(3.5) Protect My Spellbook

[Zanthy1]

I am currently making a character who is a human wizard 5, red wizard 10. His focus school is divination, forbidden schools are necromancy and abjuration. I have Boccob's Blessed Book, which is what i wish to protect. Generally having a spellbook is all that my DM cares about, in the sense that we have it, spells are in it, but we do not pay much attention to it, much like familiars. However, as this book contains all my spells, my lives work so to speak, I want to make sure I can keep it safe. Using Core only.

I looked at Leomund's Secret Chest, but for it i'd have to carry the replica, and then have to protect that. Ideally I'm looking for a spell that I can cast that would allow me to put the book in an extra dimensional space and retrieve at my convenience. Some protective spells couldn't hurt either, but may not be necessary.

I have the makings for a couple of ways to grow this character. He could take the next 5 levels in archmage, or maybe go lich. Probably leaning towards archmage because of the feats I took, but who knows.

To summarize: spell to safely store and retrieve my spellbook

Thanks!

[kardar233]

Hoard Gullet from Draconomicon might be what you're looking for.

[W3bDragon]

I can't remember what book its from, but I believe the spell Shadow Cache, a 3rd level wizard spell, would do the trick. It allows you to store an item in the plane of shadow and retrieve it later. If you keep it there more than a day though, there is a chance it is lost, so make sure you always retrieve it within 24 hours.

[TaiLiu]

The above spells are not Core. :smallconfused:

[Skysaber]

Shrink Item + Permanency. Your 12" spellbook is now a 1" one, the size of a matchbook. Go for the option that makes it a soft, cloth-like object.

Sew a pocket in your underwear. Keep book in pocket. Anyone frisks you, all they feel is cloth, and if they are stripping you of your underwear you've got other problems.

Then carry a false spellbook, either arcane gibberish or one you looted off an enemy corpse, because you are a wizard no one is going to believe you don't have one, so carry one for them to find.

[W3bDragon]

Though not perfect, Instant Summons (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/instantSummons.htm) can also be useful in conjunction with any other method. If you lose your spellbook, you can get it back. If someone stole it, you'll at least know who it is and where they currently are.

[JeminiZero]

Shrink Item + Permanency. Your 12" spellbook is now a 1" one, the size of a matchbook. Go for the option that makes it a soft, cloth-like object.

As an addendum to this, I would like to recommend trying to hide it somewhere INSIDE your body, just so that you still have your spellbook if they strip you and throw you in an AMF.

Firstly device a mundane airtight capsule of some sort to hold the shrunk down spellbook. This is essential as the capsule will provide total cover, and keeps the spellbook shrunk in the event you are chucked into an AMF.

The next part gets a bit tricky. You have to figure a way to store the capsule on your person. Within core there are no predetermined ways, so this is going down to a bit of homebrew and DM fiat.

For example, you could take ranks in Perform: Swallow and Regurgitate coin-sized-spellbook-containing objects. And then try and store your spellbook in your stomach.

[Zanthy1]

These are interesting ideas, however I still need to be able to retrieve my spellbook, because as a wizard I need it daily to prepare my spells. Instant summons seems perfect, except for the sapphire that I'd have to keep track of.

One thing I did in a previous campaign involved me being a vampire. I would cut open my stomach cavity at store the spellbook in there, and then it'd heal up with my fast healing. Potentially I could do this as a lich, although they do not get fast healing, so i'd have to get some form of stitching. I may go for hoard gullet if there is no other alternative as good, if it is my only step out of core I'm sure my DM will be ok with it.

Thanks!

[Parallaxus]

I know this is old but I have to say something about JeminiZero's answer.

"As an addendum to this, I would like to recommend trying to hide it somewhere INSIDE your body, just so that you still have your spellbook if they strip you and throw you in an AMF."

This response was not well thought out. JeminiZero suggested hiding a shrunk spellbook inside your body but somehow failed to stop and think about what would happen if and when the wizard was actually thrown into an Antimagic Field with a spellbook stuffed somewhere in the wizard's body suddenly resizing back to normal. Genius.

[Darrin]

Get a loadstone (DMG p. 276). Enchant it with an additional 1/day command-word activated spell effect: permanent illusion of your spellbook, lasts 1 hour or for as long as you study it.

[torrasque666]

I know this is old but I have to say something about JeminiZero's answer.

"As an addendum to this, I would like to recommend trying to hide it somewhere INSIDE your body, just so that you still have your spellbook if they strip you and throw you in an AMF."

This response was not well thought out. JeminiZero suggested hiding a shrunk spellbook inside your body but somehow failed to stop and think about what would happen if and when the wizard was actually thrown into an Antimagic Field with a spellbook stuffed somewhere in the wizard's body suddenly resizing back to normal. Genius.

Technically, if its inside your body, that should shield it from line of effect, thus it wouldn't be effected by the AMF.

[Werephilosopher]

The next part gets a bit tricky. You have to figure a way to store the capsule on your person. Within core there are no predetermined ways, so this is going down to a bit of homebrew and DM fiat.

I believe Complete Scoundrel has rules for holding capsules in false teeth, so maybe the DM will allow something like that.

[TheBrassDuke]

I am currently making a character who is a human wizard 5, red wizard 10. His focus school is divination, forbidden schools are necromancy and abjuration. ...(tl;dr)

Divination Specialist? There's your answer. He'll always--or should always--know if it's ever in danger. ._.

[Melcar]

In Magic of Faerun, there is a section about spellbook protection.

If 3rd party is allowed, The Quintessential Wizard, from Mongoose Pubilshing, also holds a section about the subject of spellbook construction/protection.

[Deophaun]

Use permanent image to make as many illusory copies of your spellbook as you want.

[Fouredged Sword]

Core only, I suggest putting it in a waterproof adimantium box and casting a CL 20 hardnening spell on the adimantium box. The box now has 30 hardness and takes half damage from most types of energy. Now, the box is cheaper to PAO into existence using a normal steel box, but then it's weak to dispelling back into normal steel.

Put the box into a bag of holding, to further remove line of effect.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Some gloves of storing (or better yet, some gloves of the master strategist, from Ghostwalk) would do you well, especially if you could cast sequester (or an Extended version thereof) and Nystul's magic aura spell on them. Now nobody can tell you're wearing them without touching your hands. Of course, if the gloves' abilities were added to +1 gauntlets with the ghost touch property that you shunt to the ethereal plane while wearing, even that won't help.

So sequestered ethereal +1 ghost touch gauntlets of the master strategist with Nystul's magic aura. Use truedeath weapon crystals instead of ghost touch if you want it even cheaper.

[edit] If you can convince your DM to add the gloves' effects to a handy haversack so that anything shrunken with the gloves is stored in your haversack, you can not only store FAR more than you otherwise could, but you can keep your haversack somewhere safe, rather than taking it adventuring with you. Keep it in your demiplane or something. Now, even when you get dispelled, the ability to store and retrieve is suppressed, but the haversack is elsewhere and safe, so nobody can get their mitts on your stuff. Heck, you could store the haversack in a Leomund's secret chest and get rid of the focus, or toss the haversack in a bag of holding, which you then stuff in a portable hole. Then the only way to get to it is via your gloves.

[Melcar]

Core only, I suggest putting it in a waterproof adimantium box and casting a CL 20 hardnening spell on the adimantium box. The box now has 30 hardness and takes half damage from most types of energy. Now, the box is cheaper to PAO into existence using a normal steel box, but then it's weak to dispelling back into normal steel.

Put the box into a bag of holding, to further remove line of effect.

In Strongholdbuilders Guidebook, there is a spell that doubles HP and Hardness. I believe it would be Hardness 40 and 80 HP per inch of thikness.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

In Strongholdbuilders Guidebook, there is a spell that doubles HP and Hardness. I believe it would be Hardness 40 and 80 HP per inch of thickness.Riverine is immune to damage, and if you can find a way to make it immune to disjunction, disintengrate, rods of cancellation, umbral blots, and spheres of annihilation, you've basically got an invulnerable spellbook.

If you get yourself a braidblade/sleeveblade/kneeblade/bootblade/etc, give it the -2 ability of the DMG's cursed sword, and give it one of the hidden compartment spaces from Complete Scoundrel, you could shrink item your spellbook and stuff it in the compartment space. Then, if someone takes your weapon from you, you can use the cursed sword ability to transport it back to you immediately.

[edit] Isn't there a rule somewhere about using a really heavy spellbook as a weapon? Create a -2 morphing aurorum cursed spellbook, shrink it, and keep it in your hidden item space. Or keep it morphed into a gauntlet that you keep ethereal and invisible, and I outlined above. If it's ever stolen, it comes right back to you when you want it. If it's ever broken, you can just piece it back together again. If you want to negate the -2 portion of the cursed ability, make sure to add the nonmagical +2 enhancement bonus from that katana in Oriental Adventures for +9,000 gp. It doesn't even count against the price of any magical enhancement bonuses you can add to it, so you're good to go, there.

[Flickerdart]

Core only is pretty tricky since you don't have access to the Complete Arcane alternate spellbooks.

Permanent image will also not help much because it can't make something seem like something else, being a figment. You would need a glamer.

You could use phantom trap to deter would-be thieves. Put the "trap" on your regular spellbook and then a bunch of fake ones.

An easy way of doing this would be permanently making your spellbook invisible (invisibility + permanency) and then using some means of seeing invisible to prepare your spells (perhaps getting a permanent see invisibility on yourself). Amusingly, you could also get animate object on the book, although animated objects can't obey any order except "attack".

[Deophaun]

Permanent image will also not help much because it can't make something seem like something else, being a figment. You would need a glamer.

You misunderstand. You do not use permanent image to hide your spellbook. You use permanent image to duplicate it while your real spellbook is off wherever.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Turn your spellbook into a self-resetting, repeating trap that Plane Shifts and Teleports Without Error to you any time it's separated from you by more than 10 feet or isn't in an extradimensional storage space that's within 10 feet of you. It also activates whenever it's about to be exposed to a dead magic zone, a dead magic plane, or an AMF. Then PAO it into an animated object that just happens to be exactly like your spellbook (except it's made from riverine or obdurum or aurorum or shapesand or whatever). Then Awaken it into Lawful Neutrality and convince it that it has a duty to stay near you, protect you while you're unconscious, and be useful to you, just in case something goes wrong.

You could also PAO a creature that's loyal to you into an animated object spellbook, if you like.

[Flickerdart]

You misunderstand. You do not use permanent image to hide your spellbook. You use permanent image to duplicate it while your real spellbook is off wherever.
I am unaware of any rules suggesting that a wizard can prepare spells from anything other than an actual spellbook.

[Deophaun]

I am unaware of any rules suggesting that a wizard can prepare spells from anything other than an actual spellbook.
What's an actual spellbook?

Although most folks think of them as thick, heavy tomes of parchment or vellum pages bound with ornate covers and heavy locks, a wizard’s spellbooks can take almost any form.
Mine just happen to take the form of magically manipulated light.

[Flickerdart]

Complete Arcane lists rules for alternative spellbooks, and "light" is not one of them. But hey, if you can bamboozle a DM into allowing this, more power to you.

[LibraryOgre]

The Mod Wonder: Plays the part of a priest in Order of the Stick #1018.