Is there a spell that protects rooms from natural decay or aging?

[crimsonstride]

I was just wondering. Currently crafting a dungeon and wanted to have a lot of the rooms kind of suspended in time (1000 years.) If this is a silly question, I apologize, I've just never run into this kind of thing before and would very much like your guys input.

[NamelessNPC]

It's not a spell, but creating a golem butler should work.

He could attack the party on sight for leaving mud and bloody footprints all over his Master's dungeon. Or he could offer them some tea and biscuits, mistaking them for the Master's guests

[crimsonstride]

Not exactly what I was looking for, but I like it nonetheless! I'm not very good at voicing golems though. Last time I voiced a bronze golem he ended up sounding like Ned from South Park.

[Deathkeeper]

Does it have background with powerful entities/spellcasters? Because I suppose making a custom version of Gentle Repose isn't too much of a stretch as long as nothing's been actively living in those rooms to mess up the furnishings.

[crimsonstride]

Does it have background with powerful entities/spellcasters? Because I suppose making a custom version of Gentle Repose isn't too much of a stretch as long as nothing's been actively living in those rooms to mess up the furnishings.

Well it's an underground temple that was built by Elder God cultists, so they have a few low level spell casters, but mostly they were just crazies. They were eventually trapped/buried alive within the place and kind of went even madder and started to kill one another.

When the PC's get there I want it to look like the place is suspended in time or something, clean temple floors, walls, and air. Maybe keep the bodies fresh too, which can really throw them off.

[Kane0]

Resetting Prestidigitation/Mending traps that clean/fix the area around them?

Otherwise I'm liking the Golem groundsman idea. They dont have to talk, just play them as moving statues if you like.

EDIT: Quintessence!

[Medic!]

I was gonna suggest a vat of Unguent of Timelessness (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#unguentofTimelessness) but it specifies living/once-living things. Depending on the construction material though...could work!

[Thomar_of_Uointer]

Well it's an underground temple that was built by Elder God cultists, so they have a few low level spell casters, but mostly they were just crazies. They were eventually trapped/buried alive within the place and kind of went even madder and started to kill one another.

When the PC's get there I want it to look like the place is suspended in time or something, clean temple floors, walls, and air. Maybe keep the bodies fresh too, which can really throw them off.

As long as you include easily-spoiled things like fruit and milk the PCs should be able to figure it out themselves (especially if they take an 8-hour rest in the dungeon).

[CommodoreCrunch]

The ideas already posted here are pretty good and I particularly like the golem idea, but I should point out that, as DM, you shouldn't feel constrained when it comes to things like this. Create your own spell if you can't find one that fits your needs.

That said, go with the golem. It's awesome.

[Namfuak]

You could have some small, circular discs enchanted to move around the rooms with stick permeancied under them (they would move fast enough to not stick to the floor, but would pick up stray dust and such). Maybe you could call them soombas or something.

Prestidigination could probably be reasonably used to evaporate water, so if you do use it that could be another use (to prevent the stone from aging due to water damage).

[Yuki Akuma]

Permanent Unseen Servants with orders to keep the place clean and tidy, and to repair damage?

(Yes, making Unseen Servant permanent and bound to an area rather than a person requires a bit of houseruling, but...)

[ShneekeyTheLost]

The spell Guards and Wards (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/guardsAndWards.htm) is a fun and interesting spell, if you permit something like Unseen Servant to work with it, there you go. Alternately, Prestidigitation and Cleansing, a pair of Cantrips, will fill your needs, assuming you can apply Permanency to it.

[DigoDragon]

In my homebrew campaign world, things I've used to help the believability of a 1,000 year old dungeon being perfectly preserved:

1. The dungeon is found with an air-tight seal. This means no contaminants have gotten in to cause rust or decay. Dust may be minimal. I've even gone so far as having a couple rooms set with a vacuum seal. Breaking into those can be tricky.

2. Its plausable that the builders used alchemy to create canisters that contain a moisture absorbing powder. They put one in each major room to keep the contents dry and prevent mold. As a point, one dungeon I built had no canisters and the seal cracked, leaking in water from a lake above the dungeon. I think I had every mold and fungus in that room... ick.

3. As mentioned above, a couple golems and unseen servants specifically designed to for upkeep works since the golems will last years and require no food, air, or sleep. MMII has little creatures called "Clockwork Horrors" which can be refluffed into construction machines that perform dungeon upkeep. They can also defend said dungeon too.

[Psyren]

If you're partial to psionics, Quintessence (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/quintessence.htm) will do the trick as it explicitly preserves structures. You could 'brew a magical version, or get it via limited wish, though that way could end up being costly.

You could also combine multiple approaches - A psionic golem with dorjes of Quintessence (or a Quintessence PLA), like a caulk-gun that he patches the room's protective coating with.

[crimsonstride]

I love all of these ideas guys, they're amazing. The Golem thing might actually be rubbing off on me, my only concern is that RP wise, I don't think any of the cultists would have had the know-how to make one, but I'm sure I can just say they do and chalk it up to DM says so.

The Quintessence idea sounds awesome as well. A stone golem walking around the dungeon with a Quintessence gun spraying everything down like Super Mario Sunshine would be pretty unique.

[Psyren]

Why would the cult need to have made it? The base could actually be a structure that was designed for something else (like a temple to a dead god that the cult repurposed) and they just moved in and took over the grounds. The golem might not even interfere unless they started defacing or destroying the trappings; it might have been commanded for instance to protect "the temple" and so long as the structure is still technically a temple it wouldn't oppose them.

This could even result in a side-objective/alternate win condition for the party - convince the golem that the cult has violated its directives, or trick the cultists into defacing something where it can see. Then it starts triggering all kinds of ancient defenses built into the structure and/or grabbing cultists to immerse them in Quintessence forever. Of course, the party themselves could be in danger if they start breaking things too...

[crimsonstride]

Why would the cult need to have made it? The base could actually be a structure that was designed for something else (like a temple to a dead god that the cult repurposed) and they just moved in and took over the grounds. The golem might not even interfere unless they started defacing or destroying the trappings; it might have been commanded for instance to protect "the temple" and so long as the structure is still technically a temple it wouldn't oppose them.

This could even result in a side-objective/alternate win condition for the party - convince the golem that the cult has violated its directives, or trick the cultists into defacing something where it can see. Then it starts triggering all kinds of ancient defenses built into the structure and/or grabbing cultists to immerse them in Quintessence forever. Of course, the party themselves could be in danger if they start breaking things too...

Very true. I think I'm pretty dead set on adding this golem now, whether he has a quintessence gun or not. The thing is, the cultists are all dead by the time the Players show up, so maybe they can convince the golem to assist them in clearing out the temple's new inhabitants (Shadows, Specters, and a hallway full of violet fungus.)

[ShneekeyTheLost]

The thing to take away from this is... there's always a spell for that. Whatever your 'that' may be.

[Suddo]

Why would the cult need to have made it? The base could actually be a structure that was designed for something else (like a temple to a dead god that the cult repurposed) and they just moved in and took over the grounds. The golem might not even interfere unless they started defacing or destroying the trappings; it might have been commanded for instance to protect "the temple" and so long as the structure is still technically a temple it wouldn't oppose them.

This could even result in a side-objective/alternate win condition for the party - convince the golem that the cult has violated its directives, or trick the cultists into defacing something where it can see. Then it starts triggering all kinds of ancient defenses built into the structure and/or grabbing cultists to immerse them in Quintessence forever. Of course, the party themselves could be in danger if they start breaking things too...

Best idea ever.

You can also give the golem an eternal wand of gentle repose only two casts per day but he may want to keep some corpses fresh, the others he could throw out side of the temple.

Also things like Repel Vermin are useful for your timeless dungeon (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/repelVermin.htm)

Edit:

The thing to take away from this is... there's always a spell for that. Whatever your 'that' may be.

Yes but resetting wish traps can start getting expensive unless you make magical wish traps that make magic wish traps.

[ericgrau]

The standard way to keep old dungeons clean and shiny are gelatinous cubes. They only destroy organic materials, meaning your golems and constructions are fine except for the occasional 1d6 slam. You should probably tell your golems to steer clear of the cubes though and instruct them to escape without harming the cube if accidentally engulfed. All this is assuming you even have golems.

Two vents at opposite ends of the dungeon and different elevations provide natural air circulation.

[Saskia]

Currently crafting a dungeon and wanted to have a lot of the rooms kind of suspended in time (1000 years.)

Item creation feats are cool. If you can justify an artificer or a wizard/sorcerer with 8th level spells (for Temporal Stasis) and the Craft Wondrous Item feat then you can justify a room, rooms, or entire temples protected from time, and by extension its contents including corpses, rope and lumber used in traps, poisons wouldn't decay, and so on. Like Suddo said, Repel Vermin is amazing and could easily be incorporated into the enchantment, if you wanted to go that route. Otherwise wands the golem uses are perfectly acceptable. If they were just a bunch of low level crazies I don't know that there's much excuse for something so extravagant unless the leader was a high level sorcerer, but sorcerers make really good cult leaders anyway.

Why are the rooms this way though?

[crimsonstride]

Why are the rooms this way though?

Just a neat idea I had. The place got sealed up after a pretty big commotion top side, and since there was no other exit and the people that survived inside were left weakened and without supplies, they all kind of turned on each other and went ballistic before they could do something sensible.

Their "Bishop" was more powerful spellcaster, and he was leading the group to this area of the world because of it's estrangement from any notable civilization. But once the cave-ins began, he was more content with just killing himself in an attempt to be closer to Yogg Sothoth. Maybe preserving the temple would have been his last act in this world, leaving a dark mark for others to find, and hopefully learn about what had happened here.

[dascarletm]

custom spells are your best friend. I doubt it will come up, but if your PC wizard is interested in replicating a spell effect you can have some basics down like spell level. Just to see if he can start learning it.

I always find that fun. A little hidden "lost" arcana known to noone nowadays. Even if it isn't crazy powerful.:smallcool:

[ZatriX]

There is such a spell in the Freeport Campaign Setting (by Green Ronin), namely in the :"Black Sails over Freeport"adventure. It is used there to protect the ship hulls against decay and ageing.

It goes by the name of Mothball (and it's actually in "Freeport: City of Adventure"book).

This Clr3/Wis3/Scr3 spell protects all organic matter (wood, flowers, flesh, etc.) against the passage of time. Plus, items so protected get +1 to all saving throws.

Range: Close (25ft + 5ft/lvl)
Mat. Component: pinch of sea salt, sprincled on the subject

[hoverfrog]

DM fiat is all the spell you need.

If you want the party to see how it works then have a custom magic item in the dungeon somewhere that just makes things clean within 100'. Have them wake up after camping all night to daisy fresh clothes and polished armour. Their camp fire is clean and a pile of fresh wood stacked by the side.

That might freak them out even more than a golem with a magical vacuum cleaner.

To be honest I've always thought that artificers and wizards would make stuff like this anyway if it weren't for making weapons and armour to kill one another with.

[Kelb_Panthera]

I don't think any such spell exists, but an item that has the desired effect does.

There's a magical box in Races of the Dragon, in the half-dragon section*, that perfectly preserves anything placed inside. Expand the dimensions of such a box until it's a building and bam! building in which nothing ever decays.


*I think. It may have only been mentioned in that section and actually be statted out in the magic item section.

[Serpentine]

Like everyone else, I like the idea of the golem butler - could even be a sort of refurbished cadaver collector; basically the same job, after all!

But to start from scratch, you don't really need an explanation. In fact, if this is meant to be a crypt of ancient, Lovecraftian evil explanations could work against you. One of the most broadly terrifying things is the unknown. It's just weird, and unexplained. Why is it clean and well-preserved? Because reality went wrong in this place. That's it.
To give it an explanation is to make it mundane.

On the other hand: golem butler :smallbiggrin:
(I am distressed by the lack of illustrations of this concept...)

[Medic!]

On the other hand: golem butler :smallbiggrin:
(I am distressed by the lack of illustrations of this concept...)

Distressicus Dispellicus

http://ratphlegm.tripod.com/canti2.jpg

[Serpentine]

Nope. Not enough suit and white gloves.

[Medic!]

Blasphemy!

[hoverfrog]

How about someone like Von Pinn from Agatha Heterodyne
http://jducoeur.org/GirlGenius/vonpinn-icon.jpg

or this helpful clank

http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090530065212/girlgenius/images/d/d3/Fencing-Clank.png

[Serpentine]

Eh. They're still not doing it for me. They don't have the impeccable style and quiet dignity a proper butler should have.

Imagine this:

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/iw_cadaver_collector.jpg

but clean, shiny, and dressed like this:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Zf7FWXYddE4/Tl_q3_v-njI/AAAAAAAAGEk/bW0P0swnNYM/s320/butler+13.jpg

edit: Oh oh! Give it the personality of Niles from The Nanny! :smallbiggrin:

[ojayaba]

the ideas in here are awesome, the recent pics make me laugh and start to picture Alfred Pennysworth (Waynes butler) but Hulk big and wearing spikey fullplate as a true Boss.