Sorcery: Blasting Spells

Sorcery: Blasting Spells

D&D/Pathfinder, being heavily combat-focused systems, have many various damaging spells. While many of them already are represented in GURPS, some of them are not. Blade Barrier creates a disk of whirling force blades around the subject. Burning Hands fires a cone of flame. Call Lightning is an environmental overhead attack. Chain Lightning can strike multiple targets.

Blade Barrier

Keywords: Buff.

Full Cost: 33 points.

Casting Roll: None. Use Innate Attack (Gaze) to aim.

Range: 100 yards.

Duration: 3 minutes.

The subject is surrounded by a horizontal barrier of transparent blades of force. Everyone adjacent to the subject or in close combat with the subject is attacked each second with an effective skill of 14, modified only for size. This attack deals 1d+1 cutting damage. The blade barrier affects even insubstantial creatures.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (HT; Advantage, Blade Barrier, +210%; Fixed Duration, +0%; Increased 1/2D, 10x, +15%; No Signature, +20%; Sorcery, ‑15%) [33]. Note: “Blade Barrier” is Cutting Attack 1d+1 (Affects Insubstantial, +20%; Area Effect, 2 yards, +50%; Aura, +80%; Bombardment, Skill 14, -5%; Magical, -10%; Melee Attack, Reach C, -30%) [21].

  

Burning Hands

Keywords: Obvious.

Full Cost: 8 points/level.

Casting Roll: None. Use Innate Attack (Beam) to hit.

Range: 10 yards.

Duration: Instantaneous.

You fire a cone of flame that does 1d burning damage per level. The spell spreads to affect everyone in a cone-shaped area. Cones use special rules; see Area and Spreading Attacks (p. B413). The cone has a maximum width of 5 yards at the spell’s maximum range. This spell has the 1/2D range of 2 yards.

Statistics: Burning Attack 1d (Cone 5, +100%; Increased 1/2D, x2, +5%; Reduced Range, 1/10, -30%; Sorcery, -15%) [8/level].

  

Call Lightning

Keywords: Missile, Obvious.

Full Cost: 11 points/level.

Casting Roll: None. Use Innate Attack (Gaze) to hit.

Range: 100 yards.

Duration: Instantaneous.

When you have storm clouds above your head, you can cause a lightning to strike your victim, dealing 1d burning surge damage per level. Metallic armor counts as DR 1 against this attack, but nonmetallic armor protects normally. Targets stuck by this attack must make an HT roll, at -1 per 2 points of penetrating damage, or be physically stunned. On subsequent turns, they can roll HT to recover. Lightning behaves unpredictably around conductors; see Lightning (GURPS Magic, p. 196) for more details.

This spell bypasses any cover that does not provide overhead protection, and negates attack penalties to hit crouching, kneeling, sitting, or prone targets. (If you are already above or below your target, adjust this appropriately.)

Statistics: Burning Attack 1d (Environmental, Storm, -40%; Nuisance Effect, Behaves erratically around conductors, -5%; Overhead, +30%; Sorcery, -15%; Surge, Arcing, +100%; Side Effect, Stunning, +50%) [11/level].

  

Chain Lightning

Keywords: Missile, Obvious.

Full Cost: 15 points/level.

Casting Roll: None. Use Innate Attack (Beam) to hit.

Range: 100 yards.

Duration: Instantaneous.

You fire a coruscating discharge of electricity that does 1d burning surge damage per level.  The discharge leaps to other available targets after hitting the initial target! If that attack succeeds, immediately consult your margin of success. If the margin is high enough to hit a separate target after accounting for range penalties plus -2, the next target is struck unless they make an appropriate active defense. If the target is hit then check the margin again until the attack fails to hit or seven targets (the maximum) are hit.

Metallic armor counts as DR 1 against this attack, but nonmetallic armor protects normally. Targets stuck by this attack must make an HT roll, at -1 per 2 points of penetrating damage, or be physically stunned. On subsequent turns, they can roll HT to recover. Chain Lightning behaves unpredictably around conductors; see Lightning (GURPS Magic, p. 196) for more details.

Statistics: Burning Attack 1d (Nuisance Effect, Behaves erratically around conductors, -5%; Rapid Fire, Chaining, 7 targets, +70%; Sorcery, -15%; Surge, Arcing, +100%; Side Effect, Stunning, +50%) [15/level]. Note: Rapid Fire, Chaining is taken from Ravens N’ Pennies blogpost.