveable rod frame/roof?

[CockroachTeaParty]

Once, I was playing in an Eberron game. We were on a fast-moving airship high above the clouds, and we were pursuing an assassin across the ship. He slipped through a door and closed it, and we couldn't seem to make it budge no matter how hard we slammed against it. The DM told us that he had blocked the door by using an immovable rod.

I then looked at him, and said, "...But we're on a moving airship."

His brilliant plan suddenly fell apart as the rod punched through the door and went flying off into the distance (from our perspective). He was not too terribly pleased with me after that...

I like the literal interpretations of the immovable rod, where if the world is similar to our own (it orbits a star, etc.), the rod would either go 'flying' off into space (the planet itself is moving pretty fast), or else immediately start burrowing into the ground, depending on which side of the globe you're on.

[Necroticplague]

If you ever get swallowed whole, activate the rod and escape. Watch whatever ate you get frustrated as it tries to move, but is forced to stay still from its stomach (unless it suceeds on the STR check to move it).

Improvised flight

[Thalnawr]

A ship's anchor.
Rigging various carnival games.

[aquaticrna]

get extra small unmovable rods and put them inside other things!
aka unmovable rod in the hilt of your sword, stab in the foot, activate, 5ft step back, laugh

[Drelua]

By all means continue. That is sort of the point.

Okay...

-instant brakes (possibly dangerous)
-using hundreds to make a floating fortress (could leave PCs sabotage options)
-locking a vampire in his coffin and carrying it to an open field, releasing it at noon
-constructing a cage in such a way that each rod covers the release button of the last
-surrounding a dragon's head with them, thereby capturing it
-staying still in a hurricane without nearby structures
-making stairs (may require a high balance skill to use safely)
-how do I say this nicely...dealing with loneliness (female only) :smallwink:
-stopping yourself from falling to your death (will probably still hurt. requires strong grip. not advisable in conjunction with the previous)
-destroying sails and/or mast of pursuing vessel
-tying guard dogs to them, possibly with invisible leashes and rods (may be hazardous to the dog)
-holding one in each hand with your thumb on the release button, climbing them. more cost effective than ladder option, but more difficult to use.

Maybe I'll come up with more later.

[Yuki Akuma]

Immovable Rods are rods. Not wondrous items.

>.>

<.<

[TheCountAlucard]

...locking a vampire in his coffin and carrying it to an open field...Does not compute! :smalleek:

[Ksheep]

Blocks of stone with Immovable rods embedded in them. Build a structure in the manner of Minecraft, with random parts of the building floating unconnected to anything else.

[Drelua]

Does not compute! :smalleek:

Carrying the coffin to an open field to kill the vampire by opening...oh, woops. I screwed that up. *facepalm*

[TheCountAlucard]

I screwed that up. *facepalm*Also, that other certain one isn't necessarily female-only. Just sayin'.

Either gender can make a little doll out of it and talk to it! :smallwink: Yes, that's totally what I was talking about. :smalltongue: Because it's doubtful other suggestions along those lines would be board-safe.

[Nerdynick]

Impromptu parachute. Keep toggling it on/off every few feet of descent.

Place them behind the fighter right before he gets bull-rushed.

Place them in front of the bull-rushing creature.

Make them into a legless walker for the senior citizens.

[Ksheep]

Move the world. Use the rod as a place to stand. (Now all you need is a long enough lever)

[HalfDragonCube]

If you ever get swallowed whole, activate the rod and escape. Watch whatever ate you get frustrated as it tries to move, but is forced to stay still from its stomach (unless it suceeds on the STR check to move it).

Improvised flight

Making a Str check with your guts is likely to cause internal bleeding, which adds to the fun.

Maybe if many were stuck together, then some method of activating them all at once was available, then a shield would be a great use.

[NNescio]

Of course... to bring up the old Million-dollar question:

How is the Rod immovable? Is it immovale with respect to the planet? To the user? To whatever frame of movement it first started in? To the nearest gravitational pull (whichever that means)?

[Necroticplague]

a substitute for a locking garrote:press their neck to the ground, turn on rod, walk away (if the side with the button is facing towards their neck, you save a step and make it unable to be re-pressed by victim).

[Stix]

i've always what could be accomplished by throwing immovable rods. or firing them from a crossbow.

[Xanmyral]

Attach a rod to an arrow, button where the arrow head should be. Fire it at a wall, wall hits button, boom. Instant, no fail, sticky grappling hook. Might be irritating to try and get the rod back however.

Construct a bed out of rods a few feet in the air. Who needs to sleep in a tree?

Attach to a tower shield. Face towards ranged fire, set up, and laugh behind your cover.

Reverse pickpocket an immovable rod on someone, hit button, laugh at results.

Create hole in enemy, shove rod in hole, hit button, grab enemy, pull towards self. Bonus points if done by the heart.

Magic Item Creation shenanigans! Instead of a button, it's a specific word or phrase. More options open.

Take spear, replace shaft with immovable rods. Why brace a spear your self now? Floating spike traps. Run someone through, hit button, laugh and walk away.

Place immovable rod behind chair legs. Hit button. Wait.

Place immovable rod in someones bed, against the covers. Short-sheeted. Bonus if rod is invisible.

Combine with Magic Item Creation Shenanigans. Attach word activated rods to end of whips, become Spiderman.

[Tvtyrant]

-Place one above your head and hang a sheet from it for instant tent.
-Place one in the water behind your ship when another ship is trying to capture you. Laugh at the hole in their ship.
-Place one somewhere and then cast Instant Summons to see if it comes.
-Use it as the internal hinge of an adamantine door to keep it from being stolen.

[Ksheep]

Theft deterrent. Hide inside objects you don't want stolen and activate. Laugh as the rogue tries to walk off with a chest they can't pick.

Better yet, use as locking mechanism for chest. Attach one to the inside of the lid of the chest, the other to the body of the chest, and either make it so the button can only be pressed by inserting a needle into a small, well concealed hole, or have it voice activated.

[Dimers]

Move the world. Use the rod as a place to stand. (Now all you need is a long enough lever)

Classy reference. 0.36 internets for you. :smallsmile:

[Necroticplague]

-Place one somewhere and then cast Instant Summons to see if it comes.


Oh gods, I think you found a way to create immovable object vs. untoppable force problem a reality.

[Tvtyrant]

Oh gods, I think you found a way to create immovable object vs. untoppable force problem a reality.

:smallredface: It was bound to happen eventually!

[kharmakazy]

I have one combined with a rod of ropes. Fire into the air, click a button to make the head immovable, Batman around town.(mind you this is a custom item)

I also attach it to my gauntlet, harpoon everyone I can reach, and attach the cables to the rod. You're not going anywhere.

[Shadowknight12]

-how do I say this nicely...dealing with loneliness (female only) :smallwink:

All of us can juggle immovable rods for self-amusement. :smallamused:

[Vultawk]

- Use it to keep your papers from blowing off of your desk.

[Lord_Gareth]

- Scoop the rod out of a dragon's hoard as it's dive-bombing you. Ready an action to punch the dragon in the face; click the button as you do so.

[Xanmyral]

- Scoop the rod out of a dragon's hoard as it's dive-bombing you. Ready an action to punch the dragon in the face; click the button as you do so.

All that's missing is the said character screaming [Animal] [Body Part].

(Fill in the blanks)

[TheCountAlucard]

All that's missing is the said character screaming [Animal] [Body Part].http://i456.photobucket.com/albums/qq282/Delarqua/Hak_foo2.jpg

[Leon]

Force the PCs to leave one above a small unnamed island in the middle of the Adriatic and squash any plans to go back and retrieve it (repeatedly).

We may actually have a chance at it now with the ability to Fly and Teleport.

[Fitz10019]

can make an excellent ladder

Note the ladder use applies to escaping water, too, if your swim checks are hopeless.

Use a rod as the axis of a pulley system.

Disable a catapult.

[Use an unseen servant to place or to retrieve an immovable rod if you can't reach the right spot yourself.]

[Ksheep]

Place an immovable rod above a trebuchet so that it intercepts the sling. Next time it fires, the sling catches on it and wraps around it, launching the projectile at (almost) full force straight down on the trebuchet itself. If you manage to hit the supporting beam, you disable the trebuchet fairly quickly.

[kardar233]

If you've convinced your GM that it will fly off due to the Earth's rotation (as in, it's immovable relative to the centre of the Earth), use it as a WMD.

"Hey, this is a nice castle you have here. Shame if someone was to... utterly destroy it in a second."

Extrapolating from its move DC, the Immovable Rod can break through up to 5 inches of stone wall. Stand east of the castle, hit the button. Watch the destruction, camp out for 24 hours and use Mage hand to hit the button as it flies by.

[Ksheep]

If you've convinced your GM that it will fly off due to the Earth's rotation (as in, it's immovable relative to the centre of the Earth), use it as a WMD.

"Hey, this is a nice castle you have here. Shame if someone was to... utterly destroy it in a second."

Extrapolating from its move DC, the Immovable Rod can break through up to 5 inches of stone wall. Stand east of the castle, hit the button. Watch the destruction, camp out for 24 hours and use Mage hand to hit the button as it flies by.

For best results, use near the equator. If your campaign is set in the arctic, please allow up to an hour for destruction. Not responsible for unintentional damage. May cause strangulation, black eye, upset stomach, or death. Contact your local mage to see if this treatment is right for you.

[noparlpf]

I don't know why everyone has to complicate things so much. The DMG says, "Adventurers have found the immovable rod useful for holding ropes, barring doors, and all sorts of other utilitarian tasks." (DMG page 233ish.) If it pushes through up to five inches of stone because it's immoveable relative to the earth's center, then barring a door with it is impossible. By the book, the immoveable rod is immoveable relative to the ground below it. (D&D doesn't really account for the rotation of a planet or for its movement through space as it orbits a star.)

They're great for breaking moving things like ships and carts, though.

On the other hand, if it did work the way kardar233 suggested, it would be a great way to travel. Get to the top of a high tree or building (preferable above other trees/buildings, otherwise complications arise), place two rods, sit on one and use the other as a handhold. Wait until you start to get near to where you want to go as the earth's rotation brings you there. (This does not work well for north-south travel. If you want to go east, it will take a little longer, but the world does revolve pretty quickly.) Start to climb down using the two as a ladder. You've now cut out a decent portion of your journey without having to walk. (You still have to do the north-south bits on foot/horse/cart/whatever.)

[Deimess]

Doesn't the rod have a weight limit of 8,000 lbs? If you did get swallowed, place a rod inside, and get out, would one rod be enough to keep it still? Say it was a Purple Worm, they weigh 40,000 lbs and could possibly get a strength check to push the rod 10 ft/round. This is still a very effective tactic, as it can only move 0-10ft each round, and is likely to take damage with something stuck in its entrails as it bashes about, but they are not completely helpless.

[noparlpf]

It's still pretty good. Str DC 30 to move it 10ft/rd. Would using two in the same place make the DC 60?

[Deimess]

It's still pretty good. Str DC 30 to move it 10ft/rd. Would using two in the same place make the DC 60?

I agree that it's still good, and I think it would have to make 2 DC 30s to move, but that's just me.

[noparlpf]

What if the two rods are placed one above the other (assuming a horizontal force to push it somewhere). That would definitely disperse the force between the two. (Try standing on one scale. Then get two scales side-by-side and put one foot on each. Hopefully they're calibrated about the same. Each will show about half of your weight.) So to move both simultaneously would take twice as much force as to move one.

[Ksheep]

Would they be able to break free easier if they were pushing against the end of it rather than the sides? The strength to move it would be the same, but they might be able to force it to bore through themselves if they were really determined.

[noparlpf]

Would they be able to break free easier if they were pushing against the end of it rather than the sides? The strength to move it would be the same, but they might be able to force it to bore through themselves if they were really determined.

Based on physics, probably. Pressure is force divided by area. The example in textbooks often shows a picture of a piece of foam being stood on by a woman in stiletto heels next to a picture of someone wearing flat shoes to demonstrate the difference in compression of the foam.

[Ksheep]

Based on physics, probably. Pressure is force divided by area. The example in textbooks often shows a picture of a piece of foam being stood on by a woman in stiletto heels next to a picture of someone wearing flat shoes to demonstrate the difference in compression of the foam.

Too bad there are no rules to dictate what would happen.

[noparlpf]

Too bad there are no rules to dictate what would happen.

That's what the DM is for.

[Cruiser1]

Say it was a Purple Worm, they weigh 40,000 lbs and could possibly get a strength check to push the rod 10 ft/round.Once an Immoveable Rod is inside any reasonably powerful creature's stomach, it won't last long before getting dissolved. Objects inside a Purple Worm (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/purpleWorm.htm) take "2d8+12 points of crushing damage plus 8 points of acid damage per round". Rods (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/rods.htm#immovableRod) have only 10 hp and hardness 10, and acid ignores hardness, so a Rod inside a Purple Worm is guaranteed to only last a single round.

[noparlpf]

Once an Immoveable Rod is inside any reasonably powerful creature's stomach, it won't last long before getting dissolved. Objects inside a Purple Worm (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/purpleWorm.htm) take "2d8+12 points of crushing damage plus 8 points of acid damage per round". Rods (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/rods.htm#immovableRod) have only 10 hp and hardness 10, and acid ignores hardness, so a Rod inside a Purple Worm is guaranteed to only last a single round.

And that's why I always buy Riverine Immovable Rods. Check out Stormwrack. It's basically an item made of pure elemental water and force.

[Draz74]

and acid ignores hardness, so a Rod inside a Purple Worm is guaranteed to only last a single round.

Acid does not ignore hardness. The advantage of acid against objects is that it does not get its damage multiplied by 1/2 (like fire and electricity) or 1/4 (like cold) before hardness is applied. But it still has to overcome hardness before it does anything (unless a specific acid effect says otherwise).

[Adamantrue]

Acid and sonic attacks deal damage to most objects just as they do to creatures; roll damage and apply it normally after a successful hit. Electricity and fire attacks deal half damage to most objects; divide the damage dealt by 2 before applying the hardness. Cold attacks deal one-quarter damage to most objects; divide the damage dealt by 4 before applying the hardness. The lack of mentioning Hardness for acid or sonic damage suggests otherwise.
...Take spear, replace shaft with immovable rods. Why brace a spear your self now? Floating spike traps. Run someone through, hit button, laugh and walk away... Back in OD&D, they had a device called a Spear of Inertia. It was +3, and responded to verbal commands.

It also maintained any momentum it had prior to activation, so you could do things like throw it towards a doorway, stop it midair, and release it when someone came through.

It also had no upper limit to what it could support, as it was frozen in time (effectively indestructible). I don't think I ever was in a game back then that didn't include one.

[Fouredged Sword]

I had a cursed item in a game, an iremovable rod. It was an imoveable rod with sovern glue on the button so when pushed it couldn't be un-pushed. Hijinks ensued with the players tried to use it!

[Ravens_cry]

I had a cursed item in a game, an iremovable rod. It was an imoveable rod with sovern glue on the button so when pushed it couldn't be un-pushed. Hijinks ensued with the players tried to use it!
How was the glue stored?

[Fouredged Sword]

Tiny vial built into the rod behind the button. It broke when pressed.

[Yuki Akuma]

Tiny vial built into the rod behind the button. It broke when pressed.

That'a not really cursed, per se...

[CodeRed]

That'a not really cursed, per se...

Not technically in the sense of "CUUURRRRRSSSSEEE", but in the sense of being intentionally made to screw with someone, I'd say it is.

[Ravens_cry]

Not technically in the sense of "CUUURRRRRSSSSEEE", but in the sense of being intentionally made to screw with someone, I'd say it is.
The technical D&D term would be "trapped", which means if a rogue had a passive search ability, they could have potentially found it.