If I'm not mistaken, you can kill just about any monster in Labyrinth Lord as long as you have three things:
1) Inititative
2) An illusionist who can cast Hypnotic Pattern (which means they only need to be 3rd level)
3) Another guy or gal with a weapon that can damage the monster
Here's how it works:
You get initiative, the illusionist casts Hypnotic Pattern. What does Hypnotic Pattern do? It is described thusly, "A twisting pattern of subtle, shifting colors weaves through the air, fascinating creatures within its area of 30' square, centered on the caster. A total of 24 HD of creatures are affected, in any combination (twelve 2 HD creatures, four 5 HD and one 4 HD creature, etc.). Affected creatures become fascinated by the pattern of colors and remain motionless, dazed, for as many rounds as the caster concentrates on the spell and makes no other action."
What is noticeable is the lack of a Saving Throw. If the caster gets the spell off, BAM! 24 HD monster is staring at the pattern like a mook, completely helpless. And the duration lasts for as long as the caster cares to keep it up, giving the second person enough time to wail on the beast until it dies.
Sorry, Orcus.
(Edited to add: Hypnotic Pattern is in the AEC.)
Yoops
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing that spell should have a saving throw.
DeleteYou should mention that it's from the AEC. I searched that spell much too long in the core rules :D
ReplyDeleteEdited!
DeletePresumably, he needs to specifically avoid his chums...
ReplyDeleteWell, it's more of a single-target scenario.
DeleteNeed more blind monsters.
ReplyDeleteIndeed.
DeleteYeah, but was the illusionist surprised? :p
ReplyDeleteNot if he has initiative!
DeleteI'm trying to decide if the hypnotic pattern in the picture with this post is the dress or Tim Burton's hair.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, they are both pretty amazing.
DeleteAlso, who's the woman? She looks vaguely familiar in a "I once lusted after someone who looked like her" sort of way.
DeleteI'm guessing that is Lisa Marie; Burton dated her right before her started sating Helena Bonham Carter.
DeleteNever heard of her. Apparently I live under a rock. Just me and the giant nematodes, knocking back lagers and rolling dice.
DeleteShe played Vampira in Burton's Ed Wood and was the female alien in Mars Attacks!
DeleteAt least this cuts down any potential there was for powergaming discussions in LL. "Optimum build"? Illusionist.
ReplyDeleteZOMG CASTER SUPREMACY!
DeleteSounds to me like the effect is broken if the creature is attacked. Still a very powerful spell, but no longer game-breaking.
ReplyDeleteHow so? I mean, that is totally a reasonable interpretation, but what implies that in the spell description? And if so, what use is Hypnotic Pattern at all?
DeleteAs an Old School gamer, of course you know combat isn't everything. A number of non-combat uses come to mind (distracting guards, delaying pursuers, diverting attention so someone else can sneak from one place to another, or even mesmerizing a small crowd of 0 level rubes so the rest of the party can empty their pockets). Basically, it's a misdirection spell. I do see some combat use for it though: it gives the rest of the party a free round of attacks against affected creatures, and that can make all the difference in a close contest.
DeleteAlso, note that it is one of the very few spells that can be used in a silenced area.
Oh, it's definitely an area for rulings vs. rules; I definitely give that spell a Saving Throw at least.
DeleteDoes anybody remember the boardgame Dragonstrike put out by TSR around 1991 or so? (it came with a lame video).
ReplyDeleteIt was an introductory RPG with very basic rules. The player-characters had to explore a dungeon, a countryside, a castle, or a town to achieve some objective. But they had to do it before the turn counter would reach zero, otherwise the Dragon would strike! And the Dragon was powerful enough to kill all of the characters. So basically if the Dragon came, the characters had to flee the board to survive.
Now, it wasn't D&D. But I figured it would be good to play if we only had an hour or so to play, since most quests were fairly short.
We only played two games. The player with the wizard deliberately held up the game until the Dragon arrived. When the Dragon came, all the other players were annoyed at him... unti he cast Sleep on the Dragon. The brief description on the back of the card made it clear there was no saving throw, and the creature put to sleep could be killed instantly when attacked. The Dragon wasn't immune to sleep or had magic resistance like it would have in normal D&D. The Dragon fell asleep and was immediately killed.
And that was that for Dragonstrike!
I still used the boards and miniatures for D&D, however.
Ooooooops!
DeleteI would take "creature" in this case to mean non-intelligent animals and dumb monsters. But maybe they use that nomenclature throughout?
ReplyDeleteWell, it's definitely one of those "rulings vs. rules" moments, but it's mighty vague.
DeleteThe LL team screwed the pooch a little when they adapted that spell. The AD&D version DOES allow a save, and any damage against an affected creatures DOES break the spell. And of course a creature like Orcus in AD&D would just shrug it off with magic resistance. I agree that, if you play it as written with no reference to AD&D, it is outlandishly powerful.
ReplyDeleteHmm, I didn't even think to look it up in AD&D. Very interesting differences!
Delete