Abusing monster abilities

[RangerWickett]

I just realized that a 7th level cleric can call a lantern archon with lesser planar ally and permanently light up a city for the cheap cost of 100 XP and 500 gp (1000 gp for a long duration, but 1/2 cost because it's non hazardous). Lantern archons can use continual flame at will, with no cost because it's a spell-like ability, so you just get the lantern archon to stick around for 7 days, using that ability 100,800 times on 100,800 stones or sticks. Each will shed light as bright as a torch.

It's a little more expensive, but if you can get 8 formian workers (4000 gp for 7 days), they can cast cure serious wounds once a round, making a handy field hospital. If you're battling an army, I think this would be a handy tool.

Or hell, a lantern archon can just cast aid over and over again, granting d8+3 temp hit points for 3 minutes. Have it zip along behind your line of soldiers, aiding one each round. You could aid 29 guys this way, with the 30 round being spent flying back to the start of the line.

What other sort of ways do you know to abuse the abilities of monsters?

 

[Huw]

You don't even need planar ally. Archons are on the summon monster lists - and that aid ability is incredibly useful, as is the aura, which is why the lantern archon requires such a high level spell in comparison to its HD.

I fully expect cities and armies with any mid level magical presence to have outsiders on call for the very reasons you've mentioned.

 

[WizarDru]

Except that Lesser Planar Ally specifies that you request the creature to do ONE task, and you don't get to force it to take gold...it chooses what form the payment will take: "This payment can take a variety of forms, from donating gold or magic items to an allied temple, to a gift given directly to the creature, to some other action on your part that matches the creature’s alignment and goals"

It might light ONE stick or heal one person....but sticking around for seven days instead of helping the greater good? I'm not seeing it. Spell gives the DM oodles of wiggle room to say 'no'.

Summon Monster IV (so we're still 7th level, just not necessarily a wizard) only last a few rounds, and you actually have to waste time giving the instructions. And at rnd/level, he's good for a combat or a simple task.

Compared to the abuses of some higher-level shapeshifting, this ain't even on the radar.

 

[RangerWickett]

Ah yes, shapeshifting. If we have a high-level spellcaster who can turn into one of these critters, we're set.

And the 'one task' would be "light up the entire city with continual flame spells." As for payment, I think we could arrange something.

 

[lukelightning]

Or just bluff 'em. Lantern archons have an Int of 6 and Wisdom of 10. "I bet you can't make that iron rod light up like a torch! Oh, you did? Well I bet you can't do it again..."

 

[gizmo33]

And the 'one task' would be "light up the entire city with continual flame spells." As for payment, I think we could arrange something.

IMO they gave monsters unlimited spell-casting for certain spells because the designers were expecting "DM fiat" to be the balancing factor. Hopefully it's something that they'll fix in a future edition. Also, IMO continual flame has to go - IMC permanent magical effects on an item are called "magic items" and are created according to those rules.

 

[frankthedm]

And the 'one task' would be "light up the entire city with continual flame spells." As for payment, I think we could arrange something.

Whether that is 'one task' is up to the DM.

IMO they gave monsters unlimited spell-casting for certain spells because the designers were expecting "DM fiat" to be the balancing factor.

And fiat still works just fine in many situations.

If it takes the DM ruling 'pemanent duration' effects of a summoned monster going away when it does, so be it. Not so sure how well that meshes with curses and such, but oh well, if an innovation like that worked, it would have already been done.

 

[Slife]

If it takes the DM ruling 'pemanent duration' effects of a summoned monster going away when it does, so be it. Not so sure how well that meshes with curses and such, but oh well, if an innovation like that worked, it would have already been done.

As they said in 1902 about flying machines.



Oh, and worst abuse of a monsters' ability? Pun-Pun.

 

[AuraSeer]

Using a summon spell doesn't work. Check the description of Conjuration(summoning) spells in the Magic Overview section:

"When the spell that summoned a creature ends and the creature disappears, all the spells it has cast expire. A summoned creature cannot use any innate summoning abilities it may have, and it refuses to cast any spells that would cost it XP, or to use any spell-like abilities that would cost XP if they were spells."

If you summon an archon and have it create continual flames, all those flames are going away as soon as your summon monster spell expires.

 

[the Jester]

Using a summon spell doesn't work. Check the description of Conjuration(summoning) spells in the Magic Overview section:

"When the spell that summoned a creature ends and the creature disappears, all the spells it has cast expire. A summoned creature cannot use any innate summoning abilities it may have, and it refuses to cast any spells that would cost it XP, or to use any spell-like abilities that would cost XP if they were spells."

If you summon an archon and have it create continual flames, all those flames are going away as soon as your summon monster spell expires.

Wow- I never realized that. Thanks!

Not that it has ever come up that I can recall, but I could see it happening in my epic game.