Thursday, April 19, 2012

Telecanter's Spell Like Effects

If you don't read Telecanter's Receding Rules, you're missing out on a load of awesome.

One of the great resources he has over on his page is a random table that generates "Spell Like Effects". The original idea was to generate a totally random daily effect for The Crown of Cedifer the Sullen.

My Co-DMs and I decided to flip things around a bit, roll up a bunch of random effects, and then figure out a magical item based on what the dice decided. We had a surprising amount of fun, and every time someone got stumped by one of the results, someone else was able to come up with something that just... worked.

Here's a list of the effects we rolled up, and you can find the items we created to fit these effects below the jump. The elements rolled for each line are: Mode, Intent, Range/Degree, Duration, Effect, Medium.
  1. AoE, Attack, Sight, 3 hours, Summon, Terrain
  2. Distance, Attack Attack, 30ft, 1 day, Conjure, Sound 
  3. Touch, Utility Transport x2, 50, 2 turns, Evoke, Animal
  4. AoE, Defense, Sight, 1  day, Distort, Mineral
  5. Touch, Defense, Sight, 3 hours, Animate, Air 
  6. Distance, Attack Attack, 10, Instant, Compel, Water
  7. Distance, Attack, 20, 5 turns, Compel, Water
  8. Wielder, Transport Defense Utility, 10, 5 days, Delude, Vegetable
  9. Touch, Attack, 20, 2 turns, Shield, Demi-Human 
  10. Distance, Transport, Sight, 2 Rounds, Evoke, Light
  11. Distance, Attack Defense Attack, 60, 2 rounds, delude, humanoid
  12. AoE, Transport, 70, 3 hours, Dispel, Space/Dimension
  13. Wielder, Attack, Sight, 4 turns, Conjure, Demi-Human


  1. "The Boots" - AoE, Attack, Sight, 3 hour, Summon, Terrain
    • A pair of yellow leather boots. 
    • When equipped the wearer is able to stomp his foot and create one of the following effects, on the ground, anywhere he can see:
      • 20 Stalagmites rise out of the ground (swift enough to deal damage amount tbd)
      • 20 One Foot Cubes
      • 20' diameter crater
      • 20' pillar
    • All objects created last for 3 hours then crumble to dust/refill, resetting the boots

  2. "The Birdcage" - Distance, Attack Attack, 30', 1 day, Conjure, Sound
    • A tiny gold birdcage
    • Once per day you can conjure a small stone statue of a screech owl
    • This owl can be placed and "activated" by the user
    • Once activated, anything that passes within 30' of the owls face causes the owl to emit a sonic burst (cone, dmg tbd)

  3. "The Small Cat Statue" - Touch, Utility Transport Transport, 50, 2 turns, Evoke, Animal
    • A small, super stylized, stone statue of a seated cat
    • Patterned like a calico, made of raw ruby, obsidian, and basalt
    • When placed in lava/magma transforms into a giant molten hellcat (sphinx pose) and will transport your group across that specific stretch of lava
    • If the expanse is too large for the cat to cross, it will either tell you, not shift when use is attempted, or, get to the spot in the lava it can get to then ask your party a riddle (success continues passage, failure does the opposite). Undecided.

  4.  "The Stonemason's Goggles" - AoE, Defense, Sight, 1  day, Distort, Mineral
    • Once per day the wearer of these goggles is able to create a tunnel through solid rock (length tbd)
    • Over the next 24 hours the tunnel slowly closes until it leaves no trace of its existence

  5.  "The Cloak" - Touch, Defense, Sight, 3 hours, Animate, Air  
    • A small woolen cloak woven in a chaotic pattern using white and two shades of grey
    • Will fit a gnome or goblin normally, looks like a caplet on M creatures
    • Activating the cloak will surround the wearer with a "wind shield" for 3 hours
    • Acts as "Protection from Normal Missiles"


  6. "Gloves with webbed fingers" - Distance, Attack Attack, 10, Instant, Compel, Water
    • Passive swim speed bonus when equipped
    • Water breathing ('cause hell why not?)
    • When equipped you can "grab hold" of the current
    • Once per day the gloves can *massively* amplify the movement produced by your hands in water
      • If you punch, it uses the water to punch
      • If you move your hands like crashing waves, it makes crashing waves
      • If you move your hands to make a "rip tide" it does that
      • Basically... wave your hands through the air, feel the air move, now imagine that the body of water your in is greatly amplifying that movement for 10 yards

  7.  "Spring Maker" - Distance, Attack, 20, 5 turns, Compel, Water
    •  A small wooden funnel
    • When placed in the ground it will draw fresh water up from the water table no matter how far down that water table may be
    • Takes 5 turns to completely fill the spring
    • If removed, the spring dries up

  8. "Horseshoes" - Wielder, Transport Defense Utility, 10, 5 days, Delude, Vegetable
    • These horseshoes allow you to "Pass without trace" through vegetation no matter how thick
    • Vegetation actually moves out of the way as you ride along and then moves back into place once you pass
    • All terrain is considered to be normal (if it was considered to be abnormal due to vegetation, not rocks, earth, etc)

  9. "Elven Blade - Dancing Longsword" - Touch, Attack, 20, 2 turns, Shield, Demi-Human
    • Only 12 of these blades were ever made
    • Used by the highest guards of a line of Elven kings
    • Fight with them as a +# longsword
    • In the heat of battle they can be thrown toward any friendly ELF within 20 yards of the wielder
    • The sword will then begin to "dance" and defend the elf from most all incoming attacks for 2 turns before dropping to the ground
    • Once retrieved by owner this effect can be immediately reused
    • ONLY USABLE BY ELVES/HALF, ONLY DEFENDS ELVES/HALF


  10. "The Broken Statue" - Distance, Transport, Sight, 2 Rounds, Evoke, Light
    • High atop the tallest mountain in the area is the statue of a seated human male
    • The statue's head has been broken off and taken by the nearest Hag
    • If the head is reattached the statue can be used to transport you via a beam of light to anywhere you can see
    • Travel time to this location is only two rounds

  11. "The Broach" - Distance, Attack Defense Attack, 60", 2 rounds, delude, humanoid
    • A few times a day when the wearer of this broach is attacked, a mirror image of the wearer is produced within 60" 
    • This mirror image lasts for 2 rounds, or until the wearer attacks twice

  12. "The Gem/Key" - AoE, Transport, 70' range, 3 hours, Dispel, Space/Dimension
    • A large green gem
    • This gem can be used every three hours to transport the holder of the gem, and anything the holder chooses, within 10' to teleport 70' forward
    • While this isn't inherently very exciting there is a room for which this gem functions as a key
    • There's a pedestal or carved face or something, somewhere
    • When the gem is placed in this repository it causes this room to exist in two places at once for 3 hours
    • The other end of the room connects to a small, treasure filled, area that's completely cut off from the rest of the world. A "bubble" in the rock. Think Agathion.

  13. "The Armband" - Wielder, Attack, Sight, 4 turns, Conjure, Demi-Human
    • This became a motherfucking artifact
    • ONLY USABLE BY ELVES/HALF
    • A black metal armband with a large orange gem carved in the shape of a flower (like a hibiscus)
    • When equipped it becomes a black tattoo with an orange flower
    • CANNOT BE REMOVED
    • When you put it on, it conjures an exact shadow of yourself at the exact opposite end of the world from where you are
    • When you put it on, time freezes for you and you see the shadow form
    • The shadow looks into your eyes and says "I am going to kill you"
    • The shadow does not eat, sleep, or stop
    • If you kill it, it immediately reforms and comes after you again, and you watch it reform
    • None of the boons granted by this item can be used against the shadow
    • Naturally, the shadow always shows up at the most inopportune times. :D
    • Boons:
      • Significantly increases your primary attributes
      • If you are a caster type your magical effects and damage are doubled
      • If you are a melee type it doubles the number of attacks you have
      • Causes your eyes to glow orange (same color as gem). Any intelligent creature that meets your eyes must save or be shaken/demoralized
    • Every day after you equip the armband the tattoo grows
    • Every year another orange flower appears
    • Once 100 flowers appear you are able to permanently kill your shadow
    • If you kill your shadow, the armband falls off your arm, and you are never able to use it again
    • Only two elves have ever made it 100 years

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