D&D 5E Vehicle Spells?

[doctorbadwolf]

I don't think you'd need to separate out the list of six. Compare that to the properties on Leomund's Tiny Hut, I don't think it's out of line. You could have extra spells for the extras too, sure. I like the idea of keeping options inside one spell and having some of them available on upcast. It's a model WotC doesn't use, but I like the flex it provides.

I do like the idea of stat blocks though, yeah.

Yeah I’m always cautious about introduce entirely new models to things like spells. Spellcasting already provides incredible versatility, especially for wizards.

Still, the basic spell (minus the upcasting options), is similar to Galder’s Tower.

I may also look at some spells that improve long distance travel without waiting for the teleportation spells to come online. Not all games will make use of them, but homebrew and 3pp doesn’t need to appeal to the majority of games to be valuable.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I’d probably have the upcast on your spell idea create bigger vehicles, which in turn means more of the features in one thing. Pretty directly modeled on GT.

 

[Fenris-77]

Yeah, There are a range of model spells that could be used as a base to conjure a range of vehicle sizes. If all they do is provide transport mostly I don't think there's a lot of balance worries either. Even with some magical offense and defense stacked on at higher levels I don't think there's any chance of it being game breaking. I like the idea of upcast creating bigger vehicles too, that's cool.

Maybe one core conjuring spell for the ground vehicle, upcast for size and including some basic features, and then a few additional spells for specific higher end effects.

From a design standpoint I'd rather design one good spell that has effects at various levels than three different spells that all do the same thing. At least when that thing is this thing. No one wants to take three or four slots worth of different vehicle creation spells IMO.

The creation of magic item vehicles is a whole other kettle of fish. Personally I think it should be something that can be done, but I'm less sure what mechanics would be appropriate.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

It’s been bugging me for a while, but recently I have a character who would actually take them.

There are no vehicle spells in 5e D&D. No “make the thing go faster”, no “teleport this vehicle to a different place”, no “make this vehicle move silently and leave no trace”, no “create a vehicle with these limitations”, no “this vehicle can fly for X time, nada.

[/quote]

I'd look toward summoning spells.

To benefit from a faster cart, supposedly horse drawn, replace the draft horses. Phanton Steed have the same stat as a riding horse (so they can't carry as much as draft horse, but they can still carry a cart and 480 lb of equipment) but with a speed instead of 100 feet, twice the speed of a real horse. Nothing prevents you from putting a harness on the steed, but nothing in the spell description says you can, so, depending on GM's ruling, you could have a spell effectively doubling your cart speed for an hour for a 3rd level spell.

Teleport this vehicle is done through Teleportation Circle (5th level slot). It creates a 10-feet wide circle, and your average Prairie Shooner was 4 feet wide according to the Britannica. It should fit easily inside the circle.


To make your cart leave no trace, the easiest thing is to make it hover above the ground. Tenser's floating disk can carry a loaded cart on top of it and make it hover 1 meter above the ground. Silent, no trace. According to the spell description "The disk is immobile while you are within 20 feet of it. If you move more than 20 feet away from it, the disk follows you so that it remains within 20 feet of you.". If nothing can push the disk, then you can't just hop on the disk and have it be moved. So you'll have to conjure a phantom steed to carry you (with a flying speed of 100 feet) and by RAW the disk will follow you as long as you don't cross impassable terrain because it remains withing 20 feet of you in any case. Tenser's spell last for one hour, no concentration, phantom steed is the same : they are made to work together.

To have a quicker ship... It might require some DM's adjudication. The listed speed of 2 knots for sailing ships is on the very low end of medieval transportation, an average speed much lower than the top speed to account for the fact that most of the time, you couldn't get the wind right. Using Control Winds (5th level slot), you guarentee a strong wind (20 mph) in just the right direction regardless of the local weather condition. It's enough to maintain top speed for the duration of the spell (15ish knots for a longbot, 10ish for a medieval merchant ship). That or you could bind a water elemental (using conjure elemental and planar binding) to push the ship, but the net effect would depends on GM's ruling. By

To create a vehicle, you'd need an ad hoc spell. Fabricate would require the wizard to be proficient since it's a specialized craftsmanship and a Large item would be a very small ship indeed. I'd simply adjudicate that Mordainkainen's Phantom Palanquin would be an up-level variant of the Phantom Steed. starting at level 5 (group effect instead of single-target spell sounds good for a 2 level difference). If you just wanted a cart without it being self-propelling, I'd follow dave2008's advice and use the UA spell "Find Vehicle" (not technomagic) to create a fey, fiendish or celestial vehicle lasting 8 hour, but otherwise totally normal, with an upcast possibility to carry more people.

To make a vehicle fly... no Floating Disk gimmick. Note that boots of flight (4h hour of flight daily) are a mere uncommon magic item. Horseshoes of flight and wheels of flight (to make the cart stay horizontal) shoudn't be more expensive. If you're in a dire situation, Animate Object (5th level) can turn your Huge cart into a Huge construct with a fly speed of 30 ft but only for one minute. Then again, your best bet would be to summon an Air Elemental or two (depending on the required carrying capacity) and Planar Bind them to grapple your cart and carry it with a speed of 45 ft for 24h.

Since the DMG is lacking in balancing advice regarding utility spell versus combat-oriented spell, I guess that homebrew spells doing the same thing that can be achieved by manipulating combat-oriented spells should have a lower level, or a longer duration. For travel-oriented spells, duration is the main problem. If you don't want to cart to be able to attack by itself, extending its duration through animate object to 8 hours shouldn't be a problem considering it's a 5th level spell...

 

[gyor]

It’s been bugging me for a while, but recently I have a character who would actually take them.

There are no vehicle spells in 5e D&D. No “make the thing go faster”, no “teleport this vehicle to a different place”, no “make this vehicle move silently and leave no trace”, no “create a vehicle with these limitations”, no “this vehicle can fly for X time, nada.

I can conjure a two story tower with a luxurious bathroom and a fully appointed study that lasts 24 hours, but I can’t conjure a cart or a boat?

So, does anyone know of any 3pp vehicle spells, or have any homebrew?

What would you want from a vehicle spell?

Summon Tesla of course, you enemy of the environment you! Wait until I tell Greta ...

Oh no the dreaded summon greta spell!

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Okay, some ideas.

MacMannanan's Magical Vehicle
Level 3 Conjuration
Range: 30 ft
Components: V, S, M*
Duration: 24 hours

You conjure a vehicle of your choice made of wood suitable to the vehicle's function. The vehicle take the shape of a carriage or a ship, or of a specialized vehicle of your devising, as permitted by the DM. It's dimensions are no greater than 60 ft on any side, and must be of a shape and wieght that will function for it's purpose.
When you cast the spell, you choose what type of vehicle it is, and what traits it has. Land vehicles and water vehicles are detailed below, each has basic rules, and options to choose from when you cast the spell. Regardless of the vehicle, no more than 5 crew are required to operate the vehicle, as any other crew requirement is met by the magic of the spell. When you cast the spell, you designate a Pilot, which can be yourself or another creature within range of the spell. The pilot can hand over control of the vessel at any time as a bonus action, and a creature can take control from an unconscious pilot as an action.

A land vehicle has a normal speed of 60 ft, or 10 miles per hour, and can continue moving for up to the full duration of the spell, provided a driver is present at all times. A water vehicle has (as longboat speed and movement, but maybe a bit faster, since it's cool and magic).

You can choose two of the following features for your vehicle when you cast the spell.

*Animated Crew. Fey spirits come to the vehicle, giving it a full compliment of semi-corporeal crew who are friendly to you and your allies, and who talk amongst themselves, relay orders, and sing working songs. They operate the vehicle, repair it if needed, and perform any other necessary function that would normally be performed by a skilled crew, and will try to defend the vehicle in a fight, using the statistics for Guards, equiped with shortswords and shortbows. If a crew drops to 0hp, it returns to the Feywild and will not return until you cast the spell again, though it bears you no ill will. In a land vehicle, these crew may ride alongside the vehicle, or may take the form of tiny flying creatures like sprites.

*Special Speed. A land vehicle gains either a climbing speed equal to it's normal speed, and ignores difficult terrain, or gains a burrowing speed equal to it's normal speed, and is fully enclosed while moving, with a round window of nearly indestructible glass in front of the driver. A burrowing vehicle also gains [ac boost and more hp]. A water vehicle gains either a fly speed equal to it's normal movement, or it's sails are always full as if traveling with the wind.
You can choose this feature twice, gaining both benefits for your vehicle type.

*Spacious Interior. The interior areas of your vehicle are doubled in size, and are appointed with comfortable and clean beds, and simple washing bowls full of clean water, soap, and towels.

At higher levels. when you cast the spell at 4th level or higher, you can increase the size of a water vehicle by 20 ft in length, or a land vehicle by 5ft in any dimension, and add another feature to the vehicle. You can do so again for every level above 4th at which you cast the spell.

*a plank of wood


Okay, so I'd be willing to make it level 4, but for now i just copied Galder's Tower. It lets you make a temporary airship, is the main thing that worries me. I might make that it's own spell by itself.

In fact, it might be more fun to split this into about 3 spells.
1 to conjure a vehicle, and have a more Galder-style choice of fairly mundane luxuries,
a spell to conjure fey spirits to become a crew and give some cool but not flying movement buffs,
and a spell that makes your vehicle fly.

IDK. Thoughts?

 

[doctorbadwolf]

After those spells, I'd look at a Transport Vehicle spell.

A simple low level spell might make a vehicle wiegh less, allowing the wind or a draft animal to take the vehicle further in a day. Another might simply give the pilot/driver advantage on checks to avoid and navigate hazards related to travel, like bad roads or rough seas or storms, and/or make the vehicle self-repairing for the spell's duration.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Might also go wild and include a high level spell that makes a spaceship/spelljammer/thing.

Also possibly some lower level travel spells that aren't vehicle specific, but honestly rangers not having ritual casting and knowing so few spells makes it harder.