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Glooble Glistencrist
2006-12-30, 07:47 PM
Glooble's Bouncing Doom
Evocation [Electricity]
Level: Sor/Wiz 3
Components: V,S,M
Casting time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. +10/caster level)
Effect: Up to five balls of electricity, each about 1 inch in diameter.
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Reflex negates (see text)
Spell Resistance: Yes

The caster creates one ball of electricity per two caster levels, up to a maximum of five, which appear in his or her hand. When realeased, they bounce with uncanny accuracy for 40 ft. per round toward up to five targets indicated by the caster. They can bounce over any wall up to 10 ft. tall, although doing so takes an entire round.
When a ball reaches its target, the target creature must make a reflex save or take 2d6 points of electricity damage. Creatures hit by multiple balls must make a seperate save for each.
The balls continue attacking until the end of the spells duration, although the target gets a new saving throw each round. The caster can redirect the balls toward new targets as a move action.

icke
2006-12-31, 05:52 AM
Maybe a bit too hefty, with this thing Your character can inflict 1d6 points of damage per level PER ROUND to any single target, as a level 3 spell! That's at least five times as much as a Fireball can do to a single target, and if You take into account how much damage this does at level 20, to a number of targets, a Fireball completely pales beside it. Restrict it to 1 globe every three levels, and add "no two globes can attack the same target at the same time" somewhere. It will still have the power of three Flaming Spheres at higher levels, but that's still usable...

Two questions: What's the material component? Where does the range come in?

Valairn
2006-12-31, 06:53 AM
Well one thing you have to take into account is reflex save completely negates any damage. That makes it weaker than a fireball, where a reflex only saves for half damage. Though I do think reducing the number of balls and how many can target the same person is a good idea.

icke
2006-12-31, 02:38 PM
Well one thing you have to take into account is reflex save completely negates any damage. That makes it weaker than a fireball, where a reflex only saves for half damage.

..., an effect that is at least partially negated by the fact that more than one ball is allowed to attack a single target.

Valairn
2007-01-01, 02:58 AM
Though I do think reducing the number of balls and how many can target the same person is a good idea.

Just repeating myself for understanding.

Demented
2007-01-01, 03:31 AM
Let's see...

Initial damage:
Two balls, five rounds... 4d6 per round, 20d6 total, with 10 reflex saves to reduce damage by 2d6 each.

The spell may not be too overpowered (!?), if:
- You're already desperate for move actions.
- You frequently fight things that is good at reflex saves.
- Everything you meet normally dies in less than 3 rounds anyway.

Iituem
2007-01-01, 06:37 AM
Hm. What about if you forced the caster to concentrate for the duration of the spell? Your caster still ends up with potentially five 2d6 attacks, but he can't be doing any other mischief at the same time.

Valairn
2007-01-01, 08:59 AM
That would prolly balance it, how about this.... Increase the number of balls that can move without concentration on a caster level basis?

Oh and make how many rounds it lasts a base amount.

So in other words.

The spell lasts 5 rounds if the mage maintains concentration, eventually he doesn't have to maintain concentration it just lasts 5 rounds.

Whew.

Glooble Glistencrist
2007-01-01, 06:39 PM
Thanks for all the insight, guys!

Thinking about making these changes:
-Reduce damage per ball to 1d6
-add a maximum duration of five rounds
-make it so no two balls can attack the same target

So any given target would take a maximum of 5d6 damage total, which is peanuts at twentieth level. But you can hit five enemies at a time regardless of where they're standing. So less damage, but more precise, which is the trade-off with a lightning bolt or a fireball. With these changes, do we still need to force the caster to concentrate? Or would that make this spell completely useless? Who's gonna concentrate for five rounds to deal half the damage they could do in one with a fire ball?

My other impulse would be to leave the damage at 2d6 (thus putting the spell's damage dealing capability on par with other third level spells) but force the caster to concentrate, so the trade-off becomes "Yes, it's more precise, but it also takes a lot longer."

Third option - drop the damage to 1d6, but say "No more than two balls can attack the same target." That keeps the damage roughly consistent with other third level spells (maximum of 10d6), but also gives the spell a little more utility (If you have fewer then five targets, you can still use the spell to it's full potential.) I'm not sure if this version would require concentration.

So which one do you like? Or are they all still overpowered?

Valairn
2007-01-02, 02:41 AM
I don't think concentration is required per se. 5 balls dealing 1d6 damage for 5 rounds, and if you make it so no more than two balls can attack the same target that's 10d6 damage max. Not to mention, a party cleric could keep up with round by round damage like this very easily. So in the form I just mentioned its okay.

If you want you can make it so that if the caster concentrate's on one of the balls it will explode for a certain amount of damage, reflex negates as well.

icke
2007-01-02, 04:51 AM
If You keep it at 1d6 damage per ball and round, You don't even have to cap at five rounds. At higher levels, damage per time is the measure of spellpower, so additional rounds won't make it too bad. like that, even at level 20 the maximum damage a character can deal out is 100d6(20d6 per target), over a 20 rounds period. If every reflex save goes bad.

The thing this spell is best for is disturbing a group of lower-level spellcasters, and that's fine with me.

Demented
2007-01-02, 05:16 AM
Or disturbing a single spellcaster by an overwhelming number of concentration checks.

Fizban
2007-01-02, 06:09 AM
Figured I'd give a link (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27881) to a similar spell. Yours move faster, deal electricity damage, and for some reason uses smaller balls (compared to the origninall spell, Flaming Sphere). I say we average them and make it a 4th level spell, and reduce the sphere's speed to 30' as normal.

Valairn
2007-01-02, 06:56 AM
Give the caster the option of selecting energy type?

icke
2007-01-02, 01:19 PM
Give the caster the option of selecting energy type?

No, too versatile, every other spell has to be prepared with a fixed damage element.

Valairn
2007-01-03, 03:49 AM
Where do we stand on this spell right now?

icke
2007-01-03, 04:39 AM
Somewhere like this:

Glooble's Bouncing Doom
Evocation [Electricity]
Level: Sor/Wiz 3
Components: V,S,M
Casting time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. +10/caster level)
Effect: Up to one ball of electricity per two levels(maximum 5(or 10?)), each about 1 inch in diameter.
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Reflex negates (see text)
Spell Resistance: Yes

The caster creates one ball of electricity per two caster levels, up to a maximum of five(ten?), which appear in his or her hand. When realeased, they bounce with uncanny accuracy for 40 ft. per round toward up to five targets indicated by the caster. They can bounce over any wall up to 10 ft. tall, although doing so takes an entire round.
When a ball reaches its target, the target creature must make a reflex save or take 1d6 points of electricity damage. If a target takes repeated damage over time from the same ball it is entitled to a new reflex save. No more than two balls can attack the same target.
The balls continue attacking until the end of the spells duration or until the target moves out of range, although the target gets a new saving throw each round. The caster can redirect any number of balls toward new targets as a move action.
Material component: A one inch sphere of copper worth 1sp for each ball.

Added the long-overseen material component.

Valairn
2007-01-03, 06:32 AM
Too be honest even though is a DD spell, its reminds me more of something from conjuration....

icke
2007-01-03, 06:47 AM
Too be honest even though is a DD spell, its reminds me more of something from conjuration....

Rather a flaming sphere abberation, so evocation is fine.

Valairn
2007-01-03, 07:08 AM
Okeydokey, I am now saying useless things for filler!

icke
2007-01-03, 07:18 AM
Hey, You too? :)

Valairn
2007-01-03, 12:57 PM
I like the idea of the spell, though personally I would make it higher level ups it power and call it a day to make me feel like it was as sexy choice. That's my current thought.

Glooble Glistencrist
2007-01-04, 04:31 PM
Okay, I think that's all there is to say. Icke's version with a maximum of 10 balls at level twenty sounds good to me. Since we're limiting the number of balls that can attack a single target, the main use will either be to eliminate lots of very weak enemies or, as icke pointed out, distracting spellcasters by forcing them to make frequent concentration checks. Not too powerful for a third level spell.

icke
2007-01-05, 07:15 AM
So this is the first final version?

Glooble's Bouncing Doom
Evocation [Electricity]
Level: Sor/Wiz 3
Components: V,S,M
Casting time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. +10/caster level)
Effect: Up to one ball of electricity per two levels(maximum 10), each about 1 inch in diameter.
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Reflex negates (see text)
Spell Resistance: Yes

The caster creates one ball of electricity per two caster levels, up to a maximum of ten, which appear in his or her hand. When realeased, they bounce with uncanny accuracy for 40 ft. per round toward up to five targets indicated by the caster. They can bounce over any wall up to 10 ft. tall, although doing so takes an entire round.
When a ball reaches its target, the target creature must make a reflex save or take 1d6 points of electricity damage. If a target takes repeated damage over time from the same ball it is entitled to a new reflex save. No more than two balls can attack the same target.
The balls continue attacking until the end of the spells duration or until the target moves out of range, although the target gets a new saving throw each round. The caster can redirect any number of balls toward new targets as a move action.
Material component: A one inch sphere of copper worth 1sp for each ball.



Maybe one should change the material component to 1gp per sphere, otherwise it won't really matter much if it didn't even exist.

Valairn
2007-01-05, 08:43 AM
I rename this spell kobold doom....

icke
2007-01-05, 06:58 PM
I rename this spell kobold doom....

Don't tell the level 15 rouge kobolds everyone is bound to encounter since Meepo...

Icewalker
2007-01-23, 11:55 PM
I like it, and I think it would be cool and somewhat realistic if the DC increases by one for each additional ball attacking the target, because they are trying to dodge multiple ones at once.

cferejohn
2007-01-24, 01:17 AM
Well *I* think it would be cool if there was a higher level version that conjured up a single 1-inch ball connected to a wooden paddle (focus) by an elastic/etheral cord that the caster could use to make multiple touch attacks in a round, but the *caster* needs to make a reflex save (of increasing difficulty) for each attack. Each successive attack does additional damage.

Glooble's Paddleball of Doom?

Gimmie some time and I'll think of how to turn it into some kind of game of jacks...

icke
2007-01-24, 09:16 AM
I like it, and I think it would be cool and somewhat realistic if the DC increases by one for each additional ball attacking the target, because they are trying to dodge multiple ones at once.

Since only two balls can attack the same target it won't be too hefty to allow a +1 to save DC against two balls.