Follow-up to Antimagic Field question.

[TessarrianDM]

Would you allow someone to enchant arrows or bolts with an Antimagic Field spell that is use-activated when they hit their target, surrounding their target with the spell effect? I have a player who wishes to use this tactic to nullify enemy spellcasters. He has also asked about the possibility of enchanting a tanglefoot bag in the same manner. Would that work?

 

[Plane Sailing]

I certainly wouldn't allow that (especially since antimagic field IIRC is a personal spell, so you can't cast it on anything else).

I've seen people ask whether they can have silence spells cast on arrows which stick into targets and surround them with silence - but there are no rules for arrows sticking into targets, and the general feeling about that idea was that it was batting on a sticky wicket.

 

[TessarrianDM]

I certainly wouldn't allow that (especially since antimagic field IIRC is a personal spell, so you can't cast it on anything else).

I've seen people ask whether they can have silence spells cast on arrows which stick into targets and surround them with silence - but there are no rules for arrows sticking into targets, and the general feeling about that idea was that it was batting on a sticky wicket.

While I tend to agree, the fact that an arcane archer can imbue an arrow with an area effect spell that is centered on the area where the arrow lands, even if the spell could normally be centered only on the caster, seems to argue against both points. Admittedly, arcane archer is a prestige class, and this is a class ability.
Also, the only Item Creation feats that restrict what spells can be placed in them are Brew Potion (level and target restriction) and Craft Wand (level restriction). Craft Magic Arms and Armor, and Craft Wondrous Item, both say you can "craft any item whose prequisites you meet". Would you use the argument "the prerequisites for crafting this item are not listed in any of the books, therefore it cannot be made", or "this is potentially unbalancing, therefore I am not allowing it; if that is a problem, remember that whatever you can do, so can your enemies?"

 

[evilbob]

Honestly, I don't think there's a problem with casting silence on an arrow and shooting it into the ground near a caster (which you can pretty much already do much more accurately with the spell), nor would I have a problem shooting it into a target. Silence has a "long" range and is negated on a successful will, but otherwise hits a target automatically - thus if you cast it on an arrow, you'd be reducing your chance of effecting a target significantly (since you can actually miss). No problem with that, so long as the target still got a will save to resist it.

As for antimagic field, I agree with the posts above: the spell isn't actually "personal" range, but it emanates from the caster. Therefore, it cannot be cast on an arrow.

This isn't saying you couldn't craft a magical item that did whatever you wanted, but that's a different story altogether. In that case, you'd just need to assign a bonus (or a fixed price) for the item and a minimum caster level and all that. Off the top of my head, I'd say: Craft Magic Arms and Armor, caster level 15, antimagic field spell, and a +5 bonus cost. That would mean a single arrow would cost 3600 gold (20 arrows = 72000 for the +1 required and the +5 additional bonus). That's still a powerful single-use item, so you might limit its duration to just 1 minute. That seems closer to right for 3600g a shot.

 

[hong]

While I tend to agree, the fact that an arcane archer can imbue an arrow with an area effect spell that is centered on the area where the arrow lands, even if the spell could normally be centered only on the caster, seems to argue against both points.

That's because the arcane archer is special.

 

[James McMurray]

I wouldn't allow it. And even if I did allow it, they'd have to incorporate it into a burrowing arrow (Complete Warrior) since AFAIK there are no rules for arrows sticking into targets except for those. Most "hits" with a weapon are actually glancing blows or near misses until you get low on hit points, at which point the AMF is probably overkill.

 

[moritheil]

That's because the arcane archer is special.

Agreed. If you want the ability to do that, take the PrC levels.

 

[SadisticFishing]

Is there actually a will negates on silence if the field lands beside them? Because from my understanding, you only get the save if they cast it with you as the centerpoint

 

[hong]

Is there actually a will negates on silence if the field lands beside them? Because from my understanding, you only get the save if they cast it with you as the centerpoint

Your understanding is correct.

 

[SadisticFishing]

No problem with that, so long as the target still got a will save to resist it.

Doesn't belong then - there would be no save for a Silenced Arrow sticking in you. This, for some reason, makes the Arcane Archer a lot more interesting to me