Classic Dungeons and Dragons and Old School Gaming

D&D etc.


"Heir to a crumbling summit: to a sea of nettles: to an empire of rust: to rituals' footprints ankle-deep in stone."

-Mervyn Peake

"...and that, my liege, is how we know the Earth to be banana shaped."

-Sir Bedevere in Monty Python and the Holy Grail



Thursday, November 9, 2017

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN SOMEONE TRIES TO READ A WIZARD’S SPELL BOOK:




WHAT HAPPENS WHEN SOMEONE TRIES TO READ A WIZARD’S SPELL BOOK:

AND IF THE READER IS ALSO A WIZARD AND CASTS READ MAGIC:
1
They don’t. The thing is locked. The thing is tight. There is no visible lock for the thief to pick. Not even Jimbo the fighter can even pick the thing up.
It grows D6+1 demonic chicken legs and runs away. (In the direction of the Wizard who owns it)
2
An uproarious stream of light and sound erupts from every page if the book is opened. (Make a wandering monster check every time this happens)
Anyone nearby who makes a saving throw suffers D6+1 damage and anyone who doesn’t’ is knocked out. Effects continue each round until the book is closed.  
3
It’s just page after page of complete gibberish… Wait, here is something that you can make out. Do you read it?
(See table below)
(See table below)
4
The arcane symbols are difficult to make out. Out of the corner of the Reader’s eye they make out a figure. If they look directly at it, it is gone. If they look away again they will see the figure walking towards them out of the corner of their eye. If the figure reaches them it will strike with a dagger each round and automatically hit. By looking at it the reader can make it disappear. Only by focusing their gaze on the last place the saw it and backing away can the Reader make it stop. If they take the Spell Book it follows.
They may make a Saving Throw to avoid the effects described to the left. If the Reader continues to attempt to read they must save again.
5
The words on the pages crawl up the Reader’s arms and into their mouth, where they transform into an unending string of the most foul and blasphemous uncontrollable utterances.
By stripping naked and scraping off the words crawling on their skin and physically plucking the words from their tongue the effects can be ceased.
Instead of blasphemies random spells are uttered.
6
Nothing, they can’t read magic.
The spells therein may be deciphered.


IF THEY READ THE LEGIBLE TEXT HIDDEN AMONG THE GIBBERISH:
(if the Reader casts Read Magic they can make a Saving Throw to avoid the effects described below)
1
The Reader is turned into a toad.
2
The Reader is turned into a slimy mass of tentacles and mouths.
3
The Wizard who owns the Spell Book instantly appears.
4
The Reader and anyone nearby is teleported to the current location of the Wizard who owns the spell book.
5
They cast Geas on themselves and are compelled to return the book to it’s Owner.
6
As 5 above, but it affects everyone in the room and it’s a competition. Each person or creature wants to be the one to return the book to its Owner.