[4e] Imprisonment Ritual

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Thu Apr 09, 2009 11:04 pm

Imprisonment

You inscribe runes upon your foe, and it falls into a space beyond the normal bounds of the cosmos from which it might never return.

Level: 28
Category: Warding
Time: 1 hour
Duration: Permanent
Component Cost: 170,000 gp, plus 5 healing surges
Market Price: 500,000 gp
Key Skill: Arcana (no check)

You imprison a creature within a demiplane created by this ritual. The creature to be imprisoned must be either helpless or willing, and it must be present for the entire performance of the ritual. When the ritual is complete, an invisible magical field envelops the creature, putting it into suspended animation, and the creature falls into a space beyond the normal bounds of the cosmos. Only divination rituals performed by creatures of your level or higher can determine the location of the imprisoned creature.

You must set one or more possible conditions that release the creature, should they come to pass. You can set an imprisoned creature free by performing a ritual of release that has no component cost and takes 1 hour. A freed creature has no memory of the events that occurred during its imprisonment, and it appears in the world on the ground closest to where it was imprisoned.

I'm surprised they put this in the game. I mean, it's clearly broken, what with the ability to permanently affect the game world.

tic · Post by **tic** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 1:30 am

Uhh... sarcasm, right?

There's quite a few rituals that permanently affect the game world. Beyond stuff like Knock, Leomund's Secret Chest and and Enchant Magic Item, a few Make Whole's could restore an entire village, and Raise Dead also permanently affects the game world - or at least until the fellow dies again.

Imprisoning powerful evils, until they get released by [Trigger] is also a staple of fantasy. Its too long to use in combat, so that avenue of brokenness is disabled.

The fact that a willing creature can be imprisoned and then released is interesting. It allows this to be used as a sort of ultra-protection - imprison the last heir to the throne of Ultraland until the baddies who killed his family can be wiped out, that sort of thing.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 1:41 am

I am actually impressed that the release conditions are so open-ended

This could be exploited by people using clocks. You could have a ritual caster who is released from suspended animation and finishes the last round of their ritual when you blow through a whistle.

EDIT: It's still ridiculously expensive, though.

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 7:33 am

Well, the 4e devs took one step forward with the ritual and then two back with the archlich destiny:

Archlich

You fail to remain living, but also fail to die. Undead, you
ensure your ability to defend against evil forever.

Prerequisites: 21st level, any arcane class

You pursue eternal life as an undead creature. Most
wizards who search for and achieve easy immortality
by way of esoteric necromantic texts are evil, avaricious
spellcasters who stop at nothing to achieve their
ultimate goals. For some, that goal is lichdom itself.
But you have a greater, nobler purpose.
Unlike many who have become liches before you,
you have trained your mind to avoid succumbing to
the madness that necromantic preservation often
brings. For instance, you did not perform the foul
ritual that traded your life for animation the moment
you found it; you waited until your power was equal
to the change. Nor did you accept the aid of Orcus,
Demon Prince of the Undead, to empower the ritual,
but you waited to find methods outside his control. In
doing so, you escaped his touch, though you bear his
personal enmity to this day.

Can't have an evil lich, oh noes, 'cause that wouldn't be fambly frendly. PCs can only be the GOOD lich, and they automatically hurt undead within three squares of them, as the lich necromancer obviously shouldn't exist. Ever. The class preview is here.

tic · Post by **tic** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 7:54 am

Psychic Robot wrote:Well, the 4e devs took one step forward with the ritual and then two back with the archlich destiny:

... ... Sorry, was the purpose of this thread to poke at a specific ritual, or just "let's find the broken in 4e". I'm good with either, I'd just like to know.

Archlich

You fail to remain living, but also fail to die. Undead, you
ensure your ability to defend against evil forever.

Prerequisites: 21st level, any arcane class

You pursue eternal life as an undead creature. Most
wizards who search for and achieve easy immortality
by way of esoteric necromantic texts are evil, avaricious
spellcasters who stop at nothing to achieve their
ultimate goals. For some, that goal is lichdom itself.
But you have a greater, nobler purpose.
Unlike many who have become liches before you,
you have trained your mind to avoid succumbing to
the madness that necromantic preservation often
brings. For instance, you did not perform the foul
ritual that traded your life for animation the moment
you found it; you waited until your power was equal
to the change. Nor did you accept the aid of Orcus,
Demon Prince of the Undead, to empower the ritual,
but you waited to find methods outside his control. In
doing so, you escaped his touch, though you bear his
personal enmity to this day.

Can't have an evil lich, oh noes, 'cause that wouldn't be fambly frendly. PCs can only be the GOOD lich, and they automatically hurt undead within three squares of them, as the lich necromancer obviously shouldn't exist. Ever.

They already do. In the MM, DMG and Open Grave. Yes, it's stupid and annoying that they're forcing the "PCs are good guys! Always! They wear bright clothing and smile all the time!" angle, but it's not like they've removed the lich from the DM's arsenal of baddies.

Secondly, they can still be surrounded by undead. Reread the power - any living/undead enemy. If it's your undead, they're fine.

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 7:57 am

I added that because both the ritual and the destiny are in Arcane Power.

They already do. In the MM, DMG and Open Grave. Yes, it's stupid and annoying that they're forcing the "PCs are good guys! Always! They wear bright clothing and smile all the time!" angle, but it's not like they've removed the lich from the DM's arsenal of baddies.

Do liches have the ability to create undead? I can't remember. I thought it was up to the DM to bullshit it.

Secondly, they can still be surrounded by undead. Reread the power - any living/undead enemy. If it's your undead, they're fine.

Well, that's good.

tic · Post by **tic** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:04 am

Psychic Robot wrote:I added that because both the ritual and the destiny are in Arcane Power.
They already do. In the MM, DMG and Open Grave. Yes, it's stupid and annoying that they're forcing the "PCs are good guys! Always! They wear bright clothing and smile all the time!" angle, but it's not like they've removed the lich from the DM's arsenal of baddies.
Do liches have the ability to create undead? I can't remember. I thought it was up to the DM to bullshit it.

No, they don't. It's the same setup as in 3.5 - lichdom doesn't give any ability to animate undead, but they both require necromantic magic. It's likely that, by the time you're powerful enough to become a lich, you'll be able to create undead independently of the template.

Of course, no undead creating, so it'd still fall down to GM's call for PCs - see "Smiling all the time!". For enemies, you could probably steal the Death Master's ability to enter battle with, and conjure as an encounter power, four undead minions.

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:08 am

Bah. Puke.

tic · Post by **tic** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:25 am

You're puking at what, exactly? The lack of undead creation? I can agree with that. But the lich itself seems solid. It does everything else a lich needs to do.

Hmm... Interesting. Flipping through Open Grave, I came across the rituals section. "Undead Servitor". Creates what amounts to a mindless noncombatant minion. Creates undead.

I suppose something could be done with that to create other undead. You'd have to limit it - action economy and all that - but I can see a single undead 'bodyguard', functioning as a ranger's animal companion does.

sake · Post by **sake** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:37 am

tic wrote: They wear bright clothing and smile all the time!"

No this is 4E, they wear black leather and angst about their dark past/evil race/misunderstood class/their eternal struggle to stay good/how no one under stands how deep and tortured they really are/how they're crawling in their skin, blah blah, wounds won't heal etc, etc

tic · Post by **tic** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:42 am

I meant the PCs, not lichs. Also, given that we're on the topic of undead, 'crawling in my skin' and 'wounds that won't heal' may take on a more literal meaning.

sake · Post by **sake** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:55 am

I meant the PCs as well, the whole drow, teiflings, and that god awful @$@#%$! race that dies if they don't feel pain thing.

Actually does Cure X Wounds still hurt undead in 4e.. hell, can it even be cast on a monster in 4e?

tic · Post by **tic** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:57 am

Shadar-kai? Yeah, works.

I was trying to work out how what you said fit with, say, a dragonborn paladin or something.

MartinHarper · Post by **MartinHarper** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 10:08 am

Why would you bother with Imprisonment when and ten of your mates can create twenty concentric Magic Circles for less money and a greater effect?

sake wrote:Does Cure X Wounds still hurt undead in 4e.

No.

sake wrote:can it even be cast on a monster in 4e?

Yes. Any creature.

Psychic Robot · Post by **Psychic Robot** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 12:42 pm

Sake: In 4e, there aren't really cure spells. Every character has healing surges, which are an inner reservoir of healing power. Healing powers generally let you recover HP by spending healing surges or by giving you HP as if you spent a healing surge; each healing surge heals you a quarter of your HP. So, positive and negative energy aren't involved in healing. Instead, undead are vulnerable to radiant (light) damage, and they are resistant to necrotic (badwrong) damage.

Username17 · Post by **Username17** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 12:57 pm

To expand on that a bit, this means that Healing Word does not function on any NPC or monster, because NPCs don't have Healing Surges. But Lay on Hands works the same on a Dwarf Fighter as it does on a Wraith, because Lay on Hands costs Healing Surges from the paladin not the target.

-Username17

MartinHarper · Post by **MartinHarper** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 1:31 pm

FrankTrollman wrote:Healing Word does not function on any NPC or monster, because NPCs don't have Healing Surges.

Actually, they do. Monster Manual, page 7. They don't have Second Wind, though.

TavishArtair · Post by **TavishArtair** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 2:59 pm

Please fix your quote tags. Closing the same quote twice is just as bad as leaving one unclosed. Yeah.