Will-o-wisps and Maze

[adwyn]

Looking at will-o-wisps the other night I noticed that they are immune to most magic except magic missles (makes sense and what I remember) and the maze spell.

So why the maze spell? Is there some fairy tale or folklore I've forgotten? It just seems like and odd choice.

 

[Doug McCrae]

They're minotaurs' evil twins, probably from a parallel universe. Minotaurs are only immune to the maze spell.

 

[lukelightning]

What few people realize is that will-o-wisps are susceptable to any spell that begins with M, because M is the opposite of W.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

Looking at will-o-wisps the other night I noticed that they are immune to most magic except magic missles (makes sense and what I remember) and the maze spell.

So why the maze spell? Is there some fairy tale or folklore I've forgotten? It just seems like and odd choice.

It's probably because of the folklore tradition that they lure travellers into becoming lost - and hence are immune that themselves, much like Minotaurs are supposed to be inherently familiar with mazes. I'm guessing this carries over from 1E, though I don't have my books handy.

 

[lukelightning]

But they are affected by maze. Is it a case of the lost leading the lost?

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

But they are affected by maze. Is it a case of the lost leading the lost?

Hmm - I thought it was the opposite! Now that makes no sense at all. I suppose it could be viewed as a vulnerability? Who knows. Its not like you're gonna blow a Maze spell on a will o'wisp.

 

[gizmo33]

I don't think there is any folklore precedent for this. I know that 1E willowisps did have almost complete immunity to magic, and my guess (without the books in front of me) is that this is that the maze vulnerability is a 1E feature as well. It's possible that Gygax ruled that the willowisp could be affected by maze on the fly in response to a player casting the spell, and that it wasn't really a thoroughly reasoned feature, but just seemed reasonable at the time. Seems ok - the maze spell (esp in 1E) could be considered a spell that's cast more-so around the victim then at them, meaning that even a highly magic resistant creature could be subject to it.

 

[Crothian]

Hmm - I thought it was the opposite! Now that makes no sense at all. I suppose it could be viewed as a vulnerability? Who knows. Its not like you're gonna blow a Maze spell on a will o'wisp.

I don't know. We're getting our asses kicked by one in a pbp. If we had Maze we'd be using it

 

[Doug McCrae]

How about this for a combo?

A will-o'-wisp with one level of sorcerer so it can cast shield and one level of monk or ninja for the AC bonus. Almost unkillable at CR8.

 

[lukelightning]

I don't know. We're getting our asses kicked by one in a pbp. If we had Maze we'd be using it

That's when you start making like Gary Gygax's player and lobby for some spell to work on it...find some spell in the spell compendium and say that "logically" the spell should work.

The problem with things that are immune to every spell except such-and-such is that it doesn't take into account new sources.