Illusion spells

[Slimcreeper]

Hey, I've tried my hand at creating a few illusionist spells. Here is the first draft:

Illusionist Spells

Desirabauble Circle: 2

Threads: 1
Weaving: 6/11
Casting: TMD
Range: Touch
Duration: Rank + 10 Rounds
Effect: Alters apparent value of an object

Illusion. This spell makes an object appear either far more or far less valuable than it is for a short time. The subject of the spell could be any object, but cannot have a spell defense of greater than 2. The magician chooses whether he is increasing or decreasing the apparent value when the spell is cast. The illusionist taps a silver piece against the object and makes a spellcasting test. Compare the result to the Mystic Defense of anyone who sees the object during the spell’s duration . If successful, the spell make the object seem to be worth either 50% more per success or 50% less per success. Different targets can have different ideas of its value depending on their Mystic Defense - to one the object may appear to be crusted with gems; to another it may appear to be only silver plated. Any Namegiver who is watching when the illusion is cast gets a free Sensing test with a +5 bonus.

Success Levels: +50% or -50% apparent value
Extra Threads: Increase duration (+2 rounds)

Illusory Animal Circle: 6

Threads: 1
Weaving: 9/14
Casting: 6
Range: 40 yards
Duration: rank minutes
Effect: Creates illusion of an animal, Will + 2.

Illusion. This spell creates an illusion of any animal the magician has ever seen before. The animal will act naturally for a creature of its type, but must stay within range of the spellcaster or the spell ends. The magician must concentrate if he or she would like to direct the animal’s actions. The animal cannot attack or act as a mount or draft animal. Any attempt to make the animal do so causes the illusion to dissolve. Any test that interacts with the animal (such as attacks, dominate beast or animal handling) acts as a sensing test. If the animal the illusion is based on might have Battle Shout, the magician may concentrate on the illusion to cause it to roar, using the effect step as the Battle Shout test. If the magician creates extra animals, all of the other requirements hold - the animals must stay within 40 yards of the spellcaster, and the spellcaster must use an action to make one of them give a Battle Shout.

Success Levels: Increase duration (+2 minutes) or Increased effect (+2)
Extra Threads: Add one extra animal.

Entourage Circle: 8

Threads: 2
Weaving: 12/17
Casting: TMD (see description)
Range: 40 yards
Duration: rank minutes
Area of Effect: 10 yards
Effect: Creates illusion of a small crowd of people.

Illusion. The magician looks at a door or other opening and whispers a greeting while weaving the threads. The Casting difficulty is equal to the highest spell defense of the people present, plus 1 for each additional person. When the adept casts the spell, an illusion of people walk into view through the door or window, around the corner of a wall, etc. The opening may be created through the use of another illusion or spell, if necessary. The spell creates 2 people per thread. If the magician is trying to create a specific person, everyone present gets an automatic sensing test. The illusory people will act naturally, but the magician must concentrate to direct their actions or speech. Any tests that interact with the illusory people act as sensing tests. The illusory people cannot enter combat; if they do so the illusion immediately ends. Any interaction test the illusory people make requires one extra success than normal.

Success Levels: Increase duration (+2 minutes) or Increased effect (+2)
Extra Threads: More people (+2 per thread)

Chef Circle: 1

Threads: 1
Weaving: 5/10
Casting: TMD (see description)
Range: Touch
Duration: rank +5 minutes
Effect: Alters food or drink (one meal)

Illusion. The magician lays a cloth over the food or drink, then pulls it off with a dramatic flair. He or she makes a spellcasting test against the highest Mystic Defense of those present. If successful, the food appears to be changed into a beautifully presented feast and fancy drink. It only affects people present when the spell is cast. This spell affects sight, taste and texture, so that those who eat or drink of the meal believe it to be what it appears to be. It makes spoiled food or even dwarven mine rations appear palatable, though it will not make tainted food or drink actually safe. Illusory drink will cause illusory drunkenness, which can be disbelieved and ended at any time.

Success Levels: Increase duration (+2 minutes)
Extra Threads: Add one extra meal.

[Kasbak]

[Slimcreeper]

Thanks Kasbak!

You are probably right about the multiple apparent values being tough to manage. I really liked the idea of a group squabbling over it's value, though.

I wasn't really thinking of this as a way for the illusionist to scam merchants. More as a way to make an instant McGuffin, a thing that suddenly everyone wants. That's why I started with 50%, and I thought about 100%. What if we cut the duration to rank rounds? Or maybe it should be written as more of a compulsion? I think that is a less flavorful option. Oh! Perhaps the object becomes just weirdly valuable irregardless of its original value? Like 100 sp times (the caster's circle + the number of successes)? That way the magician could pull any old mug out of her robe and "How much are you getting for this job? Switch sides now and this royal goblet will be yours!"

I think the illusory animals wording may be confusing. The magician should only be able to cause one Battle Shout per round, because he has to spend an action to concentrate on it. The battle shout isn't the whole point of the spell. It's more to make the target think twice before pursuing the magician across the bridge because she apparently pulled three or four live vipers out of her pocket and dropped them behind her.

[Mataxes]

You want to be careful with spells with an effect that can effectively replace a talent, as it can run the risk of stepping on the toes of other Disciplines.

That's why a lot of the spells that used to do this have been modified to simply provide a bonus in ED4.

[freid78]

I hope the companion come with a spell design section. Even with the high customization of #thread and extra successes, spells are still the reflect of an individual thought patterns. The parameters of actual spells are also somewhat guessed (by playtesting?) and hard to reproduce into a uniform system. If follow more precisely the illusion spells, ED4 has a new approch with copying elementalist spells into illusions. A would be illusionnist might want to deepen that trying to mimic even more spells and try to confuse others pretending he's an elementalist. Not that i know how to play an illusionnist, but i think part of the discipline philosophy goes into misdirection. There's much, much more, i could think to create illusionnist spells that would go that way. Not that the current spells are not good, but frankly unsufficient for my taste.

[freid78]

Not part of the actual context, but still under the right category. I need to know, why is there a messy portal illusion spell?

Presto (p.309)

The openings are linked by a poorly understood warping of astral space. This makes little sense... are you saying the illusionist poorly understand magic? Or is there like a universal magic mystery?

The warping is real, but the spell takes a number of shortcuts which rely on the premises of illusions to bend magic in ways which can be broken to disrupt the link. Whhhaaaaattttt? You mean that, if i want to pull a bunny out of my hat, there's a chance my hand get severed because you don't believe i can do it!? What is wrong here? Basically, illusions can make shortcuts into magic to actually do something only if you believe it long enough? This is amazing! I want to make a thread item, using "poorly understood thread magic". The item creation is real, but rely on shortcuts... I love it.

It's either an illusion, or it's not... if illusions starts to play in the real world, it gets messy.

[Mataxes]

[freid78]

[Telarus_KSC]

Earthdawn Illusion magic gets to break those rules. Even the Illusionists don't know all of how mind, reality, and illusion function, or why certain things work like they do.

For your quarterstaff example, you are giving the audience and the spell way too much slack. The spell specifies that both are "small" containers and both have to be within line of sight of the Illusionist. Yes, he could reach out, grab a quarterstaff leaning against the wall next to the jar, and pull it out of his sleeve (I'd allow sleeve's to count as an opening). But casting the spell was a full action, and it's intended to last multiple rounds, so I'd rule that grabbing things is fast enough that you'd have to reserve initiative (in a combat situation) in order to interrupt, like grabbing the magician's hand as it comes out of the portal. Witnesses in the room wouldn't automatically get a Sensing test. They would have to actively investigate one of the containers or try to interrupt the Illusionist in order to get a Perception check or other Sensing Test (like an Attack test). Sticking a hand into one of the openings, trying to look through the portal, cutting at the Illusionist's hand while he's trying to pull something through, etc (note, only the magician can move things through the portal-spaces). Then the acting character would need to roll 20+ to disrupt the magic.

Also, it is worth noting that this is one of the few spells where one person Sensing the illusion breaks the whole spell. Fun With Doors, Illusory Missile, Nobody Here and most other illusions work on a mind-by-mind basis. You can disbelieve or sense the illusion, and that helps your friend's Sensing test if you can demonstrate something funny's going on, but it doesn't cancel the illusion automatically for them.

It does ultimately come back to the illusion rules Mataxes mentioned, which were really cleaned up for 4th edition. You don't get passive Sensing test unless the spell specifically calls them out (i.e. reactions,like trying to Avoid Blow an illusionary attack). Once sensed or disbelieved, it becomes a figment for you, still there but an obvious trick, but (most of the time) will work on other targets if they do not sense/disbelieve.

[freid78]