I need to fuel an airship but I have one problem.

[RPGaddict28]

I'm only a 5th level wizard.

The current story is that we're gonna steal/build an airship, and we need to power it. However, the Thieve's Guild is also trying to make one, and they want to steal a gem with a fire elemental from Mordenkainen. Our old DM told us that it will work as a fuel source, and that normal fuels probably wouldn't be able to power it.

Ultimately, I want either the best way to steal this gem, or to power an airship.

[avr]

OK. Did you have a question?

[MonochromeTiger]

I'm only a 5th level wizard.

The current story is that we're gonna steal/build an airship, and we need to power it. However, the Thieve's Guild is also trying to make one, and they want to steal a gem with a fire elemental from Mordenkainen. Our old DM told us that it will work as a fuel source, and that normal fuels probably wouldn't be able to power it.

there's always the evil method, tip off the security for the gem, while they're butchering the thieves guild use the good will of the owners to get the gem for yourselves and run, preferably while torching the building so that if they finish the thieves they still have to deal with the fire before pursuing.

[RPGaddict28]

there's always the evil method, tip off the security for the gem, while they're butchering the thieves guild use the good will of the owners to get the gem for yourselves and run, preferably while torching the building so that if they finish the thieves they still have to deal with the fire before pursuing.

Problem is, Discern Location can locate us no matter where we go, unless we get a god on our side.

[Epsilon Rose]

I'm only a 5th level wizard.

The current story is that we're gonna steal/build an airship, and we need to power it. However, the Thieve's Guild is also trying to make one, and they want to steal a gem with a fire elemental from Mordenkainen. Our old DM told us that it will work as a fuel source, and that normal fuels probably wouldn't be able to power it.

Clearly, your plan will start by making sure Modenkainen finds out about this attempted theft. That will eliminate your competition, and the thieves guild, and if done right might earn you a minor boon from a powerful mage.

From there, if he's nice enough, you could ask him for a gem of an air elemental or the tools to make one yourself. Failing that, you've still eliminated your competition and can now begin looking into alternative methods of propulsion/lift.

The simplest method would be to build a dirigible. Simply get a large container to fill with lighter than air gas (helium is good, but hot air also works). If you have a lenient DM and want to get fancy, you could also try using a few scrolls of permanency (Possibly from Mr. M) and a levitate to create some floating anchors for your ship. In either case, you could try using repeating spell traps of gust of wind for propulsion (possibly in combination with sails, but that makes physics cry).

Alternatively, you could just let the thieves steal the gem from the ultra-powerful mage and then steal it from them.

[MonochromeTiger]

Problem is, Discern Location can locate us no matter where we go, unless we get a god on our side.

it would do the same to the thieves guild if used on them, if they were confident enough to try stealing a magical item from an easily angered group with discern location they must've felt atleast some security in the act. stupid as this may sound, split the group and have someone check their base for something that defends against detection or even something to blackmail them into covering for you.

[Invader]

Well Mordenkainen is 27th lvl iirc so he already knows everyone is coming and he's going to kill everyone so you should find another gem.

[Ragnorrok]

try to get a boat enchanted to fly somehow (that's what my DM allowed but I later learned he wasn't too good with his knowledge).

[GiantkillerJack]

I thought that was what cloud keels were for...

For the dirigible, use a set of greater wind favored sails.

Also, I am rather certain the Eberron book had some feats for artificers that specifically applied to airships. One in particular was the ability to bind an elemental into crafted objects.

That should be some fun research. And seriously, don't take on Mordenkaiden, seriously a bad idea.

[Alabenson]

My suggestion, based on what I know about Mordenkainen, would be to ask him very nicely if you could have the gem (possibly in exchange for running a quest or two for him) and pray to whatever god you worship that your alignment isn't the one he's decided needs to be culled this week.

Seriously, you're level 5, and he's a level 27 wizard; there is no possible way you are going to take this gem from him if he doesn't want you to.

[Marnath]

Yeah, gonna have to agree with the people saying "don't." There must be someone else who owns a gem like this that isn't a high level epic caster.

[AstralFire]

Tell Mordenkainen what the thieves' guild is up to and see if he's willing to reward you for it?

[LTwerewolf]

Problem is, Discern Location can locate us no matter where we go, unless we get a god on our side.

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/nondetection.htm

Find ways to boost caster levels to very high levels.

[Tysis]

You can't steal from epic caster, and if someone actually manages to you won't want to be anywhere near the poor soul that's holding the stolen item when the caster starts looking for it.

The easiest way would be getting a dirigible or zeppelin. Following that using the bind elemental feat which wouldn't be available til level 9.

Getting a cloud keel or building a ship out of soarwood are other options, but it wont become available for quite a while without wbl abuse. Unless of course you aren't paying for it because you're working for a organization that rivals the thieves guild.

[avr]

Mordenkainen may have more than one solution. He's a planar traveller with strange riches from other Prime planes such as his lethal steel 'wands' which work in an antimagic zone. Maybe rather than giving up his power core Fire Gem you could earn his appreciation and get another means of flight off him. Supposedly he's one of the good guys.

Failing that; even though you're presumably in Greyhawk, there may be some equivalent to the ingredients of Eberron's airships. Soarwood or something similar to provide neutral buoyancy and bound elementals to provide propulsion.

Or, if a ship from Spelljammer has crashed somewhere near, there might be a helm you could attach to some seagoing vessel.

Pretty much any solution will break WBL absurdly so keep that in mind.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

The answer is always "human souls".

[avr]

The answer is always "human souls".
Oh yeah, if spelljamming is on the table the illithids might be able to do you a deal.

[Bullet06320]

Oh yeah, if spelljamming is on the table the illithids might be able to do you a deal.

spelljamming is an easy way, I think create minor helm is a 3rd level spell

[Arc_knight25]

You could do it the honest way. Work for a airship as crew/merc/added protection. Learn from the crew and the captain on how to actually sail an airship and get all the associated skills. Then either mutiny or see if the captain has connections on getting you your own airship.

Or just steal one. Kill the captain and anyone else on board that would oppose you. Try to befriend a mass number of goblins/kobalds/orcs/hobgoblins and become pirates.

[Vedhin]

Two major ways:

Physics! Side effects may include projectile books, broken brains, singularities, time paradoxes, rocks fall everybody dies, and dead catgirls. Required materials may be unavailable at youe WBL

Permanency+Gust of Wind! Side effects do not include harmful emissions. Required materials are scrolls of the aforementioned spells, and a sail.

[Ruethgar]

Make physics cry with powdered water. It is technically an explosive and it is cheap to make. If you had a good way to calculate just how explosive, you could get the power needed and make a pretty simple engine for it. A full fledged airship might not be cost effective, but something smaller could be.

[Juntao112]

Step 1: Decanter of Endless Water
Step 2: Permanent Wall of Fire
Step 3: ???
Step 4: Profit

[Epsilon Rose]

powdered water

...
What...
...

I don't even...

Where is this from. How does that even work?

Seriously though, the only place I've heard of something like powdered water is disk world. I would be immensely entertained if you could point me to some actual rules for it in 3.5/pf.

[Icewraith]

Raise some undead (you may need a scroll, but it's doable at your level) and command them to operate the machinery to power your airship. (Maybe a line of exercise bikes?) You can try constructs, but you're a bit high level for that, and they're generally really heavy. Fewer issues with obedience though.

Alternatively you could make the airship self-powering using animate object, but that may require permanency and higher level spells. Gears that turn themselves etc.

If you can get a permanent wind wall or gust of wind set up in a big tube with a small aperture at one end you've made your own jet engine or hovercraft, depending on how strong the spell effect ends up being and how large a reduction in area you end up with.

[Vedhin]

...
What...
...

I don't even...

Where is this from. How does that even work?


It's in Dragon Magazine #280, pg. 52.

Instant water, just add water!

One ounce of powdered water and one drop of water equals one gallon of water.

[RPGaddict28]

I already go that stealing from Mordenkainen, but our supposedly good cleric insists on stealing it, even to the point of praying to some obscure dwarf god. Although, doing quests for him, and getting another way to power our ship from him is really simple, and I never thought of it.

[lytokk]

Have you tried asking him for it? A wizard that powerful would need something to occupy his day, and tuning in the scrying orb to watch a couple of newbie adventurers attempt to pilot an airship could provide good entertainment for quite a while.

[Xervous]

Obviously, he watched you trying to pilot the airship a week ago, now if he just remembers to check his calendar he'll see that he needs to give you the gem so his past self could watch you try it in the current time.

[Haldir]

Sounds like your DM is setting a trap for you. I recommend looking for another adventure.

[Epsilon Rose]

I already go that stealing from Mordenkainen, but our supposedly good cleric insists on stealing it, even to the point of praying to some obscure dwarf god. Although, doing quests for him, and getting another way to power our ship from him is really simple, and I never thought of it.

How is a supposedly good cleric justifying theft from a supposedly decent (good?) wizard?

[jindra34]

How is a supposedly good cleric justifying theft from a supposedly decent (good?) wizard?

Mordenkainen isn't good. He's Neutral by active choice, meaning he actively tries to keep the other alignments in balance.

[Psyren]

Tell Mordenkainen what the thieves' guild is up to and see if he's willing to reward you for it?

This, this, this.

[Sith_Happens]

How is a supposedly good cleric justifying theft from a supposedly decent (good?) wizard?

Isn't Mordenkainen Stupid Neutral (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StupidNeutral)?

EDIT: Forgot there was a second page.

[Epsilon Rose]

Mordenkainen isn't good. He's Neutral by active choice, meaning he actively tries to keep the other alignments in balance.


Isn't Mordenkainen Stupid Neutral (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StupidNeutral)?

EDIT: Forgot there was a second page.

Fair enough. That's why I had decent, with good in parentheses. He's still not evil or some kinda cultist who you need to steal the mcguffin from in order to stop there doomsday ritual.

I mean, it wouldn't really be good to steal from a nuetral commoner or druid either, would it?

[jindra34]

Fair enough. That's why I had decent, with good in parentheses. He's still not evil or some kinda cultist who you need to steal the mcguffin from in order to stop there doomsday ritual.

I mean, it wouldn't really be good to steal from a nuetral commoner or druid either, would it?

Well no. But they don't have a history of flip-flopping on what alignments they support as soon as the balance shift. So it might be justified by saying they are taking it so that he won't use it against the forces of good once they've done their bit (which might/should greatly shift the balance).

[Vedhin]

Isn't Mordenkainen Stupid Neutral (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StupidNeutral)?

Even without looking at the page, I can tell you the answer is yes. Mordekainen is to maintain-the-Balance True Neutral as Lawful Stupid Paladins are to Lawful Good.
I'd put him at Chaotic Neutral myself. Ultimately, he just follows his whims.

Actual maintain-the-Balance True Neutral doesn't feel the need to kick a puppy after petting it. It tends to be fine as long as no one side has an absolutely overwhelming advantage. It might interfere in smaller scale issues, but it will have other motivations besides "maintain the balance".

Maintain-the-Balance True Neutral is actually the alignment that should act solely for alignment based reasons the least. As long as nothing major is happening, it doesn't care what philosophy others follow.

[Phelix-Mu]

Clearly the cleric has already been corrupted by the Elder Elemental Eye, and is convinced that, if an appropriate sacrifice of thieves and adventurers is made, he will be rewarded with....

....

Oh, right, Elder Elemental Eye! No reward, the cleric is just mad!

And that explains why the cleric wants to attack one of the strongest individuals on the planet, kids! Lesson: Don't give a mouse a cookie.