The Sight of Magic: Enhancing Your Spellcasting

I stood before the man, an arcane spell fresh upon my lips. He was dressed in robes of dark blue, trimmed in black. Arcane runes blanketed the garments, sewn in gold and imbued with magic. He carried a gnarled mahogany staff, and a small owl with fur the color of fresh snow perched upon his shoulder. Pouches laden with material components hung about his waist. His clean-shaven face was expressionless.

I began my chant, raising the fingertips of my left hand. A magic missile burst forth from my hand and flew unerringly towards my target. Before it could strike him however, a wooden shield materialized before him and caught the blast, vanishing after the spell fizzled. I was not surprised that my spell had been negated, as many simple abjuration spells could ward off such an attack, but I was caught off-guard by the strange shield. What magic was this?
However, before I had time to think further, he began a chant of his own. I recognized it as a magic missile and steeled myself in preparation for the bolt of energy. But when the spell fired, a bolt of ice materialized before him and was suddenly sent speeding towards me. What magic was this? Perhaps this wizard was more powerful than I had first thought. He wielded magic I had never seen before.

-- Merlaan the White
Archmage of Neverwinter



Spellcasters. Wizards, Mages, Sorcerers. Clerics and Druids. These powerful people wield unusual powers and can perform deeds beyond the reach of other mortals. They dress in cloaks of mystery and intrigue, and are among many who dare to step beyond normalcy. Or perhaps they are the most normal people upon Faerun, and all others are simply strange fools who do not, who cannot understand. They are generally mistrusted and respected, as are most folk who can polymorph someone into a dandelion with a word.

Unfortunately, many experienced players have read the books and played the game so much that most spellcasters hold no surprises for them. The mystery and intrigue of the spellweaver is sent to the winds. Personally, I find this rather distasteful. So, I have come up with a way to change it, with little trouble, and I’d like to share that with you.

One way to fix this problem is to simply spend a few days of your time creating a treasure trove of new spells or designing a new system for magic. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound very plausible to me.

So instead of creating an entirely new spell, think of giving individual spellcasters their own trademark visual effect on their spells. What about magical missiles that take the form of white gloves smacking the target several times? Or perhaps when Ramalad the Black casts the spell, he draws forth a specially crafted dagger and slashes the air as if making an attack. As he slashes, a bloody gash opens up upon his opponent in the general shape of the dagger cut. The spell deals the same amount of damage and has the exact other attributes of a magic missile spell, but now it has some flavor to it. A bit of that mystery is returned. All you have to do is remember that Ramalad must always carry a dagger with him if he wants to cast magic missile.

“Why bother?” you may ask. Well, this simple trick can really be rewarding and fun to employ…it keeps players guessing as to just what exactly they’ve been hit with. And if they slay the enemy spellcaster, they can always take his or her spellbook and then learn that variant of the spell for themselves. Suddenly Josh’s PC Jurganis has a clever new ability. Here are just a few of my ideas for other spells:

· Fireball: Comet, Flaming & Screaming Skull, White-Hot Flame
· Hold Person: Chains, Encased In Ice, Rope
· Magic Missile: Arrows of Energy, Bee Swarm, Ice Bolt, Tiny Lightning Bolts.
· Shield: Hovering Wooden Shield, Circle of Ice, Powerful Wind

The spells of divine magic-users may also vary according to the priest’s deity. A Harm spell cast by a cleric of a nature deity might cause glowing thorns to embed themselves in the skin of the target. However, the same spell cast by a deity who favors flame might cause the target to be badly burnt.

Another option for spellcasters is to take on specific themes. Thorik of the Stone, a dwarven spellcaster who specializes in the element of earth, might cast magic missiles that appear as fists of stone, pounding the target.

Truly the possibilities are endless and are limited only by your imagination and your campaign.