Describing a Spell

The first step in creating a new spell is describing its intent and effects. The interested player should take some time to write up a spell description similar to the spells in the
Player’s Handbook . Generally, a new spell should be just that—new. Spells that do the same thing as existing spells or a combination of existing spells aren’t really new, and need a better “hook” for purposes of spell research. Here are some guidelines, by category:

Level: Naturally, the character should be able to cast the spell he’s trying to develop, so the spell in question must be at or under his normal maximum spell level. For example, a 6th-level wizard can use spells of 3rd-level or less, so he can research 1st-, 2nd-, or 3rd-level spells.

Compare the proposed spell to a similar spell to get an idea of what a fair level assignment should be. Generally, spells should inflict about one die of damage per level, give or take a die; compare the spell’s potential to magic missile, fireball, or flame arrow. Spells that do not allow saving throws, or spells that can affect an opponent regardless of his level or Hit Dice, are often of higher level than similar spells. Spells that are improvements of existing spells should be one to three levels higher than the spell they’re modelled on, depending on the extent of the improvement.

School/Sphere: Refer to Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 ; brief descriptions of each school of wizard magic and each sphere of priest magic appear in those chapters. Both wizards and priests may only conduct research in schools or spheres they have access to, so a cleric may not research new animal or plant spells, and an invoker may not research illusion spells.

Range: Damage-inflicting attack spells should have a good justification for ranges greater than 150 yards (or more than 10 yards per caster level), while nondamaging attack spells (sleep, hold, polymorph, and other such effects) rarely exceed more than 100 yards (or more than five yards per caster level) in range. Other spells can vary wildly in range, depending on their function; communication or transportation spells may allow a range of hundreds of miles.

Duration: While damage from attack spells or the effects of many noncombat spells are permanent, most spells that create a condition or change of status for their subjects have a well-defined duration. Durations can be defined by time (the preferred method) or until a certain predefined event occurs. For example, invisibility lasts until the caster makes an attack, while a charm can last for a few days or for several months, depending on the victim. Very few low-level spells should bring about a permanent change or weakness in a living target.

Area of Effect: A spell that can affect several people at once, or several dozen people at once, is inherently more powerful than a spell that affects a single individual. Spells designed to affect several enemies can affect a random number of subjects in a cube of about 20 to 30 feet (for example, hold person affects 1 to 4 targets in a 20-foot cube). Spells designed to affect more than 10 or 12 individuals shouldn’t be larger than a fireball, which affects a sphere of 20 feet in radius. Exceeding these limits requires a more powerful (and therefore higher-level) spell than one that stays well within them.

Components: Most spells should have all three components—verbal, material, and somatic—unless there’s a good reason for omitting one. Spells with only one component are fairly rare. Note that spells without verbal components can be cast even if the character is silenced, and are therefore more dangerous than they may appear to be at first look.

Material components that are hard to come by or very expensive can be used to control a spell’s use in a campaign. Even though a 1st-level wizard can use identify, each time he does so, he must ruin a 100 gp pearl. If the DM enforces material component rules, the wizard might think twice before casting the spell any time he feels like it.

Casting Time: The rule of thumb for wizard spells is a casting time of 1 per level, so a 4th-level spell (for instance) should have a casting time of 4. Priest spells default to a casting time of 3 plus 1 per level, so a 4th-level priest spell should be around a 7. If a spell is significantly under this mark, it should either be weaker than spells of a similar level, or higher in level than normal. Conversely, a prolonged casting time may help to compensate for other advantages.

Saving Throw: While the nature of the saving throw varies with the purpose of the spell, enchantments that incapacitate the victim without the benefit of a saving throw should be rare or limited to a type of victim affected. The sleep spell is a good example; it allows no saving throw, but can only affect low-Hit Dice creatures. Damage-causing spells that affect more than a single target without a saving throw are uncommon and tend to be high in level.

Description and Effects: When creating the actual description of the spell, remember to note who it affects, how it works, what it does, and how it can be stopped or undone. If the duration, range, or saving throw is described as ‘special,’ make sure you note how it is special and what its limits actually are.

Most spells should perform one specific action, although spells may present several applications from which one can be selected when the spell is cast (see
Otiluke’s freezing sphere for an example of this). Spells that actually do two or three things at once, such as shadow door or guards and wards, are quite rare and are almost always high-level enchantments.

Last but not least, creating a new spell is an opportunity to be creative—feel free to add any color or special effects that are appropriate. A spell that makes a character impervious to cold is useful, but not very colorful; however, a spell that transforms a character’s blood to magical ice water, thereby enabling him to resist cold damage, is a little more interesting. Also consider side effects or dangerous combinations of powers when writing up the spell description.

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