Re: New Spelljammer Spells

> Toss out a couple he says, before giving us a spell
> for throwing ropes and another spell for throwing
> people overboard! Arf!-Arf!

Everybody's a comedian...;)

> > Life Preserver
> 
> I like this spell, it sounds very practical.
> However, the name sounds a bit modern (and a bit
> American). "Life Preserver" brings a life jacket to
> mind. Wouldn't "Lifeline" be more descriptive (as it
> is a line)?

Man, I can't even get past the *name*! :p  Good point,
though.

> How does the spell *know* someone is unconcious?
> Wouldn't it be better to make the rope *always* try
> to wrap arounds someone's waste, but give people 
> a reflex save if they want to avoid this effect.

Hmmm, easy fix.

> If lots of people fall overboard, the last person
> targeted with this spell is only on the rope for one
> or two rounds. I don't know if they would make 
> it all the way back to the ship.
> 
> I can't see someone being pulled 440ft in one round!
> How fast can someone on a rope be pulled in?

Probably depends on how many people are on the rope
pulling!  Trick it to get the farthest guys first, and
the closest last.  Probably need to figure out how
fast people can be hauled it.

> > Transmutation
> > Level: Sorcerer/Wizard 1
> > Components: V, S
> 
> Hmmm, should the plank be seen as a focus of the
> spell? If it is, the whole spell would have to be
> rewritten with the deck of the ship as a target and 
> the plank being something that magically grows out
> from it.

I think the reason I didn't use the plank as the focus
is that the spell(s) I used as a guide didn't use the
objects they affected as a focus.  Besides, I'm not
sure that's the purpose of a focus (no books on hand
to say one way or the other).

> > Casting Time: 1 action
> > Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
> 
> Why does this spell need a range? Wouldn't it be
> more in keeping for the spellcaster throw a plank
> onto the deck and shout: "shazam!" That would make 
> it a touch spell.

The range was mostly so the caster doesn't have to be
in the front ranks casting the spell.  Touch spell
doesn't bother me in the least, and probably reduce
its power a bit.

> > Target: One plank-like object, length up to 10 ft.
> > per level
> 
> As I said, you could say that the deck of the ship
> is the target.

Yeah, that's a typo.

> 
> > Duration: 1 round/level
> 
> So this

Incomplete thought? ;)

> You said 10ft per level above and 10ft here. Which
> is right?

10 ft.  Above was a typo.

> Why does the plank have to be short? Why can't a 1st
> level spellcaster extend the "last 10ft" of a long
> plank?

Basically, the spell takes a plank 10' long, and makes
it 100' + 10' per caster level.  So a 9th level wizard
makes it 190' long.

> I think it would sound better if spellcasters
> targeted a plank fixed to the deck and extended it
> by an amount given in the spell.

That's what its supposed to do. :p

> Why do people move faster on the plank? Is the
> surface moving? Is their mind  being altered? Are 
>they being hasted? Does it use some sort of 
> interdimensional travel (in which case it wouldn't
> work in the flow - would it)?

Hmmm, good points.  May just remove that and the
headache it'd cause.

> If ships are grappled, their air envelopes are
> combined and a crew member that fell between the
> ships would have a good chace to move towards one of

> them. The greater danger would surely be getting
> crused between the ships.
> 
> Instead of having a plank "snap out" and then have
> movement enhancing efects I'd be tempted to make the
> plank slowly grow away from the ship it is fixed 
> to (and "snap in" when the duration ends). A plank 
> that extends could move people outwards at a rate
> of 10ft per round. Instead of doubling a
> characters's movmement, the spell would than add
> 10 feet to the character's existiong movement speed

Hmmm, I'll consider it :)

Adam

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