New Ship Weapon: Swarm GLobe

Posted this on WOTC forums :)


Most ships that sail arcane space are not pirates or privateers. Instead,
they are merchants, more concerned with trade and reaching home safely.
Their crews do of course contain trained warriors and spellcasters to defend
them in emergency. Against pirates though they are often outgunned, to this
end, the Arcane sell a nice line in weaponry that even a penny pinching
captain can appreciate: "Swarm Globes".

Swarm Globes are a bluish-globes of glass a foot across, meant to be hurled
by catapults, though other methods can be used. They weight 20 lbs, and are
magical devices.
Each contains a swarm of creatures held in magical stasis and sometimes
compressed in size as well, on breaking the globe, which happens on a hard
impact, the swarm wakes up, reverts to original size if appropriate, and is
very upset...and takes it's anger (and hunger) out on whoever is close.
While they may not defeat an enemy, they cause so much havoc they often let
a ship flee as the enemy try to deal with the swarm.
-In useage, they're fired from catapults onto enemy ships as a normal
attack.

To prevent accident, the globes are magical strong, as strong as iron, until
a command word is spoken. This command word is always engraved on them in
Common, after speaking it while touching the globe, the globe shimmers and
after a few seconds when the shimmering ends (the next round), it becomes
fragile as glass once more. 
-In usage, the globe is loaded onto a catapult, when ready to fire, the
artillery commander touches the globe, speaks the word, then immediately
fires it. Since the globe is still strong as iron on launching, it won't
break, but will do so on striking the enemy ship or any hard object.

Typically a Swarm Globe contains a swarm of rats, centipedes, or locusts (as
per the Monster Manual), though other creatures are possible, but at higher
costs.

Swarm Globe
Moderate Alteration: CL 10; Craft Wondrous Item, Otiluke's Resilient Sphere,
Polymorph. Cost: 2,500 gp. Weight 20 lbs.
1" thick glass (treat as iron until command word is spoken)


My comments on replies about this on the SJ forums, plus other thoughts:

1) Price. Considering the expense a SJ ship is, and how much a good merchant
could make...or lose...2,500 gp is not much to keep yourself safe lol, and
it's in keeping with prices as per the DMG, which is also important for game
balance.

2) You don't want anything TOO lethal in the globe, just in case of
accident, also very lethal things = more expense.
A Summon Swarm spell exists iirc, also, be kind of easy to capture a lot of
vermin around docks for use, so not only does it give a cheap bio-weapon,
you also rid a harbour of rats etc ;)

3) best creatures would be wasps or the hornets, but those aren't in the
Monster Manual, and Hellswarm wasps are WAY too nasty.

4) yeah the idea is to so screw up the enemy, they can't pursue as you flee.
Swarms are not the best weapons for pirates because they'd have to remove
the vermin and suffer as well, but they are a possibility of course as an
offensive weapon, especially if you have ways of neutralizing or removing
them.

5) It's a simple weapon, which is important, as most crews are not gonna be
adventurers with a life time of sneaky dirty tricks and smarts.

6) Game balance, you don't want this at it's cost to be small item, or you'd
lob many of these at enemies, and have them lob them at you! Making it a 1
foot, 20lb sphere with beings in stasis inside keeps it nice for traps and
catapult/giant thrown.
If it was like a Bead of Force and summoned swarms, owie! that would be
brutal, and would have to be more expensive.

7) A bale of hay would stop burning in the void, in the Phlogiston you'd
blow yourself to hell, also in the Phlogiston Summon spells wouldn't work so
a sphere that used summon monster wouldn't work.
Fire is dangerous as hell, you may set the enemy on fire...or yourself.

8) Swarms would put most folk on deck out of action in the swarm area, so
they couldn't cast, couldn't use ship weapons, and if the swarm got inside,
maybe the helmsman would suffer.

9) a Pirate crew harassed by swarms maybe angry if they capture you, but
less likely to take vengeance than if you burned, killed many of them etc.



What ya think? :)

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