Living Spell Template

[Atypical_Necro]

I was flipping through the MMIII recently and came across the Living Spell template. I'm currently running a game and the PC's are frequenting a nation almost continuously ravaged by warfare; in other words, a perfect setting for a Living Spell. It helps that the template itself appeals to me, and its something no one else in our group has ever used.

I've got a couple of ideas, but I'm looking for more from all of you. What would be some good Living Spells to throw at the party? The PC's are level 8 and consist of a generic arcane spellcaster with a focus on debuffing and some ranged touch specialty, a generic divine spellcaster with a focus on healing and buffing, a sword and board warrior who combines self-buffing through class features and Knowledge Devotion to good effect, and a Dragonfire Adept/Dragon Shaman (some class features of both in one class) with a Bronze totem dragon.

I look forward to your ever-excellent ideas. :smallbiggrin:

[Atanvarno]

I've always thought it would be funny to have a living spell of Cure X Wounds.

Not only would it be incredibly useful if you capture it alive, but you could make it quite dangerous by treating overhealing the same way the positive energy plane does: Fort save or explode! :smallbiggrin:

On other hand, for an interesting straight up fight, you could do a hybrid vampiric touch + targeted slashing dispel magic. It'll explode their buffs for bonus damage as well as draining away life every time it hits someone. :smallamused:

[Atypical_Necro]

Those would be pretty interesting. Unfortunately, I believe the template requires that the base spells affect an area; targeted spells are invalid. While I could override that, being the DM and whatnot, I'd like to keep with the rules of the template. Otherwise I'd absolutely use the vampiric touch/slashing dispel combo!

[The Great Wyrm]

Living Solid Fog . . .

[Atanvarno]

Ah, so it does, pitty. Slashing dispel also has a 20 foot burst mode, just like dispel magic, so you could pair it with another area spell?

Black Tentacles / Slashing Dispel would be pretty terrifying.

Actually, a living Black Tentacles spell on its own would be pretty terrifying. :smallamused:

[Inevitability]

Living Anti-magic field. :smalltongue:

[Ellowryn]

Ah, so it does, pitty. Slashing dispel also has a 20 foot burst mode, just like dispel magic, so you could pair it with another area spell?

Black Tentacles / Slashing Dispel would be pretty terrifying.

Actually, a living Black Tentacles spell on its own would be pretty terrifying. :smallamused:

Nah, if you really want terror toss that template on Black Tentacle's bigger, meaner brother Evan's Spiked Tentacles of Forced Intrusion! (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0020.html)

[cesius]

A living Amplify spell from Spell Compendium would be hilarious. It's basically the opposite of Silence.

[Baroknik]

Energy Transformation Field. Combine with a symbiotic relationship with one to charge it, and have the ETF have a spell that is normally invalid for Living Spell -- say... Wish?

Edit: wish is out due to components, so make it a good old non-xp Miracle ("God-Ooze")

[Psyren]

A Living Silence can be eerie and similarly dangerous to a living AMF without being quite so rough for a lower-level party to deal with. Living Sleep is also pretty dangerous to a low-level party without being insurmountable (as it will wake them up with each slam.)

Living Blasphemy is quite nasty and was helpfully statted up for you in the MM3.

Living Prismatic Spray is just all kinds of fun.

Remember that "effect" spells can get the template too, so long as they are not targeted and do not create creatures. These can be tricky to adjudicate though. For example, will a "Create Food" living spell generate gruel every time it slams something? Can it eat the gruel?

[ShurikVch]

Living Plague of Undead, or even Field of Ghouls

Living Planar Bubble

Living Node Genesis

Living Genesis

[Judge_Worm]

I've always wanted to do a Living Spell Sphere of Annihilation.
But that might be beyond the capabilities of a level 8 party.
A living spell of Dimdoor/teleport/planar jaunt/etc would be interesting for a lower mid-level party.

[Bad Wolf]

Living Prestidigitation.

[The Grue]

Living Snowcast Flash Frost Energy Substituted Born of Three Thunders Explosive Locate City.

[ShurikVch]

Living Snowcast Flash Frost Energy Substituted Born of Three Thunders Explosive Locate City. Annoying thing! :smallsmile: Make people fly 0' !

[daremetoidareyo]

living reverse gravity is scary as all heck: as soon as it hits you, you fall up! Then, after all the PCs are floating up high, the spell wanders off and ...they fall...down.

Rope trick is amazing although you would have to tweak it a bit. The PCs are slammed, enter this pocket dimension filled with the skeletons of other people hit by the spell.

Zone of peace from cityscape is a scary mofo if the living spell hits them in the surprise round.

Cone of euphoria is just plain weird. Crap, I'm dazed by pleasure again!!!

"End to strife" from exalted deeds is this terrible 20d6 damage nonlethal damage curse if the pc attacks!

A group of hobgoblins with class levels and crossbows who keep a "positive energy aura" trapped in a cage between them.

[Fax Celestis]

I present to you: Li. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=2174577&postcount=388)

[ShurikVch]

Living Apocalypse from the Sky

[Jeff the Green]

Remember that "effect" spells can get the template too, so long as they are not targeted and do not create creatures. These can be tricky to adjudicate though. For example, will a "Create Food" living spell generate gruel every time it slams something? Can it eat the gruel?

...I am stealing this.

How about a living fell drain fell frighten fell animate Kelgore's grave mist?

[Atypical_Necro]

Thanks for all the input everybody! Some of these are downright frightening! Keep them coming, I've got a little while in game before they're back in the area so I can gather many ideas. :smallbiggrin:

[The Insaniac]

One that I've used before and was very nasty was living great thunderclap. Let's also not forget that you can use a targeted spell in a living spell as long as it's part of a multi-living spell (like the living finger of death and despair).

[Seclora]

Living Anti-magic field. :smalltongue:

My DM once threw something like this at us. Only, it wasn't just an Anti-Magic Field, it was a Living Anti-Magic Field/Forcecage. It didn't kill you, it just took you prisoner. He called them 'Mobile Containment Units'.

Much more effective than their predecessor, the Otto's Irresistible Dance/Heal Living Spell 'Dancing Life Ooze', We took that one home.

[Fax Celestis]

I'm not really sure how a Living Legion of Sentinels would work.

[Jeff the Green]

Much more effective than their predecessor, the Otto's Irresistible Dance/Heal Living Spell 'Dancing Life Ooze', We took that one home.

That one could actually be pretty dangerous—it kills the main group of creatures that's immune to its disabling function. It'd make an awesome crypt guardian.

[With a box]

living Mordenkainen's Disjunction?
nightmare of magic item..

[torrasque666]

That one could actually be pretty dangerous—it kills the main group of creatures that's immune to its disabling function. It'd make an awesome crypt guardian.

Proceed to raid crypts with Warforged Juggernaut. Laugh at its attempts to make you dance the healing dance.

[Psyren]

Heal is a targeted spell and so is not eligible to be a LS. Most healing spells are targeted in fact, including the Mass X spells or even Vigorous Circle.

[Jeff the Green]

Proceed to raid crypts with Warforged Juggernaut. Laugh at its attempts to make you dance the healing dance.

This is why it's best friends with a living Transmute Rock to Mud/Rusting Grasp


Heal is a targeted spell and so is not eligible to be a LS. Most healing spells are targeted in fact, including the Mass X spells or even Vigorous Circle.

Which just means you need to combine it with something like detect magic.

[Sith_Happens]

Living Bestow Curse. The more it hits you, the harder you suck.

[Psyren]

Which just means you need to combine it with something like detect magic.

No matter how many you're applying it to, they all still have to be legal, because that's part of the rules for the template.


Living Bestow Curse. The more it hits you, the harder you suck.

This is another targeted spell.

[Jeff the Green]

No matter how many you're applying it to, they all still have to be legal, because that's part of the rules for the template.

Apparently not, since there's one called the Shroud of Death and Despair in Five Nations that mixes crushing despair and finger of death.

[Psyren]

Apparently not, since there's one called the Shroud of Death and Despair in Five Nations that mixes crushing despair and finger of death.

It's almost like WotC doesn't know their own rules or something! That never happens! :smalltongue:

[torrasque666]

It's almost like WotC doesn't know their own rules or something! That never happens! :smalltongue:

Sickening Sleep, same book as the template even. Uses Ray of Enfeeblement. Its not likely that they'd screw it up in the same book that it was printed in. Especially not within 3 pages of the original rules text. Further proof that only one needs to be an area spell.

[Telok]

Living Scintillating Pattern (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/scintillatingPattern.htm). It only asks if you're immune to mind-affecting, capable of vision in any way, and less than 16 HD.

Living Greater Shadow Conjuration can be fun.

A living Greater Dispel / Spell Resistance could be nasty. Is seems counter intuitive but the SR will be on the victim at least half the time and it's a standard action every round to lower your spell resistance. Not only are you getting hit with the dispells but your allies have to beat the SR to heal or buff you.

If you want ugly Greater Glyph of Warding can be an area spell and hold any spell up to 6th level. This includes interesting things like Word of Recall and Geas.

[ShurikVch]

I'm not really sure how a Living Legion of Sentinels would work.
Isn't it under the prohibition? "...but not a spell whose effect is already a creature"


Living Prestidigitation.

Living Greater Shadow Conjuration can be fun.
There is a problem: most of Living Spells are mindless. Who will chose the effect?

[Telok]

There is a problem: most of Living Spells are mindless. Who will chose the effect?

The DM of course. Actually it's probably whatever effect the original caster was trying for when the crud hit the fan. Mostly it's just a way to get conjurations that normally wouldn't qualify for the template into there.

But I think that the Glyph of Warding one works better for that. You can stick a summons in that one.

[Necroticplague]

Honestly, the way living spells work, it would actually be a lot clearer if the spells applicable were the opposite: only applicable to rays or targeted spells. Because as is, living spells make the most sense when they apply to AoE damage, get a bit fuzzy when you do CC , and then get really confusing when you get to utility effects.

That being said, an interesting one I've used before was a living desecrate used to make a bunch of undead stronger (and harder to turn).

[Fax Celestis]

Isn't it under the prohibition? "...but not a spell whose effect is already a creature

Nah, that means "Effect: one summoned creature".

Ray of enfeeblement is eligible, actually, because it's not "Target: one creature", it's "Effect: Ray". Living spell can be applied to any area or effect spell, not area of effect spell.

[Psyren]

Sickening Sleep, same book as the template even. Uses Ray of Enfeeblement. Its not likely that they'd screw it up in the same book that it was printed in. Especially not within 3 pages of the original rules text. Further proof that only one needs to be an area spell.

RoE is not a targeted spell, it's a ray. Rays and Orbs are both legal. So this proves nothing regarding FoD.

[ShurikVch]

Nah, that means "Effect: one summoned creature".
Hey, most of spells doesn't even have line "Effect:"
What's about the results of the Animate Dead? Field of Ghouls?
Minor Servitor?
Wererats from the Curse of Lycanthropy?
Your evil twin from the Searing Seed?

[Psyren]

Animate Dead and Curse of Lycanthropy are targeted, so they're out.

Field of Ghouls is actually fine and pretty flavorful. It's an ooze that kills and reanimates people all at once. It's not like it's creating ghouls out of the ether.

Minor Servitor is 3.0 and likely that effect line would be changed to create an animated object (a creature) instead of an object.

Never heard of Searing Seed.

[Fax Celestis]

Hey, most of spells doesn't even have line "Effect:"

…which would make them ineligible for Living Spell.

[ShurikVch]

…which would make them ineligible for Living Spell.
Living Flesh to Stone (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ls/20060918a)

[Psyren]

Eh, all his other sample spells in that article and the others followed the proper rules (area or effect, non-targeted) so I can chalk LFtS up to an error.

All the contrary examples in the world (and there aren't even that many) don't change what the RAW says for the template, and WotC's reputation for statblock proofreading errors is legendary.

[Fax Celestis]

Living Flesh to Stone (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ls/20060918a)


It's almost like WotC doesn't know their own rules or something! That never happens! :smalltongue:

I'm with Psy

[Necroticplague]

Also, at the beginning of that article:


In this series we'll create stat blocks for various "common" living spells (saving you the work of doing so) and explore the boundaries of the living spell template by applying it to unusual spells or those that don't quite fit its requirements. The end result for you is a series of useful living spells, some of them less predictable than others.

Also, the text before Living Flesh to Stone says:

Generals are always trying to find a way to prevent enemies from charging, particularly cavalry, and eventually a clever mage developed the gorgon's stony breath spell, which slowed approaching enemies and eventually turned them into obstacles for later charges. Though living spells of this type are rare in the Mournland, some lonely hills are dotted with hundreds of statues in battle poses, leading some to believe a medusa, basilisk, or gorgon lairs nearby. This living spell was formed using a modified flesh to stone spell with caster level 12.

So, despite the name, Living Flesh to Stone isn't actually based on Flesh to Stone, but Gorgon's Stony Breath, which, based on the name, would be an area of effect version of Stone to Flesh. This is further supported by looking at what it does to those engulfed or hit by its slam, which first slows them, and then petrifies those who are slowed, instead of simply effecting them with Stone to Flesh.

EDIT:it also specifically calls that one out in the paragraph right before the header labeled "Living flesh to stone", second paragraph of the designer notes.

Double Edit: In order to actually provide some stuff closer to the topic of the thread, I'll mention the possibility of Living Reality Maelstrom. Each hit requires save vs. transported to other plane. And a CL 1 version would be DC 20, CR 8. So only the cleric or monk would really have half a chance against staying around if they got hit.

[Psyren]

Thanks Necrotic. So he was basically homebrewing some spells to apply the template to in order to catch his players that actually knew the rules off-guard. They need to call out that they're doing that a bit more prominently.

[atemu1234]

I saw nothing in the rules preventing you from using epic spells. /breakable

Living Mass Heal ftw!