DM Nagging: It's pretty much my job

[Anastasia]

Finally knocked this out, helps figure out Marie's place in the pantheon. Helps that she's an interesting contrast from Alicia since the latter is very much an 'adventurer's deity' while Marie despite her focus on things like specialist mages ultimately comes across much more as a deity for regular people.

If Alicia most opposes 'corruption' as her evil concept, Marie would probably most oppose 'sloth'. Except there aren't really any good examples of that? Even the deity of entropy and loss is the most dynamic and hard-working of them all!

This is very true. It's worth noting that the one deity that I've wrote who has that is Mammon. Note that the theme of his block is the represents what he is too well and falls apart because of that. It's ultimately the same root reason why Eldath is also relegated to a background role. While what she represents is commendable, pacifism simply isn't viable in many parts of Creation. Likewise, for anyone who wants to advance at all in a cosmic sense, sloth works directly against the grain of the premise.

I'd say blame the Incarnations, but this is more of unintended blow back than anything else. They wanted a Creation that would find an Answer. That involves effort and that involves conflict between the sides. Both sloth and pacifism run counter to the way Creation's set up as a result.

Marielle
Heaven's Helper, The Forceful Fairy
Demigoddess
Symbol: Three purple orbs with trailing streams, the middle and largest adorned with butterfly wings
Home Plane: Sylica
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Portfolio: Magic, playfulness, ambition, the heavens
Worshippers: Specialist mages, aasimar, warlocks, supporters
Cleric Alignments: LG, NG, CG
Domains: Chaos, Good, Magic, Trickery, Luck, Force, Illusion, Celestial
Favored Weapon: Sword of light (longsword)

Marielle is a celebrant of the heavens and the ideal of making everywhere akin to heaven by the compounding nature of little kindnesses. She tirelessly espouses the virtue of working to the benefit of the common good and uplifting others through cheerfulness and consideration. When all are acting to benefit those around them, burdens are trivialised and everyone prospers by showing their best self to the community.

So she's a cosmic cheerleader is what you're saying? Sounds about right.

As a goddess of magic following in Mystra's footsteps she encourages the development of such talents and the use of magic to overcome difficulties - indeed where Mystra might caution against relying on it too much, Marielle forswears such caution and instead pushes for its use even for mundane things simply for the thrill of pushing its capabilities in unexpected directions and developing new insights. Specialising in spells, or even non-magical talents, is beloved by her. An illusionist compensating for his school's weakness at direct damage with quasi-real attacks, a dancer using her grace to evade harm in battle, a sculpter creating a garden of carved stone flowers to brighten his home, these are all examples of pushing an ability over a problem rather than adopting a more conventional route and creating something just as worthwhile or even arguably superior.

There's a feeling that doing something is almost as important as what is done, that creation and growth and important to her. It feels consistent with the previous comment about being the anti sloth.

Attitude is what matters most to her. Revel in your discoveries, celebrate the achievements of those around you, give everything of yourself to the tasks you deem worthwhile. There's no greater insult than a half-hearted effort, and if you can't bring yourself to give what you're doing your best effort? Find something that does excite you and focus on that, and give all appreciation to those who do care and work at the things you can't. Carry this attitude to your personal relationships, strive to make everyone you know feel that their presence is appreciated and matters to you, declare your love passionately, wear your heart on your sleeve and realise that the only thing capable of holding you back is yourself.

Along with a big dose of enthusiasm and self improvement. It almost feels a bit shonen the way it emphasizes that.

Followers of Marielle tend to wear brightly coloured or flashy clothing to better stand out, but the clerical vestments and ceremonial garb is contrastingly staid. Simple cut and uniform colours tending towards dark blue or purple with white trim or accents give an almost hidebound look to working clergy. This is to emphasise their position as servants and correspondingly makes a cleric stand out amidst a group of brightly attired lay worshippers at a temple so that their position can be easily spotted by any visitor.

Nice touch with the worshipers, standing out by not standing out.

The Day of Ascension is celebrated along with worshippers of the rest of the Syliciad, and Marielle also adds her own holidays on the solstices each year. The Shortest Day is an excuse for merriment and the telling of tall tales, to uplift everyone's spirits in the dead of Winter. The Summer Exposition is effectively talent show where followers of Marielle show off their skills in creative and exciting ways to astound and amaze the members of their community, though the timing of this holiday is flexible and often adjusted to fit alongside other festivals dominant in the area.

Sylicad, huh? Interesting term, a good a name as any for the pantheon.

To pick a nit, isn't the shortest day of the year the first day of winter, so it would be at the start of winter instead?

History/Relationships

A recently ascended deity and a young celestial at that, Marielle nonetheless has a number of friends to call upon across the heavens both from her work as a humble servant of Mystra up to her more prominent role in establishing Sylica. Getting her start as a messenger for Dweomerheart attached to the Keeper of Names, she developed a strong work ethic even in her afterlife which has obviously coloured her dogma as a nascant deity. This saw her frequently travelling to other heavens, exposing her to their virtues and instilling a profound respect for the whole of the upper planes and not just Elysium - though she often couches her praise for the more lawful planes in more playful terms, it's not unheard of for her to chide the chaotic ones for being insufficiently serious to her mind.

Leaving the heavens to act as Alicia's familiar on the prime exposed her to further influences, including the penitent fiend Antenora who would later become her wife. Though her role in those adventures wasn't as storied as Alicia or Antenora, she contributed to many significant events and often took it upon herself to alleviate their burdens both by taking over minor duties and lightening the mood in dark times with cheerful enthusiasm or the odd witty distraction.

Naturally her greatest allies as a nascant deity are the other members of the Syliciad, as well as Mystra and the deities of Dweomerheart. She also has some closeness to the Court of Stars, both as an eladrin and for her role in rescuing the children of Androlynne. However most of her old contacts not shared with Sylica are at a considerably lower level than deific, and so she has little in the way of unique relationships not shared with the rest of her pantheon.

Though she fights just as hard alongside her fellows she is not a crusading deity like Alicia and Antenora, and so she similarly has little in the way of unique enemies not shared by the rest of Sylica. It is known that despite being a deity of Chaos Marielle has a particular disdain for slaad, though she has had no real dealings with the slaad lords.

All of that sounds about right, it's mostly a restatement of things we knew already and quietly plays up her supporter role.

Dogma

Work hard, play hard. Give your all so that everyone can see the shine of your effort and enthusiasm towards your goals, and respect that shine in everyone else. Even if a job is humble it can be a stepping stone to greatness, so treat that first step as seriously as you would the last. Keep in mind the reason that drives you forward, whatever it may be, and you'll never lose yourself to tedium no matter how hard it gets. Never forget that the appreciation and rewards you desire are desired by everyone else on their own journeys forward, so always be generous in sharing them.

Marie feels like the type who would write stories and then go around and drop reviews and comments on other stories relentlessly. I have to say I approve of the attitude, it feels much like her.

Clergy and Temples

While it's nascant, the idea of Marielle's church is surprisingly hierarchical for a goddess of chaos. Ranks, titles, rewards, and responsibilities are divided up to encourage the growth of its clergy and to provide a reason to celebrate whenever one ascends to a new position. Churches tend to be most common in cities or developed areas - the necessities of rural life tend towards a more jack of all trades mentality than the sort of specialisation Marielle encourages. Having to start up in an already crowded environment necessitates smaller temples out of the way, though Marielle dreams of having grand cathedrals and community centrepieces consecrated in her name.

For as nascant as they are, clergy of Marielle are expected to interpose themselves into civil life wherever they live - wearing clerical vestments while shopping or gossiping simply to 'fly the flag' and take any opportunity to talk about their faith while uplifting those around them. While this can be considered overbearing by some, it's seen as important for establishing their presence in an area and drawing out interest for the word of a neophyte deity.

All of that makes sense for a newly risen deity.

---

On a side note, I can see those of Antenora's flock who seek redemption getting along well with the attitudes of Marie's faithful. After all, they'd agree wholeheartedly about seeking and giving your utmost to what you do. They merely have a far more important reason than most, since their eternal souls are on the line. There feels like there's a certain synergy there between them that would suit them well to understanding one another.

[Ebiris]

Nice touch with the worshipers, standing out by not standing out.

In a way it's a statement of tradition, that a cleric should look like how you'd expect a cleric to look. Also Marie's worn enough maid uniforms while serving Alicia that that kind of classic but understated design appeals to her.

Sylicad, huh? Interesting term, a good a name as any for the pantheon.

To pick a nit, isn't the shortest day of the year the first day of winter, so it would be at the start of winter instead?

Yeah, it's a word that means itself basically. Like Seldarine or whatever, even if it looks weird on its face, association with the concept lends it meaning over time.

And it might be the official start of the season but it's still a cold day with the least sunlight so deserves a holiday to brighten things up. Just as it does with so many real world religions!

Marie feels like the type who would write stories and then go around and drop reviews and comments on other stories relentlessly. I have to say I approve of the attitude, it feels much like her.

---

On a side note, I can see those of Antenora's flock who seek redemption getting along well with the attitudes of Marie's faithful. After all, they'd agree wholeheartedly about seeking and giving your utmost to what you do. They merely have a far more important reason than most, since their eternal souls are on the line. There feels like there's a certain synergy there between them that would suit them well to understanding one another.

Antenora's 'performance reviews' aren't so dissimilar from Marie's focus on feedback and promotions so yeah they kind of fit together easily.

[Anastasia]

Antenora and Marie have clearly rubbed off on each other in their ways, yes.

I'll post this in a bit once I give it a pass over for typos. I see some but I think it's mostly just British variations on words which isn't a big deal.

[Anastasia]

13th level spells.

Raw List

Spell Name/Damage, Max Damage and Average Damage/Targeting/Misc Effects/Save Type/Spell Resistance

Black Glass Splash/40d6+40, 280, 180/100ft radius burst/Destroys objects and corpses/Reflex half/Yes
Blazing Radiance/40d12, 480, 260/Ray/Undead take double damage/None due to ranged touch/Yes
Darkfire Impalement/35d6, 210, 122.5/50ft cube/Negates evasion unless you can see darkfire/Reflex half/Yes
Greater Polar Ray/50d8, 400, 225/Ray/None/None due to ranged touch/Yes
Imix's Touch/35d12, 420, 227.5/1 creature/Ongoing damage and ignores resistance and immunity/None due to touch/Yes
Magic Missile Massacre/80d4+80, 400, 280/1 creature/Force surrounds creature and allows ghostly/ethereal to be hit/None/Yes

So what do I take away from this?

1. This is a hard level to judge for average damage, since there's not a ton of damage spells here. I'm going to tentatively day 40d6 with the understanding that I think this level suffers from spell damage bloat. I'll pass on deeper comment for now and see how 14 shakes out for damage then comment on both levels.

Specific Spell Notes

1. Blazing Radiance breaks hard with d12s and double damage versus undead.
2. Greater Polar Ray isn't broken, but it's at least a level too low.
3. Really, this entire level's hard to quantify due to lack of examples and some of them being on the surface misplaced.

[Ebiris]

Have a 15th level spell, as a treat.

Cursed Crystal Prison
Conjuration/Necromancy (Earth, Force)
Level: Sor/Wiz 15
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100ft + 10ft/level)
Area: Cylinder (20-ft. radius, 60 ft. high)
Duration: 1 min/level (D)
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
Spell Resistance: Yes (see text)

A great eruption of dark blue crystal threaded with strands of force appears at the conclusion of this spell, trapping those nearby within its cruel confines. If a creature succeeds on their reflex save they are flung clear to the nearest unoccupied square at the edge of its area and suffer no further effect. If spell resistance blocks the effect, a creature must still make a reflex save to avoid being physically trapped by the crystal itself where they risk suffocation but suffer no further effect from the spell and can attempt to escape as outlined below.

A creature that fails its save is trapped within the crystal and suffers 1d6 damage per caster level (maximum 50d6) each round. The crystal feeds on the life force of its victims - or the unlife force in the case of undead, for it doesn't discriminate and the force aspect makes it particularly effective against spirits. Any creature that dies from the spell's damage causes its radius to increase by 5 feet and its reflex DC to increase by 1, their bodies reduced to crystalline husks that linger even after the spell ends (this crystal is brittle, cloudy, and of little practical use). Any creature that touches the exterior of the crystal whether from being forced into it or having its radius expand to encompass them must make a reflex saving throw or be drawn inside and suffer its effect.

A trapped creature can escape with teleportation as normal, otherwise they must succeed on both a DC 35 strength check and DC 70 escape artist as a full round action to move 5 feet by breaking the crystal and traversing the force fields within. Abilities such as earth glide negate the need for the strength check. The crystal is subject to disintegration effects as normal.

Focus

A small geode stained with blood.

[Corwin]

What about Flux Grasp for lvl12, just to name one? Is there some criteria by which you're excluding spells of a given level?

[Anastasia]

What about Flux Grasp for lvl12, just to name one? Is there some criteria by which you're excluding spells of a given level?

No, I just missed it. Let me go edit it in. If I missed any other spells of note for damage, say so now. Not counting 10th level, as that was done awhile ago and I know it's out of date.

[Anastasia]

12th level spells.

Raw List

Spell Name/Damage, Max Damage and Average Damage/Targeting/Misc Effects/Save Type/Spell Resistance

Boneyard's Embrace/20d12, 240, 130/1 creature/1d4 negative levels/Fortitude partial/Yes
Burst of Glory/30d12, 360, 195/Ray/Targets all creatures in range/None/Yes
Disintegrating Blast/60d6, 360, 210/100ft radius burst/Also targets unattended objects/Fortitude partial to 8d6/Yes
Flux Grasp/40d12, 480, 260/1 creature/Damages armor and natural armor/Fortitude partial/No
Greater Fire Storm/35d6, 210, 122.5/2 10ft cubes per level/None/Reflex half/Yes
Lightbound/25d6, 150, 87.5/1 creature/Dimensional anchor on nongood/None due to ranged touch/Yes
Moonfire Tear/30d8, 240, 135/180ft radius spread/Adds silver-white glow/Reflex half/Yes
Nerve Overload/30d8, 240, 135/1 creature/Stuns 4 rounds/Fortitude partial/Yes
Rain of Desolation/50d6, 300, 175/Cylinder 40ft radius and 80ft tall/Dispels/Fortitude partial/No
Sekmid's Trap/20d4+20, 100, 50/Cyilnder 30ft radius and 60ft tall/Traps targets within walls of force/None/Yes
Wrath of the Elder Treant/35d10, 350, 192.5/1 creature/Knocks target back like a fucking baseball/None since melee attack/No
Wrath of the Heavens/20d10, 200, 110/1 creature/Swift action/Fortitude partial/Yes

So what do I take away from this?

1. Average damage is probably somewhere around 35d6 to 30d8. So around 120-140 damage is the expected damage from a single, unaugmented spell. If it wasn't clear already, it's abundantly clear that base, average damage isn't terribly important here.
2. Seeing how the gaming environment has maximize spell as piss cheap'n'common, as well as with how strongly d12s perform with that, I should probably be more severe with spells that use d12s and enforce lower caps there. Maybe some cases of d10s, but this feels less needed as of now.
3. In general this wasn't a big level for damage escalation. It's more about horizontal movement and fine tuning. I suspect 13th will see more of a damage increase.
4. Yes, Syala is fond of Wrath of the Elder Treant, why do you ask?
5. In general, at this point you can see how spell damage is a careful balancing act between raw damage, secondary effects and how the spell executes its damage. There's a lot of moving pieces to this so a lot of judgment needs to be used.

Specific Spell Notes

1. Burst of Glory could stand to lose a few d12s. Everything else being equal, the downsides just aren't that meaningful to it for when it's relevant.
2. Flux Grasp's damage is another case of d12s getting out of control.
3. Lightbound could use a damage boost, doubly so since it's a sanctified spell with a sacrifice cost. That's just not cutting at 12th level.
4. Rain of Desolation's damage output is theoretical. It's not nearly as strong in most situations.

[Anastasia]

14th level spells.

Raw List

Spell Name/Damage, Max Damage and Average Damage/Targeting/Misc Effects/Save Type/Spell Resistance

All-Devouring Hunger/40d8, 320, 180/Cylinder 10ft wide and 5ft tall per level/Inflicts dire hunger/Reflex half and will negates/Yes
Dolmaya's Scathing Rejection/25d6, 150, 87.5/10ft per level radius burst/Moves creatures/Fortitude partial/Yes
Elle's Triple Boom/50d6, 300, 175/Rays/Stuns and deafens, breaks glass/Fortitude partial/Yes
Emily's Forceful Strike/45d6, 270, 157.5/Cylinder 30ft 2ide and 100ft tall/Stuns 1d6 rounds/Reflex half/Yes
Lightning's Rise/50d10, 500, 275/Special, see spell/See spell, it's complicated/Fortitude partial/No
Lunatic's Storm/40d6, 240, 140/Multiple 20ft bursts/Suppresses illusions/Will partial/Yes
Mortal Bonfire/35d10, 350, 192.5/10ft square per level/Difficult terrain/Reflex half/No
Polar Howl/50d6, 300, 175/Multiple 40ft radius bursts/Slows and confuses/Fortitude partial/Yes
Purr of Sharess/40d6, 240, 140/100ft radius emanation/Deafens, sublime revelry on good creatures/Fortitude partial/Yes
Radiant Storm/40d6, 240, 140/Multiple 20ft bursts/Dazes/Will partial/Yes
Soul Reave/45d4, 180, 112.5/1 creature/Resurrection penalties/Will partial/Yes
Sunstorm/40d8, 320, 180/200ft radius burst/Leaves behind sunlight/Reflex half/Yes
Voidcall/40d10, 400, 220/1 creature per level/Inflicts song of ending/Fortitude partial/Yes


So what do I take away from this?

1. Average damage feels around 40d6 or so, probably a smidge higher. That's hovering around 150+ for a typical unmodified spell, which seems fine.
2. This level feels a lot more stable than 13, which feels like an anomaly in comparison.
3. That being said, some of the spells are somewhat misleading or situational.
4. I don't count Voidcall for much since Shar.

Specific Spell Notes

1. Dolmaya's Scathing Rejection deals a base of 25d6. The practical damage varies wildly depending on terrain. It can do lots of damage when used wisely.
2. Lightning's Rise is complicated enough that it's included mostly for the sake of completion. I may revise that spell in the future to try and streamline it.
3. Sunstorm is very good and I knew it was very good. It's druid and sun domain only, which puts it in an odd spot.
4. As I noted, Voidcall is a Sharran spell. For various reasons I'm not worrying about it. It's posted but no PC is going to use it, so consider it more of a glimpse into some of Shar's nastiness rather than something I want serious feedback on here.

---

Conclusions

1. In theory, a rise of 5d6 damage per spell level is about right. This is 25d6 at level 10, 30d6 at level 11 and so on. This isn't perfect and there's a lot that goes into the calculus of a spell beyond damage, but that's a good rule of thumb that's mostly borne itself out until level 12. 13 I'm writing off as an anomaly for the moment and 14's a bit dicier, but is closer to that than 13.
2. Any spell has to be taken holistically rather than just its damage, unless damage is the only thing it does. That being said, it also needs to reasonably conform to the damage level for the level it's at.
3. As expected, d12s get out of control when things are optimized/maximized. Some of these aren't really that broken in casual play - Cresiel's used Burst of Glory several times without it feeling out of line for example, but he also doesn't metamagic. There's no easy answer here beyond reassessing d12 usages, as well as discouraging it in some cases.
4. Level 13 damage spells feel like an anomaly that clustered together and needs some revision.
5. Some ways to get more damage in exchange for other things work well. Some don't. This is very much a case by case thing.

Changes

These are the changes this analysis suggests. I'm not making any changes right this second, but bear these in mind. I want to adjust as few spells in level as possible, with that being a last resort. Anyway, any changes will require a review of the entire spell and not just this data, but it's a good place to start from.

1. Some older spells could use a new coat of polish. This is a todo one of those days.
2. Gae Assail should be moved to 11th level. This one will cause minimal disruption since I think only Emily has it? I tend not to grab Jaela's spells since they feel like her unique thing.
3. Sunlance is a borderline 11th/12th level spell. I'll have a think about it and do some math. I'm inclined to give a spell the benefit of the doubt if it's borderline, just to reduce the needed tweaks for any changes.
4. Burst of Glory's fine where it is, it just needs a bit of trimming.
5. Flux Grasp needs a look at its damage too, same thing for a lot of d12 spells.
6. Lightbound needs a boost or to be lowered in level. Probably the former.
7. 13 in general is a mess and I need to spend some serious time thinking about it.
8. Lightning's Rise needs a good, hard look at itself. Nothing may change, though, depending on how it holds up to a deep reread.

Thoughts, y'all?

[Nephrite]

Moore has Gae Assail too for lack of any other good offensive options at that level, but he can just pick something else and it won't really do any harm nowadays since he has Divine Blast.

For whatever it's worth, based on this, here's a revisited one from earlier. I simplified it a lot since I think it's easier to create something simple and just add to it later than try and make something complicated and work backwards.


Raging Inferno
Evocation (Fire)
Level: Fire 14, Sorc/Wiz 14
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 feet + 10 feet/level)
Area: 5 ft/level radius burst, centered on a point in space
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Fortitude Partial
Spell Resistance: Yes

This spell causes an area to immediately fill with flames from all angles. It does 1d6 fire damage per level (max 35d6) and then continues to do this damage every round in the area.  A successful Fortitude save halves this damage. A save must be made every round a creature begins their turn in the area.

Creatures immune to fire or protected via magical means still take half damage from this spell.

[Anastasia]

Have a 15th level spell, as a treat.

Cursed Crystal Prison
Conjuration/Necromancy (Earth, Force)

Okay, what subschool of conjuration is it meant to have?

Level: Sor/Wiz 15
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100ft + 10ft/level)
Area: Cylinder (20-ft. radius, 60 ft. high)
Duration: 1 min/level (D)
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
Spell Resistance: Yes (see text)[

A great eruption of dark blue crystal threaded with strands of force appears at the conclusion of this spell, trapping those nearby within its cruel confines. If a creature succeeds on their reflex save they are flung clear to the nearest unoccupied square at the edge of its area and suffer no further effect. If spell resistance blocks the effect, a creature must still make a reflex save to avoid being physically trapped by the crystal itself where they risk suffocation but suffer no further effect from the spell and can attempt to escape as outlined below.

I'd have SR and Reflex saves work the same here, if only for the sake of simplicity.

A creature that fails its save is trapped within the crystal and suffers 1d6 damage per caster level (maximum 50d6) each round. The crystal feeds on the life force of its victims - or the unlife force in the case of undead, for it doesn't discriminate and the force aspect makes it particularly effective against spirits. Any creature that dies from the spell's damage causes its radius to increase by 5 feet and its reflex DC to increase by 1, their bodies reduced to crystalline husks that linger even after the spell ends (this crystal is brittle, cloudy, and of little practical use). Any creature that touches the exterior of the crystal whether from being forced into it or having its radius expand to encompass them must make a reflex saving throw or be drawn inside and suffer its effect.

Okay, do you mean for just the 20ft radius to expand, or also the height? Because otherwise it won't keep it's shape as a cylinder. That aside, I'm wary of anything that raises the save DC like that, let alone without a limit.

A trapped creature can escape with teleportation as normal, otherwise they must succeed on both a DC 35 strength check and DC 70 escape artist as a full round action to move 5 feet by breaking the crystal and traversing the force fields within. Abilities such as earth glide negate the need for the strength check. The crystal is subject to disintegration effects as normal.

Focus

A small geode stained with blood.

Basic idea seems fine and we also chatted some tweaks in PM, so go ahead and adjust and see where it's at then?

[Ebiris]

Changelog:
-Changed it to Evocation/Necromancy instead. It works just as well with that and Evocation needs more goodies anyway. Xandra can thank me later.
-Made spell resistance ignore it entirely. Reflex saves still do funky things with movement though, which I don't really like but I don't see a way around it. It being an evocation makes it easier to justify SR no-selling the whole thing at least.
-Changed the damage to a flat amount more in line with persistent hazard spells like incendiary cloud.
-Added language about how trapped creatures can't move or breathe just for clarity.
-Height now increases along with radius.
-Got rid of the scaling DC and replaced it with a damage increase.
-Changed how it works in terms of creatures touching its surface/partially inside the radius.
-Reduced the strength and escape artist DCs a bit. Chances are anything good at one isn't so good at the other so it's still really harsh to be caught inside.
-Added clarification that it doesn't harm constructs or objects.

Cursed Crystal Prison
Evocation/Necromancy (Earth, Force)
Level: Sor/Wiz 15
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100ft + 10ft/level)
Area: Cylinder (20-ft. radius, 60 ft. high)
Duration: 1 min/level (D)
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
Spell Resistance: Yes

A great eruption of dark blue crystal threaded with strands of force appears at the conclusion of this spell, trapping those nearby within its cruel confines. If a creature succeeds on their reflex save they are flung clear to the nearest unoccupied square at the edge of its area and suffer no further effect. If spell resistance blocks the effect, a creature can move through the crystal as if it weren't there

A creature that fails its save is trapped within the crystal and suffers 20d6 damage each round as well as being unable to move or breathe. The crystal feeds on the life force of its victims - or the unlife force in the case of undead, for it doesn't discriminate and the force aspect makes it particularly effective against spirits. Any creature that dies from the spell's damage causes its radius and height to both increase by 5 feet and the damage dealth by the spell to increase by 1d6 (up to a maximum of 50d6), their bodies reduced to crystalline husks that linger even after the spell ends (this crystal is brittle, cloudy, and of little practical use).

Any creature standing in space the spell's radius expands to encompass must make a reflex saving throw or be entombed inside and suffer its effect. A creature forced to touch its surface via a bull rush or similar attacks suffers half of the spell's damage with no save (spell resistance applies normally) and is not trapped, though if this damage slays them the spell will expand as detailed above. For large creatures which only have some of their squares within the spell's effects, they suffer full damage and lose their dexterity bonus to AC, but but can still breathe and take other actions.

A trapped creature can escape with teleportation as normal, otherwise they must succeed on both a DC 30 strength check and DC 50 escape artist as a full round action to move 5 feet by breaking the crystal and traversing the force fields within. Abilities such as earth glide or incorporealness negate the need for the strength check. The crystal is subject to disintegration effects as normal.

This spell does not deal damage to constructs and objects, although they can still be trapped within.

Focus

A small geode stained with blood.

[Anastasia]

Moore has Gae Assail too for lack of any other good offensive options at that level, but he can just pick something else and it won't really do any harm nowadays since he has Divine Blast.

For whatever it's worth, based on this, here's a revisited one from earlier. I simplified it a lot since I think it's easier to create something simple and just add to it later than try and make something complicated and work backwards.


Raging Inferno
Evocation (Fire)
Level: Fire 14, Sorc/Wiz 14
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 feet + 10 feet/level)
Area: 5 ft/level radius burst, centered on a point in space
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Fortitude Partial
Spell Resistance: Yes

This spell causes an area to immediately fill with flames from all angles. It does 1d6 fire damage per level (max 35d6) and then continues to do this damage every round in the area.  A successful Fortitude save halves this damage. A save must be made every round a creature begins their turn in the area.

Creatures immune to fire or protected via magical means still take half damage from this spell.

Looks decent enough, pending checking a few similar spells. Is it meant to just bypass immunity and resistance like it's searing? If so I'd rewrite the last bit and look at a similar spell that does the same, Imix's Touch.

[Nephrite]

Well, it doesn't have to bypass immunity, but maybe it should do half divine and half fire? I'd be curious about your thoughts on that... It feels like at that level some sort of searing / half to fire immune should come on spells. I'd be curious if you have a strong opinion either way. I think for a Fire domain spell it probably makes sense to be searing?

I figured slightly lower damage compared to other level 14 spells made it interesting for a persistent damage over time effect, and it should be large enough that you could catch quite a few things in it, especially if it's dropped at a doorway or something. I added an extra line about creatures who have to pass through the area (although of course someone using teleportation can just get around it).

Raging Inferno
Evocation (Fire)
Level: Fire 14, Sorc/Wiz 14
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 feet + 10 feet/level)
Area: 5 ft/level radius burst, centered on a point in space
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throw: Fortitude Partial
Spell Resistance: Yes

This spell causes an area to immediately fill with flames from all angles. It does 1d6 fire damage per level (max 35d6) and then continues to do this damage every round in the area.  A successful Fortitude save halves this damage. A save must be made every round a creature begins their turn in the area affected. Any creature attempting to enter this area must also make a Fortitude save upon entering.

[Anastasia]

Spells are a todo now, I'm going to do them int he morning or tomorrow night.