Head Explodie Spell. Options

[emo samurai]

Head Explodie
Physical:Personal: Instant DV: (F/2)+1

When cast on a creature with a brain of some sort, the creature makes an opposed Will+Body check with a -2 modifier against the caster's Magic+Spellcasting roll. If the target loses more than half its physical damage track, round down, then its head explodes in a shower of blood and liquified brain.

[PlatonicPimp]

I will regret this, but:


Why the -2 modifier? Does having one's head explode kill the person? Are you sure that a drain of +1 is enough for this kind of spell?

[emo samurai]

Dude, manabolt will kill someone resisting with only his Willpower that costs only (F/2)+1 or something. I think that's a great drain value. Besides, you'll need a high Force to make it work.

[Xenith]

I find insta-gib spells to be redundant. :rotfl:

[emo samurai]

The -2 dice pool modifier is because there's something in your head trying to kill you, and that's not something you can really steel yourself for. And maybe I should change that to (Body+Willpower)/2.

[mfb]

re-read. all combat spells attack you from the inside out.

[emo samurai]

Is this spell balanced?

[mfb]

a spell which kills you instantly if it deals more than half your health? i'm going to have to go with "no".

[emo samurai]

What if it's just will+body? And if you don't explode their head, if you get one net success, then you deal them one point of stun damage, whatever you rolled. That's supposed to stand for a headache.

[mfb]

why not just have it be a special effect for a D-damage manabolt?

[hyzmarca]

For PCs. No. Just no.

For the Mad Supermage Antagonist. Why not?

A long time ago I played in a MUD called Dragonrealms. There was this ongoing event in which a fabeled but never seen NPC magician was experimenting with some ancient spells. The only real sign of this experimentation was that sometimes people's heads would explode for no apparent reason. It was fun. Of course, in that game it was common for characters to run around with several extra lives just in case. Spontanious Head Explosion was annoying but not usually fatal.

The thing about the Mad Supermage Antagonists is that you can give that whatever stats you want to give them anyway. Noncanon spell effects can often be reproduced by making them absurdly powerful, so you might as well just give them noncanon spells and be done with it.


Edit: mfb's suggestion is a good one.

[Akimbo]

Unfortunately this spell is just way too much. If anything, you could theoretically give out this spell. However, I doubt very few will use it. Lone Star will be on you like white on rice when they continue to find corpses missing heads.

[emo samurai]

White on... brown rice?

[hyzmarca]

There are other easier ways to make people heads explode. Most of them don't cause drain.

[Akimbo]

[emo samurai]

What's with the ouch? I'm just being absurd. Or are you being sarcastic? The internet doesn't handle sarcasm well.

[Akimbo]

[Endgame50]

Let's run some numbers, shall we?

Your spell is basically a super powered powerbolt in effect. So let's compare it to that.

Your average person has 3 Body + 3 Willpower to resist this spell, -2 for your modifier. (Mind you, most people aren't ready to steel themselves against any spell). so 4 dice. They'll get 1 or 2 successes. Your typical runner mage might have 9 dice (5 magic + 4 spellcasting) so 3 successes. Cast at force 5, that will be about 6 or 7 damage. On average, your typical person is going to die automatically. (6 > 10/2)

Compare this to a powerbolt. Those same numbers will just give you about 1 success to resist, but otherwise it's identical. About 7 damage, which won't kill anyone. It's not any harder to cast than a power bolt, nor does it have any compensating weaknesses.

Even if you add willpower to resist, it will on average give 1-2 more hits to resist. That won't be enough to swing the tide in any reasonable manner against a resist or die spell.

If you really want a head detonating spell, just say their heads explode when your powerbolt spell actually kills them. It can be sort of a signature modification.

[emo samurai]

I'll just call the powerbolt "head explodie."

[Crusher Bob]

A much simple way to do it is to learn manabolt and use the 'head exploding' as a special effect:

light damage: the target gets a headache

Moderate damamge, mild concussion, some blood outa the ears.

Serious: major consussion, blood gushes outa all of the holes in the head.

Death: the target's head explodes, you all taste his brain meat.

This way, you don't need to alter the rules at all, and you can still get what you want.

[emo samurai]

So manabolt's "head explodie?"

[Endgame50]

[Crusher Bob]

Well, power bolt works on inanimate objects as well, while manabolt does not.

[emo samurai]

HEEHEE!!! HEAD EXPLODIE!!!

[Azralon]