This month. the sage takes a long look; at magic, magical items, and
spell-casters in the AD&D(r) game. In addition, one question and the
"Pantheon of the Month" that was cut for space reasons from "Sage Advice" in
DRAGON(r) issue #199 are also presented here.


A character in my campaign has been forcibly sent to the Astral plane after
a dimension door spell failed. Can the character survive on the plane? Can
he escape from the plane? If so, how long will it take for him to get back? 

The Astral plane is not a toxic or inherently hostile environment. so
getting sent there is not fatal in and of itself. On the other hand, there
are plenty of astral monsters and other hazards, so your errant traveler
still could be in trouble.

Whether the character can return to the Prime Material plane is up to the
DM. Generally, travel between planes is not possible except by magical
means. If the character has no such means at hand, the DM can construct an
adventure for the character that allows for some chance of escape; perhaps
the character can find a natural portal between the planes or strike a deal
with a passing creature that has planar-traveling abilities. You can get
more detailed information on the Astral plane in the PLANESCAPE(tm)
ADVENTURES boxed set. which will be released in April, 1994.


What happens to a dual-classed character if the level of his original class
is suddenly boosted so that it matches or exceeds the level in his current
class? For example, a 6th-level fighter/7th-level mage would normally be
free to use his warrior and wizard abilities without penalty because his
mage level exceeds his fighter level. If the character reads a manual of
puissant skills at arms, and becomes a 7th-level fighter, what happens? Does
the character have to go back to choosing which class he will use for each
adventure until he reaches 8th-level as a mage?

Judging from the text on page 45 of the PH. It's pretty clear to me that the
character has to go back to choosing which class to use again, just as he
would if he were to lose a level to an energy drain and became a 6th-level
mage.

It would be entirely reasonable for the DM to rule that the character cannot
benefit from the manual at all. The text on page 45 says that a dual-classed
character never can gain experience in a class once it has been abandoned in
favor of another class. The only exception to this is that a character can
replace levels that are lost somehow.

Considering the rarity and power of magical bocks, I don't think the
campaign would suffer if the manual worked; the character is not actually
devoting any time or energy to studying the old class -- he's just the
recipient of a big power dump. The DM, however, would not be violating the
spirit of the rules by not allowing it; there's no compelling reason to
automatically assume the character can retain or utilize what the book
grants.


Can characters carrying around a mirror of retention use it to "film" their
adventures? Can the mirror be used to capture short "takes" as long as the
total recording time doesn't exceed the mirror's capacity of 24 hours? Can
the mirror be used to capture sunlight to provide illumination and confound
undead? Can the mirror be used to copy maps or scrolls?

A mirror of retention (from the TOME OF MAGIC, page 140) must be hung in a
room no larger than 50' square and commanded before it will function. If the
mirror is removed from the wal1, it stops recording. It can be played back
anywhere, however. I suppose a party could carry a mirror of retention from
place to place in a dungeon or large building, and use it to take snap
shots, but remember that it doesn't unless it is hung in a room that does
not exceed the size limit. The party could hang it on a wall and use it to
record an encounter in a chamber, but if the PCs are carrying the mirror
during an encounter it records nothing.

A mirror of retention can record sunlight streaming into a room, but the
image played back on the mirror is just that, an image. The recorded
sunlight has no affect on undead and the light the mirror sheds during
playback is very faint, no brighter than a television screen in a dark room.
The playback could be used as a weak light source in a pinch, but a
character couldn't see very much with it.

If the mirror is properly hung and operated, it could record a map or other
piece of mundane writing -- provided the room where the mirror is hung has
sufficient light for reading at the time of recording. The mirror also could
record a superficial image of a magical scroll, but such images are useless;
they cannot he used to cast any spells inscribed on the scroll or to add the
spells to a spell book; it takes the original scroll -- in its entirety --
to produce its magical effects. Note that if the image in the mirror were
usable, then the writing on the scroll would fade as soon as it was
recorded. Subsequently, if the image is read or copied from the mirror it
fades away, too. A scroll can be used only once, and player characters
cannot get around this limitation easily, and certainly not through a mirror
of retention.


What happens when a mirror image spell is cast in very close quarters; that
is, when a six-foot radius is not available for the extra images to shift
around in? Will a fireball, dragon breath, or other area effect dispel a
mirror image?

Nothing special happens when the spell is cast in close quarters. A mirror
image spell not only creates multiple images, but considerable distortion as
well. In this case. the distortion is probably just a little stronger than
normal. Provided the caster is free to move, attacks against the caster
still have a chance to be misdirected. On the other hand, if the caster has
his head on a chopping block, a mirror image spell isn't going to make the
headsman miss. Barring this kind of situation -- one where it is clear to
the DM that the attacker knows exactly where the caster is -- a mirror imge
works normaly.

Mirror images are dispelled only by melee or missile attacks, or by dispel
magic effect. Other kinds of magical effects do nothing to a mirror image.
Note that an anti-magic shell would cause every mirror image in its area of
effect to wink out, but only for as long as the images remain within the
area of effect.


Exactly how many spells does a dragon know at each age level? Can they
change their spells each day like a wizard or a priest can? Can a dragon
acquire new spells like a wizard can?

The table included with each dragon's description gives the number of spells
a dragon can know. This number varies with the type of dragon and its age
category. A dragon's repertoire of spells is fixed and cannot he changed or
expanded.

Gold dragons are the sole exception to this in the core AD&D game roles --
they actually keep spell books. The DM is free to decide how gold dragons go
about getting new spells, but I suggest you use the normal spell acquisition
and research rules for wizards. The COUNCIL OF WYRMS boxed set, which will
be released in june, 1994 will contain lots of new material on dragons,
including dragon spell-casters.


What happens when a character wears two items that bestow magic resistance,
say an amulet of magic resistance and a robe of the archmagi?

This is up to the DM, but I strongly recommend that only the most powerful
item functions. In other words, if the character in your example had an
amulet of magic resistance, 20% along with the robe of the archmagi, which
grants 5% magic resistance, the character still would have only a 20% magic
resistance (from the ring). I recommend that you apply this role even for
naturally magic resistant creatures such as drow or tanar'ri. Magic
resistance in the AD&D 2nd Edition game is a powerful ability, and once the
DM lets it get out of hand, your game balance probably will go right out the
window.

If you're playing the AD&D 1st Edition game, where magic resistance is
adjusted according to the level of the caster and a magic-resistant creature
can't necessarily walk around causing magical effects to collapse, you can
afford to be a little more lenient, Even then, be careful, high-level games
give you a little more breathing room; at low level, magic resistance in the
original game is even more formidable that it is in the current game. If you
decide to make magic resistance cumulative in your original AD&D campaign,
you still should not allow magic resistance to accumulate if it comes from
similar sources. A drow wearing a robe of the archmagi could add the 5% to
her natural magic resistance, and wizard could add the values of a robe of
the archmagi and an amulet of magic resistance. No character, however should
be able to wear two amulets of magic resistance and add their effects
together, only the most powerful amulet should function.


How is the wizard's chance to hit an opponent determined when he casts a
fireball or a lightning bolt? What about things like dragon breath?

Unless the spell's description says otherwise, all area effects hit
automatically, The spell-caster decides where the effect will originate
(within the limits of the spell) and the DM decides who or what is within
the area of effect. Other area effects, such as dragon breath, work exactly
the same way. In the case of dragon breath, the dragon aims the breath
weapon as it wishes and anything caught in it must save vs. the effect.
There are several other forms of attack that don't require attack rolls,
such as gaze weapons and mental attacks. Note that while such attacks always
hit they don't always work; most of these attacks allow a saving throw that
negates or reduces the effect.


How does a priest or cleric character create holy water?

According to THE COMPLETE PRIEST'S HANDBOOK, three priests (or clerics) of
the same faith of at least 2nd-level must get together in a temple dedicated
to their deity and pray for a full hour. At the end of the hour, they must
cast create water, protection from evil, and purify food and drink. This
process creates a half gallon of holy water (16 four-ounce vials). Any extra
water from the create water spell must be channeled off before the ritual is
complete, or the DM can assume that the extra water simply disappears during
the ritual. For every two priests added to the group, an additional half
gallon of holy water can be created, up to a maximum of four gallons of holy
water at one time. I strongly suggest that you require holy water to be held
in specially blessed vials (cost 2-5 gp each). You might also require an
expensive font and basin (value 100-10,000 gp, depending on capacity) to
hold the holy water while it is being created and dispensed into vials. If
the DM wants!
!
 more control over who creates holy water and when, it wouldn't be
unreasonable to add extra spells to the ritual. I'd suggest chant (to be
maintained the whole time), bless, prayer and possibly combine. The required
vials can he blessed in a similar ritual, which is required to make the
blessing permanent.


Does a character lose a point of Constitution if he dies while wearing a
ring of regeneration? Does the Hovering on Death's Door optional rule affect
this situation?

This is entirely up to the DM. I suggest that regeneration not reduce
Constitution or require a resurrection-survival roll. A regenerating
creature never truly dies, though it can be incapacitated by a grievous
injury. Once the character drops to zero or fewer hit points, however, the
character is unconscious or incapacitated even if the Hovering on Death's
Door rule is in use. Note that a character hovering on death's door does not
actually die until he reaches -10 hit points; if the DM has decided that
regenerating back from death would reduce the character's Constitution
score, the point is not lost unless death actually occurs.


Do clerics and priests automatically know how to pray for all their spells,
or do they have to learn how to pray for certain spells?

Any priest, including clerics and druids, knows how to pray for spells --
this inherent knowledge is part of what makes the character a priest. The
priest might have to undergo training as she advances in levels, but this is
an optional rule (see DMG, page 49) and should apply to all classes if a
campaign uses it. Note that priests can invent or acquire entirely new
spells in much the same way as wizards can. In this case, the priest must
spend time and money discovering and learning the new prayers.


How long do the various prismatic wall effects produced by a wand of
conjuration last? How can these walls be dispelled? How long does the
curtain of blackness effect last?

The prismatic wall lasts six turns, just as though created by a 6th-level
caster. These walls can he negated only by the appropriate counter spell,
see the prismatic wall description in the PH, pages 191-192. I suggest you
give the curtain of blackness a duration of six turns.


What kind of barriers can stop a wall of fire spell? For example, if a
ring-shaped wall is cast next to a tower, will the ring pass through the
tower? If not, wi11 the whole spell collapse?

Unless the DM wants to encourage some truly egregious abuse of this spell, I
suggest that any solid barrier stop a wall of fire or similar spell. In this
case. unless the tower wall as an opening at least 20' tall to admit the
wall of fire, the effect stops when it encounters the tower. I don't think
it's reasonable to have the whole spell collapse, but the DM might force the
spell-caster to reduce the radius until the wall of fire fits in the space
available, or to use the sheet version of the spell arranged in a ring; this
version has a total area that is less than one tenth of the ring's area. Or,
the DM can just rule that there is a gap in the ring where it intersects the
tower.


Can a flaming sphere be cast in the air above a creature? Since the sphere
is soft and spongy, how fast would it fall? If the sphere encounters a
magic-resistant creature, what happens if the creature makes its
magic-resistance roll? How big an area does the sphere illuminate?

There's nothing in the spell description that leads me to believe that a
flaming sphere has to be cast on the ground. If cast in the air, it would
fall straight down at its normal movement rate (30' a round) until it
strikes the ground; if the sphere's duration hasn't expired before it hits
the ground, it begins rolling in the direction the caster was pointing at
the time of casting.

Treat the sphere as an in-place effect when adjudicating magic resistance.
That is, the sphere collapses if the magic-resistance roll succeeds. Note
that there are several in-place spells that actually are mobile, including
protection from evil, which moves with the recipient, and some of the wall
spells, which can be pushed over or dropped on creatures.

The DM has to decide theatrical details such as how much light a flaming
sphere sheds. The impression I get from the description is that the ball
looks a lot like a big, glowing coal It shows up pretty well in the dark --
and really screws up infravision -- but it doesn't shed much light at all,
maybe enough to show vague detail within about six inches of the sphere.


In WGR6 IUZ THE EVIL the words "celbit" and "jebli" are applied to tribes of
orcs in the land of Iuz, but didn't an earlier WORLD OF GREYHAWK(r) product
use these names in a different manner?

Actually, there are no authoritative definitions for either of these names
in print anywhere (at least none I know about). Nevertheless, these words
are Flan names for two humanoid races: "Celbit" is the Flan word for kobold
and "jebli" is the Flan word for goblin. Here is a more complete list of
Flan names, courtesy of reader Gene Weigel of Albany, N.Y.:

Orc: Euroz

Goblin: Jebli

Ogre: Eiger

Gnoll: Kell

Kobold: Celbit

Hobgoblin: High Jebli

Elf: Olve

Dwarf: Dwur 

Halfling: Hobniz

Gnome: Noniz

Gene gleaned these names from the original WORLD OF GREYHAWK boxed set (TSR
product #1015).


Pantheon of the Month

These are unofficial suggestions for using the optional spheres of priest
spells from the TOME OF MAGIC with the deities of the Celtic and the Chinese
pantheons in the LEGENDS & LORE book: 


Celtic pantheon

Lugh: Major: War, Travelers; Minor: None.

Oghma: Major: Wards; Minor: Time, Thought.

Goibhniu: Major: Time; Minor: Wards.

Daghdha: Major: Time, Minor: Thought, Wards.

Manannan mac Lir: Major: Time; Minor: Travelers.

Arawn: Major: Time; Minor: Chaos.

Morrigan: Major: War; Minor: Chaos.

Diancecht: Major: Wards; Minor: Travelers.

Math Mathonwy: Major: Thought; Minor: Time.

Belenus: Major: Time; Minor: Travelers.

Brigantia: Major: Time; Minor: Wards.


Chinese pantheon

Shang-ti: Major: Law, Thought; Minor: War, Wards.

Kuan-ti: Major: War, Wards; Minor: Time, Thought.

Yen-Wang-Yeh: Major: Law; Minor: Time, Wards.

Fu Hsing: Major: Chaos; Minor: Time, Travelers.

Chung Kuel: Major: Numbers; Minor: Thought, Time.

Liu: Alajor: Time; Minor: Wards.

Lu Hsing: Major: Law; Minor: Wards.

Shou Hsing: Major: Time; Minor: Chaos.

Kuan Yin: Major: Wards; Minor: Travelers.

Chih-Nii: Major: Numbers, Minor: Thought.

Lei Kung: Major: Law; Minor: War.

Sung Chiang: Major: Time; Minor: Wards.

Lao Tzu: Major: Thought; Minor: None.

K'ung Fu-tzu: Major: Law; Minor: None.

The Dragon Kings: These deities grant no spells.

Ch'eng Huang: These local deities might grant minor access to any one of the
following spheres: Time, Travelers, or Wards.