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Sunday, February 17, 2013

Servants of the Elder Gods - Spell List

Below is an alternative spell list for clerics of animal and other primal deities.  I figure it'd work for cultists and shaman as well.  It's sort of an alternative for the Druid class, and dispenses with the Druid's focus on nature as a whole in favor of a focus on the power of some sort of totemic spirit - usually of an animal nature. I suppose a tribal priest that drew their power from ancestors would work well, only the creatures summoned and evoked through the spells would be totems, spirits and homunculi empowered by revered shaman.

Originally this was intended as an alternative for animal spirit clerics in Pahvelorn, but it sounds like there's another much cooler plan in the works for that.  The spell list is based on the presumption that these casters are less armored crusaders and more likely to be light combatants like the tribal or cult warriors they support.

Oh Rats!
Spell List for the Servant’s of the Elder Gods (lvls 1-3)

LEVEL 1
1. Detect Magic – Blessing of the Auras
Servant may detect magic for 1 turn per level.  This magic detection is not as effective as that of an arcane practitioner, based instead an ability to see that things, people and creatures are tainted with something unnatural.  The ability to see magical auras lasts 1 Turn per level of the caster.

2. Calm Beast – Peace of the Ancients 
Allows the caster to calm up to 8HD of enraged natural creatures with a single word spoken in the elder tongue.  These creatures will remain calm and uninterested in the caster or those accompanying her for 1d6+4 turns unless considerably disturbed or attacked.

3. Detect Hidden – Sight into the Hidden Worlds
By calling on the Spirits of place and time the caster may have a flash of vision that will reveal everything hidden or concealed within a 30’ radius circle indoors.  This includes hidden objects, traps and secret doors and areas blocked by walls or doors. The spell does not provide meaning to the items it shows, such as where the trigger to a secret door is located, or how to disarm a trap, but it can reveal their presence. Outdoors this spell, in addition to detecting nearby hidden items can be used to find trails and paths if the Servant is lost.  An unfortunate the after effect of this spell is that the caster will suffer from blindness to all but ethereal things for 2D10 turns after the spell is cast.

4. Summon Familiar – Avatar of the Great Ones
Calls a spirit animal emblematic of the caster’s faith to advise and protect him.  This beast is the equivalent of a 1HD war beast (As Level 1 Fighter) and gains a HD with every two levels of the caster.  The beast will always be a physically perfect specimen of the caster’s cult totem, though it will be giant or smaller depending on its hit dice compared to the original beast.  As a representation of the caster’s faith the beast is absolutely loyal and will obey commands without any loyalty or moral considerations.  It will however turn on and brutally attack the caster if he departs from the tenets of his cult.  If the beast is slain another cannot be summoned without a week of sacrifice and prayer, including the expenditure ritual materials valued at 100GP x caster’s level.  A caster may only have one avatar companion at a time.

5. Invigorate – Strength of the Elder Times
Grants the target additional vitality and strength pulled directly from the earth and air and channeled through the target.  While the power flows into the target (1 turn per caster level) it grants a boon of 1D6+1 temporary HP to the target individual as well as an immunity to charm, sleep and paralysis effects for the duration.  Damage received during while the spell is in effect will first be subtracted from the temporary HP, and will not harm the target unless damage exceeds them.   

6. Protection from Unnatural – Mark of Favor
The ancients do not understand good and evil, and so cannot protect against it, they can however imbue the caster with power to ward of unnatural intrusions into the mudane world.  This spell will mark the caster as protected (literally, a mark, glyph or sigil will appear on the caster) by the elder spirits and this power will prevent unnatural creatures such as outsider entities and the undead from touching the caster.  It will not stop these creatures from hurting the caster through indirect means such as firing arrows or ordering mundane minions to attack.  The mark lasts 4 turns plus one turn for every two levels of the caster. 

7. Speak with Animals - Voice of the Ancient
The caster may speak to and understand the language of animals.  This doesn't mean they'll be willing to reason, only that they may converse if they choose to.  The spell lasts 6 turns.

8. Shield - Totemic Armor
The amulets and fetishes the Servant wears around his body are infused with magical power to turn the attacks of enemies.  This gives the servant the armor class of platemail against the next several (4 + x2 current level) strikes or blows.  The appearance of this spell is often very flashy, with blazing auras and strange moans as the power stored in the Servants totems is channeled into a sheath around him.

9. Inspire - Totemic Invocation
The Servant may fill all allies within a 20' radius with a sense of purpose and a sense that they are being watched by powerful beneficial forces. Sometimes this effect is created by the brief appearance of a totemic spirit, other times an especially rousing speech/invocation and most often simply a deep feeling of confidence. All fear effects are immediately removed, and all allies will gain a 1 point bonus on the next moral check.

10. Hex - Hex
The target of this spell will be afflicted by a minor curse that makes them more vulnerable to attack and singles them out to attackers.  Arrows and thrown weapons seem drawn to the vitals of the target, their armor less effective and strikes on them more forceful.  All attacks against the Hex's target are at +2 to hit for the next 2 turns until the malicious hex spirits grow bored and dissipate.  The Servant may target one enemy, plus an additional enemy for every two levels she possesses.  

LEVEL 2
1. Protean Transformation - Totemic Form 
Caster transforms into an equal mass of totemic animals, this creature or creatures will follow their natural behavior, most likely to flee from loud noise or attacks.  The totemic animals have no recollection of the Servant's intent or goals, and the animals are normal creatures that can be captured, killed or chased off in the manner customary to their species.    This spell is a boon in escaping harm to those Servants who follow the totems of small animals or insects, and may provide an extra bit of combat ability to those Servants with larger, aggressive and dangerous animal totems. In 1D100 turns the caster will revert to his natural form with only vague memories of what occurred while he was transformed.  While the animals created by the spell will be in perfect health at the time they appear, the Servant will suffer injury proportional to the number of totemic animals killed and injuries received by surviving totemic animals.

2. Bestial Healing - Intervention of the Spirits 
Heals an injured target for 2D6 points of damage, however this spell involves a short ritual and requires 1 turn to cast.  It does not share the aging side effects of Clerical healing spells, but instead has a chance of making the target develop bestial features and traits as the energy of the an animal spirit replaces his wounded flesh.  Each time the healing is performed the target must make a wisdom check to avoid developing a more bestial appearance.  While these transformations are individually minor (sharper teeth, coarser hair, slit pupils) over time they can transform a person into a completely unrecognizable hybrid and are rumored to result in lycanthropy like symptoms and loss of control.  A target may always opt to accept the transformation and forgo his save, and as such this spell is often used in the creation of monstrous cult servants such as minotaurs.

3. Terror - Scream of Ancestral Horror
The Servant pulls natural energy into himself and lets out a soul ripping shriek of rage and terror.  This terrifying scream will cause all not allied with the caster to flee in fear (if they can feel fear) at their fastest speed.  A save is allowed both to avoid the initial effect and each round thereafter to resist the effect.

4. Striking - Totemic Weapon
The Servant summons a  the power of his deity into his weapon and may strike opponents with it for one of the following effects:
a. Paralyizing Terror.  All injured with the Servant's weapon will feel paralysing terror and collapse unable to move for 1D4 turns
b.  Visions. Blow's from the Servant's weapon cause the target to suffer strange and all encompassing hallucinations of a violent nature.  for the next 2D10 rounds the target will flail about randomly striking anyone in range, both friend and foe. GM should randomly determine target each round
c. Power.  Weapon strikes at +1 and Servant rolls damage twice, taking the preferred result.
Totemic Weapon may be cast on any weapon in the Servant's possession, including thrown weapons and arrows.  It if ineffective on weapons such as bows or crossbow, as the ensorcelled weapon must itself injure the target.  The spell lasts for 2 + (Servant's Level) in rounds.

5.Metagame with Spirits - Commune with the Ancients
Communing with the spirits she worships, the servant will be asked a single prophetic question 70% of the time, modified by GM opinion of how effectively the character has served her totems in the recent past and how many times she has communed with them recently.  The Servant's answer will come true/be true 50% + 10% of the time.  If the Servant is not asked a question the spirits will most often harangue her for past mistakes or demand specific sacrifices and favors, which must be corrected or made prior to any future Commune spells.

 6. Anti Magic Zone - Totemic Sanctuary
Summoning  a host of hungry, but insubstantial spirits the Servant creates a well of magical power that prevents any spell casting while active as the spirits devour all magical force in a 15' radius of the caster.  This spell lasts only one round for every level of the caster, and prevents all spell and all non-persistent magic item use for it's duration.  Persistent enchantments, such as those on weapons or rings will continue to work normally, but any special effects they trigger will not occur as the spirits gorge on the scraps of magical energy required to invoke them.

7. Savagery - Litany of Ancestral Strength
By ritually chanting, the Servant fills all those allied with her and who can hear the droning list of spirits and ancestors invoked with a savage speed, brutal fury or great luck.  All effected by the spell may reroll any roll (attack, damage, saving throw, skill check) once per round and take the better of the two rolls.  The Servant is unable to move or act in any way besides calling on the spirits for aid, and cannot defend herself or otherwise act until the spell is broken.

8. Charm Animals
By reminding animals of the ancient pacts between them and the elder gods, the Servant may cause animals to behave his command as if under the effects of a charm spell.  The spell will work on as many HD of creatures as the Servant has, and even the most truculent of beasts may be convinced not to attack the caster, while normal beasts will gladly aid the Servant and his companions.  The spell will work on four times the HD of the caster of totemic beasts, sacred to the caster's deity.
 
9. Sustenance - Spiritual Provisions
A target of this spell will have their physical needs for food and drink all but eliminated for a full day. They will need to rest normally, but will be have a dramatically increased endurance gaining a 50% bonus to overland movement on foot, requiring only a few sips of water and a tiny amount of food to remain in excellent health.  The caster may grant this boon to one person per spell for every three levels she possesses.

10. Light - Evocation of Illumination
The Servant may cause a object within 30' to flare up with a dancing and wavering light as totemic spirits flood in and out of it.  Evocation of Illumination will light a 40' radius circle with light akin to that of a lantern or campfire, though it casts more shadows and is more likely to be in a strange color than a similar spell cast by a Magic-User or Cleric.  If cast on a creature this spell will effectively blind them, though the target is allowed a saving throw.  The light effect is permanent until negated by a similar spell or dispelled by the caster. 


LEVEL 3
1.  Summon Swarm – Chastising Intervention
The spirits manifest a swarm of biting ripping crawling or flying animal servants appropriate to the Servant's patron.  These are most often actual small creatures such as rats, scorpians, lizards or birds, but may sometimes be insubstantial spirits.  Either way the swarm functions identically.  The Servant targets a 10' diameter area and the swarm bites, stings and haunts anything in it for 1d6 (or 1D8 if using variable damage) points of damage per round.  The swarm will persist for as many rounds as the Servant has levels, but cannot be directed or moved.  Attacks against the swarm, unless spectacular area effects spells such as fireball or cone of cold, will be ineffective as the enormous number of frenzied attackers can absorb a great many casualties.

2.  Return Departed Spirit - Call to the Departing
A dangerous ritual that allows the Servant to call back the spirit of a dead person into their lifeless corpse.  Only the newly dead (within 1 day) may be so revived, and then only through a ritual requiring 1,000 GP worth of sacrificial animals and offerings.  The ritual itself requires a full day to complete and the caster must make a CON save (roll under Constitution on a D20) to successfully complete the ritual.  If successful the spirit is returned to the body though the individual revived will always be weakened, suffering a permanent loss of 1HP per HD (possibly in addition to other negative consequences determined by the GM) and in the debt of the Servant's guiding spirits.  The servant will also suffer permanent weakness from treading the mystical space between life and death, losing one CON point from the ordeal.

3.  Remove Cures/Curse - Dispel Hex/Great Hex
The Servant invokes great and powerful spirits either to remove afflictions such as disease, blindness and curses or to create them.  The nature of the individual Hex is to be determined by the spirit invoked (i.e. spirits of doom, disease or sorrow), but generally they are no greater than a -4 cumulatively to any statistics or abilities.  Thus a hex of doom in battle might cause the target to suffer a four point penalty to armor class, while a hex of boils might cause -1 to CHR,-1 DEX, -1 to Hit and -1 to HP rolls. It is notable that at least 1,000 GP worth of ritual goods must be sacrificed to use this spell to cure an affliction, and that it requires a ritual taking several days.  To place a Great Hex the target must have broken some taboo or otherwise offended the Servant's deity.  Examples of behavior strong enough to warrant a Great Hex include: slaughter of holy animals, trespassing beyond clear markers showing any area is forbidden, imprisoning worshippers of the Spirit or stealing cult objects.  With a ritual costing 1,000 GP worth of sacrificial materials a Servant may place a Great hex on an object or area to operate remotely against the first person to take the object or enter the forbidden area.  The danger of this effect must be clearly marked.

4.  Neutralize Poison - Purge
Using the powers of the animal gods the Servant may negate the effect of poisons, pushing the dying victim immediately into a feverish coma and then using small does of magically transformed poison to force the poison from the target's body. This ritual is complicated and takes one turn, requires a small amount of the poison used on the victim, and will leave the target shaken and weakened for a day afterwards (at 1HP and unable to perform strenuous tasks).

5.  Possession - Ancestral Intervention
 An insidious spell that uses the target's own ancestral spirits to force their soul from the body and allow the Servant full possession of the target.  The caster must remain in a trance, but will be able to control the target completely for some length of time before the target's own bewildered spirit can force the intruder out.  High stress situations make it easier for the body's natural spirit to renter or reassert itself, allowing a new saving throw by the target every number of rounds equal to the caster's level. In non-stressful situations the Servant may concentrate more fully on control and a saving throw is only allowed every 1/2 the caster's level in turns.

6.  Dispel Magic - Cast Off Interference
By calling on protective spirits the Servant is effectively able to destroy magic, by touching a magic object with a specially prepared fetish and invoking this spell the Servant eliminates magic effects, draining them completely from the target.  A magic item or other permanent magical item gains a saving throw, with it's HD determined by the GM. A magical practitioner so touched must save to retain each spell memorized or lose it until the next day.

7.  Ward - Protective Gris Gris 
This spell allows the Servant to create a ward or gris gris associated with a specific location, where it must be inscribed or posted, that will prevent or harm intruders.  While the exact effects depend on the Servant's patron and level of power.  In general this spell will do no more physical damage than 1D6 or induce one minor curse like effect (-1 point of an attribute, painful boils, bad dreams) per level of the caster.  Each ward can protect no more than a 5' radius area, such as a single entry way or the area around an altar,  and is permanent unless dispelled, but will only effect an individual once.  Additionally the Servant must include a means to bypass or mollify the spirits in the Gris Gris: a command word, cult symbol displayed or dance performed before Gris Gris are all common.

8.  Bestial Transformation
By allowing a powerful animal spirit into himself, the Servant transforms into a hybrid creature, human, animal  and spirit.  This spirit beast is dangerous and unpredictable, though the Servant is nominally still in control.  While all spell caster ability is lost, the beast attacks as a fighter of the same level as the servant (including multiple attacks).  It's terrible ethereal claws or fangs do damage as a magical weapon, and the glowing patterned skin of the hybrid is Ac 3, and immune to all but silver and magical weapons.   The transformation last 1 turn plus two rounds per level of the caster and at it's end the servant will painfully return to normal, exhausted and drained, being unable to act for one turn unless successfully making a Save vs. Spells.

9.  Animate Totem
A short ritual that uses a specially prepared fetish to bring a statute or other object to life temporarily in the service of the caster.  The fetish must contain at least 200gp worth of materials per HD of the construct created and will be destroyed if the totem is.  Creatures made this way vary greatly, from a simple dead tree with the fetish doll nailed to the front, to desecrated statutes using the fetish in place of the statute's face. A totem temporarily animated will have HD depending on its material and size, but will have a maximum of the caster's level in HD and a maximum AC of 9 minus the caster's level. These temporary allies last for one turn for every two levels of the Servant creating them.

Through an elaborate ritual involving the creation of a special wooden statute and a consecration process requiring regents and sacrifices valued at 1,000GP per HD of the totem created, the Servant may use this spell to create a permanent guardian totem.  These constructs will have different features and attacks, but may be created with HD up to those of the caster, with stats similar to temporary totems.

Totems are capable of simple tasks, and are extremely strong, invariably loyal and savage in defense of their creator and cult.  As with all creations made by Servants an animated totem will turn on its caster should she break the taboos of her cult.

 
10. Resist Elements - Protection of the Elements
Calling on the elements the Servant may make herself completely immune to the normal varieties of heat, cold and lightning during the duration of this spell.  The Servant may sit among hot coals, walk naked into freezing water, or stand atop tall spires as a lightning storm rages  without any risk of harm.  Elemental magic is slightly more effective.  All magical flame, lightning or cold attacks do 1/2 damage, unless the Servant makes a successful save (if appropriate), in which case the attack will do no damage.  The effects of this spell last 10 plus the servant's level of rounds.

1 comment:

  1. Gusty, great spells. Ganking them. Or is yonking them. Which ever one is appropriate I am doing it.

    ReplyDelete