My Spell is Broken, Help Me Fix It

[the Jester]

I have been using a spell in my campaign and have become convinced it is broken. Here it is:

MARIUS’ DOUBLE ACTIONS
Transmutation (Time)
Level: Sor/Wiz 7
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1d4 rounds

This spell allows you to take two rounds worth of actions on your turn, including two standard actions and two move-equivalent actions. If you do not otherwise move during your turn you may make two five-foot-steps, but if you do the second one is subject to attacks of opportunity. This spell does not allow you to cast additional quickened spells in the round.

Material Component: A bit of sand from the plane of Time.

How can I fix this, given that I have two priorities: A. Maintain the 'two rounds worth of actions' effect- this is a spell custom-built by a chronomancer, after all! B. Keep it 7th level.

A. is much more important than B. I would be satisfied with a swift action casting time and a 1 round duration (I think), but on reflection I don't know that 7th level is high enough even for that. I am thinking that the best basis for comparison is time stop...

Thanks to several of my players for bringing this to my attention.

 

[hong]

Downside: after the spell ends, you are staggered for the rest of the encounter.

 

[Sravoff]

Sword and sorcery had a spell like this, it was eighth level i think.

It split your mind in half, and each half got an action. Your turns broke down, to two actions. On each action, you could do a mental action (cast a spell) and a physical action (walk). You couldn't do both at one (cast a spell and cast a spell), but you could walk while casting a spell, then walk with the other mind, and cast a spell.

Its kinda hard to explain, they took like almost a page to do so. It also had some drawback after you had cast it. I think the draw back had something to do with being unable to cast spells for a certain number of rounds... But I'm not sure... I remember it caused alot of mental strain, splitting your mind like that...

On the duration... I think that 1 round + 1 round for every five levels above 13th sounds good.

 

[Felnar]

what if while under its effect, the caster gets 2 standard and 2 move actions per turn, however he moves too quickly for normal spellcasting to work, so spells with a casting time of 1 standard action or longer cannot be cast. The caster also gains the ability to use each of these 2 standard actions to cast spells with a casting time of 1 swift action or faster (bypassing the 1 swift action per turn limit).

basically, the caster can cast two swift or quickened spells per round and take two move actions
hopefully that makes sense in the morning

 

[airwalkrr]

What exactly is broken about it? It resembles 3.0 haste but it is personal only, is four levels higher, and has a much more limited duration with fewer bonuses (like the AC bonus). My perception is that it is simply better than time stop. To make things fair, you could make it a kind of lesser time stop. with 1d3 round duration and the same limitations as time stop. Or you could keep the fact that it allows you double actions with no limitation and limit it in other ways. For example, give it a duration of only two rounds, and an extra standard action each round. This would ne better than time stop in the sense that you can cast offensive spells, but worse in the sense that it does not last as long and only gives you an extra standard action instead of a bonus move action.

 

[Quartz]

Definitely better that Time Stop, especially if Maximised (only 10th level!). The thing is, you can take two sets of offensive actions; with Time Stop, you're mainly buffing / healing / casting static spells. Time Stop gives you 6 spells (3 Quickened, 3 normal); this gives you up to 8. So how about either increasing the level to 9th, or restricting the type of action. Something like:

MARIUS’ DOUBLE ACTIONS
Transmutation (Time)
Level: Sor/Wiz 7
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1d4 rounds

This spell allows you to take two rounds worth of actions on your turn. The first round is as per normal; the second round is restricted as per Time Stop. This spell does not allow you to cast additional quickened spells in the round.

Material Component: A bit of sand from the plane of Time.

Or you could make it rather simpler:

MARIUS’ DOUBLE ACTIONS
Transmutation (Time)
Level: Sor/Wiz 7
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1d4 rounds

This spell allows you to take two rounds worth of actions on your turn, including two standard actions and two move-equivalent actions. The second round occurs on an initiative count of your initiative roll less 20. While this spell is in effect, you may not hold your actions. (Option: Holding your action automatically dismisses this spell). This spell does not allow you to cast additional quickened spells in the round. You may not reconfigure feats such as Power Attack.

Material Component: A bit of sand from the plane of Time.

The difference here is that the opponents get to act before your second set of actions.

Either way, I'd bump it to 8th level for the moment and test it there, with a view to reducing it back to 7th when shown to be balanced as a 7th level spell. Or leave it at 8tht and make the range Touch.

 

[Technik4]

Hey Jester! Long time no see man

I remember this spell in a lot of your story hour's, its quite iconic to your campaign. The only thing I can think of would be the staggered after using it suggestion, or possibly upping the material component. After all, at epic levels a bit of sand (even from the plane of time) is not hard to come by. Also, perhaps there could be some event which would be a precursor to time magic (and psionics) undergoing a change, if you have some more tweaks slated...

 

[Nifft]

Double Action
Evocation (Time)
Level: Sor/Wiz 7
Components: XP
Casting Time: 1 Immediate action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; see below

You borrow some time from the future in order to act now.

You immediately gain an extra Standard action. If you use this spell at the end of your round, you can effectively use two standard actions in one round.

However, casting this spell eats your next Move action. You are limited to only a Standard action on your next turn.

XP Cost: 10 xp



Mobile Action
Evocation (Time)
Level: Sor/Wiz 3
Components: XP
Casting Time: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; see below

You borrow some time from the future in order to act now.

You gain an extra Move action this round.

However, casting this spell eats your Move action for the next round. You are limited to only a Standard action on your next turn.

XP Cost: 5 xp


- - - - -

Why Evocation? Two reasons.
1/ Evocation kinda sucks.
2/ A lot of the time-shifting "meta" spells (like contingency, delay blast fireball and imbue with spell ability) are in Evocation.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Arashi Ravenblade]

Doesnt seem broken to me.

 

[airwalkrr]

1/ Evocation kinda sucks.

Wow. Just wow. Umm. Ok. Yea. I don't know what to even say to that. Just, wow.