Nonmagical ways of defeating a sorcerer

[rbingham2000]

One of mmadsen's many excellent ideas in the Archive thread Little Changes with Big Flavor was to give powerful supernatural monsters a weakness, or some other way of defeating them with wits instead of force, but I did not see a corollary from anyone in the entire thread that dealt with sorcerers and other magic-users in the same fashion.

After all, there has to be some way for characters who do not choose to use magic to take down a sorcerer without having to load up on magical items or have others cast spells upon them to protect them against the sorcerer's magic. There has to be some kind of weakness that the characters can use to defeat or negate the powers of a sorcerer, or otherwise defeat him with wits instead of force.

Here are some examples of what I'm talking about:

• A sorcerer's illusion magic can be defeated by the use of a mirror, which will show the true reflection of the sorcerer, or the thing or person that the sorcerer has cast illusion magic upon.
• A fire mage can have his powers negated by throwing a bucket of water upon him, or pushing or throwing him into a body of water, such as a well, a pool, or a stream.
• Those who use the magic of the fey can be painfully deafened by the ringing of pure silver bells, just like the fey can.
• The Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz met her end when Dorothy threw a bucket of water on her, which caused her to melt away into nothing.

What are some other weaknesses that a sorcerer or other magic-user can have, or some other ways of dealing with them that does not involve the use of magic in the form of spells or items?

 

[Mark]

"Knowing their True Name" seems to be a popular choice in some literature and games, IIRC.

 

[Plane Sailing]

If you were to introduce such a weakness you would probably want to grant them a bit of an increase in power to make up for it

 

[Plane Sailing]

For a more direct reply in the spirit of the question - d20Modern has a whole range of special weaknesses for supernatural creatures, and you could find some useful ones amongst them

From the SRD



Creature Weaknesses
Although a creature’s type and species determine many of its traits and abilities, GMs are encouraged to alter a creature’s physiology, behavior, abilities, tactics, and defenses when it serves the story or to confound players who think they know everything about their opponents.

The rules provided allow GMs to build custom monsters and ascribe special qualities to them. When designing a creature, the GM should also think of ways the creature can be defeated. From the heroes’ point of view, a creature’s weaknesses are more important than its abilities. Assigning weaknesses to creatures gives under-powered or poorly equipped heroes a fighting chance.

Table: Sources of Weakness lists many sources to which a creature may be vulnerable. A source can be a specific object, location, substance, sound, sensation, or activity. How the creature interacts with a source of weakness is left up to the GM, although most sources must be in close proximity to the creature (if not touching the creature) to affect it. GMs may roll randomly on the table, choose a source that suits the creature, or devise their own.

Source Effects

After determining a creature’s source of weakness, the GM needs to decide how the creature reacts when confronted by the source. Pick an effect that seems appropriate for the creature and the source.

A creature gets either a Fortitude or Will saving throw to overcome or resist the source of weakness; the DC of the save varies depending on the source’s strength:

Strength of Source Save DC
Easily resistible 10
Moderate 15
Strong 20
Overpowering 25

Creatures usually react to a source of weakness in one of six ways:

Addiction: The creature is compelled to ingest, imbibe, or inhale the source. The source must be within 5 feet of the creature to affect it. On a successful Will save, the creature negates the compulsion. On a failed save, the creature spends a full-round action indulging its addiction, then may resume normal actions while suffering one or more of the following effects (GM’s choice):

• Creature takes a –2 penalty to Dexterity and Wisdom.
• Creature takes a –2 penalty on attack rolls and skill checks.
• Creature loses 10% of its current hit points.
• Blindness: The creature has a 50% miss chance in combat, loses any Dexterity bonus to Defense, moves at half speed, takes a –4 penalty on Strength and Dexterity-based skills, and cannot make Spot checks. Foes gain a +2 bonus on attack rolls to hit the creature.
• Deafness: The creature takes a –4 penalty to initiative checks and has a 20% chance of spell failure when casting spells with verbal components. The creature cannot make Listen checks.
• Creature loses one of its extraordinary, supernatural, or spell-like special qualities.

Each effect lasts 1d4 hours. Even creatures immune to mind-affecting effects are susceptible to a source-induced addiction.

Attraction: The creature is compelled to move as fast as it can toward the source. On a successful Will save, the creature resists the compulsion. On a failed save, the creature moves toward the source at its maximum speed, taking the safest and most direct route. Once it reaches the source, the compelled creature seeks to possess it. If the source isn’t something the creature can easily possess, it gets a new save every round to break the compulsion.

Even creatures immune to mind-affecting effects are susceptible to a source-induced attraction.

Aversion: The creature finds the source repellant. On a failed save, the creature cannot approach or remain within 1d4 x10 feet of it. In the case of traveling sounds, the creature moves away from the source as fast as it can, stopping only when it can no longer hear it. On a successful Will save, the creature overcomes its aversion and may approach the source freely.

A repelled creature that cannot move the requisite distance from the source suffers one or more of the following effects (GM’s choice):

• Creature takes a –2 morale penalty to Strength and Dexterity.
• Creature takes a –2 morale penalty on attack rolls, damage rolls, and skill checks.
• Creature takes a –2 penalty to Defense.
• Blindness: See Addiction, above.
• Deafness: See Addiction, above.
• Creature loses one of its extraordinary, supernatural or spell-like special qualities.

Each effect lasts until the creature leaves the affected area and for 1d4 rounds afterward. Even creatures immune to mind-affecting effects are susceptible to a source-induced aversion.

Fascination: The creature finds the source fascinating and ceases all attacks and movement upon seeing, hearing, smelling, or otherwise perceiving it. On a successful Will save, the creature negates the fascination and can act normally. On a failed Will save, the creature can take no actions, and foes gain a +2 bonus on attack rolls against the creature. Any time the creature is attacked or takes damage, it gets a new save to negate the fascination. Otherwise, the fascination lasts as long as the creature can see, hear, smell, or otherwise perceive the source.
Even creatures immune to mind-affecting effects are susceptible to a source-induced fascination.

Fear: The creature is frightened by the source. If it fails its Will save, the creature flees from the source as fast as it can. If unable to flee, the creature takes a –2 morale penalty on attack rolls, weapon damage rolls, and saving throws. On a successful save, the creature overcomes the fear and can approach the source or otherwise act without penalty.

Even creatures immune to mind-affecting effects are susceptible to a source-induced fear.

Harm: Contact with the source or proximity to the source harms the creature in some fashion. On a successful Fortitude save, the creature negates the effect or, in the case of instant death or disintegration, takes damage instead. GMs may choose one of the following effects or invent their own:

• Blindness and deafness: See Addiction, above. The blindness and deafness last 1d4 hours.
• Creature loses all of its supernatural and spell-like special qualities.
• Creature is turned to stone instantly.
• Creature loses 50% of its current hit points.
• Creature drops dead. On a successful save, the creature takes 3d6+15 points of damage instead.
• Creature is disintegrated. On a successful save, the creature takes 5d6 points of damage instead.
Even creatures immune to effects that require Fortitude saves are susceptible to source-induced harm.

Table: Sources of Weakness
d% Source
01 Alcohol or moonshine
02 Amber
03 Animated cartoons
04 Archways
05–06 Bells or chimes
07 Books written by William Blake
08 Bunnies
09–10 Cancerous organs
11 Carbonated soft drinks
12–13 Cats
14 Chrome
15–16 Classical music
17 Clocks
18 Clowns
19 Cocaine
20–21 Country music
22–23 Crosses or crucifixes
24 Crows
25 Dogs
26 Elvis Presley memorabilia
27 Fast cars
28 Fast foods
29–30 Fluorescent lights
31 Games of chance
32 Gold or iron pyrite (fool’s gold)
33 Grave dirt
34–35 Heavy metal music
36–37 Holy symbols
38–39 Holy water
40 Hospitals
41 Ice cream
42 Insecticide (DDT)
43 Jack o’-lanterns
44 Keys
45–46 Laughter of children
47 Laundry detergent
48 Lavender
49 Lilac-scented candles
50 Mathematical equations
51 Morphine
52–53 Nerve gas
54 Nitrous oxide (laughing gas)
55 Novocaine
56–57 Number “8”
58 Pearls
59 Penicillin
60 Photo flashes
61–62 Plastic or vinyl
63–64 Played violin or electric guitar
65 Playgrounds
66–67 Plutonium
68 Poppies
69 Pulsing strobe lights
70–71 Radiation
72 Radio waves
73 Rubber
74 Running water
75–76 Silver
77 Sodium benzoate (food preservative)
78–79 Sodium chloride (salt)
80–81 Specific phrase or word
82 Specific song
83 Spoken Latin
84 Stuffed animals
85 Sumerian or Egyptian hieroglyphs
86–87 Sunlight
88–89 The Bible
90 Tinfoil
91–92 Toxic waste
93–94 Triangles
95 Television infomercials
96 Television static
97–98 White rice
99–100 X-rays

 

[hong]

What are some other weaknesses that a sorcerer or other magic-user can have, or some other ways of dealing with them that does not involve the use of magic in the form of spells or items?

I've found that a big sword is often a handy way of dealing with a sorcerer, that does not involve the use of magic in the form of spells or items.

 

[Matt Black]

To quote Steven Brust (or paraphrase, at least):

"A knife in the back will cramp the style of even the most subtle sorcerer."

Words I try to live by!

 

[bret]

There are a lot of varients of this idea, but you can use a poison that has a different effect on spellcasters. I've seen multiple varients of this idea in various fantasy books. I think this works best if your in-game explanation is that it requires a ritual in order for a spellcaster to be able to start casting spells. Make the legend be that the first spellcaster was granted it from some sort of innately magical creature or a god.

Varients of this would include:

• You have to take a small amount of a poison in order to be able to cast spells. Take too much, and you die.
• There is a poison that only affects arcane spellcasters but it totally safe to those who can't cast spells. You could make it multiple poisons if that suits your world background better -- different poisons for different methods of spellcasting.
• It isn't a poison (doesn't kill the caster), it just suppresses their ability to cast spells.
• Have a creature that is trainable and radiates an anti-magic sphere. Mages tend to want these creatures killed immediately for obvious reasons -- sort of a mage's version of a rust monster.

The problem with these solutions is controlling them once they are introduced. You have to be careful that you don't make mages too susceptable, or it becomes a death sentance to play one.

 

[just__al]

Step One: Charge Sorcerer screaming.

Step two: Laugh as intimitaded sorcerer grabs for his longspear.

Step three: Take Long Spear from sorcerer with just a plain old disarm. Don't mind the AoO he won't hit you, he's a sorcerer.

Step four: Insert longspear into sorcerer's throat

Step five: Cook familiar (butter and garlic sauce would be nice)

 

[kengar]

Step One: Charge Sorcerer screaming.

Step two: Laugh as intimitaded sorcerer grabs for his longspear.

Step three: Take Long Spear from sorcerer with just a plain old disarm. Don't mind the AoO he won't hit you, he's a sorcerer.

Step four: Insert longspear into sorcerer's throat

Step five: Cook familiar (butter and garlic sauce would be nice)

Dagnabit, Al! How many times to we have to tell you? Garlic butter TOTALLY ruins the flavor of roast Sorcerer! Use Worcestshire sauce instead!

 

[barsoomcore]

To quote Steven Brust (or paraphrase, at least):

The line is:

"No matter how subtle the sorcerer, a knife between the shoulder blades will seriously cramp his style."

Words to live by, indeed.