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Once upon a time, many encounters ago, a group of hardy
adventurers were surprised in the wilderness by an enchanter (70 yards
away) and his minions (all of them “chaotic as the day is long”). After
an
ice storm had decimated the group and a fireball was announced arriving,
a cry of protest rose from the players. Not only were they upset over
the
loss of characters, but in the unimaginative and brutish manner in
which
it was accomplished.
They reasoned that while the M/U might have used the icestorm
against the group, why should he use another of his (in this case)
“Big
Three” spells right after the first one. A lower level would make more
sense they argued, as it would leave the spell caster more options
to
choose from later in the encounter. Agreeing that this would make some
sense (a rare occurance for this group) we developed the following
system
and table to add more sense and imagination to magical attacks by M/U’s
on the group.
The first step is to determine the level of the spell. To do this, first
determine how many spells of each level the magic user in question
has
(Men & Magic page 17 and Greyhawk page
10). The enchanter in the
encounter has a total of 10 spells to choose from (4 first level and
3 second
level . . . ). Then roll a die (in this instance a 20 sided one) to
determine the
spell level (i.e.: 1-4= First Level, 5-7= Second Level, 8-9= Third
Level and
a 10= The Fourth Level). Thus a conjurer uses a four sided die, a magician
an eight-sided, etc. This system has magic users (non-player type)
using
their more plentiful lower level spells instead of blowing groups away
with their big spells immediately.
Once the level has been determined one simply goes to the
appropriate column of spells and rolls percentile dice to determine
which
spell. If the spell rolled has insufficient range, is a dungeon spell
during a
wilderness encounter or is obviously inappropriate (throwing feeblemind
on a fighter, etc) a reroll is allowed. The charts can be modified
to suit
individual campaigns.
In re-doing our previous encounter, the enchanter opens with a
lightning bolt and disposes of one of the magic users. Next, a magic
missile stabs out, striking another robed figure (scratch one cleric)
and
arrows from his archers strike several characters. The group responds
with deadly effect (shield, draw weapons, etc.). The players winning
the
first round of the melee begin to charge, cast their spells and the
battle is
on.
This system has added some interesting elements to our playing. One
wizard, before opening up on the group, hasted himself and his
henchmen, invisible, levitated and then opened up on the group. Later
when our bowmen started firing on him he put protection/normal
missiles on himself and sleep on the archers. If little else, it adds
some
variety to encounters.
FIRST LEVEL
| 01-05 | Hold Portal* |
| 06-10 | Protection from Evil |
| 11-30 | Charm Person |
| 31-55 | Sleep |
| 56-75 | Shield |
| 76-95 | Magic Missile |
| 96-00 | Ventriloquism |
SECOND LEVEL
| 01-05 | Levitate |
| 06-10 | Detect Invisible |
| 11-30 | Phantasmal Forces |
| 31-40 | Invisibility |
| 41-50 | Detect Evil |
| 51-65 | ESP |
| 66-70 | Darkness 5' Ft. Radius |
| 71-90 | Web |
| 91-00 | Mirror Image |
THIRD LEVEL
| 01-05 | Fly |
| 06-15 | Hold Person |
| 16-20 | Dispel Magic |
| 21-40 | Fire Ball |
| 41-50 | Lightning Bolt |
| 51-55 | Protection from Evil, 10 Ft. Radius |
| 56-60 | Invisibility, 10 Ft. Radius |
| 61-75 | Slow Spell |
| 76-80 | Haste Spell |
| 81-90 | Protection from Normal Missiles |
| 91-00 | Suggestion |
FOURTH LEVEL
| 01-10 | Polymorph Self |
| 11-20 | Polymorph Others |
| 21-25 | Wall of Fire |
| 26-30 | Wall of Ice |
| 31-40 | Confusion |
| 41-50 | Dimension Door |
| 51-70 | Ice Storm |
| 71-00 | Fear |
FIFTH LEVEL
| 01-05 | Teleport |
| 06-25 | Conjure Elemental |
| 26-35 | Telekinesis |
| 36-45 | Wall of Stone |
| 46-55 | Wall of Iron |
| 56-60 | Magic Jar |
| 61-85 | Cloudkill |
| 86-95 | Feeblemind |
| 96-100 | Growth/Animal |
SIXTH LEVEL
| 01-05 | Stone to Flesh |
| 06-25 | Invisible Stalker |
| 26-35 | Projected Image |
| 36-40 | Anti-Magic Shell |
| 41-60 | Death Spell |
| 61-65 | Geas |
| 66-75 | Disintegrate |
| 76-80 | Move Earth |
| 81-85 | Control Weather |
| 86-95 | Repulsion |
| 96-00 | Monster Summoning IV |
SEVENTH LEVEL
| 01-10 | Delayed Blast Fire Ball |
| 11-30 | Reverse Gravity |
| 31-55 | Limited Wish |
| 56-75 | Power Word Stun |
| 76-80 | Charm Plants |
| 81-90 | Mass Invisibility |
| 91-00 | Monster Summoning V |
EIGHTH LEVEL
| 01-35 | Mass Charm |
| 36-55 | Power Word Blind |
| 56-60 | Symbol |
| 61-90 | Polymorph Any Object |
| 91-00 | Monster Summoning VI |
NINTH LEVEL
| 01-30 | Meteor Swarm |
| 31-45 | Shape Change |
| 46-50 | Time Stop* |
| 51-70 | Power Word: Kill |
| 71-75 | Wish |
| 76-85 | Prismatic Wall |
| 86-95 | Maze |
| 96-00 | Monster Summoning VII |
*Dungeons only, re-roll for wilderness encounters.