Dweomers of Darkness: a Selection from the Incantations of Iscladoc the Dark |
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Posted on Sun, December 01, 2002 by Dogadmin |
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grodog writes "Seven spells penned by the drowic demonologist Iscladoc, as recovered by the Fiend Sage of Rel Astra.
Author: grodog
Dweomers of Darkness, a Selection from the Incantations of Iscladoc the Dark
by grodog (see also http://www.rpg.net/ehp/imrryr/greyhawk.html)
Copyright 2002 by Allan T. Grohe, Jr.
Used with Permission. Do not repost without obtaining prior permission from the author.
Harder to find than the copies of Evard's spells stolen from Lyme, (see Two Recently Rediscovered Spells by Evard and Three Additional Spells by Evard), the Frequency for these spells is Very Rare, as Iscladoc is a far less well-known figure in drowic society.
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1 Sunsebb 592 CY
My inexhaustible and all-seeing lord,
Within this coffer is a head I trust that you will recognize. You need worry no further about infidelity. I have taken the liberty of sharing
select digits with the rest of the family, as a sign of your disapproval of their selection for your concubine. Shall I begin inquiries for another?
One of your enmarqued captains on the Oljatt sighted three ships of strange manufacture, flying unknown colors. I am researching the
heraldic devices, which are reminiscent of an offshoot of one of the long-lost Asperdii tribes.
In addition, today I also include seven rare drowic incantations, wrought by the demonologist Iscladoc of the fallen drowic house of Sherimur. I acquired these from some fools who flocked to the vagabond banner of Turrosh Mak. How they acquired such delicacies will remain a mystery
for another day or three, at most, I trust.
Of them, only the Insular Barrier and Eyes of Invasion are worthy of note---the remaining magics are beneath your notice, although the Eyes
of Agony may be of some use if you choose to attack Eastfair with the Claxon Gambit, your best-devised stratagem to date: it could further
assist with clearing defenders from the walls prior to their breach.
As ever, I remain your humble and dedicated servant,
The Fiend Sage of Rel Astra
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The spells are presented unabashedly in 1e format, as originally written. I will eventually get around to converting them to d20, but in
the interests of expediency, I send them now vs. later (or perhaps never :-)
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Iscladoc's Eyes of Enmity (Enchantment/Charm)
Level: 1
Range: 4"
Duration: 3 rounds + 1 round/2 levels
Area of Effect: 1 target creature
Components: S, M
Casting Time: 1 segment
Saving Throw: Negates
This spell involves the caster gazing in a very nasty manner at the target, while fingering the material component (a small chip of black or
white onyx). The victim must save vs. spells or being to pick a fight with the caster; the actions of the first three rounds are of gradually building insults, aggression, etc, after which the victim will begin to provoke an attack and/or to initiate combat.
Iscladoc's Eyes of Anxiety (Enchantment/Charm)
Level: 2
Range: 1"/level
Duration: Up to 7 rounds (see below)
Area of Effect: 1 target creature
Components: S, M
Casting Time: 1 segment
Saving Throw: Special
This unique spell is cast by staring at the target intently, and rubbing a few drops of human sweat between the forefinger and thumb. For each round of such scrutiny, the target will grow more uneasy, until he or she leaves the presence of the caster for at least 1 turn plus 1 round per level of the caster. The target will feel a great respect for the caster, tinged with uneasy fears of him or her. The target will not
necessarily associate their departure with caster, although they will notice their unease and fear around him or her.
After the first round of such scrutiny, the target must save vs. spells at +2; the second round bonus drops to +1, while each succeeding round subtracts 1 from the saving throw, up to a -4 penalty on the 7th and final round of casting. Should the target fail any saving throw, she or
he reacts as outlined above. If the subject makes all seven saving throws, he has out-stared Iscladoc the Dark, an impressive feat indeed!
Iscladoc's Eyes of Intrigue (Alteration)
Level: 3
Range: 3" plus 1"/level
Duration: Special (see below)
Area of Effect: 1 target creature
Components: S, M
Casting Time: 1 segment
Saving Throw: None
This spell is a much-improved form of message: as long as the caster and the target maintain eye contact, words may be passed between them. The major advantage of this spell, however, is that such communication is not verbal, but conveyed from mind to mind through a limited form of telepathy. The material component is the eye from an illithid, kuo toan, beholder, or eye of the deep, through which a fine copper pin has
been pushed. The component is consumed in the casting.
Iscladoc's Eyes of Amaurosis (Evocation, Necromantic)
Level: 4
Range: 5" plus ½"/level
Duration: Permanent
Area of Effect: 1 target creature
Components: S, M
Casting Time: 2 segments
Saving Throw: Negates
This spell blasts the victim with a great force drawn from the energies of the Negative Material Plane. The black and purple energies fire out
from the caster's eyes, striking toward the target's own eyes (if the target has more than two eyes, all of the victim's eyes are targeted
equally, even if the caster has fewer eyes than the target creature). If the victim fails his saving throw vs. spells, his eyes are burned out
from his head by blackflame. A successful saving throw negates this effect. The material component is the intact skull of any small
animal/creature (less than three fingers in size). The eyes of the skull must have been previously packed with the preserved jellies of a
slain flesh-eating ooze, slime, mold, etc. The skull must then be blessed by a priest of Nerull or Incabulos, who cast blindness upon it. It is crushed in the casting.
Iscladoc's Eyes of Agony (Alteration/Evocation)
Level: 5
Range: 8"
Duration: 1 round and 1 round/level (see below)
Area of Effect: cone ½" at base, 8" long and 3" wide at end, within up
to a 180 degree arc
Components: S, M
Casting Time: 3 segments
Saving Throw: ½
This magic projects two cones of overlapping ruby light from the caster's eyes. The cones merge into a single cone of effect 8" long and 3" wide at its terminus; it moves with the caster's gaze, in up to a 180 degree. The energies from this spell are drawn from the twisted, wracking layers of the Nine Hells, and all those touched by this energy must save. vs. spells or suffer a neural overload of pain. A failed save indicates that the victims attack at a -4 penalty to hit and
damage, suffer a -2 penalty on their Dexterity score, and suffer a chance to miscast any spells (50% -1% per level of the victim). A successful save lessens the agony and effects to -2 to hit and damage, -1 on Dexterity, with no penalties to spell casting.
The cones of the area of effect lasts for 1 round, during which the caster may gaze in up to a 180 degree arc in any irection. The effects of the spell upon the targets remain for 1 round per level of the caster, half if the saving throw succeeds.
The material component, consumed in the casting, is either a scale from a pit fiend or 5 gp worth of powdered hellstone.
Iscladoc's Insular Barrier (Abjuration)
Level: 5
Range: 0"
Duration: 2 rounds/level
Area of Effect: 5' radius sphere upon target touched
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 5 segments
Saving Throw: Special (see below)
This spell is a much-improved version of the spell Protection From Evil. Like that abjuration, Iscladoc's Insular Barrier prevents
physical contact from all conjured, summoned, and gated beings. However, should such any such creatures attempt to attack or otherwise touch the caster, it will sustain 1d4 points of damage per level of the caster (a saving throw vs. spells halves this damage), and be repulsed away from the caster 3 feet per level of the caster (possibly resulting in additional damage if a wall, cliff, iron maiden, etc. lies in the path
of their angle of reflection). The spell extends into all locally adjoining planes, including the ethereal (and the demi-plane of shadow, the astral, etc.; the exact planes will vary according to the surrounding planar geography, of course).
Should an extra-planar creature attempt to use its magic resistance to eradicate the spell effect or to bypass the 'Insular Barrier, if their magic resistance check fails, they take 1d6 points of damage per level of the caster, gain no saving throw to reduce the damage, and are stunned for 1d3 rounds. Even if the magic resistance check succeeds, the creature takes damage as for a touch/attack as outlined above
(1d4/level, etc.) as the spell effects end. Because its protection is a solid sphere and not a hollow shell , this same protection extends to
within the bounds of the 'Insular Barrier, and damages any extra-planar being which successfully teleports or otherwise magically enters its the
radius.
With respect to non-physical contact, extra-planar creatures (regardless of origin, alignment, etc.) attack at -3 on to hit rolls, and the caster saves against all attacks (magical or otherwise) at +3. Up to three others may fit within the sphere of protected afforded by Iscladoc's Insular Barrier, which moves with the recipient of the magic.
Iscladoc's Insular Barrier appears as an translucent and slightly opaque sphere (or hemisphere if standing up on a solid surface) upon which flicker motes of black and green energies that flare to brilliant emerald when contacted by extra-planar, gated, and/or conjured
creatures. From within the sphere and looking out, the world appears as it would looking from under an Abyssal sea to the land: darkly murky, shot through with emeralds and black shadows.
The material components are a round black sapphire of at least 1000 gp value; a rod forged from at least 200 gp worth of metals inimical to
each of the four extreme alignments (cold iron, silver, ayrn, and tantulhor, for example); and three rosemary leaves (one picked less than one week ago, one picked within one month, one dried for a season). The leaves are crushed during the casting, and sprinkled over the sapphire and the rod. The caster smites the stone with the rod, which shatters the rod; its shards and the crushed leaves then form the flickering motes of the spherical protection.
Iscladoc's Eyes of Invasion (Divination/Alteration, Dominion)
Level: 7
Range: ½"/level or Special (see below)
Duration: 1 round/level
Area of Effect: 1 creature per round
Components: S, M
Casting Time: 3 segments
Saving Throw: Special
This spell is a powerful divination which has secondary functions as well. Primarily, Iscladoc's Eyes of Invasion is an advanced form of ESP, in that it reveals the subject's thoughts, emotions, and motivations. It will also reveal charms, geases, quests, and the like, as well as any strong ties to the Outer Planes, in a manner similar to true seeing with colors indicating types and strengths of influences, as well as extra-planar origins (if any). Iscladoc's Eyes of Invasion also reveals the aptitude of a potential apprentice's magical power or psionic talent (on the same scale as detect magic/identify). Secondarily, individuals who have been scanned using this dweomer are considered "Personally Well Known" for purposes of scrying attempts (see crystal ball in the DMG), and their auras are perceived so clearly that the following bonuses remain in effect for the duration of the Eyes of Invasion:
- charm, forget, hypnotism, Otto's Irresistible Dance, Tasha's Uncontrollable Hideous Laughter, beguiling, suggestion: +2
- feeblemind, geas, quest, eyebite: +3
- empathy, antipathy/sympathy, emotion (any): +4
- possession, magic jar: +5
These bonuses apply whether attempting to remove or to impose the above spells.
The range of this spell varies. If the caster has in his possession a personal object of the target, the range is the planar; otherwise it is
½" per level of the caster. The saving throw is rolled normally; if made, the caster receives surface thoughts, surface motivations, and
Outer Planar influences, but neither secondary knowledge or bonuses, nor any gauge of magical or psionic potentiality.
The material component is a small, carved wand of any exotic wood, 1" long per level of the caster, adorned and inlaid with gold, mithril, etc. The wand must then be steeped in the brain juices of an infant sari, a centenarian grell, an adult su-monster, or a psionic individual or creature. Enchant-an-item must be cast upon it, followed by ESP, true seeing, and geas. One more dweomer, chosen by the caster, must then be set into the wand, which individualizes it (although any mage
could use the component; its use is not restricted only to it creator). It may be reused in future castings, and has a minimum cost of 500 gp in wood, 2000 gp in gems/metals/etc., and 750 gp in craftsmanship.
=== END OF FILE ===
Note: Iscladoc, drow, Fiend Sage, Rel Astra, First Edition, 1e"
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Average Score: 4.5 Votes: 4
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