I've noticed an anomaly in the general factors. A seed can be turned into range personal at a cost of +0, then turned into a 20 ft. radius centered on you at a cost of +15. This can be useful in buffing your whole party. Or in enhancing all the swords to be used in a major battle. (How many weapons can you fit in a 20 ft. radius? Assuming, that is, that the duration is rectifed to fit the 1 hour/level of the
greater magic weapon.) Or in resurrecting a whole lot of dead people. You could stack them like cordwood- at a USP of 42 it wouldn't be that hard to raise them.
Thing is, the general factor for adding an extra target is +4 USP. One extra target for +4, two extra targets for +8, three extra targets for +12 USP, and dozens (or hundreds) more for +15? That's an awfully big jump. I think that factor needs tighter scrutiny.
Anyway, I've been rewriting some of the epic seeds to fit my own aesthetic sense as to what epic spells should be capable of. Animate Dead is basically my suggested version above. Conjure is more
wish than
true creation, but streamlined. I split the fortify seed into two parts: fortify creature, and fortify object. They are pretty cranked up- some might need to be ratcheted back a bit. (My philosophy is the opposite of Sep's in this regard).
A few suggested spells- with a few points of mitigating factors they should be available to PCs who are 21 to 24th level.
By "KR", I mean 2/3 the CR listed in Upper_Krust's "Challenging Challenge Ratings" appendix. They are more accurate (IMHO) than WotC CRs, especially for epic creatures.
[sblock=Seed: Animate Dead]
Seed: Animate Dead
Necromancy [Evil]
Root Spell: Animate dead,
create undead
Spellcraft Prerequisite: 20+
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Target: One or more corpses touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
The caster can turn the bones or bodies of dead creatures into undead skeletons or zombies that follow his or her spoken commands, or alternatively create more powerful undead which he or she must control through some other means. A destroyed undead can’t be animated again.
At a base Spellcraft Prerequisite of 20, the caster can use the
animate dead seed to create undead:
- Up to 40 HD of skeletons and/or zombies may be created. The undead can follow the caster, or they can remain in an Area and attack any creature (or a specific type of creature) entering the place. The undead remain animated until they are destroyed, and remain under the caster’s control indefinitely.
Factors: For each additional 2 HD of undead created, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +1.
- Control: A caster can naturally control 4 HD per caster level of mindless undead creatures he or she has personally created, regardless of the method used. If the caster exceeds this natural limit, newly created creatures fall under his or her control, and excess undead from previous castings become uncontrolled (the caster chooses which creatures are released). If the caster is a cleric, any undead he or she commands through his or her ability to command or rebuke undead do not count toward the natural limit.
Factor: For every 4 HD of skeletons or zombies that will not count towards the natural limit, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +1. These undead will be automatically controlled.
- The caster can also create undead other than skeletons and zombies, including intelligent undead and undead with templates: a templated undead is built upon the race, class, hit dice and abilities which the target creature or character possessed in life. Intelligent undead can follow more sophisticated commands and have a base attitude of indifferent, but are not automatically under the control of the caster. The caster may create any single undead. This has a Spellcraft Prerequisite of 20, or twice the CR of the undead created, whichever is higher.
- Multiple undead of the same type can be created as long as the total challenge of the created undead is less than one quarter the square of the Spellcraft Prerequisite.
(The challenge of a group of monsters is the sum of the squares of the CRs of the monsters in it.)
[/sblock]
Create vampire. Base creature must be CR 18 or lower (or KR 23 or lower). Takes 1 hour to cast.
[sblock=Seed: Conjure]
Seed: Conjure
Conjuration (Creation)
Root Spell: True creation
Spellcraft Prerequisite: 20
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: 0 ft.
Effect: Unattended object or quantity of nonliving matter up to 20 cu. ft.
Duration: Special: 20 minutes, permanent or instantaneous. See below.
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
This seed creates an unattended object or quantity of nonliving matter of up to 20 cubic feet in volume. The caster must succeed at an appropriate skill check to make a complex item. The seed can create matter ranging in hardness and rarity from vegetable matter all the way up to mithral and even adamantine. Up to 200 000 gp worth of magical items and intrinsically valuable items can be made; the caster may choose what the spell will make at the time of casting.
Duration: The spell is instantaneous if non-valuable materials are made, or if the caster pays an additional cost in xp equal to 8% of the gp value created. Charges cannot be expended from magical items unless they are created instantaneously. Alternatively the spell can be made permanent by embedding spell levels; 1 level of embedded spells is needed for each 20 000 gp of value created. If neither of these options are chosen when the spell is cast, the created items have a base duration of 20 minutes.
Factors: For each additional 10 cubic feet of matter which can be created, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +1. For each additional 10 000 gp of value which can be created, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +1.[/sblock]
A typical use of this spell might be to conjure a
mirror of mental prowess, embedding a 9th level spell slot to keep it until it is dispelled. Its once a week function doesn't reset if recast- a week actually must pass.
[sblock=Seed: Fortify Creature]
Seed: Fortify Creature
Transmutation
Root Spell: Bull’s strength, barkskin, heroism, stoneskin, spell resistance, etc.
Spellcraft Prerequisite: 14+
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Target: Creature touched
Duration: 20 minutes
Saving Throw: Will negates (harmless)
Spell Resistance: Yes (harmless)
Spells using the
fortify creatureseed augment one or more of the target's faculties, either to enable it to withstand a particular kind of threat, or to lend it additional power or effectiveness in a certain area.
Fortify creature is a versatile seed with many possible applications.
At a base Spellcraft Prerequisite of 14, the caster can choose to develop a spell which can do one of the following:
- The caster can choose to develop a spell which grants a +10 enhancement bonus to any ability score. The ability score to be enhanced must either be chosen during spell development, or the spell flexibility factor included in development to allow such an enhancement to be determined when the spell is cast.
Factor: For each additional +1 bonus, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +2.
(A Spellcraft Prerequisite of 14 corresponds to a 5th level spell. Bull’s strength gives a base +4 enhancement as a 2nd level spell; I extrapolate this to a +10 bonus at 5th level, and halve the rate thereafter.)
- The fortify creature seed can also be used to grant 5 temporary hit points per hit dice of the target.
Factor: For each additional temporary hit point bestowed per target’s hit dice, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +4.
(A +10 Con bonus grants this many hit points. Rather than also give a Fortitude save bonus, the hit points are made temporary.)
- The fortify ability seed can grant spell resistance 32.
Factor: Each additional point of spell resistance increases the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +1.
(Spell resistance)
- The fortify abilityseed can grant damage reduction 10/adamantine, preventing a total of 200 points of damage in this fashion before it is discharged.
Factors: For each additional point of damage reduction, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +1; for each additional 50 points which can be absorbed before the spell is discharged, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +2. To increase the damage reduction value to adamantine and epic, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +10.
(Basically stoneskin, but with the damage capacity boosted a little to make it a 5th level spell. Epic stoneskin would be like a 10th level spell.)
- Grant a +8 enhancement bonus to natural armor which stacks with existing natural armor, but not with other enhancement bonuses to natural armor.
Factor: For each additional +1 bonus, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +2.
(Barkskin is up to +5 as a 2nd level spell, increase this bonus by +1/spell level until 5th level, then halve the rate of improvement.)
- Grant a +4 morale bonus to attack rolls, saving throws and skill checks.
Factor: For each additional +1 bonus assessed to all three of these categories, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +2.
(Heroism is +2 at 3rd level. +1 per spell level to 5th level, then slow down.)
- Grant a +6 morale bonus to either attack rolls, saving throws or skill checks.
Factor: For each additional +1 bonus assessed to one of these categories, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +2.
(Narrowing the focus of the spell is equivalent to a -4 mitigating factor)
Fortify creature cannot be made permanent.[/sblock]
An
epic stoneskin (200 hp capacity, DR 10/adamantine and epic) would be a possibility. A different spell would give a continuous +10 to attack rolls. A third would give 8 hp/hit dice in temporary hit points (200 hp to a 25th level fighter).
[sblock=Seed: Fortify object]
Seed: Fortify Object
Transmutation
Root Spell: Greater magic weapon
Spellcraft Prerequisite: 10
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Effect: One suit of armor, shield, weapon or fifty projectiles (all of which must be in contact with each other at the time of casting)
Duration: 20 hours
Saving Throw: Yes (harmless)
Spell Resistance: No
This seed grants a +5 effective bonus to any armor, shield or weapon, or up to fifty projectiles (arrows, bolts or bullets) of the same kind. The bonus may be divided between enhancement bonuses or special abilities (such as
flaming), with the exact distribution of these bonuses determined when the spell is developed. If no enhancement bonus is is to be granted, then the spell can be cast only on magical weapons, shields and armor. Particular enhancements might have no effect if applied to the wrong sort of target. (The
vorpal enhancement would have no effect on a shield, for example, but any enhancement bonus would still count.)
Factors: To add +1 to the effective bonus, add +2 to the Spellcraft Prerequisite. If this would increase the effective bonus above +10 or the enhancement bonus above +5, add an additional +2 (+4 total). Weapons with an enhancement bonus above +5 are considered epic weapons for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction. For each +1 of bonus to be determined at the time of casting, add +1 to the Spellcraft Prerequisite.
Note:This application cannot be made permanent.
The
fortify object seed can also be used to increase the hardness of materials. This application has a base Spellcraft Prerequisite of 16. The seed’s effect is to change up to 200 cubic feet of wood or a softer substance, or up to 20 cubic feet of a metal or mineral by 10 points: for each additional 50 cubic feet of wood, or each additional cubic foot of metal or mineral affected, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +1. For each additional point of hardness granted, increase the Spellcraft Prerequisite by +2. Hardness granted to items is a permanent effect.[/sblock]
A
apropos weapon confers a +4 enhancement bonus and +6 in flexible bonuses- by choosing the appropriate
bane and/or alignment effects at the time of casting the enhancement bonus will be +6 or higher, and able to penetrate epic DR.
I think these are reasonable low-epic spells. YMMV
[edit]I am rethinking whether the base duration of the fortify seed should be 20 minutes or 200 minutes. See the posts around 150 or so. I am also thinking that
wall of stone and
wall of thorns could be incorporated into the seed-
conjure should be usable for filling in pits and such.
