Rare Posts

There's no way to describe this except rare.  I am not the sort to post this sort of thing on my blog ... but because the bard in my world reached 6th, it became necessary to design some 3rd level spells.  After all, I use a bard of my own design.

I wanted some spells that would compare in some regards with those other extremely useful 3rd level spells, such as call lightning, dispel magic, fireball and so on.  I think these are not half bad.

Adagio
Range: self
Duration: 1 round per level; special
Area of Effect: 5’ radius; up to seven creatures including the caster
Casting Time: 2 rounds
Saving Throw: none

By means of this spell the bard is able to ‘slow time’ while continuously playing an instrument. Time within the area of effect will continue on in perfectly normal fashion, but outside the effected area time will slow to one fifth its normal rate. Thus, 5 rounds inside the area of effect will pass while only 1 round outside. Surrounding those inside the ‘pocket of time’ will view normal time as though through a shimmering haze, making it difficult to see.

Thus, individuals inside the area of effect can take actions such as binding their wounds, drinking potions, load weapons, preparing spells and so on. However, because the time variance affects magic detrimentally, while in the time pocket created spells cannot be cast outside the area of effect. Moreover, reaching to attack a creature outside the area will dispel the effect for the individual performing the attack – effectively sucking them into normal time and physically more than 5’ away from the bard. Missiles fired from within the pocket are at -4 due to poor visibility.

Those inside the pocket will be visible to those outside, but five rounds will pass inside before any outside attack can be launched at the time pocket. Magic hurled at the time pocket will fail, and frontal physical attacks will fail to do any damage, as those inside the pocket will be able to avoid even missiles. However, if an attack die modified at -4 does hit, it indicates that the defending individual had to step outside the time pocket to avoid being struck, and has now been pulled into real time.

Attacks from the back or by surprise have a normal chance at success. Also, there is no barrier to the pocket, so enemies can leap inside (potentially passing straight through if charging or hurling themselves at those inside).

Prepared spells and attacks may be launched normally once the bard ceases to play, breaking the spell.

Allegro
Range: self
Duration: 2 rounds per level; special
Area of Effect: 5’ radius; up to seven creatures including the caster
Casting Time: 2 rounds
Saving Throw: none

By means of this spell the bard is able to ‘speed time’ while continuously playing an instrument. Time within the area of effect will continue on in perfectly normal fashion, but outside the effected area time will speed by to five times its normal rate. Thus, 5 rounds outside the area of effect will pass by while only 1 round passes for those affected by the spell. Surrounding those inside the ‘pocket of time’ will view normal time speeding by with perfect clarity, but will themselves disappear from the perception of others – thus enabling the caster to avoid various threats.

Interacting in any physical manner with the outside world will cause those within to be sucked out of the time pocket and into the normal time – whereupon they will be immediately visible and recognized. Spells will fail if cast through the time variance, while missiles will almost certainly fail – and give outsiders reason to suspect something is up.

Allegro will not conceal those affected from detect magic, detect malevolence or other similar detection spells; as well, the spell can be dispelled normally, if located by those means.

Amplify
Range: self
Duration: 1 rounds per level
Area of Effect: see below
Casting Time: 2 rounds
Saving Throw: none

Enables the bard to increase double the physical area of effect for any spell or power that employs a musical instrument – thus, martial strains will affect those to a distance of 120’ rather than 60’, allegro or adagio would be increased in spacial volume (though not the numbers of persons affected) to a 10’ radius, serenade could be applied at 120’ and so on.

The only spell in which both the range and the actual spell’s effect are doubled would be forte, in which creatures will be hurled back 20’ to a distance up to 100’ away from the bard, and the damage done to those charging at triple would increase to 2-8, while those charging at double towards the bard would suffer 1-4.

Encore
Range: self
Duration: special
Area of Effect: see below
Casting Time: 2 rounds
Saving Throw: none

Allows the casting of any spell that the bard possesses to be cast a second time upon the same day. This need not be the same spell on any given day.

Modulate
Range: self
Duration: 1 round per level
Area of Effect: 60’ radius
Casting Time: 2 rounds
Saving Throw: none

By means of casting this spell, the bard modulates the effect of his martial strains so that the particular modifiers to hit and damage can be distributed according to the caster’s wishes, either placing the emphasis upon enemies or allies.

Thus, the bard can choose to change the usual +1 for allies and -1 for enemies by increasing the penalty for the enemies to hit and damage to -2, thus reducing the bonus for allies to zero. Alternately, the bonus could be increased to +2 and the enemies’ penalty to zero.

The modulation could also be applied so that the enemies penalty against damage was increased to -2, and the ‘to hit’ chance not affected - or vice versa. Similar modulation could be done with the allies bonus, or left as is at the same time.

While this allows for a number of options, no bonus or modifier may be greater than either plus or minus a total of 2.