Help choosing living spells

[TallerSpine]

Background info:
The party is 17th level. They are in Thelanis, looking to gain entry into an Unseelie Court temple. The fey are challenging the party. They first had to gain access to a lawless town of fey where the queen's rule holds no power. Once they gained entrance, they needed to free an enslaved fey. They found the fey, but it is owned by a former prince of the Unseelie court. He is a ragewalker who abdicated his position millennia ago. In order to leave the town with the enslaved fey, they must defeat the ragewalker in a duel. The ragewalker challenged the party archer. While the two battle, the party will be playing with an eldritch machine that will influence the fight.

Question: what kinds of living spells should the ragewalker have with it? I want spells that are interesting and unconventional. Something rebellious, just like the ragewalker.

[InterstellarPro]

Living confusion? Make the archer turn on the rest of the party? With the ragewalker's Induce Blood Frenzy ability, the archer can do some damage before the rest of the party realizes what is going on.

How about spells that aid the ragewalker? Battlefield Control, buffs and debuffs?

Or what if instead of living spells, this particular ragewalker has spurned that innate ability, honing a different set of skills. Maybe give it a class level or two? Barbarian could be fun.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

What's the target/max HD of the living spells? A Ragewalker rebukes/commands living spells as a Cleric of half its HD, and normally has 22 HD, so it can command living spells of up to 5 HD (half its effective Cleric level). A Fey gets +1 CR per +4 HD (rounded down), so at 28 HD it's CR 15 and can command 7 HD living spells. At 36 HD it's CR 17 and can command 9 HD living spells.

You could give it a version of a Talisman of Undead Mastery (MIC) that only works for rebuking oozes (which the Ooze domain grants), increasing the maximum HD of oozes it can command by two if it gets +4 effective levels when doing so. That item is only 3,000 gp.

A 5 HD ooze is only up to 3rd level spells, a 7 HD ooze is up to 4th, a 9 HD ooze is up to 5th, and an 11 HD ooze is up to 6th level spells. A living spell can have multiple spells on it, which increases its CR without affecting its HD or his ability to control it.



Ray of Stupidity (SC, 2nd) deals 1d4+1 Int damage, no saving throw, a creature reduced to Int 0 is comatose and disabled. A living spell with Ray of Stupidity on it four times deals 4d4+4 Int damage per hit, and it's CR is 5 + 1/2 caster level (rounded down, minimum caster level 3rd). A higher caster level gives it more HD and a higher bonus to hit.

Combining Ray of Exhaustion twice (3rd), Ray of Sickness (SC, 2nd), and Ray of Weakness (SC, 2nd) will seriously debuff anyone hit by it. Their save versus the Ray of Exhaustion won't matter unless they have Mettle, since it's on there twice. The CR for this is 6 + 1/2 caster level (rounded down, minimum caster level 5th).

[TallerSpine]

Living confusion? Make the archer turn on the rest of the party? With the ragewalker's Induce Blood Frenzy ability, the archer can do some damage before the rest of the party realizes what is going on.

How about spells that aid the ragewalker? Battlefield Control, buffs and debuffs?

Or what if instead of living spells, this particular ragewalker has spurned that innate ability, honing a different set of skills. Maybe give it a class level or two? Barbarian could be fun.

I was thinking something more lawful. In my campaign, the Seelie Court is lawful and the Unseelie Court is chaotic. So, a "renegade" would be someone who is too lawful and rigid. Barbarian would fit in, paladin of tyranny would not.


What's the target/max HD of the living spells? A Ragewalker rebukes/commands living spells as a Cleric of half its HD, and normally has 22 HD, so it can command living spells of up to 5 HD (half its effective Cleric level). A Fey gets +1 CR per +4 HD (rounded down), so at 28 HD it's CR 15 and can command 7 HD living spells. At 36 HD it's CR 17 and can command 9 HD living spells.

You could give it a version of a Talisman of Undead Mastery (MIC) that only works for rebuking oozes (which the Ooze domain grants), increasing the maximum HD of oozes it can command by two if it gets +4 effective levels when doing so. That item is only 3,000 gp.

A 5 HD ooze is only up to 3rd level spells, a 7 HD ooze is up to 4th, a 9 HD ooze is up to 5th, and an 11 HD ooze is up to 6th level spells. A living spell can have multiple spells on it, which increases its CR without affecting its HD or his ability to control it.



Ray of Stupidity (SC, 2nd) deals 1d4+1 Int damage, no saving throw, a creature reduced to Int 0 is comatose and disabled. A living spell with Ray of Stupidity on it four times deals 4d4+4 Int damage per hit, and it's CR is 5 + 1/2 caster level (rounded down, minimum caster level 3rd). A higher caster level gives it more HD and a higher bonus to hit.

Combining Ray of Exhaustion twice (3rd), Ray of Sickness (SC, 2nd), and Ray of Weakness (SC, 2nd) will seriously debuff anyone hit by it. Their save versus the Ray of Exhaustion won't matter unless they have Mettle, since it's on there twice. The CR for this is 6 + 1/2 caster level (rounded down, minimum caster level 5th).

8 HD max. I like the ideas so far, but I'm not trying to kill the player. Maybe an ooze that buffs. Like a haste/cat's grace/bull's strength ooze.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

8 HD max. I like the ideas so far, but I'm not trying to kill the player. Maybe an ooze that buffs. Like a haste/cat's grace/bull's strength ooze.

Those are all targeted spells, living spells can only be made from spells that create an effect (ray, burst, spread, sphere, cone, cylinder, line, cube, etc.). If a spell's top section has a Target: entry at all, that disqualifies it from being on a living spell unless you do some kind of shenanigans. You could use Ocular Spell (LoM) to turn a targeted non-touch spell into a ray, but that's a +2 metamagic so at 8 HD you could only do up to 2nd level spells with that.

[JeenLeen]

I recall fighting a Living Blasphemy back in the day. Maybe the equivalent for whatever alignment(s) would work for this dude?

Though spells that cause status ailments could do good to not add much damage to the party but make the fight tough.

[PunBlake]

I don't know why but I like the idea of a living Grease or Incendiary Grease.

[Segev]

Living Mirage Arcana that is his mobile pet demesne? Maybe with a Living Guards and Wards either built in, or as a second one?

[Ruethgar]

You could use Ocular Spell (LoM) to turn a targeted non-touch spell into a ray, but that's a +2 metamagic so at 8 HD you could only do up to 2nd level spells with that.

Metamagic(barring Sanctum & Heighten) only changes the spell slot not the spell level. So it could be an occular, ray burst, ray extended, extended, persisted, irresistible, maximized cantrip and it is still only spell level 0.

[Eldan]

I've always wanted a living Defenestrate.