WayneLigon
Adventurer
Sixchan said:
POOF - You have one female and find that save for your left pinky finger you're missing the 21 appendages your character commonly uses to count with.
The Wish Clause(TM)
- Thread starter Thalantor
- Start date
POOF - You have one female and find that save for your left pinky finger you're missing the 21 appendages your character commonly uses to count with.
Sixchan
First Post
die_kluge said:Easy - then you give the NPC with the 8 Wis the wish, and have him stand in a field and wish for a million gold pieces. Then, the rest of the party reaps the rewards!
POOF! The NPC is gone.
Meanwhile, one million Gold pieces appears in the NPC's bank account, and the NPC appears in the bank. With the money, the character buys a Periapt (however it's spelt) of Wisdom +5, relises what just happened, and uses the change to buy a few high level mercenaries to take out his attempted killers You Are Dead.
Oh, and care to make a wish, Wayne?
That is why you sould never be very greedy in wishes.
As long the wish is not something incredible powerful, most DMs will grant it.
However many players ask for uber defended strongholds and other things that no DM is going to allow it to happen, so even if you find a "perfect wishing formula" (that, BTW, does not exist ... the longer the wording, the easier for the DM to twist it) a DM is not going to allow a player to get a 3 floors flying fortless guarded by 20 totaly loyal sentient constructs and a pair of silver wrymn dragons that given to give that character their hoard.
Of course there are some DMs that love to twist wishes, even if you ask for something like a +1 flaming rapier at lv 14, but this is a problem with the DM himself.
As long the wish is not something incredible powerful, most DMs will grant it.
However many players ask for uber defended strongholds and other things that no DM is going to allow it to happen, so even if you find a "perfect wishing formula" (that, BTW, does not exist ... the longer the wording, the easier for the DM to twist it) a DM is not going to allow a player to get a 3 floors flying fortless guarded by 20 totaly loyal sentient constructs and a pair of silver wrymn dragons that given to give that character their hoard.
Of course there are some DMs that love to twist wishes, even if you ask for something like a +1 flaming rapier at lv 14, but this is a problem with the DM himself.
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This is silly!
But what's within the power of a wish? Ah, there's the rub!
I know many people who subscribe to the 1e philosophy that wishing for magic items is a no-no! You wish for a magical +1 Flaming Scimitar, you get transported to where one is, get to fight its current (probably undead) owner, and then get to try to find your way back!
You wish to be permanently immune to all forms of draining attacks? Some GMs would consider that fine, you're just keeping what you've already earned (therefore, it's not greedy). Others would say that it makes too many undead (and other creatures) of little or no threat, and is therefore "beyond the power of the wish", and "zap" you (for being greedy).
It is all very GM-dependent. Worst of all, many GMs who feel that you have "exceeded the power of the wish" will also tell you that you have lost it, and gotten nothing...
And then there was the Killer-DM... He wasn't fair, everyone knew it, and he didn't care! I recall one situation where we had been stranded on the moon as part of the quest for the Rod of Seven Parts, found the piece, and needed to return to Earth. My PC wished us back, and he said:
"Okay you're back on Earth...", and then proceeded to describe how people were looking at us in awe and fear, bowing, etc. Eventually, we learned that we all had purple hair, golden skin, and were glowing brightly... It took three wishes to turn our hair and skin back to their normal colors, and "return us to our normal level of luminosity". Ross really loved "side effects" unrelated to the wish.
So, what's an okay wish in one campaign will be "outside the power of the wish" in another, and get you killed in a third. So it's pretty silly to just expect the players to know what's acceptable, to you!
Give'm some guidelines on what they can and can't do. Let them know if you punish greed, only "excessive" greed, and how you define "excessive". Give them some limits on power, and examples to judge by. Better yet, let them ask "If I wished for (X), would that be okay?" That's probably the best way to handle it.
Myself, I generally won't let folks wish for magic items, unless they want to be transported to wherever it is that an unoccupied one is (undead don't count as occupants). I would let them wish to be immune to draining attacks, though. Other GMs will be exactly the opposite (not being 1e players). Some will allow both... or neither. A few GMs will only allow wishes to be used in order to further the adventure at hand, or heal or raise party members!...
So, what's "beyond the power of the wish" all depends upon the GM. I've seen a few try to claim that emulating the effects of a seventh level spell was!
Umbran said:Make your wish clean and simple and within the power of the spell, and you're fine. Make it clean and simple, and just outside the power of the spell, and you'll get close to what you want. Being an egregious wise-acre to try to avoid any danger from meddling with powers beyond your puny mortal comprehesion, and you are painting a target on your forehead
But what's within the power of a wish? Ah, there's the rub!
I know many people who subscribe to the 1e philosophy that wishing for magic items is a no-no! You wish for a magical +1 Flaming Scimitar, you get transported to where one is, get to fight its current (probably undead) owner, and then get to try to find your way back!
You wish to be permanently immune to all forms of draining attacks? Some GMs would consider that fine, you're just keeping what you've already earned (therefore, it's not greedy). Others would say that it makes too many undead (and other creatures) of little or no threat, and is therefore "beyond the power of the wish", and "zap" you (for being greedy).
It is all very GM-dependent. Worst of all, many GMs who feel that you have "exceeded the power of the wish" will also tell you that you have lost it, and gotten nothing...
And then there was the Killer-DM... He wasn't fair, everyone knew it, and he didn't care! I recall one situation where we had been stranded on the moon as part of the quest for the Rod of Seven Parts, found the piece, and needed to return to Earth. My PC wished us back, and he said:
"Okay you're back on Earth...", and then proceeded to describe how people were looking at us in awe and fear, bowing, etc. Eventually, we learned that we all had purple hair, golden skin, and were glowing brightly... It took three wishes to turn our hair and skin back to their normal colors, and "return us to our normal level of luminosity". Ross really loved "side effects" unrelated to the wish.
So, what's an okay wish in one campaign will be "outside the power of the wish" in another, and get you killed in a third. So it's pretty silly to just expect the players to know what's acceptable, to you!
Give'm some guidelines on what they can and can't do. Let them know if you punish greed, only "excessive" greed, and how you define "excessive". Give them some limits on power, and examples to judge by. Better yet, let them ask "If I wished for (X), would that be okay?" That's probably the best way to handle it.
Myself, I generally won't let folks wish for magic items, unless they want to be transported to wherever it is that an unoccupied one is (undead don't count as occupants). I would let them wish to be immune to draining attacks, though. Other GMs will be exactly the opposite (not being 1e players). Some will allow both... or neither. A few GMs will only allow wishes to be used in order to further the adventure at hand, or heal or raise party members!...
So, what's "beyond the power of the wish" all depends upon the GM. I've seen a few try to claim that emulating the effects of a seventh level spell was!
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Ulrick
First Post
Fox Mulder: "I wish for world peace."
CUT TO: Mulder running down empty streets with abandon cars, food half eaten lays on the ground. Everybody is gone.
Mulder: "I should have expected this!!!"
---
Homer: I'll make a wish that can't backfire!
I wish for a turkey sandwich, on rye bread, with lettuce, and mustard, and... I don't want any zombie turkies, I don't wanna turn into a turkey myself, and I don't want any more weird surprises, you got it!
(Homer eats)... mmm, not bad, nice hot mustard, good bread, turkeys a little dry... THE TURKEY'S A LITTLE DRY!!!
CUT TO: Mulder running down empty streets with abandon cars, food half eaten lays on the ground. Everybody is gone.
Mulder: "I should have expected this!!!"
---
Homer: I'll make a wish that can't backfire!
I wish for a turkey sandwich, on rye bread, with lettuce, and mustard, and... I don't want any zombie turkies, I don't wanna turn into a turkey myself, and I don't want any more weird surprises, you got it!
(Homer eats)... mmm, not bad, nice hot mustard, good bread, turkeys a little dry... THE TURKEY'S A LITTLE DRY!!!
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Sixchan
First Post
Numion said:Has anyone flipped this wish-twisting on their players? I mean that suddenly an NPC adventurer would appear at the PCs room next to his Holy Avenger?
I might have to use it someday...
I have. There was an encounter with a vampire with a very powerful sword. In the middle of the batte, an NPC teleports in, looking bewildered, and begins attacking the vampire. The PCs and the NPC then argued over the sword. Eventually the PCs learned that the NPC had wished for it, and decided that when it comes to the gods of wishing, what goes around comes around, and let the NPC have the sword. Surprised by this from the PCs, I let them have their next wish untwisted (although it was a minor one).
Unusual, since I am one of the aforementioned subscribers to the 1e Theory of Wishing.
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