Behind the Spells Wish and Limited Wish
Wish and its little brother Limited Wish are two spells that make the players? eyes sparkle or causes a player to run in fear. DM?s also can have a really varied reaction to the spells. They are very wide open and with just a few basic guidelines they can really cause problems for people that are not ready for them. Of all the spells I think these are the ones most in need of a Behind the Spells treatment.
Behind the Spells Wish and Limited Wish is one of many in a series of PDFs that takes a spell and gives it some context and background. The PDFs are written by Bret Boyd and published by Ronin Arts. The PDFs are all small though is one of the bigger ones being eight pages in length. The PDF has no art and has a simple easy to read lay out.
Each spell is given a background and a creator that first discovered the secret of casting the spell. Each is nicely done and the author as always hides a few ideas that one can really expand into adventure ideas. The spell secret section is the part I was most looking forward to. I was hoping for additional ideas on ways for a DM to deal with the spell. I was also hoping for something on the trend of players to try to make a wish as exact as they can. The book though takes it a different way with a creative use of the word eventually. The caster instead of wishing for something to happen right now can instead use the magic to subtly help them reach a certain goal whatever it is they wish for. It makes the spell a lot easier to manage and makes it help a pre determined plot thread the player gets to choose. This is a very good use for the spell and paired up with a creative DM could really make a Wish something to enjoy.
The book also has a spell secret that can allow caster to steal XP from people to power their wish spell. One needs an appendage of a creature that can level drain to be able to do it. I like the idea but the mechanics are not spelled out enough. It mentions a fort save for instance but does not say if the DC is that of the level drain effect, the DC for the Wish spell, or what the DC for the fort save is based on. There is a limit of how much XP gets drained from a person and it is not that much so one really will need a crowd of people in a small area to be able to do this. It could really set up a great encounter at a circus or other public event. There is a new spell called Interference Field. It is a low level spell that can make it difficult for other to cast spells in the area. It is a short duration spell but is well written and fits in well with the background from the Wish spell. There is also a series of magical items that are pretty powerful. There is one for each school of magic and they increase the DC of spells from that school and they function like a ring of spell storing for spells of that school. This will be a coveted item by specialist wizards everywhere.
Behind the Spells Wish and Limited Wish tackles a pair of spells that are very versatile and powerful. I would have liked to seen a more meta approach to dealing with the spells and their limits. The book though is creative as always and introduces new ways to make old spells interesting again.
<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>
Rating: [3 of 5 Stars!] |
Log In 
