A spell that transfers life: what level?

[Cheiromancer]

Sorry for the late bump, but I ran across this thread while looking for something else, and something occurred to me:

I think Nifft and I might have been mistaken when we said that unconscious creatures automatically count as willing. I have since learned that such creatures are willing only for (harmless) spells. That would not be the case here, obviously, and so the victim gets a chance to save, even if unconscious.

If the spell could only be cast under special circumstances (at midnight, say) or took 8 hours to cast, or something, then a successful saving throw by the victim could make a real story difference.

@AR: Have you used this spell in your campaign yet? How did it work? What was the version you used?

 

[Aust Diamondew]

It might be interesting to require that the sacrifice have equal HD to the creature to be raised. Either that or a number of creatures need to be sacrificed who's HD equals that of the creature to be raised.

 

[I'm A Banana]

Equal HD makes it hard to do the whole "the princess is captive!" idea...and also messes with the sacrifice of a powerful villain to restore a good-hearted king to life.

I do think it should probably be limited to "creatures of the same type," however, to prevent the "bunnies work just as well as people!" caveat. Or you could keep a roach in a jar and kill it whenever you needed to revive someone.

Not that that's nessecarily a bad thing, though it does mean the other life is not really a cost and is more an effect of the spell.

 

[Sravoff]

I would say

The creature sacrificed could be any creature. When the target(dead person) of the spell comes back, they use the physical attributes of the victom and their own mental attributes. Also they would speak as their new bodies do. Rabbits, none. This spell would be great story used this way.

Thus you get the whole:
"Here is the sorcerer king."
"That looks lie a rabbit to me."
"Well, we couldn't find any other way of bringing him back."
"Hewwow Widdle kingy Wabbit! Koochy koo!. AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!"<-Scorching Ray
"Told you so."

My take on it.

-Sravoff

 

[Umarth]

Here would be my take on it my changes are bolded.


[Soul for Soul]
Wizard/Sorc level 5, [Evil, Death]
Necromancy
Components: V, S, M
Casting time: 1 Hour
Range: 15 ft.
Target: One dead creature and one creature of the same type with -1 or fewer hit points (see text)
Save: Fortitude negates
Description: With an elaborate, hour-long ritual that requires at least 5000 gp worth of rare incense and diamond dust as components, you can transfer the waning life-energy of a single living creature with -1 or fewer hit points into a corpse within range. The target creature must be present (within range) for the entire ritual, so it must be willing or somehow restrained. The target creature is allowed a Fortitude save at the end of the ritual to resist the spell. If it succeeds on the save, the spell fails and all material components are wasted. If the target creature fails the Fortitude save, the dead creature may be restored to life, as if a raise dead spell were cast upon it if the sacrificed creature was of an equal level. If the sacrified creature was of a lesser level than the creature to be resurrected the resurrected creature has the same level/HD of the sacrificed target. All restrictions and limitations of the raise dead spell still apply.
Material components: Rare incense and diamond dust worth at least 5000 gp.