Sorcery Spells Overview: Earth
Let's go over the Earth college. Keep in mind that I usually decouple all the metal effects from the college and form Metal college as a separate one, so some spells may seem absent to you.
I'm going to give each spell a grade:
A - a very good spell that will be useful in almost any situation;
B - a decent spell that may be suboptimal in some situations;
C - a situational spell that requires certain circumstances to shine;
D - you really have to build your character around this spell for it to be useful, or situations where this spell is useful are uncommon;
F - don't you have anything better to spend your points on?
Grade: B
This is a great area attack spell. The downside is that it is a Bombardment and that it requires a lot of coordination with your allies.
Grade: D
The description is a bit overblown, as to cover an entire city you'd probably need a million of points. Other than that, this is a quite powerful spell that is impractically expensive.
Grade: B
This is a surprisingly useful cantrip. You never know when you find yourself without a shovel, and I can see digging coming up a lot in dungeoneering situations and other circumstances.
Grade: F
Very cool, but prohibitively expensive, just like most Body of X spells in Sorcery.
Grade: F
Very cool, but prohibitively expensive, just like most Body of X spells in Sorcery.
Grade: F
Very cool, but prohibitively expensive, just like most Body of X spells in Sorcery.
Grade: B
Basically, this is an instantaneous, rapid fire version of Rain of Stones. Still very good.
Grade: D
I can't really imagine it being useful for digging due to the weight limit. But it seems fine for breaking rock objects.
Grade: D
This spell is very good, but only if there are earth elementals to control. If you can summon them yourself, then you probably don't even need this spell. So, you have to have an enemy summon an earth elemental or find a neutral one to dominate, and that's probably easier said than done. However, if your game is predominantly set on the Elemental Plane of Earth, this spell gets bumped up to B. Otherwise, it's not worth learning.
Grade: D
See Control Earth Elemental above. However, glass elementals probably are rarer.
Grade: C
There is a lot of potential here, I feel. But to realize all that, you probably will need to buy some Impulse Points to stabilize the created matter.
Grade: A
Summoning spells are always great. This spell lets you create an earth elemental who can pummel enemies to death, create tunnels, or glide through the earth - your imagination (and the GM) are the limit! However, you probably want to have a good Will score and, possibly, consider learning Symbol Drawing (Summoning Circles) to mitigate the planar distance penalties.
Grade: F
Why would you cast that? It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere. And Create Earth exists.
Grade: D
This is something like Walk Through Earth on steroids. I would give it an A if not for the cost that makes it very difficult to cast.
Grade: B
Ah, a Might and Magic spell conversion! A very hard to use spell in the original game, it becomes much better in GURPS. I love it.
Grade: D
Like Break Rock, but actually destroys the earth, not just turns it into rubble.
Grade: A
This is potentially gamebreakingly strong in games with a strong dungeon crawling focus, as it allows the entire party to circumvent everything.
Grade: B
A nice save-or-die spell. The fact that it destroys the equipment is a double-edged sword, but other than that it has almost no downsides.
Grade: D
Imprisoned? Gradually, you can turn the stone wall into air and escape. Not useful for digging, but can still be used to circumvent some rocky obstacles.
Grade: C
Not only can you "dig" as per Earth to Air, but you can always satisfy your thirst or even create difficult, muddy terrain. Much more useful than just Earth to Air.
Grade: C
This makes rock walls or doors easier to break, or, if used in tandem with Shape Earth or Shape Glass, can create you a nice obsidian weapon. You can also make windows.
Grade: D
Might be useful when you really need a rock but don't have one. Other than that, it's a craftsman spell.
Grade: A
This is an excellent spell. The only downside is that the subject must be touching earth or stone. However, that's an easy condition to fulfill.
Grade: C
How does one make an earthquake in GURPS? I decided to go with the "pay for the effect" route and turn it into an area version of Tanglefoot that only targets those who are standing on the ground. There is an alternative - the ptallant lizard from GURPS Creatures of the Night Vol. 1 can create an earthquake. Its ability is based on Control Earthquakes, but since there is no point cost, you cannot devise the rarity category of earthquakes, and there isn't much in terms of mechanical effects. And now back to the actual spell - it is actually pretty good and affordable. Being knocked down is no joke in combat. But it requires good positioning of your allies and is useless against flying enemies.
Grade: D
Sure, this is a cool spell, but it's too expensive and has better alternatives if you want a save-or-die spell.
Grade: D
This spell is quite expensive, and requires you to spend character points or Impulse Points to stabilize the created matter. However, if you're a farmer, then this spell is great for you.
Grade: D
This spell requires you to spend character points or Impulse Points to stabilize the created matter. However, essential glass sounds pretty cool. If you're a craftsman mage, then it might be worth it.
Flesh to Stone (GURPS Thaumatology: Sorcery, p. 15)
Grade: A
Who doesn't like the good old petrification?
Grade: C
This is a cantrip that is actually very useful when you're underground. You could also, for example, feign casting Body of Stone or Stoneskin and intimidate somebody with just 1 character point.
Grade: B
This is a conversion of one of my favorite Dominions 5 spells. There's no better feeling than dropping a meteor on the battlefield. Despite giving enough time to retreat, this spells looks good to me.
Grade: B
A simple missile spell. Sure, the (0.5) armor divisor is bad, but the spell is still decent.
Grade: D
There could be situations where this is useful, but I don't see them coming up too often. Better just keep in mind that you can improvise this spell, as it is quite cheap.
Grade: D
This is way too situational. I can't imagine learning a spell to see through stained glass.
Grade: D
This does not seem as powerful as Steelwraith, but that spell is not in this college in my games, since it is moved to the Metal college.
Grade: A
This is a disgustingly strong missile spell with cyclic damage. Your GM will probably ban it for exceeding the campaign damage limit, but even if you lower the damage, the spell should be very nice.
Grade: D
Only required when your entire party really needs to dig a trench quickly, but the enemy stole all the shovels.
Grade: C
This is expensive, but if you rely on such spells as Rain of Stone, Boulder Barrage, or Death Blossom, then it might be worth learning to protect your allies.
Grade: D
For miners, this is an excellent spell. Other than that I see no point in using it.
Grade: F
The effect is very cool, and this spell was a pain in the ass to stat up. But the cost is prohibitively high, so it probably can only be used via cooperative ceremonial casting.
Grade: C
Sure, it does not deal any actual damage, but knockback can be very useful, especially at a range of 20 yards. On a flat, featureless plane knockback may knock somebody down, but in more detailed environments you can use it to throw enemies off cliffs, into fires, onto spikes, or against the wall to deal collision damage. And if you deal with swarms or diffuse beings, then this spell becomes extremely potent! The blinding effect gives the spell more utility, but makes it much more expensive than, for example, Air Jet. You can also put out fires with it, which is nice.
Grade: C
An excellent spell in spring. Not so much during the rest of the year, unless you cast Earth to Water often.
Grade: D
This is a strange spell. I guess if you are looking to paralyze the subject and not "kill" him with Flesh to Stone, then it might be useful. But this is also a melee spell, and this makes it dangerous to cast.
Grade: C
A cantrip that can be used to distract somebody, to create noise, or to make a spellcaster lose his concentration.
Grade: F
I know that Plane Shift is a Gate spell, but I allow limited versions to be in elemental colleges. While I absolutely adore plane shifting, this spell is something you're very unlikely to learn. First, it is very expensive, even if you make it D&D-like by requiring an attuned metal rod (there's a -20% limitation for that in GURPS Infinite Worlds). Second, you don't get to bring friends, and usually you have your partymates. Even in a solo adventure this is something of an adventure enabler instead of a spell that is used to solve your problems. The cost forces us to use cooperative hardcore improvisation to cast this spell. It pains me greatly to give it an F.
Grade: D
This is a useful spell to find a safe moment to traverse a mountain pass, a cave, a tunnel, or travel near a volcano. You probably wouldn't want to learn it, but it is cheap enough to be cast via hardcore improvisation.
Grade: B
A great area attack spell. Requires proper positioning of the allies though, and has a (0.5) armor divisor.
Grade: B
A great area attack spell. Requires proper positioning of the allies though. I remember in one of my games one particular player was like a Rain of Stones magnet.
Grade: C
This is actually good! For just 2 points you can repair your broken obsidian weapons, making them much better. And if you break a glass vase, you can now repair it too.
Grade: C
You would probably need at least the ST 10 version to cast it as a combat spell, but I think even the first version should protect you against thrown rocks, sling projectiles. It could also be used to clear an area of rocky debris.
Grade: C
If you are having trouble with such spells as Rain of Stones cast by your enemies or allies, then this spell might be worth learning.
Grade: B
This spell is based on a spell from Wizardry 8. Create a rock in the air and drop it on the target. Cool and effective.
Grade: B
Considering how often you encounter stone buildings or underground structures in your typical D&D-style games, this spell is very useful.
Grade: C
If you are playing in a desert or beach setting, then this is excellent. Otherwise, very situational.
Grade: C
If you're greedy, then this is neat. Could also be used in a crowd to find suitable targets for pickpocketing or robbing.
Grade: B
Considering that this spell uses Long-Distance Modifiers, this is pretty good for navigation.
Grade: B
This is very cool, especially the vertical knockback part that can also knock subjects down and/or deal additional damage. However, it requires good positioning, does not ignore DR, and is useless against flying enemies.
Grade: A
This is a ranged spell - keep that in mind. With just a single casting you may ruin a stone club, make a hole in a stone wall, or create fortifications. This is very good, in my opinion.
Grade: C
This is decent. Not expensive, but can be used to create items out of glass, obsidian, and some other glass-like materials that you might find in many fantasy settings. One level might be worth learning.
Grade: C
Make your obsidian weapons even better. Why not? But don't forget to also learn Repair Glass.
Grade: C
Very useful if you dig a lot. Works well with Badger Paws. Also, if there are some contaminants in the soil and you have no Purify Earth, then this spell will help you avoid contacting them.
Grade: C
If you are an unarmed fighter, then this is good. And it's a cantrip, so you can always improvise it.
Grade: B
An information-gathering spell in the Earth college is unexpected, but very welcome.
Grade: D
I guess it can be used to soften rock objects, but you'd probably do better casting Earth to Water or Destroy Earth instead.
Grade: C
If you do not have access to Meta-spells and the Remove Curse spell, then you can still cure petrification with this one. If you encounter medusas, basilisks, or gorgons often, it might even be worth learning. Otherwise - keep it in mind for hardcore improvisation.
Grade: B
Just like Create Earth Elemental, but you have much less control over what you get. Still, this is a very good spell that may require additional investment.
Grade: B
Just like Create Glass Elemental, but you have much less control over what you get. Still, this is a very good spell that may require additional investment.
Grade: C
This spell is cheap enough to improvise normally, and is situationally useful.
Grade: B
Very powerful, but also very expensive and difficult to use effectively due to the very large area of effect.
Grade: B
I actually like this spell. Tremorsense will make it very difficult for others to sneak up on you. It is also useful if you are in the dark, blinded, or have to detect burrowing creatures.
Grade: D
This is way too expensive. But if you are trapped in an isolated desert town beset by giant man-eating worms, then this is your ticket to freedom.
Grade: D
A pretty interesting spell with some very vague effects. I can imagine this being used to, for example, destroy a dungeon or threaten to burn down a city. But it seems to be way too situational.
Grade: C
Surprisingly, the Earth college can give you some aerial mobility. If you create an explosion in a dusty environment, there should be enough dust floating around for you to walk on.
Walk Through Earth (GURPS Thaumatology: Sorcery, p. 15)
Grade: A
Expensive, but worth it. May even be gamebreaking in dungeon crawling games, as it lets you basically avoid everything. However, you probably would need a way to breathe and see in the earth to utilize this spell to its full potential, but even without that it's powerful.
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