Call lightning. What ???

[MADMANMIKE]

Or wear a trench coat and yell FUEGO!

Ha!

[flatline]

Or wear a trench coat and yell FUEGO!

It's not enough to wear a trench coat. You also have to be very tall.

--flatline

[the ancient gamer]

About Spell damage and AR. So what you say is that spell damage will never go on SDC, just directly to Hit points ?

Of course you could add the Strike for Wizard, but how is the rule from the book interpret 1 ed. ? How do you determine if spell damage should go to SDC or Hit points ?

As written the spell is an automatic hit, meaning no strike roll. It's up to the GM to determine whether or not that damage goes to the armor/SDC first or not.

For an alternate rule as I suggested above, a 10th level Wizard has a spell strength of +3, so a D20 roll to strike +3 could be used to determine if the damage bypasses the SDC of the armor and goes straight to hit points (characters have no personal SDC in 1st Edition). This would not affect whether or not the target is hit, just how effective the damage is. 10th level Warlock has a +2 spell strength, and both classes can cast two spells per melee (which is a full minute in 1st edition).. A character's attacks per melee are spread out through the initiative order amongst the other characters, so there's no way for them to make an instant kill by casting this spell twice; there has to be 30 seconds between castings no matter how you play it..

I think that limits the spell quite a bit, though. And there really isn't any precedent in the 1st edition rules for a spell attacking a character's protection instead of their hit points.

I agree with Killer Cyborg that the spell can simply be deadly. (And if a high level wizard or warlock is blasting low level players with lightning, the GM isn't exactly playing fair--unless the players are being stupid, or careless.)

Here's how I handled it:

The lightning must be called outdoors, which is a literal interpretation of the spell description. If the target isn't on the ground, e.g.: flying, levitating, etc., then he/she gets an attempt to dodge the lightning as if it were a Fireball (natural 18+). If the target is on the ground, but near cover (a tree, cave, wagon, building, what have you) and fears another lightning strike, or attempted lightning strike, then he/she can try to use that cover. If the spellcaster does try to hit the target again--and the target makes it to cover, but can still be partially seen--then it's treated as an area of effect attack, and can be dodged for half damage, the other half hitting the tree, wagon, what have you. A simple save vs. spell magic for half damage could duplicate that, too. If somehow the target suspects the spell is coming in the first place, they can go for cover initially, as well.

And yeah, attacks like Call Lightning makes countermeasures like Armor of Ithan, or protection wards, all the more important.

[Veknironth]

Well, I think Call Lightning as listed is the best pure offensive spell in the game, from the main books. It's so hard to dodge, it does a good amount of damage, and it's not too cost prohibitive. The description of the Wizard Spell on the 2nd Ed Main Book (p198) is a little confusing regarding the inside/outside part. IT reads:

"The lightning bolt shoots down from the sky, hitting the desired target." and then two sentences later:

"This MAGIC can be cast outdoors or in; damage is inflicted only to the specific person or target."

The same wording is in the Warlock spell on pages 222-223. I don't know if that means the bolt shoots down from the sky, through a castle, down through the floors, into the dungeon, and finally down to the bowels of the crypts where the PC is casting it, or if it merely drops out of the ceiling. I think it's better to have it emerge from the caster like a Darth Sidious.

I forget who mentioned it, but one spell is a Warlock spell, the other a Wizard spell. So, I think the differences could be intentional or not, but they could easily stand as they are different. Wizard Call Lightning can be dodge, Warlocks not for some magical reason.

Now, as for it being overpowered in the hands of a 10th level Warlock, we're talking about a 10th level Warlock like he's a one trick pony! A 10th level Warlock is and should be, no joke. Making it to 10th level is difficult. Someone who does it is going to be formidable. Also, if a 10th level Warlock is trying to one shot people with Call Lightning, it's being kind. It could use Wind Blast, which does 2d6 +1d6 per level and the save is to KEEP BALANCE. The damage is automatic. Or, it could use Tornado, which has no save and will do 3d6x10 damage per melee and is helpless. After 1d6 melees (that could be essentially 18d6x10) the person is throw out of the funnel and takes only an additiona 2d6x10 damage. No save, and the diameter of the tornado is 100ft!

That's not even taking into account the 10th level Warlock could summon a Greater Elemental, and if you don't have the Dragons and Gods book, trust me, Call Lightning would be the least of your worries in that case.

-Vek
"High level warlocks DOMINATE with damage."

[Zer0 Kay]

I was looking over this spell the other day. Call Lightning is a Air Warlock spell you can hit persons with lightning and the person gets 1D6 in damage per level of the spell caster. But wait a minute... What?? No saving throw, no dodge, no nothing to defend yourselves with. So that means a 10th level Air Warlock can just go around "one-shot" (killing on one strike) people (10D6) without they even have a chance to defend themselves (saving throw.)

Was this actually the meaning of the spell? Or is this mistyped in the 1ed. book? Was this even thought thru? Its seems crazy. And even undead hunter starts out with this spell.

Save was "dropped" in editing.
Save is vs nat 20 or a modified 24.

Yes. The same as no Saving Throw

So you probably also would not a trickster mage that casts:
1. Create Deck of Cards (permanent)
2. Dagger Card or Iron Cards
3. Endless Deck of cards
AND
4. 52 cards to the face

1. Creates a deck of cards out of thin air (extra PPE for permanence)
2. Makes the first few cards in the deck act as daggers for damage (1d6) OR makes cards act as iron allowing use as blunt weapons (1d4)
3. For the duration of the spell the top card is continually drawn only the face value changes
4. launches the "whole deck" (no limitation of size) unerringly into the face of the target. (save = dodge of 20 required with a -10 modifier)

[drewkitty ~..~]

0K is scrupulously overlooking that '52 cards in the face' has a size definition in it's name. As I have pointed out to him before.

I for one would not allow this Whole chain of spells to take place. Witht he mage having to choose between EDoC and 52CttF.

[eliakon]

And ignoring that it doesn't say that it draws the cards one at a time......

[Zer0 Kay]

0K is scrupulously overlooking that '52 cards in the face' has a size definition in it's name. As I have pointed out to him before.

I for one would not allow this Whole chain of spells to take place. Witht he mage having to choose between EDoC and 52CttF.

And like I point out. The name of any spell is a name not a restriction upon the spell. Cloud of travel "blink of an eye does not require a blink of an eye". "Fly like the wind" 150 mph how often does wind and not storm wind or gale force or jet stream ever reach that speed, by your rules that spell should be limited to an average of 12mph or whatever the average wind speed is in the immediate local area. Petrification should be limited by you because part of the definition of petrification is "over a long period of time" and the spells name isn't instant petrification. Flame friend should be flame guardian because attacking people isn't very friendly. The Eternal flame only lasts 3000 years plus 150 years per level, by no means eternity. Ten foot wheel of fire doesn't have to be. Walk on waves shouldn't allow one to walk on water. Fly as an Eagle should transform one into an eagle or at the very least require one to flap their "wings" like an eagle has to in order to fly. Death trance should be called false death.

Need I go on? The wording and the stat block of a spell is infinitely more important than the name A spell name has no more import to the spell than any art does to equipment in a book. It is to get an idea of what the spell does and NOT to limit or empower the spell.

Why would you limit player creativity just based on the title? It isn't like your Coma-n the grammarian.

[Zer0 Kay]

And ignoring that it doesn't say that it draws the cards one at a time......

Endless deck of cards says:
Great for long hours of gambling, because the deck never changes cards, makes card counting more difficult...
Nothing about one card at a time.
Besides even if it was when a person normally does 52 card pick up of which to the face is only a modification of direction, the cards normally peel off from the deck as individuals.

[Noon]

'Just' level 10??

[eliakon]

I guess if your fine with a spell that does infinite damage go with it. *shrugs* I am not going to derail a thread about Call Lightning to discuss the finer points of ludicrous magic.

[Zer0 Kay]

Trickster not ludicrous. And I limit it to the spell is used to propelling 52 cards per turn, until the endless deck of cards spell expires. The topic is Call lightning. What ??? I figure this fits in the What ??? As I am again using my liberal translation skills rather than my conservative translation skills to include other spells like the Warlocks call lightning that makes people go What ???