AD&D 2nd Edition

Everything I have for Second Edition

Tag Archives: Illusion/Phantasm


Dream

Range: Touch
Components: V, S
Duration: Special
Casting Time: 1 turn
Area of Effect: 1 creature
Saving Throw: None

The dream spell enables the caster, or a messenger touched by the caster, to send messages to others in the form of dreams. At the beginning of the spell, the caster must name the recipient or identify him by some title that leaves no doubt as to his identity. As the caster completes the spell, the person sending the spell falls into a deep trancelike sleep, and instantaneously projects his mind to the recipient. The sender then enters the recipient’s dream and delivers the message unless the recipient is magically protected. If the recipient is awake, the message sender can choose to remain in the trancelike sleep. If the sender is disturbed during this time, the spell is immediately canceled and the sender comes out of the trance. The whereabouts and current activities of the recipient cannot be learned through this spell. The sender is unaware of his own surroundings or the activities around him while he is in his trance. He is totally defenseless, both physically and mentally (i.e., he always fails any saving throw) while in the trance. Once the recipient’s dreams are entered, the sender can deliver a message of any length, which the recipient remembers perfectly upon waking. The communication is one-way; the recipient cannot ask questions or offer information, nor can the sender gain any information by observing the dreams of the recipient. Once the message is delivered, the sender’s mind returns instantly to his body. The duration of the spell is the time required for the sender to enter the recipient’s dream and deliver the message. The reverse of this spell, nightmare, enables the caster to send a hideous and unsettling vision to the recipient, who is allowed a saving throw vs. spell to avoid the effect. The nightmare prevents restful sleep and causes 1d10 points of damage. The nightmare leaves the recipient fatigued and unable to regain spells for the next day. A dispel evil spell cast upon the recipient stuns the caster of the nightmare for one turn per level of the cleric countering this evil sending.

Demishadow Monsters

Range: 30 yards
Components: V, S
Duration: 1 rd/level
Casting Time: 5
Area of Effect: 20 ft cube
Saving Throw: Special

This spell is similar to the 4th level spell shadow monsters, except that the monsters created are effectively 40% of normal hit points. If the saving throw is made, their damage potential is only 40% of normal and their Armor Class is 8. The monsters have none of the special abilities of the real creatures, although victims may be deluded into believing this to be so.

Advanced Illusion

Range: 60 yds + 10 yds/level
Components: V, S, M
Duration: 1 rd/level
Casting Time: 1 rd
Area of Effect: One 40 ft cube + one 10 ft cube/level
Saving Throw: Special

This spell is essentially a spectral forces spell that operates through a program (similar to a programmed illusion spell) determined by the caster. It is thus unnecessary for the wizard to concentrate on the spell for longer than the round of casting it, as the program has then started and will continue without supervision. The illusion has visual, audio, olfactory, and thermal components. If any viewer actively attempts to disbelieve the spell, he gains a saving throw vs. spell. If any viewer successfully disbelieves and communicates this fact to other viewers, each such viewer gains a saving throw vs. spell with a +4 bonus. The material components are a bit of fleece and several grains of sand.

Vacancy

Range: 10 yards/level
Components: V, S, M
Duration: 1 hour/level
Casting Time: 4
Area of Effect: 10 ft radius/level
Saving Throw: None

When a vacancy spell is cast, the wizard causes an area to appear to be vacant, neglected, and unused. Those who behold the area see dust on the floor, cobwebs, dirt, and other conditions typical of a long-abandoned place. If they pass through the area of effect, they seem to leave tracks, tear away cobwebs, and so on. Unless they actually contact some object cloaked by the spell, the place appears empty. Merely brushing an invisible object does not cause the vacancy spell to be disturbed: Only forceful contact grants a chance to note that all is not as it seems. If forceful contact with a cloaked object occurs, those creatures subject to the spell can penetrate the spell only if they discover several items that they cannot see; each being is then entitled to a saving throw vs. spell. Failure means they believe that the objects are invisible.

A dispel magic spell cancels this spell so that the true area is seen. A true seeing spell, a gem of seeing, and similar effects can penetrate the deception, but a detect invisibility spell cannot. This spell is a very powerful combination of invisibility and illusion, but it can cloak only nonliving things. Living things are not made invisible, but their presence does not otherwise disturb the spell. The wizard must have a square of the finest black silk to cast this spell. This material component must be worth at least 100 gp and is used up during spellcasting.

Shadow Monsters

Range: 30 yards
Components: V, S
Duration: 1 rd/level
Casting Time: 4
Area of Effect: 20 ft cube
Saving Throw: Special

A wizard casting the shadow monsters spell uses material from the Demiplane of Shadow to shape semireal illusions of one or more monsters. The total Hit Dice of the shadow monsters or monsters thus created cannot exceed the level of experience of the wizard; thus, a 10th level wizard can create one creature that has 10 Hit Dice, two that have 5 Hit Dice, etc. All shadow monsters created by one spell must be of the same sort. The actual hit point total for each monster is 20% of the hit point total it would normally have. (To determine this, roll the appropriate Hit Dice and multiply the hit points by 0.2. Any remainder less than 0.4 is dropped-in the case of monsters with 1 or fewer Hit Dice, this indicates the monster was not successfully created – and scores between 0.4 and 1 are rounded up to 1 hit point).

Those viewing the shadow monsters are allowed to disbelieve as per normal illusions, although there is a -2 penalty to the attempt. The shadow monsters perform as the real monsters with respect to Armor Class and attack forms. Those who believe in the shadow monster suffer real damage from their attacks. Special attack forms such as petrification or level drain do not actually occur, but a subject who believes they are real will react appropriately. Those who roll successful saving throws see the shadow monsters as transparent images superimposed on vague shadowy forms. These are Armor Class 10 and inflict only 20% of normal melee damage (biting, clawing, weapon, etc.), dropping fractional damage less than 0.4 as done with hit points.

For example: A shadow monster griffon attacks a person who knows it is only quasi-real. The monster strikes with two claw attacks and one bit, hitting as a 7 Hit Die monster. All three attacks hit; the normal damage dice are rolled, multiplied by 0.2 separately, rounded up or down, and added together to get the total damage. Thus, if the attacks score 4, 2 and 11 points, a total of 4 points of damage is inflicted (4 x 0.2 = 0.8 [rounded to 1], 2 x 0.2 = 0.4 [rounded to 1], 11 x 0.2 = 2.2 [rounded to 2]. The sum is 1+1+2=4).

Rainbow Pattern

Range: 10 yards
Components: S, M
Duration: Special
Casting Time: 4
Area of Effect: 30 ft cube
Saving Throw: Neg.

By means of this spell, the wizard creates a glowing, rainbow-hued bank of interweaving patterns. Any creature caught in it ma become fascinated and gaze at it as long as the effect lasts. The spell can captivate a maximum of 24 levels, or Hit Dice, of creatures – 24 creatures with 1 Hit Die each, 12 with 2 Hit Dice, etc. All creatures affected must be within the area of effect, and each is entitled to a saving throw vs. spell. An attack on an affected creature that causes damage frees it from the spell immediately. Creatures that are restrained and removed from the area still try to follow the pattern.

Once the rainbow pattern is cast, the wizard need only gesture in the direction he desires, and the pattern of colors moves slowly off in that direction, at the rate of 30 feet per round. It persists without further attention from the spellcaster for 1d3 rounds. All affected creatures follow the moving rainbow of light. If the pattern leads its subjects into a dangerous area (through flame, off a cliff, etc), allow a second saving throw. If the view of the lights is completely blocked (by an obscurement spell, for instance), the spell is negated. The wizard need not utter a sound, but he must gesture appropriately while holding a crystal prism and the material component, a piece of phosphor.

Phantasmal Killer

Range: 5 yds/level
Components: V, S
Duration: 1 rd/level
Casting Time: 4
Area of Effect: 1 creature
Saving Throw: Special

When this spell is cast, the wizard creates the illusion of the most fearsome thing imaginable to the victim, simply by forming the fears of the victim’s subconscious mind into something that its conscious mind can visualize – the most horrible beast. Only the spell recipient can see the phantasmal killer (the caster sees only a shadowy shape), but if it succeeds in scoring a hit, the subject dies from fright. The beast attacks as a 4 Hit Dice monster. It is invulnerable to all attacks and can pass throughout any barriers. Once cast, it inexorably pursues the subject, for it exists only in the subject’s mind. The only defenses against a phantasmal killer are an attempt to disbelieve (which can be tried but once), slaying or rendering unconscious the wizard who cast the spell, or rendering unconscious the target of the spell for its duration. To disbelieve the killer, the subject must specifically state the attempt and then roll an Intelligence check.

Special modifiers apply to this attack:
Condition Modifier
Surprise -2
Subject previously attacked by this spell +1
Subject is an illusionist +2
Subject is wearing a helm of telepathy +3
Magic resistance, bonuses against fear, and Wisdom adjustments also apply.

The subject’s magic resistance is checked first; if the spell overcomes the resistance, the subject’s fear/Wisdom bonuses (if any) then apply as negative modifiers to his Intelligence check. If the subject of a phantasmal killer attack succeeds in disbelieving, and he is wearing a helm of telepathy, the beast can be turned upon the wizard, who must then disbelieve it or be subject to its attack and possible effects. If the subject ignores the killer to perform other actions, such as attacking the caster, the killer may, at the DM’s option, gain bonuses to hit (for flank or rear attacks, etc). Spells such as remove fear and cloak of bravery, cast after the killer has attacked, grant another check to disbelieve the effect.

Minor Creation

Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M
Duration: 1 hr/level
Casting Time: 1 turn
Area of Effect: 1 cubic ft/level
Saving Throw: None

This spell enables the wizard to create an item of nonliving, vegetable nature – soft goods, rope, wood, etc. The caster actually pulls wisps of material of the plane of Shadow from the air and weaves them into the desired item. The volume of the item created cannot exceed 1 cubic foot per level of the spellcaster. The item remains in existence for only as long as the spell’s duration. The spellcaster must have at least a tiny piece of matter of the same type of item he plans to create by means of the minor creation spell – a bit of twisted hemp to create rope, a splinter of wood to create a door, and so forth.

Improved Invisibility

Range: Touch
Components: V, S
Duration: 4 rds + 1 rd/level
Casting Time: 4
Area of Effect: Creature touched
Saving Throw: None

This spell is similar to the invisibility spell, but the recipient is able to attack, either by missile discharge, melee combat, or spellcasting, and remain unseen. Note, however, that telltale traces (such as a shimmering effect) sometimes allow an observant opponent to attack the invisible spell recipient. These traces are only noticeable when specifically looked for (after the invisible character has made his presence known). Attacks against the invisible character suffer -4 penalties to the attack rolls, and the invisible character’s saving throws are made with a +4 bonus. Beings with high Hit Dice that might normally notice invisible opponents will notice a creature under this spell as if they had 2 fewer Hit Dice (they roll saving throws vs. spell; success indicates they spot the character).

Illusionary Wall

Range: 30 yards
Components: V, S, M
Duration: Permanent
Casting Time: 4
Area of Effect: 1 x 10 x 10 ft
Saving Throw: None

This spell creates the illusion of a wall, floor, ceiling, or similar surface, which is permanent until dispelled. It appears absolutely real when viewed (even magically, as with the priest spell true seeing or its equivalent), but physical objects can pass through it without difficulty. When the spell is used to hide pits, traps, or normal doors, normal demihuman and magical detection abilities work normally, and touch or probing searches reveal the true nature of the surface, though they do not cause the illusion to disappear. The material component is a rare dust that costs at least 400 gp and requires 4 days to prepare.