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AdamT
2012-09-02, 10:27 AM
I have always loved the wizards since I first became familar with AD&D back in 87 or 88. What I loved about them was they either had a spell or could design a spell for everything. As I got older I realized that was not only not true, but very far from the truth! I began to think of wizards, and then all the casters, in a different way: as if I were really in that world. If I were a wizard what spell would I develop? There are enough ways to kill someone out there, so it wouldn't be that. It would be a nice, usefull, everyday spell that would make life easier BETWEEN adventures. I would design something like a level 3 spell, duration 1 growing season or 6 months, that would put a "magical greenhouse" over one acre of land that would have the effect of plants would need only 1/4 the water and would produce 2x as much over the course of the growing season.

So here is the challenge: Make 4 spells, one wiz/sorc, one cleric, one druid, and one bard. All of them have to be spells that would be useless in the kind of encounters that adventurers face (combat, tricking the guard, traps, etc). Topics that would be fair game (not all inclusive) would be things like: romance, assistance for disabled, usefull to housewife or farmer or trader, art.

You've been challenged, are you good enough?

We will put up a thread on Sept 9 to vote on who has the best set of spells. The best set of spells wins a Smiley Face! The single best spell wins a Small Cool Simley Face!

Djinn_in_Tonic
2012-09-02, 10:36 AM
So here is the challenge: Make 4 spells, one wiz/sorc, one cleric, one druid, and one bard. All of them have to be spells that would be useless in the kind of encounters that adventurers face (combat, tricking the guard, traps, etc). Topics that would be fair game (not all inclusive) would be things like: romance, assistance for disabled, usefull to housewife or farmer or trader, art.

This seems extremely easy, honestly.


You've been challenged, are you good enough?

Definitely. You may see something from me.

AdamT
2012-09-02, 10:45 AM
This seems extremely easy, honestly.



Definitely. You may see something from me.

The concept should be very easy, the challenge is in beating everyone else that posts the spells!

Zaydos
2012-09-02, 10:52 AM
Do all the spells have to be only one spell list, or could I for example make a spell that a wizard, druid, or bard could cast, one a bard or cleric could cast, one only a druid could cast, and one that a bard and... well I don't have a concept for the 4th spell yet but I realized my first two made sense for more than one class because there's a fair bit of overlap especially between bard which gets some wizard and some cleric spells.

AdamT
2012-09-02, 02:14 PM
Do all the spells have to be only one spell list, or could I for example make a spell that a wizard, druid, or bard could cast, one a bard or cleric could cast, one only a druid could cast, and one that a bard and... well I don't have a concept for the 4th spell yet but I realized my first two made sense for more than one class because there's a fair bit of overlap especially between bard which gets some wizard and some cleric spells.

As long as there are 4 different spells, and at least one fits in to each spell list you are good. When I make my vote for the best set of spells, I'll even be giving extra consideration for those spells that fit multiple spell lists.

Madara
2012-09-02, 02:37 PM
This thread reminds me, does anyone know when the next mixed homebrew arts contest is?

AdamT
2012-09-02, 03:19 PM
My submissions for the contest

In ages past, before the Gods grew to such power, WE were always asked to bless a child newly in the womb. These days, we are merely asked to entertain the couple before the conception!

Blessing the Innocent
School: Alteration
Level: Bard 3, Wiz/Sor 5, Cleric 5, Druid 4
Components: V, S, M or DF
Casting time: 1 hour
Range: touch
Target: person touched
Duration: instant
Saving Throw: no
Spell Resistance: no

This spell is cast on a woman who has just become pregnant (first trimester). It infuses the unborn child with a small bit of magic which will help the child to develop in a certain way. With this spell the child will get an untyped bonus of +1 to one ability and one skill. For bards this song has only a verbal component. For wiz/sor it requires v, s, and m components. And divine casters require v, s, and f.

Darlin, I'm an adventurer! Leaving for parts unknown for months at a time is what I do! I know you and Casey miss me when I'm gone, but it cant be helped. But, I do have a gift for her before I go.

Childrens Simulacrum Friend
School: Illusion (shadow)
Level: Wiz/sor 3
Components: v, s, m
Casting time: 1 round
Range: touch
Effect: one duplicate creature
Duration: instant
Saving Throw: none
Spell Resistance: none

This spell creates a simulacrum of 1hd or less. The material components are a roughly shaped "body" of snow or ice into which are placed a body part (hair, saliva, leg, whatever) of the thing (monster, humanoid, other) that the simulacrum will look like, body part of a puppy, and body part of a child (again, hair or saliva... leg might be in bad taste unless you are evil!).

The simulacrum will be as intensely loyal and protective of the child as a puppy, and shaped like the other creature used. The simulacrum will have 6's in all stats, no sa's, sla's, or classes. It will otherwise have the stats of the creature it was modeled from.

Favorites for this spell are pseudodragon or tessyrm, but even ooze simulacrum friends have been made!

Few things hurt like an abcessing tooth!

Tooth Repair
School: conjuration (healing)
Level: Cleric 1, druid 1
Components: v, s, f
Casting time: 1 action
Range: touch
Target: 1 tooth
Duration: instant
Saving Throw: no
Spell Resistance: no

This spell will repair any damaged tooth, leaving it as good as new.

Many are the druids who learned their craft on their own. A simple child who liked to play in the woods, usually from a small farming community. These druids are often torn between their love of nature and love of friends/family. Sometimes they learn this spell to help both worlds he loves.

Rune of Tree Growth
School: transmutation
Level: druid 1, wiz/sorc 3
Components: v, s, m
Casting time: 1 min
Range: touch
Target: 1 tree
Duration: instant or 1 year
Saving Throw: no
Spell Resistance: no

With this spell a special rune is placed on a tree. This rune will cause the tree to grow at double the pace that it normally would. Druids will often use this rune both to mark which trees a community can harvest, as well as increasing the growth of the tree so that the community would need to harvest fewer trees.

Wizards, in an attempt to learn this spell developed a 2nd version, which the druids easily copied. The wizard version will double the growing rate of a tree for one year. If the tree produces fruit, all the fruit will be exceptionally large and tasty. This produces about 20% more fruit from the tree for that year.

Zaydos
2012-09-02, 03:19 PM
This thread reminds me, does anyone know when the next mixed homebrew arts contest is?

Was a winner ever declared?

Back on topic will there be a separate thread to post entries and how long do we have to finish them?

Yitzi
2012-09-02, 04:23 PM
Let's see what we can do by simply weakening existing spells, at least for a couple of them...

Wiz/sorc:

Lesser Locate Object:
Divination
Level: Sor/Wiz 0
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 minute
Range: Long (400 ft. + 40 ft./level)
Area: Circle, centered on you, with a radius of 400 ft. + 40 ft./level
Duration: 1 min./level
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

You sense the direction of a specific object which you own and were the last person to handle. You cannot search for general items.

The spell is not blocked by any material, but creatures cannot be found by this spell. Polymorph any object fools it.

Now where did I put my keys...

Bard:
Sleep, Lesser.

Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Brd 0
Components: V
Casting Time: 1 minute
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: One willing living creature.
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: None

This spell causes a willing creature to fall asleep. The spell does not cause the target to remain asleep, and so the target will wake up naturally once it is fully refreshed.

Sleeping creatures are helpless. Slapping or wounding awakens an affected creature, but normal noise does not. Awakening a creature is a standard action (an application of the aid another action).

The ultimate cure for insomnia.

Cleric:
Seer, Lesser.

Divination
Level: Clr 7
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 round
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: None

The caster gains knowledge of the answer to any one question, so long as no actions have been taken by any individual to hide the information.

Good for finding lost items or creatures, predicting the future...quite versatile for the noncombative prophet.

(The non-lesser version probably would be epic, and allows it to be something where the information is being hidden; that is very useful in adventuring.)

Druid:

Plant Enrichment.

As Plant Growth (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/plantGrowth.htm), but only the second use.

AdamT
2012-09-02, 06:51 PM
Back on topic will there be a separate thread to post entries and how long do we have to finish them?

To avoid clogging up the boards and keep everything together, just post them in this thread. Next Sunday, the 9th, we'll put up a thread to vote on whats best.

Midwoka
2012-09-02, 06:51 PM
AdamT: There are some problems I noticed with your spells, mostly in their schools. So here are some suggestions for cleaning things up a bit =)



Blessing the Innocent
School: Enchantment
Level: Bard 3, Wiz/Sor 5, Cleric 5, Druid 4
Components: V, S, M or F
Casting time: 1 hour
Range: touch
Area: person touched

Enchantment spells typically alter the subject's behavior. For enhancing someone, you'd use the Transmutation school (notice how the ability-boosting spells like Bull's Strength and Fox's Cunning are Transmutation). For the spell components, you should specify in the text what the material and focus components are -- though if the focus for Clerics and Druids is simply their holy symbol or sprig of holly and mistletoe, you can just change the "F" to "DF" (for "Divine Focus") instead of spelling it out. Spells where arcane casters use their own material component usually include an "Arcane material component: ___" section at the end of the spell description (see here for examples of the components: http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/protectionFromEvil.htm ). And lastly, not all spells have an "Area" section -- only spells that affect an area. Spells that have distinct targets (like Blessing The Innocent) have a "Target" section instead, and spells that do neither (like summoning spells) have an "Effect" section. For this, it should be "Target: Creature touched" (or even "Pregnant creature touched") instead.




Childrens Simulacrum Friend
School: Illusion/Phantasm
Level: Wiz/sor 3
Components: v, s, m
Casting time: 1 round
Range: touch
Area: prepared ice and snow

Effects of the Phantasm subschool are only perceived by the target and the caster, and nobody else. So if this spell were a Phantasm, the Simulacrum Friend would be more like an imaginary friend, able to comfort and possibly guide the child, but not physically protect it (since it can only be perceived by the target - the child - and has no physical body). Creating a real protector would either be a Transmutation spell (used for animating objects), or more likely an Illusion (Shadow) spell like the normal Simulacrum. Like Simulacrum ( http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/simulacrum.htm ), I'd also change the range to "0 ft." (because you can't touch the shadow illusion before you've created it) and replace the "Area" entry with "Effect: One duplicate creature".



Tooth Repair
School: conjuration
Level: Cleric 1, druid 1
Components: v, s, f
Casting time: 1 action
Range: touch
Area: 1 tooth

This should be a "Conjuration (Healing)" spell, like Remove Disease. Again, the focus component should either be mentioned in the text, or replaced with "DF" in the "Components" entry if it just uses the holy symbol/holly. And "Area: 1 tooth" should be "Target: 1 tooth".



Rune of Tree Growth
School: conjuration
Level: druid 1, wiz/sorc 3
Components: v, s, m
Casting time: 1 min
Range: touch
Area: 1 tree

This should be a Transmutation spell, like Plant Growth. Again, you should specify the material components and change "Area" to "Target".

Yitzi
2012-09-02, 10:10 PM
Enchantment spells typically alter the subject's behavior.

Often, but not always. Spells that give a morale bonus (e.g. Bless) are usually Enchantment.

But yes, this one should be Transmutation.

AdamT
2012-09-03, 12:19 AM
You know whats funny about those schools? As I looked back at them, its the schools they would have been in 2e. I guess I was thinking a little too much of the 80's :smallamused:

Anyway, the only one that was wrong which was intentional was the rune of tree growth. And the error there was in trying to expand it to be more than one class useable. It started out under the premise that the rune would help to bring moisture/nutrients to the tree, thus conjuring. However when I, halfway through, decided to add the alternate version that pushed it firmly into transmutation. Thanks for pointing those out, I'll get it fixed.

The part on components and targets... well, that was just being lazy. I copied a spell from somewhere else on the site, deleted everything so that I had a template and copied it 4x. Then just filled in lines. So the moral of the day, kids, is dont be lazy, someone always catches you! :smallbiggrin:

Zaydos
2012-09-03, 12:19 AM
Dictate Scroll
Transmutation
Level: Bard 0
Components: S, V, M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Target: One sheet of paper or papyrus with an area up to 1 square foot/caster level
Duration: 1 minute/caster level
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

For the duration of this spell the targeted paper will transcribe in the form of a musical score any music you play or sing. It will only copy sounds consciously made as part of a song, whether vocal or instrumental. This spell cannot copy down lyrics, and while it will separate various forms of instrument it will not label them.

Material Component: A single barb of a feather.

Instant Fermentation
Transmutation
Level: Bard 2, Druid 2, Magewright (Eberron) 2, Sor/Wiz 2
Components: S, V
Casting Time: 1 full round
Range: Touch
Target: 1 gallon of liquid/caster level.
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates (object)
Spell Resistance: Yes (object)

With a touch you ferment the targeted liquid rendering it alcoholic. This spell can only effect liquids capable of undergoing yeast fermentation. The resulting liquid has a percent ethanol by weight of up to 4% per caster level (maximum 80%, or else capped by relevant amount of carbohydrates whichever is lower). If determining the quality of the brew is important the caster may either make the relevant skill check for brewing an alcoholic beverage or replace their skill modifier with their caster level + one half of one of their Int, Wis, or Cha modifiers.

Locate Beloved
Divination
Level: Adept 4, Cleric 4, Shaman (Oriental Adventures) 4
Components: V, M, DF
Casting Time: 1 minute
Range: Touch and special
Target: Touched willing creature’s beloved.
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: No
Spell Resistance: No

Placing your hand on a creature you sense the direction and distance to their beloved. If the target does not reciprocate the feeling of the touched creature, has not admitted such a reciprocation of feeling, or the touched creature is not willing, this spell fails. If the target is not on the same plane this spell will tell you which plane they are on. If the target is dead and reciprocated the feeling in life this spell will tell you which plane their soul now resides on, but will not inform you that they are dead; it will also tell the direction and distance to said soul (or petitioner in most cases) if it is on the same plane. Despite having been originally created to find lost lovers, this spell works equally well with familiar or platonic love, and can be used to locate lost family members and close friends.

Material Component: A red string wrapped around a rose.

Robust Foal
Transmutation
Level: Adept 3, Druid 3, Ranger 3, Shaman (Oriental Adventures) 3
Components: S, V, M, DF
Casting Time: 1 minute
Range: Touch
Target: One pregnant animal
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

You ensure that the children resulting from the target animal’s current pregnancy will be born hale and healthy; this spell has no effect on creatures which are not natural animals (magical beasts, dragons, vermin, humanoids are all no-goes). Any young produced by the target animal’s current pregnancy are born without physical and mental defects. If the DM decides to roll for the animal’s ability scores none of their ability scores can be below 8. Regardless they get a +2 to Constitution, although this cannot bring their Constitution to above 18 before racial modifiers. The children affected by this spell cannot be used as animal companions or familiars unless the DM decides otherwise (they are not stock normal members of their species).

Material Component: An ounce of milk and a piece of egg shell.

theDuskling
2012-09-03, 10:04 AM
So here is the challenge: Make 4 spells, one wiz/sorc, one cleric, one druid, and one bard. All of them have to be spells that would be useless in the kind of encounters that adventurers face (combat, tricking the guard, traps, etc). Topics that would be fair game (not all inclusive) would be things like: romance, assistance for disabled, usefull to housewife or farmer or trader, art.


romance: glibness 3rd for bards (since bluff is used for flirt since song and silence).

disabled: mage hand 0th bard/sorc/wiz if the caster is disabled else see next section.

housewife, farmer: unseen servant 1st bard/sorc/wiz, 10 on skill checks is enough for these jobs.

trader: create food and water cleric 3rd, you gonna be rich!

art: just the druid is left, so use stone shape (3rd) to create a perfect formed statue and make it temporally fancy with faery fire.

:p there are already so many options with existing spells

Yitzi
2012-09-03, 11:50 AM
romance: glibness 3rd for bards (since bluff is used for flirt since song and silence).

Even if Bluff is used, glibness doesn't help with any uses of Bluff other than convincing someone of the truth of your words.

NichG
2012-09-05, 03:32 AM
Michaelis' Absinthe Enchantment (Compulsion)
Level: Bard 2
Components: S,M
Range: Personal
Target: Self (one memory up to 10 min/lv in length)
Duration: 1 day/lv

This spell allows the caster to cause themselves to forget a memory, painful or otherwise, as well as the emotional scars left by that memory. The memory always returns eventually, but is dulled by time as would normally occur. This spell functions more emotionally than factually - the caster can retain facts about the memory, but cannot recall the emotional meanings of those facts. Thus the caster might be reminded by someone of the memory in question and be able to discuss it, but won't feel anything about it.

Material component: Small flask of water into which has been added a single tear.

Irvald's Custom Critic Divination
Level: Wizard 5
Components: V,S,F
Range: Personal/1 mi per 2lv
Target: Caster
Duration: Instantaneous

The caster of this spell specifies a type of business - restaurants, shops, etc. They instantly obtain a list of all publically advertised businesses of this type within 1 mile per two caster levels (via thet spell's focus). Furthermore, they gain an impression of one quality that they request associated with said businesses - for instance, the price of meals or the quality of ingredients or the fame of the chef. Whatever quality they ask to be evaluated is determined in a similar fashion to the Legend Lore spell, in that it is pulled from common knowledge and gossip, and so qualities that are difficult to determine (run by a neutral-aligned doppelganger pretending to be a gnome) are not accessible. Treat the quality of information gathering of this spell as a Gather Information check with a result equal to 10+CL/2 of the caster.

Focus: Blank notebook which fills with the information.

Waukeen's Preservation Abjuration
Level: Cleric 3
Target: Up to 20lbs of goods/lv
Range: Close
Duration: 1 day/2 lv
Components: V,S,DF

This spell protects goods during shipping and sale. Not only are objects slightly hardened by this spell (gaining two points of hardness), but dirt and debris does not stick to them and they resist infestation, wilting, and bruising (in the case of produce), and rotting (in the case of meat/fish), melting/thawing (for goods such as ice or butter) in temperatures up to 80F outside of normal limits, etc. This spell only affects objects up until their ownership has been legally transferred. This means that it has the additional effect of discouraging theft of produce, as a thief might well break their teeth on a hardened apple.

Meldhome Transmutation
Levels: Druid 7
Range: Medium
Target: Building of up to one 20 ft cube/lv
Components: V,S,M
Duration: Permanent

This spell fuses a building into the natural landscape, causing natural features of the area to grow into and replace the material of the building, and causing the building's shape to take on aspects of the local landscape. The result is that detecting the building from a distance becomes difficult (the building has an effective Hide check equal to 10+CL-# of cubes). Furthermore, the building becomes a living thing (if the natural landscape is full of life) that is integrated into the local ecosystem and has a reduced environmental impact.

Material component: A special seed cultivated in a city where nothing normally grows, roughly 500gp in value.