The Balor Bomb

[Arceliar]

What follows is what I like to call Arceliar's Amazing Balor Bomb. This may not be the most powerful abuse of metamagic in the game, but it's a damn funny one and still quite effective.

I'll use a Human for the race, cause I like extra feats and this build kinda needs them...

Level, Class, and Feats:
1, Wizard, Scribe Scroll (bonus, wizard), Sudden Still, Sudden Maximize (bonus, human)
2, Cleric (with Magic as a domain)
3, Wizard, Sudden Empower
4, Wizard
5, Wizard
6, Dweomerkeeper, Quicken Spell
7, Dweomerkeeper
8, Dweomerkeeper
9, Dweomerkeeper, Sudden Extend
10, Dweomerkeeper
11, Dweomerkeeper
12, Dweomerkeeper, Sudden Silent
13, Dweomerkeeper
14, Dweomerkeeper
15, Dweomerkeeper, Sudden Quicken
16, Wizard, Chain Spell (bonus, wizard)
17, Wizard
18, Wizard, Arcane Thesis (Polymorph Any Object)

Levels 19 and 20 don't much matter, but I'd suggest stick with wizard, or maybe start a new prestige class. Level 18 is where it's all at.

The following scenario is...entertaining to say the least. Although it still works without scrolls, it's most effective if it's decided that you can make scrolls with metamagic feats totaling beyond 9th level if you have abilities which reduce the metamagic total to 9th level or below. In particular, making scrolls of Chained Polymorph Any Object. If the DM won't allow it, you can still pull this trick off, it's just not quite as impressive. I'll assume in the following that it was determined that, as it's only a 9th level spell slot for the caster, Chained Polymorph Any Object is allowed on a scroll. If not, you'll just have a few dozen fewer balors at the end of things.

We'll even assume you roll a 1 on the first Time Stop, just to show how interesting this can still be...

Round, Spells:
1, Time Stop (Scroll, in this we assume a 1 was rolled)
2, Chained Polymorph Any Object (any pebbles nearby the target, into Frost Worms)
3, Chained Polymorph Any Object (pebbles to Balors), Time Stop Ends, Sudden Quickened Sudden Maximized Time Stop (before your turn ends)
4, Chained Polymorph Any Object (pebbles to Balors, again)
5, Chained Polymorph Any Object (more Balors)
6, Chained Polymorph Any Object (gotta love the Balors)
7, Chained Polymorph Any Object (what do you think)
8, Chained Polymorph Any Object (Bring on the Balors), Quickened Dimension Door (the hell out of there), Time Stop ends.

Thanks to squeezing 2 time stops into 1 round via sudden quicken, this is all done in your first round of action. Remember that while time stop is in effect, you can, and I quote, "affect any item that is not in another creature's posession" which is why you can polymorph all the pebbles or rocks or sand or whatever's nearby.

The Frost Worms are the frozen fuse of the Balor Bomb. They have but 147 HP each. When looking through the SRD, you'll notice that Frost Worms explode when they die, dealing 8d6 piercing and 12d6 cold damage to everything in a 100ft radius (Reflex DC 22 for half). The Frost Worms, which are vulnerable to fire, are in a tangled mess with a bunch of Balors, which deal fire damage when touched. But if your DM really doesn't thing that's sufficient to set them off (it is if you do the work for creature spacing in 3d but some DM's are sceptical and too lazy to think about that themselves) then chuck a necklace of fireballs into the fray instead of your last polymorph spell. Or better yet, chuck a bag full of necklaces of fireballs, just to be sure. Either way, once the Frost Worms take enough damage, the real fun begins.

The piercing damage sets off a chain reaction among any surviving Frost Worms, which in turn set off the chain reaction in the Balors. Each Balor, when killed (which happens immediately via the Frost Worms, before their turn comes up and they teleport without error, if you do this right) deals 100 damage of no particular type in a 100ft radius (DC 30 reflex save for half). At level 18, the above can crate 18 Balors each casting of Chained Polymorph Any Object, for a total of 108 Balors in the blast.

If all 108 Balors are within range of the target you're trying to kill (very possible, I took the time to draw an elaborate symmetric diagram a few weeks back) then the target is basically going to die. Evasion is the one thing that can save a target, but when 108 Balors are exploding, the target is bound to roll at least a few 1's. Even so, the target's going to take a lot of damage....

Specifically how much damage, you may wonder? Well, if the target somehow had ignored all piercing damage from the frost worms (ie: ridiculous damage reduction), and all the cold damage (undead, anyone?), there'd still be 10,800 damage from the Balors. If the target made EVERY reflex save (and did not have evasion) that would still be 5,400 damage.

And if 5,400 damage isn't enough.. then you probably shouldn't be fighting Ao.

Regardless, seeing 18 Frost Worms and 108 very confused Balors suddenly appear and explode in little more than an instant would be entertaining to anyone, except the Balors.

Tune in next week as I cast Shatter on a hydrogen atom.

[Ramza00]

Very inventive, at first I just merely rolled my eyes since you combined

Polymorph Any Object (arguabley in the top 10 of "most broken spells in the game")
and
Dweomerkeeper arguabley in the top 5 (maybe 7) of the most broken prcs.

But as I read on, I saw that you didn't use the utter cheese part of Dweomerkeeper, only the good but not "cheese" part of the Dweomerkeeper (its 10th lvl ability). Your build still relies on a very cheesy spell that is outright banned. (Note this is me being critical)

Combining though the Frost Wyrms Death ability together with the Balor ability is a flash of insight though, and for that you have my praise.

[Ramza00]

Note though Chain is a +3 metamagic, Polymorph Any Object is an 8th lvl spell, you need 1 more metamagic reducer in there.

[storybookknight]

Arcane thesis!

[Ninja Chocobo]

...SOMEBODY is gonna think of a reason this will not work.
This CANNOT work.
...
Wait, scratch that. If we* can create Pun-Pun, the Hulking Hurler build, and the infinite damage loop, we can make this.
*we: assorted gamers.

[BCOVertigo]

*Golf Clap* :)

[oriong]

You know, I'm thinking it would be a lot better if there was a literal balor bomb. A warhead just made with imprisoned balors kept at one hit point. fire the warhead and the balors detonate when it strikes.

But no, this won't work.

The Balors have 20 HD, and the polymorph spell can't cause a change into any creature greater than 15 HD. Not to mention that the Balor's flaming body is supernatural and isn't granted by polymorph.

EDIT: Frost worms ARE a valid polymorph target, but unfortunately their death throes is an extraordinary special quality, which is also not granted by polymorph.

[Fizban]

Nicely done, though with enough cash you don't even need the PrC's: just buy some rod's of greater chaining and let the balor's fly.

Edit: Buh!? Sad stupid specific distinctions of PAO.

[Mewtarthio]

Ooh, pretty colors...

This is how we do fireworks shows in the Infinite Layers!

[Ramza00]

Arcane thesis!

My appologies, I was thinking there are several ways to reduce that last 1 metamagic cost, yet when I read his build I must have missed that one line. Sorry.

[PinkysBrain]

then chuck a necklace of fireballs into the fray instead of your last polymorph spell.

You can only throw one bead at a time, the only time the necklace of fireballs explodes all at once is when the wearer fails a reflex save against a fire spell.

The Sage has ruled that PAO can not break the 15 HD limit. Also there is the question of what happens first, "Death Throes (Ex): When killed" or "If slain, the subject reverts to its original form".

[Closet_Skeleton]

You can only throw one bead at a time, the only time the necklace of fireballs explodes all at once is when the wearer fails a reflex save against a fire spell.

Then put it on a housecat and then cast scorching ray.

Wait...

[Neo]

Death throes would come first as its the last thing the worms do before they completely snuff it :D

Though it is open to interpretation, a group of giants surrounded by a horde of exploding pebbles would be interesting.

If you specifically targeted the Necklace of Fireballs with a fire attack it would explode.

[oriong]

The worm's Death Throes would not happen. The PAO spell can't duplicate Special Qualities, and the worm's death throes is listed as a special quality. Not to mention the 15 HD limit which stops the balors from being used in the first place.

[PinkysBrain]

Death throes would come first as its the last thing the worms do before they completely snuff it :D

The text does not say that, it's purely a DM's decision.

Not that it matters for the worm, since as Oriong said it's not an ex attack for the worm.

If you specifically targeted the Necklace of Fireballs with a fire attack it would explode.

You are making rules up which are nowhere to be found in the books, that is a DM's prerogative.

[Indon]

Well, the necklace of Fireballs detonates if it fails a save against a fire spell.

There are rules for unattended magical items making saves, if they would be reasonably damaged by a spell. Volatility aside, Fireball can destroy nonliving matter. In this case, the necklace has +7 to its' Reflex save if Fireballed.

Necklace fails, necklace goes boom. Honestly, I can't imagine anyone using the necklace for anything _but_ an explosive charge; it's dangerously volatile in a players' hand.

[PinkysBrain]

Well, the necklace of Fireballs detonates if it fails a save against a fire spell.

It doesn't say that.

There are rules for unattended magical items making saves, if they would be reasonably damaged by a spell. Volatility aside, Fireball can destroy nonliving matter. In this case, the necklace has +7 to its' Reflex save if Fireballed.

Necklace fails, necklace goes boom.

It doesn't say that.

The fact that it can detonate while worn/carried is entirely irrelevant. A scroll of delayed blast fireball or fireseeds can produce something which can explode under a strict set of circumstances too, but if I sunder the scroll nothing happens.

It's not like the necklace is exactly the same when not being held by a creature ...

"This device appears to be nothing but beads on a string" ... "If a character holds it, however, all can see the strand as it really is—a golden chain from which hang a number of golden spheres."

[Indon]

Regarding the Necklace:

If the necklace is being worn or carried by a character who fails her saving throw against a magical fire attack, the item must make a saving throw as well (with a save bonus of +7). If the necklace fails to save, all its remaining spheres detonate simultaneously, often with regrettable consequences for the wearer.

Regarding magic items being targeted by damaging effects:

A magic item doesn’t need to make a saving throw unless it is unattended, it is specifically targeted by the effect, or its wielder rolls a natural 1 on his save. Magic items should always get a saving throw against spells that might deal damage to them— even against attacks from which a nonmagical item would normally get no chance to save. Magic items use the same saving throw bonus for all saves, no matter what the type (Fortitude, Reflex, or Will). A magic item’s saving throw bonus equals 2 + one-half its caster level (round down). The only exceptions to this are intelligent magic items, which make Will saves based on their own Wisdom scores.

Magic items, unless otherwise noted, take damage as nonmagical items of the same sort. A damaged magic item continues to function, but if it is destroyed, all its magical power is lost.

Emphasis mine.

[GolemsVoice]

Why do you rules lawyer have to destroy everything?! It was funny! It was Balors! It was inventive! Man, that's one thing I would like to see (from an underground shelter)

[PinkysBrain]

It is otherwise noted, for when the necklace is carried or worn ... if it isn't it isn't.

You can not make the argument that the sentence "If the necklace fails to save" is talking about saves in general, since that makes no sense (nor is it how it should be read, the context is clear). There are a whole lot of saves it can fail which do not cause fire damage to the necklace, or any damage at all for that matter ... you would honestly make it explode for all of them? It is talking about the save from the previous sentence. That one only applies when it's worn or carried and thus when it actually appears as a necklace of fireballs, rather than a string of beads.

[Arceliar]

Why do you rules lawyer have to destroy everything?! It was funny! It was Balors! It was inventive! Man, that's one thing I would like to see (from an underground shelter)

I'm glad SOMEBODY understands. Seriously...this wasn't meant to be taken literally... nor was the reference to casting shatter on hydrogen, before somebody asks.

[Indon]

It is otherwise noted, for when the necklace is carried or worn ... if it isn't it isn't.

That has to preface because the rule describes how much more volatile the necklace is when it is being attended; normally, magical items are only affected by spells when the wearer/carrier rolls a natural 1 on their save. This one only requires a failed save.

[Wehrkind]

....... Why couldn't you cast shatter on an atom? There has to be a way to SEE it, given, you know, magic...

[mikeejimbo]

I'm glad SOMEBODY understands. Seriously...this wasn't meant to be taken literally... nor was the reference to casting shatter on hydrogen, before somebody asks.

But but... I wanted to see that!

Nice job on the Balor bomb though, you made me laugh.

[Renegade Paladin]

Polymorph can't make outsiders. It isn't on the list of creature types that the target can be polymorphed into.

[oriong]

I'm glad SOMEBODY understands. Seriously...this wasn't meant to be taken literally... nor was the reference to casting shatter on hydrogen, before somebody asks.

Well, considering you went to the trouble of writing out a 20 level build, round by round detailing of what you need to do, and that actually making things like this from game loopholes isn't uncommon here I don't see why we shouldn't have taken it literally. it's not like you said 'I'm just kidding' :P

[Arceliar]

it's not like you said 'I'm just kidding' :P

My mistake, I assumed more readers were familiar with something I think is called "sarcasm" >.> I was intentionally mocking such posts. *edit* and it ruins the fun when I have to explain humor...

Though there are many other fun abuses of a chained PAO that a DM with a sense of humor might allow. But I'll leave those to your imagination.

[PinkysBrain]

That has to preface because the rule describes how much more volatile the necklace is when it is being attended; normally, magical items are only affected by spells when the wearer/carrier rolls a natural 1 on their save. This one only requires a failed save.

It is volatile when attended period, nowhere does it say it is volatile when not attended ... destructible yes, volatile no.

[FdL]

Seriously, guys, I will never understand what does people get off this kind of stuff. Doesn't have anything to do with roleplaying.

[oriong]

Why do people enjoy soduku? or tetris? it's just a mental challenge like any other. Things other than role-playing can be fun too.

Of course, I'm referring to the intellectual excercise of playing with the rules, not actually attempting things like this in game.