Looking for a specific spell

[killem2]

I know Darkness exists.

However, I have a new Beguiler (creature) Wizard I'll be playing this weekend, that is template with the Dark Creature template so he has Hide in Plain Sight.

Is there any spell that makes an entire area shadowy, rather than completely dark? :smallconfused:

That way our low light vision friends can see too?

[Darrin]

Is there any spell that makes an entire area shadowy, rather than completely dark? :smallconfused:


I'm confused. Is this a 3.0 game? Darkness and deeper darkness create shadowy illumination. I thought creating complete darkness is the really tough one to pull off (although blacklight in the Spell Compendium should work).

[Maginomicon]

I'm confused. Is this a 3.0 game? Darkness and deeper darkness create shadowy illumination. I thought creating complete darkness is the really tough one to pull off (although blacklight in the Spell Compendium should work).Darkness and deeper darkness create pitch black darkness, as they outright explicitly prevent all normal light from illuminating the area (normal light includes sunlight). If normal light can't light the area, it's pitch black. Sooooo many people ignore that line in the spell description it's appalling.

As for the OP, no spell to my knowledge does it, but a darklight (psionic item, Secrets of Sarlona page 140) would do it.

A darklight allows the user to control the relative level of light and shadow in an area, rendering the surroundings as bright as day or as dark as night.

Description: A darklight consists of a black wireframe resembling a small lantern, within which a slate-gray crystal hangs.

When a darklight is activated, the crystal turns a molten black (when decreasing the level of ambient light) or a brilliant ice-white (when increasing the level of ambient light). Because a darklight adjusts the level of ambient light already in an area, it does not glow or give off any other sign that it is the source of the change in light levels.

Prerequisite: A darklight must be imbued with psionic energy in order to function.

Activation: Imbuing a darklight with psionic power is a standard action. Controlling a darklight is a free action for the character holding it. A darklight can be used for 24 hours per power point imbued into it, and it can hold a maximum of 7 power points at any time. The level of light can be adjusted (or the darklight disabled or enabled) with a mental command. A darklight does not use its stored power while disabled.

Effect: A darklight works by adjusting the levels of ambi*ent light in an area either gradually or instantaneously. A darklight affects an 80-foot radius and can be set to one of four settings. The light and shadow created by a darklight is not magical or psionic in nature, and so can be overcome by any source of magical or psionic light or shadow.

No Light: In areas of bright light or shadowy illumination, a darklight can decrease the level of ambient light to total darkness.

Shadow: In areas of darkness or bright light, a darklight can increase or decrease the ambient light to the level of starlight or other shadowy illumination. In areas of total darkness, a darklight amplifies latent heat energy (however faint) to provide normal visible light.

Bright Light: A darklight can increase shadowy illumination to the bright light given off by a lantern or torch.

Beacon: A darklight can raise the level of bright light to extreme brightness, causing creatures in the area (including the user) to be dazzled unless they make a DC 14 Fortitude save.

Aura/Manifester Level: Faint psychokinesis. ML 3rd.

Construction: Craft Universal Item, control light (EPH 87), 250 gp, 20 XP, 5 days.

Variants: In the cities of Riedra, darklights are not hand*held devices but are embedded into the structure of the buildings themselves. As a result, the streets of Riedran cities seem to glow with a light that has no real source, as ambient starlight and moonlight are amplified to near-daylight levels. Chosen are typically tasked with charging and regulating these communal darklights on a regular basis.

Weight: 1 lb.

Price: 500gp.

[Darrin]

Darkness and deeper darkness create pitch black darkness, as they outright explicitly prevent all normal light from entering the area. If normal light can't light the area, it's pitch black. Sooooo many people ignore that line in the spell description it's appalling.


Normal light can't penetrate the area, but the target object itself is radiating shadowy illumination. In fact, that's the first sentence in the spell description:

"This spell causes an object to radiate shadowy illumination out to a 20-foot radius."

So no, these spells do not create pitch black darkness in normal lighting conditions. You can still pinpoint and target creatures within magical darkness, but they get a 20% miss chance. If you want pitch black, you need access to the Spell Compendium to cast blacklight. (Casting darkness within naturally occurring total darkness to create "shadowy illumination" is a known and much-mocked Dysfunction.)

OP: Darkness and deeper darkness already do what you want, unless you're playing with 3.0 rules. Creatures with low-light vision can see further under shadowy conditions, but still must roll a 20% miss chance due to concealment. To negate the concealment, you need something like the Pierce Magical Concealment feat, or some way to see through magical darkness. A warlock with the Devil's Sight invocation can see normally, but I don't think he can cast this on other PCs.

If you want the ability to blind your opponents while allowing your party to see normally, obscuring snow + snowsight (both from Frostburn) creates a 30' radius globe of pure homicide, 1 hour per caster level.

[Maginomicon]

Normal light can't penetrate the area, but the target object itself is radiating shadowy illumination. In fact, that's the first sentence in the spell description:

"This spell causes an object to radiate shadowy illumination out to a 20-foot radius."

So no, these spells do not create pitch black darkness in normal lighting conditions. You can still pinpoint and target creatures within magical darkness, but they get a 20% miss chance. If you want pitch black, you need access to the Spell Compendium to cast blacklight. (Casting darkness within naturally occurring total darkness to create "shadowy illumination" is a known and much-mocked Dysfunction.)
It always boggles my mind when people try to assert that "radiates shadowy illumination" means that it creates a state condition of illumination for the affected area. Even if you could somehow make a case that it's RAW, it's most certainly not RAI. The terms “shadowy illumination” and “dim light” refer to the same lighting condition. In those spells, they describe a general case and follow it with exceptions and clarifications. One of those exceptions is "normal lights (torches, candles, lanterns, and so forth) are incapable of brightening the area", overriding the earlier general case. Elementary physics and common sense (although RAW hates them) always dictate RAI, and thus that's what should be used in play and in common parlance. (This is the last I personally will say on this matter. Quote-replying to this specific post to attempt a rebuttal is thus pointless.)

[killem2]

Maybe I should just get a big umbrella lol :smallyuk:

[Psyren]

The PF version makes more sense - it lowers the ambient light conditions rather than trying to radiate anything. Yes, in 3.5 casting Darkness in a pitch-black room will make it brighter. I doubt this was intended, but it's just one more fail in a long line of silliness (see also the Dysfunction thread.)

[Chronos]

It always boggles my mind when people try to assert that "radiates shadowy illumination" means that it creates a state condition of illumination for the affected area. Even if you could somehow make a case that it's RAW, it's most certainly not RAI. The terms “shadowy illumination” and “dim light” refer to the same lighting condition. In those spells, they describe a general case and follow it with exceptions and clarifications. One of those exceptions is "normal lights (torches, candles, lanterns, and so forth) are incapable of brightening the area", overriding the earlier general case.
Except that we don't have normal lights brightening the area. We have the spell itself brightening the area. Yes, this is a stupid rule, but it is also quite clear. There is no reasonable interpretation of the rules that leads to the Darkness spell producing total darkness. If you want to houserule that it does, that's a perfectly good houserule, and one that I would agree with, but don't try to claim that it's not a houserule.

[Helcack]

No Light from BOVD(It's a 0 level spell) I use it for the same reason you would be =P although you'd need darkvision actually.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Get a tiny pendant on a string that you can wear around your neck. Put Unguent of Timelessness (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#unguentofTimelessness) on the pendant itself, so its passage of time is one day of age per one year of actual time. Hire an NPC spellcaster to put Extended Deeper Darkness on the pendant at caster level 20, at standard rates (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/equipment/goodsAndServices.htm#spell) it should cost only 800 gp and last 40 days. Due to the unguent on the object it's cast on, it will take one year of actual time for one day of its duration to pass, so it will actually last 40 years. The pendant itself is still a mundane item so it will not occupy a magic item space on your character.

You can place the pendant in your mouth, blocking the effect, with the string/chain still around your neck. When you need it to be dark, you can 'drop' it as a free action by spitting it out, it falls back down to your chest as normal when it's worn and plunges the area into darkness. If you're worried about light spells cancelling it out, get the initial spell cast with Heighten Spell applied so it counts as a higher level darkness effect and can automatically override any lower level light spells, including Daylight. NPC spellcasting if it's Heightened to 9th level and Greater Rod of Extended should be only 2,000 gp.

Note that a Continual Flame (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/continualFlame.htm) that's been Heightened to 9th level can automatically override any darkness effect of lower level. The standard NPC spellcasting fee at the minimum caster level is only 1,580 gp for this, and it lasts forever (unless dispelled). A Heightened Light/Darkness arms race often leads to using Earth Spell to make it count as a 10th+ level spell, getting multiple instances of the same effect as equal level effects cancel each other one-for-one, etc. It can get out of hand quickly.

[Karnith]

There is no reasonable interpretation of the rules that leads to the Darkness spell producing total darkness.
Particularly since "shadowy illumination" and "darkness" are actually defined as separate things, the former of which bears a suspicious resemblance to the effect of a Darkness spell. Per the SRD (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/exploration.htm#visionAndLight):

Dwarves and half-orcs have darkvision, but everyone else needs light to see by. See Table: Light Sources and Illumination for the radius that a light source illuminates and how long it lasts.

In an area of bright light, all characters can see clearly. A creature can’t hide in an area of bright light unless it is invisible or has cover.

In an area of shadowy illumination, a character can see dimly. Creatures within this area have concealment relative to that character. A creature in an area of shadowy illumination can make a Hide check to conceal itself.

In areas of darkness, creatures without darkvision are effectively blinded. In addition to the obvious effects, a blinded creature has a 50% miss chance in combat (all opponents have total concealment), loses any Dexterity bonus to AC, takes a -2 penalty to AC, moves at half speed, and takes a -4 penalty on Search checks and most Strength and Dexterity-based skill checks.

Characters with low-light vision (elves, gnomes, and half-elves) can see objects twice as far away as the given radius. Double the effective radius of bright light and of shadowy illumination for such characters.

Characters with darkvision (dwarves and half-orcs) can see lit areas normally as well as dark areas within 60 feet. A creature can’t hide within 60 feet of a character with darkvision unless it is invisible or has cover.
(Emphasis mine)