Craft Contingent Spell

[sjeshin]

I am just at a loss here. I see a lot of people saying that high level wizards can have rediculous numbers of contingent spells, and can take advantage of celerity to just go before everyone and can never be killed because of this. Being interested in being nigh unkillable, (since my DM will just find a way so he's not really worried about banning) I have two questions.

How are you able to get past the normal limits for the feat to craft contingent spell?

Second, can someone give me an example of a wizard insta-gibbing a campaign nemesis because of celerity?

[Zanos]

Example: Fight starts, Wizard loses intiative but has crafted a contingent celerity for being cast when someone goes before him. He casts Time Stop, and then he casts shapechange and assumes chronotryn form, giving him (1d4+1)*2 -1 actions remaining. He casts dimensional lock, maw of chaos however many times he can, and then the solid version of forcecage.

Craft Contingent Spell allows a number of contingent spells equal to your hit die. If you have a contingency of a low level spell you think you'll use frequently and don't have Evocation banned, Contingency the spell doesn't really have a cost.

[Karnith]

How are you able to get past the normal limits for the feat to craft contingent spell?In what sense?

Since Contingent Spells are items, there are methods to make/buy them either for free or at very reduced cost (usually involving Wish abuse, but also through doing the Wight thing, Extract Demonic Essence, etc.). If you are talking about being limited to a certain number of Contingent Spells based on your HD, the easy way around that is to put Contingent Spells on your party and your minions. The triggering conditions on Contingent Spells aren't limiting at all, so someone else's Contingent Spell can trigger off of things that happen to you, if you are so inclined.

Second, can someone give me an example of a wizard insta-gibbing a campaign nemesis because of celerity?
Celerity is really a separate issue from Contingent Spells, since they are mostly separate ways to do get spells to go off when you aren't supposed to be able to cast spells (though Celerity tends to be an excellent spell to make into a Contingent Spell), but you could, for example, set up a series of Contingent Spell Celerities that trigger off of each other to get a whole bunch of free actions (which means free spells).

I have seen, though, an unprepared DM have his main villain be killed by a player using the well-worn combo of Celerity (with Foresight up) into Time Stop into Dimensional Lock -> metamagic'd Acid Fog -> Forcecage.
Yes, the DM was me. I was a lot younger, okay?
Then there are combats where Celerity into a BFC spell or a major debuff ruins combat for the enemies. Blasters can use it to eliminate some enemies as soon as combat starts, before enemies can get some of their defensive buffs up. You can also just use Celerity as a pseudo-Quicken spell. And then there's serious action economy abuse, like Twinned Celerity into Arcane Fusions, and the like.

[AWiz_Abroad]

I am not quite sure what your first question means.

"How are you able to get past the normal limits for the feat to craft contingent spell?"

You burn the XP and gold to craft it. . . .there isn't getting around that (barring some Eberonian Feats that reduce cost). What normal limits are you talking about?

As to your second point. Not instagib, but my story: My high level wizard and party were sent to break up a big bad summoning of an elder evil. We arrived just as the portal opened and tentacles started writhing. Pop Contingent Celerity by saying "OH @#$%" and then started going to town within a time stop to put a plug in the portal. Fired a wish off to utilize standard action Spell Engine to reprepare my spells, and rigged enough multiple layers of walls of force, walls of stone, and prismatic walls over the hole. It slowed the BBEG enough that we obliterated the mooks, and were all healed up by the time it burst through everything.

[Starmage21]

I am just at a loss here. I see a lot of people saying that high level wizards can have rediculous numbers of contingent spells, and can take advantage of celerity to just go before everyone and can never be killed because of this. Being interested in being nigh unkillable, (since my DM will just find a way so he's not really worried about banning) I have two questions.

How are you able to get past the normal limits for the feat to craft contingent spell?

Second, can someone give me an example of a wizard insta-gibbing a campaign nemesis because of celerity?

I dont know about a wizard, but what about a cleric that could instantly activate the Divine Trio before anyone else has a chance to buff? :D

[sjeshin]

Example: Fight starts, Wizard loses intiative but has crafted a contingent celerity for being cast when someone goes before him. He casts Time Stop, and then he casts shapechange and assumes chronotryn form, giving him (1d4+1)*2 -1 actions remaining. He casts dimensional lock, maw of chaos however many times he can, and then the solid version of forcecage.

Craft Contingent Spell allows a number of contingent spells equal to your hit die. If you have a contingency of a low level spell you think you'll use frequently and don't have Evocation banned, Contingency the spell doesn't really have a cost.

So if my DM wants to kill me, he simply sends a wizard at me and hopes it wins initiative?

[sjeshin]

I dont know about a wizard, but what about a cleric that could instantly activate the Divine Trio before anyone else has a chance to buff? :D

What is divine trio?

[sjeshin]

I am not quite sure what your first question means.

"How are you able to get past the normal limits for the feat to craft contingent spell?"
You burn the XP and gold to craft it. . . .there isn't getting around that (barring some Eberonian Feats that reduce cost). What normal limits are you talking about?.

I have seen claims of hundreds of contingent spells crafted... maybe they were just exaggerating?

[sjeshin]

In what sense?

Since Contingent Spells are items, there are methods to make/buy them either for free or at very reduced cost (usually involving Wish abuse, but also through doing the Wight thing, Extract Demonic Essence, etc.). If you are talking about being limited to a certain number of Contingent Spells based on your HD, the easy way around that is to put Contingent Spells on your party and your minions. The triggering conditions on Contingent Spells aren't limiting at all, so someone else's Contingent Spell can trigger off of things that happen to you, if you are so inclined..

I can't pull up the feat specifically, but all contingent spells say personal range. Is the feat worded differently?

[ryu]

I have seen claims of hundreds of contingent spells crafted... maybe they were just exaggerating?

Put them on minions you've shrunken to live in your robe. I like ice assassin dragons.

[Brookshw]

So if my DM wants to kill me, he simply sends a wizard at me and hopes it wins initiative?

If your DM wants to kill you then you're already dead.

[Karnith]

I can't pull up the feat specifically, but all contingent spells say personal range. Is the feat worded differently?
Yes, which is one of the reasons why it's very silly. You can use any spell to make a Contingent Spell, though the effect will always target the bearer, or affect an area centered on the bearer's square (so you can't get endless Celerities from other people's Contingent Spells).

This is why you generally put Contingent Spell area buffs/defensive spells on nearby minions. Alternately, exploding minions.

[ryu]

Yes, which is one of the reasons why it's very silly. You can use any spell to make a Contingent Spell, though the effect will always target the bearer, or affect an area centered on the bearer's square (so you can't get endless Celerities yourself from other people's Contingent Spells).

This is why you generally put Contignent Spell area buffs/defensive spells on nearby minions. Alternately, exploding minions.

Alternatively minions with casting each acting as a mini wizard.

[Segev]

If you are, for some reason, paranoid about being dropped through hp damage alone in a single round of full attacks - say, from a Samurai PC supposedly on your team but whose player is looking for an excuse to bring a personal dislike into the game world - Contingent Indomitabilities keyed to go off upon you being dealt enough damage to reduce you to 0 hp or fewer are fun. "No, that and the next 10 blows you deal will not bring me below 1 hp." Of course, it's not the most efficient use of your limited number of Contingent spells, but it's potentially fun.

[Starmage21]

What is divine trio?

Divine Favor (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/divineFavor.htm)
Divine Power (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/divinePower.htm)
Righteous Might (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/righteousMight.htm)

Get all 3 spells up, and your cleric becomes a melee monster! They all stack!

[Chronos]

Why use contingencies for those, when you can have them up all day?

[Starmage21]

Why use contingencies for those, when you can have them up all day?

There are times when being large could suck.