AD&D 2nd Edition

Everything I have for Second Edition

Tag Archives: No Material Requirement


Detect Evil

Range: 0
Components: V, S
Duration: 5 rds/level
Casting Time: 2
Area of Effect: 10 x 180 ft
Saving Throw: None

This spell discovers emanations of evil (or of good in the cast of the reverse spell) from any creature, object, or area. Character alignment is not revealed under most circumstances: Characters who are strongly aligned, do not stray from their faith, and who are at least 9th level might radiate good or evil if they are intent upon appropriate actions. Powerful monsters, such as ki-rin, send forth emanations of evil or good, even if polymorphed. Aligned undead radiate evil, for it is this power and negative force that enables them to continue existing,. An evilly cursed object or unholy water radiates evil, but a hidden trap or an unintelligent viper dies not. The degree of evil (faint, moderate, strong, overwhelming) can be noted. Note that priests have a more powerful version of this spell. The spell has a path of detection 10 feet wide and 60 yards long in the direction in which the wizard is facing. The wizard must concentrate – stop, have quite, and intently seek to detect the aura – for at least one round to receive a reading.

Continual Light

Range: 60 yds
Components: V, S
Duration: Permanent
Casting Time: 2
Area of Effect: 60 ft radius
Saving Throw: Special

This spell is similar to a light spell, except that it is as bright as full daylight and lasts until negated by magical darkness or by a dispel magic spell. Creatures who suffer penalties in bright light suffer them in the spell’s area of effect. As with the light spell, it can be cast into the air, onto an object, or at a creature. When cast at a creature, the target gets a saving throw vs. spell; success indicates that the spell affects the space about 1 foot behind the creature instead. Note that this spell can also blind a creature if it is successfully cast upon the creature’s visual organs, reducing its attack rolls, saving throws, and Armor Class by 4. If the spell is cast on a small object that is then placed in a light-proof covering, the spell’s effects are blocked until the covering is removed. A continual light brought into an area of magical darkness (or vice versa) is temporarily negated so that the otherwise prevailing light conditions exist in the overlapping areas of effect. A direct casting of continual light against a similar or weaker magical darkness cancels both. This spell eventually consumes the material it is cast upon, but the process takes far longer than the time in the typical campaign. Extremely hard and expensive materials can last hundreds or even thousands of years.

Blur

Range: 0
Components: V, S
Duration: 3 rds + 1 rd/level
Casting Time: 2
Area of Effect: The caster
Saving Throw: None

When a blur spell is cast, the wizard causes the outline of his form to become blurred, shifting and wavering. This distortion causes all missile and melee combat attacks against the caster to be made with -4 penalties on the first attempt and -2 penalties on all successive attacks. It also grants the wizard a +1 bonus to his saving throw for any direct magical attack. A detect invisibility spell will not counter this effect, but the 5th level priest spell true seeing and similar magic will.

Blindness

Range: 30 yds + 10 yds/level
Components: V
Duration: Special
Casting Time: 2
Area of Effect: 1 creature
Saving Throw: Neg.

The blindness spell causes the victim to become blind, able to see only a grayness before its eyes. Various cure spells will not remove this effect, and only a dispel magic or the spellcaster can do away with the blindness if the creature fails its initial saving throw vs. spell. A blinded creature suffers a -4 penalty to its attack rolls, and its opponents gain a +4 bonus to their attack rolls.

Alter Self

Range: 0
Components: V, S
Duration: 3d4 rds + 2 rds/level
Casting Time: 2
Area of Effect: The Caster
Saving Throw: None

When this spell is cast, the wizard can alter his appearance and form – including clothing and equipment – to appear taller or shorter; thin, fat, or in between; human, humanoid, or any other generally man-shaped bipedal creature. The caster’s body can undergo a limited physical alteration and his size can be changed up to 50%. If the form selected has wings, the wizard can actually fly, but at only one-third the speed of a true creature of that type, and with a loss of 2 maneuverability classes (to a minimum of E). If the form has gills, the caster can breathe under water as long as the spell lasts. However, the caster does not gain any multiple attack routines or additional damage allowed to an assumed form. The caster attack rolls, Armor Class, and saving throws do not change. The spell does not confer special abilities, attack forms, or defenses. Once the new form is chosen, it remains for the duration of the spell. The caster can change back into his own form at will; this ends the spell immediately. A caster who is slain automatically returns to his normal form.

Taunt

Range: 60 yds
Components: V, S
Duration: 1 round
Casting Time: 1
Area of Effect: 30 ft radius
Saving Throw: Neg.

A taunt spell enables the caster to jape and jeer effectively at a single type of creature with an intelligence of 2 or greater. The caster need not speak the language of the creatures. His words and sounds have real meaning for the subject creature or creatures, challenging, insulting, and generally irritating and angering the listeners. Those failing to save vs. spell rush forth in fury to do battle with the spellcaster. All affected creatures attack the spellcaster in melee if physically capable of doing so, seeking to use body or hand-held weapons rather than missile weapons or spells. Separation of the caster from the victim by an impenetrable or uncrossable boundary (a wall of fire, a deep chasm, a formation of set pikemen) causes the spell to break. If the caster taunts a mixed group, he must choose the type of creature to be affected. Creatures commanded by a strong leader (i.e., with a Charisma bonus, with higher Hit Dice, etc) might gain a saving throw bonus of +1 to +4, at the DM’s discretion. If used in conjunction with a ventriloquism spell, the creatures may attack the apparent source, depending upon their Intelligence, a leader’s presence, and so on.

Spook

Range: 30 ft
Components: V, S
Duration: Special
Casting Time: 1
Area of Effect: 1 creature
Saving Throw: Neg.

A spook spell enables the wizard to play upon natural fears to cause the target creature to perceive the spellcaster as someone or something inimical. Without actually knowing what this is, the wizard merely advances threateningly upon the creature. If the creature does not make a successful saving throw vs. spell, it turns and flees at maximum speed as far from the wizard as possible, though items carried are not dropped. The creature has a saving throw penalty of -1 for every 2 experience levels of the caster, to a maximum of -6 at 12th level. Note that a natural (unmodified) roll of 20 automatically succeeds, regardless of saving throw penalties. Although the caster does not actually pursue the fleeing creature, a phantasm from its own mind does. Each round after the initial casting, the creature receives another saving throw, without penalty, until it successfully saves and the spell is broken. In any event, the spell functions only against creatures with Intelligences of 2 or more, and undead are not affected at all.

Shocking Grasp

When the wizard casts this spell, he develops a powerful electrical charge that gives a jolt to the creature touched. The spell remains in effect for one round per level of the caster or until it is discharged by the caster touching another creature. The shocking grasp delivers 1d8 points of damage, plus 1 point per level of the wizard (for example, a 2nd level wizard would discharge a shock causing 1d8+2 points of damage). While the wizard must come close enough to his opponent to lay a hand on the opponent’s body or upon an electrical conductor that touches the opponent’s body, a like touch from the opponent does not discharge the spell.

Shield

When this spell is cast, an invisible barrier comes into being in front of the wizard. This shield totally negates magic missle attacks. It provides the equivalent protection of AC 2 against hand hurled missiles (axes, darts, javelins, spears, etc.), AC 3 against small device-propelled missiles (arrows, bolts, bullets, manticore spikes, sling stones, etc), and AC 4 against all other forms of attack. The shield also adds a +1 bonus to the wizard’s saving throws against attacks that are basically frontal. Note the these benefits apply only if the attacks originate from in front of the wizard, where the shield can move to interpose itself.

Magic Missle

Use of the magic missile spell creates up to 5 missiles of magical energy that dart forth from the wizard’s fingertip and unerringly strike their target. This includes enemy creatures in a melee. The target creature must be seen or otherwise detected to be hit, however, so near-total concealment, such as that offered by arrow slits, can render the spell ineffective. Likewise, the caster must be able to identify the target. He cannot direct a magic missile to “Strike the commander of the legion, “ unless he can single out the commander from the rest of the soldiers.

Specific parts of a creature cannot be singles out. Inanimate objects (locks, etc) cannot be damaged by the spell, and any attempt to do so wastes the missiles to no effect. Against creatures, each missile inflicts 1d4 +1 points of damage. For every two extra levels of experience, the wizard gains an additional missile – he has two at 3rd level, three at 5th level, four at 7th level, etc., up to a total of 5 missiles at 9th level. If the wizard has multiple missile capability, he can have them strike a single target creature or several creatures, as desired.