Sensory Signatures by School
While each school of magic includes a variety of different spells, it’s
possible to make some general observations about each school. Both priest and wizard
spells of the listed type share some common sensory signatures.
Abjurations: Spells of this type fall into three loose categories—those that create
barriers, those that enhance the recipient’s resistance to attack, and those that
directly attack the offending creature or object. Barriers include spells such as protection from evil, minor globe of invulnerability, antimagic shell, or prismatic sphere; generally, these spells have a normal visible signature for their size, but
don’t produce odd smells or sounds. Spells that enhance resistance include sanctuary, nondetection, or protection from normal missiles. These enchantments have small signatures or no discernible signatures at
all. Abjurations that attack the offending creature include fire trap, repulsion, or banishment; they may include sight and sound signatures as normal for their area of
effect. The following are some specific examples:
Protection from evil: moderate visual;
Minor globe of invulnerability: small visual;
Banishment: small visual, small audio.
Alterations: This broad school includes spells designed to accomplish a multitude of
effects. As a gross generalization, all alterations have the signatures derived from
their areas of effect with a couple of notable exceptions. Alteration spells
that affect other spells (the so-called “metamagic” spells, like far reaching or Rary’s mnemonic enhancer) and spells that imbue the caster with a quality that doesn’t change his
appearance (comprehend languages, fly, or water breathing, for example) usually have no signature at all. Specific examples appear
below:
Burning hands: moderate visual and audio;
Haste: no signature at all;
Animal growth: moderate visual and audio.
Conjurations: Most conjurations involve visual sensory signatures since people on the scene
notice whatever it is that just appeared, but audio signatures are unusual.
Instead, olfactory signatures—strange smells and odors— often accompany spells of
this school. Also, tactile sensations such as chills, goosebumps, or nausea may
come into play when doors to other dimensions are opened in the vicinity. The
following are specific examples:
Unseen servant: small audio and tactile;
Monster summoning: moderate visual;
Power word: small audio and tactile.
Divinations: A great number of divinations have no sensory signature at all since they
impart information directly to the caster’s awareness. However, some divination
spells (such as detect magic) cause the items or objects in question to glow, so that anyone nearby can
see them.
Enchantments: Spells of this type that directly manipulate the subject’s mental or emotional
state have no signature to speak of, but a few spells of this type that relay
compulsions or orders, or affect objects instead of people (command, bind, ray of enfeeblement, snake charm, trip, or snare, to name a few examples) have normal sensory signatures as appropriate for
their areas of effect.
Charm person: no sensory signature;
Hold person: moderate visual/tactile signature;
Ray of enfeeblement: small visual/audio signature.
Illusions: In one sense, illusions are nothing more than sensory signatures with no
reality attached to them. The central spells of this school—phantasmal force and its various improvements and refinements—are designed to create the
largest “signature” possible and may easily be observed from quite a distance away. A
few illusion spells work directly on the mind of the subject and have a much
smaller sensory effect; these include misdirection, phantasmal killer, or eyebite. Illusions that mask or conceal something else have no true sensory signature
in and of themselves; if an invisible wizard was surrounded by a glow or gained a pungent odor, the spell would be
worthless!
Phantasmal force: visual signature by area affected;
Wraithform: small visual/tactile signature;
Eyebite: no sensory signature.
Invocations: Without question, the school of invocation/ evocation includes the most
spectacular spells available to a wizard or priest. Like it or not, a wizard who
throws fireballs and lightning bolts is creating a fireworks show that people can see and hear for quite a distance
away. Blinding flashes of light and deafening peals of thunder leave no doubt
in the observer’s mind that magic is at work here. Here are some classic
examples:
Magic missile: moderate visual signature;
Fireball: huge visual, moderate audio/tactile;
Cloudkill: large visual, large olfactory.
Necromancies: While spells of this school can be extremely potent, the flash and bang of a
powerful invocation isn’t found in most necromancy spells. Most necromancy
spells affect only a single subject at a time. Tactile sensations such as chills,
nausea, or disorientation are somewhat more common in necromancy than thunderous
detonations or weird haloes of light. The following are some good examples of
necromancy spells:
Enervation: small visual/audio/tactile;
Animate dead: moderate visual/tactile;
Cure serious wounds: small visual/tactile.
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