Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

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magistrasa
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Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by magistrasa » Sat Mar 20, 2021 3:18 pm

Whether due to the limitations of the engine, the niche usage of the spells not being worth the effort to code, or simply being overlooked because of how goofy they are, there's lots of fun nonsense that you can do in P&P, but not on Arelith. Similar to the 5% Dreams thread, I would love to explore some of the weird, the fun, and the iconic spells of D&D that simply aren't represented in NWN, and imagine what they might look like and how they could impact roleplay if they were added. Sure, the devs have added some amazing spells, like Shadow Storm and Burst of Glacial Wrath and Blasphemy, but those are all far too good, far too useful, far too combative. I want to see spells that are useless 98% of the time and are likely to go forgotten and unprepared until that exact moment you need it and realize, "Oh yeah! That's a thing I can do!"

------------------

I'll go first, and start us off with Calm Emotions. I remember DMing a P&P game where the cleric's go-to move in combat was an attempt at reasonable discourse using Calm Emotions. I imagine in Neverwinter it'd make hostile humanoid NPCs un-hostile after a Will save, maybe putting them on a timer before they go hostile again. Obviously since the whole reason NPCs exist in this game is for you to kill them, this spell would be pretty counterintuitive. But it'd be great for anyone who wants to roleplay as a pacifist!

In another thread, I also talked about how it would be cool if we could have Spider Climb. I imagine it'd just give a nice bonus to Climb checks, maybe a +1 per 3 CL that caps at +10 if we're feeling especially conservative - nice, but not module breaking. I remember a hilarious moment in one of my tabletop sessions where the party was fighting in a cave and the wizard just cast Spider Climb on themselves with their very last spellslot to walk upside down onto the ceiling and just sit there, waiting for the party to either die or clear out the rabble. We never forgave them for that. It was literally the only time I've ever seen the spell used in P&P, but I've had a fondness for it ever since.

Unfortunately as I write I keep coming up with more and more ideas. This one isn't even technically a spell in P&P, but I think it would be cool to have some sort of Conjure Object ability. Like, if you see someone left some trash in the middle of the town square, but it's all the way over there and you're all the way over here and you don't want to have to bend over and pick the thing up because you have a bad back - fwoosh. Cast a spell at the item from a distance, and it just appears in your inventory.

I am going to stop myself now because I may just end up transposing the whole spellbook at this rate, and I'm far more interested in hearing other people's ideas than spewing my own. So I open the floor to the rest of you! What sorts of roleplay tools and utility spells do you dream of at night?

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Eira » Sat Mar 20, 2021 4:39 pm

Mending. Repairs one charge of a repairable item?

Alarm, say you can set it on a door or something and if you're in the same area as the door, it warns you that someone opened it.

Comprehend languages ,if even possible, to let you understand all languages for a very short time (this I'd love if we ever added more languages, like from various countries)

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Skibbles » Sat Mar 20, 2021 4:50 pm

Glitterdust!

But really I just want all the cantrips: mage hand, open/close, message, and arcane mark come to mind.
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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Drowboy » Sat Mar 20, 2021 5:18 pm

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Salasker » Sat Mar 20, 2021 5:36 pm

Shrink Object, which reduces wight of fixtures for those times where you have to move tons of heavy stuff around.

Rope Trick, which would allow you to rest without worrying about being ambushed.

Feather Fall, another one that would go well with the new Climb mechanics; it could largely mitigate damage for those 'fatal' attempts.

Disguise Self, which would buff Perform or Bluff.

Create Food and Water, for the rare times you're on a long adventure and run out. (This one firmly falls under the '98% useless' category.)

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Anomandaris » Sat Mar 20, 2021 5:56 pm

Dimension dooooor!!

Also generally elemental type modifying meta magic es que stuff would be fun

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by xanrael » Sat Mar 20, 2021 7:42 pm

Magic Jar is in my top 3 favorite PnP spells though I don't know if EE fixed the possess mechanics on things that are not your familiar.

I'd like some of current spells to be expanded. Example: Shapechange could add something good-aligned on its list like a celestial.

Also on the OP, currently Charm will do the same as Calm Emotions against hostile NPCs, though Mass Charm is quite the high level spell.

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by donarek » Sat Mar 20, 2021 8:47 pm

Illusions - Like creating illusionar plants a fixtures. And ambient sounds!

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Hazard » Sat Mar 20, 2021 9:25 pm

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Dalenger » Sun Mar 21, 2021 1:19 am

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Itikar » Sun Mar 21, 2021 2:13 am

I miss several of the non-combat spells that I was fond of elsewhere:
- nondetection
- fly
- water breathing
- locate object
- change sex
- tongues
- detect magic
- ventriloquism
- glitterdust
- spider climb
- major image

Of the more combat oriented spells:
- mirror image
- the "mass" versions of the zoo buffs
- heroism and greater heroism

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Dari » Sun Mar 21, 2021 7:11 pm

Jordenk wrote:
Sat Mar 20, 2021 5:56 pm
Dimension dooooor!!

Also generally elemental type modifying meta magic es que stuff would be fun
I was thinking if it were possible to create something else for teleportation instead of a portal when you have GF and ESF Transmutation.

Like a magic mirror you summon up and it takes you to the portals you activated, or a door like you mentioned.
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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Cybren » Mon Mar 22, 2021 9:03 am

Since this is a 'wish' list and not a 'consider what is feasible within our limited technology' list:
I want spellbooks to be an actual physical item that takes up space in your inventory and physically exists.


I also want dimension door and un-nerfed enervation but those are both really bad ideas.

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by The GrumpyCat » Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:06 am

Mordenkeinen's Magnificent Mansion.
This too shall pass.

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Drowble Oh Seven
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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Drowble Oh Seven » Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:07 am

The mansion. Each day, every day and unrelentingly, the mansion.

It's all I wanted. All I have every truly loved.

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by ReverentBlade » Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:19 am

The GrumpyCat wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:06 am
Mordenkeinen's Magnificent Mansion.
Its not true to the D&D version of the spell, but a scripted version which you cast on your PC's house door once to set the area transition info is possible. Cast again on the floor to spawn a portal to your house's interior. Cast on self to clear the set house.

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by The GrumpyCat » Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:28 am

ReverentBlade wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:19 am
The GrumpyCat wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:06 am
Mordenkeinen's Magnificent Mansion.
Its not true to the D&D version of the spell, but a scripted version which you cast on your PC's house door once to set the area transition info is possible. Cast again on the floor to spawn a portal to your house's interior. Cast on self to clear the set house.
That'd be a way of doing it. I was thinking just a 'Mansion' area that you (and party?) could be ported to when you cast the spell. Other people use the same area - so you could run into your friends or foes there. Maybe make it a No PvP area? Maybe give it a massive cool down timer? So it can only be case once per OOC hour? IDK. Just ideas *shrug*
This too shall pass.

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Amnesy » Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:48 am

Spells and powers that give you penalties for casting them (* cough* bood magic).

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Naghast » Mon Mar 22, 2021 12:10 pm

Force wall. Prismatic wall.

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by ReverentBlade » Mon Mar 22, 2021 12:23 pm

The GrumpyCat wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:28 am
ReverentBlade wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:19 am
The GrumpyCat wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:06 am
Mordenkeinen's Magnificent Mansion.
Its not true to the D&D version of the spell, but a scripted version which you cast on your PC's house door once to set the area transition info is possible. Cast again on the floor to spawn a portal to your house's interior. Cast on self to clear the set house.
That'd be a way of doing it. I was thinking just a 'Mansion' area that you (and party?) could be ported to when you cast the spell. Other people use the same area - so you could run into your friends or foes there. Maybe make it a No PvP area? Maybe give it a massive cool down timer? So it can only be case once per OOC hour? IDK. Just ideas *shrug*
One Mansion per server? Decorate each one to the "theme" of the server? Beware the spooky underdark mansion and the monsters that chill there!

If you make the area large enough (and I think the D&D versions were positively huge) you'd immediately have various mage's guild hang-outs in a way the Arcane Tower doesn't quite do. Throw some temp stalls in the foyer for good measure.
Last edited by ReverentBlade on Mon Mar 22, 2021 12:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Naghast » Mon Mar 22, 2021 12:28 pm

ReverentBlade wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 12:23 pm
The GrumpyCat wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:28 am
ReverentBlade wrote:
Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:19 am


Its not true to the D&D version of the spell, but a scripted version which you cast on your PC's house door once to set the area transition info is possible. Cast again on the floor to spawn a portal to your house's interior. Cast on self to clear the set house.
That'd be a way of doing it. I was thinking just a 'Mansion' area that you (and party?) could be ported to when you cast the spell. Other people use the same area - so you could run into your friends or foes there. Maybe make it a No PvP area? Maybe give it a massive cool down timer? So it can only be case once per OOC hour? IDK. Just ideas *shrug*
One Mansion per server? Beware the underdark leyline!

If you make the area large enough (and I think the D&D versions were positively huge) you'd immediately have basically the universal mage's guild hang-out. And I'm not mad at it.
I'd love for that to be a thing!
edit to underline it further that i would really, REALLY LOVE for this to be a thing!

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Dalenger » Thu Mar 25, 2021 10:44 pm

Mass restorations, going all the way from lesser to greater restoration. Greater & mass zoo spells. A haste-analog that doesn't provide the mechanical benefits (APR, AC, etc), but grants an increased move speed and lasts longer (maybe 3 rounds/level or something).
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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Basementfellow » Thu Mar 25, 2021 11:29 pm

Enlarge/reduce
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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by Kuma » Thu Mar 25, 2021 11:36 pm

Crushing Fist of Spite
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edit: i want stone to flesh to work on any stone

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Re: Spellbook Wishlists - What Would be Fun?

Post by xanrael » Fri Mar 26, 2021 12:51 am

Kuma wrote:
Thu Mar 25, 2021 11:36 pm
edit: i want stone to flesh to work on any stone
That's a very disgusting way to create shortcuts in a dungeon.

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