Path of the Wilds - Update #3

With the holidays behind us, it’s time for another update!

I’m getting pretty close to finishing the spell’s chapter at this point. I have 54 written out of 60, with only wild growth, weather shield, stormlash, and sundering earth remaining. I still need two more spell ideas to round out the chapter at a full 60, but I should be able to finish it in the next few days. After that, I’ll be spending time formatting the chapter and proofreading it so I can get some art commissioned once the layout is ready.

For the content preview, we have the invoker-exclusive “dominion” spells. These spells can only be cast by your spirit companion and have different effects they can select from depending on what spirits you have invoked. This also shows one of the first uses of the new Animal and Plant descriptors, which I’ve decided to include. More info on how those descriptors are supported in the book will be talked about when I get to the feats chapter (which is likely the next one I’ll do).

Until next time!

DOMINION’S BLESSING

School transmutation [see text]; Level invoker 4
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Targets one creature/2 levels, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Duration 1 min./level (D)
Saving Throw Will negates (harmless); Spell Resistance yes (harmless)

You may only cast this spell if you are a spirit companion.
With an incantation of ancient power, you call to the spirits of nature to aid your allies in their time of need. For the duration, each target gains a +2 morale bonus to attack rolls, saving throws, and weapon damage rolls. Additionally, you grant your allies a single additional benefit from the list below. You may only choose a boon that matches the dominion of an invoked spirit of the invoker you are bonded with:

  • Beasts: Each target becomes immune to bleeding effects, disease, and fear effects.

  • Land: Each target gains a +4 bonus to CMD, a +2 bonus to their AC, and cannot be staggered or knocked prone.

  • Sea: Each target gains a swim speed of 60 feet and can breathe underwater. Their weapon attacks and spells take none of the penalties normally imposed for being underwater.

  • Sky: Each target gains a fly speed of 40 feet with good maneuverability as well as a 30-foot enhancement bonus to all of their other speeds.

  • Wilds: Each target becomes immune to poison, sickness, nausea, and paralysis effects.

When you choose a particular spirit type, the spell gains a descriptor appropriate to that type, as follows: animal (beasts), earth (land), water (sea), air (sky), or plant (wilds).

DOMINION’S CURSE

School transmutation [curse, see text]; Level invoker 2
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V
Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target one creature/2 levels, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Duration 1 round/2 levels, see text
Saving Throw Will partial (see text); Spell Resistance yes

You may only cast this spell if you are a spirit companion.
With an incantation of ancient power, you call to the spirits of nature to bewitch your foes. Select a single curse option from the list below. You may only choose a curse that matches the dominion of an invoked spirit of the invoker you are bonded with:

  • Beasts: Each target is shaken.

  • Land: Each target treats all terrain as difficult terrain.

  • Sea: Each target is fatigued.

  • Sky: Each target is deafened.

  • Wilds: Each target is sickened.

A successful saving throw reduces the duration of the curse to 1 round for that target only.
When you choose a particular spirit type, the spell gains a descriptor appropriate to that type, as follows: animal (beasts), earth (land), water (sea), air (sky), or plant (wilds).

DOMINION’S SHIELD

School abjuration [see text]; Level invoker 1
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target one creature
Duration 1 min./level (D)
Saving Throw Will negates (harmless); Spell Resistance yes (harmless)

You may only cast this spell if you are a spirit companion.
With an incantation of ancient power, you call to the spirits of nature to shield your compatriot from harm. For the duration, the target gains a +1 shield bonus to their AC per three caster levels (max +4). Additionally, choose a single additional option from the list below. You may only choose an option that matches the dominion of an invoked spirit of the invoker you are bonded with:

  • Beasts: animal, disease, and fear

  • Land: acid and earth

  • Sea: cold and water

  • Sky: air and electricity

  • Wilds: plant, poison, and sleep

The target gains a +4 bonus on saving throws against spells and effects of the chosen type. For example, if you choose Sky, the target gains a +4 bonus on saving throws against effects that deal electricity damage, spells with the air or electricity descriptor, and other air-based abilities (such as an air elemental’s whirlwind ability), subject to GM discretion.
When you choose a particular spirit type, the spell gains a descriptor appropriate to that type, as follows: animal (beasts), earth (land), water (sea), air (sky), or plant (wilds).

DOMINION’S WRATH

School evocation [see text]; Level invoker 3
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V
Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Area 15 ft.-radius burst
Duration instantaneous, see text
Saving Throw Reflex half; Spell Resistance yes

You may only cast this spell if you are a spirit companion.
With an incantation of ancient power, you call to the spirits of nature to wreak havoc upon those that stand in your way. Choose a single dominion option from the list below. You may only choose an effect that matches the dominion of an invoked spirit of the invoker you are bonded with. Each creature in the area takes 1d8 damage per two caster levels (max 5d8): the damage type is determined by the dominion option chosen. Each dominion also has a secondary effect, as listed below:

  • Beasts: The burst deals slashing damage, and any creature that fails its saving throw begins to bleed for 1 point of damage per two caster levels (max 5).

  • Land: The burst deals bludgeoning damage, and any creature that fails its saving throw is blinded for 1 round.

  • Sea: The burst deals cold damage, and any creature that fails its saving throw is fatigued.

  • Sky: The burst deals electricity damage, and any creature that fails its saving throw is staggered for 1d4 rounds.

  • Wilds: The burst deals piercing damage, and any creature that fails its saving throw is nauseated for 1 round.

A successful Reflex save halves the damage dealt and negates the secondary effect. The damage only occurs once, when the spell is cast. Damage from this spell is considered magical for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
When you choose a particular spirit type, the spell gains a descriptor appropriate to that type, as follows: animal (beasts), earth (land), water (sea), air (sky), or plant (wilds).

Path of the Wilds - Update #2

Happy holidays, everyone!

Today’s update is pretty simple. As mentioned in the last update, I was going to focus primarily on spells this month. I’ve made some headway, and I’m about 50% done with the chapter as a whole. Still got a long way to go, but the progress so far has been decent.

One thing I’m considering is adding in new [plant] and [animal] descriptors. If you’re familiar with Path of Iron, that book added in the [metal] descriptor, which was used for a handful of class features and feats. Really, it served more as a thematic descriptor than one for major rules use (unlike stuff like fear or language-dependent). I’m still deliberating on whether to add in the new descriptors or not: I’m open for any thoughts and opinions on the matter.

Here’s a few examples of the first draft of the new spells. These stats aren’t finalized, so let me know if you think something should be changed.

APEX PREDATOR

School transmutation (polymorph); Level druid 9, shaman 9
Casting Time 1 round
Components V, S, DF
Range touch
Target animal touched
Duration 1 min./level
Saving Throw Will negates; Spell Resistance yes

After an intense channeling, you infuse a single animal with primal strength and vigor, turning it into a ferocious avatar of nature. Such power is tremendous, but comes at a cost.
The animal grows to huge size or increases in size by one category if it is already huge or larger. It gains a +8 size bonus to Strength and Constitution, a +3 natural armor bonus (that stacks with existing natural armor bonuses), cold resistance 20, fire resistance 20, and Damage Reduction 10/–. Hit points gained by the temporary increase in Constitution score are not temporary hit points, and go away when the target’s Constitution drops back to normal.
The creature also becomes immune to mind-affecting effects, death effects, energy drain, ability score damage and drain, poison, disease, and stunning effects. It’s natural weapons always deal lethal damage and their critical threat range is doubled: this increase does not stack with other effects that increase critical threat range, such as Improved Critical. Finally, the creature is treated as under the effects of haste for the duration of this spell.
At the end of the spell’s duration (including if it is dispelled), the animal becomes exhausted, gains two temporary negative levels, and is finally reduced to 0 hit points if its hit points are above 0. These temporary negative levels are removed automatically after 24 hours have passed but cannot otherwise be removed by any means. This spell cannot target the same creature more than once in a 24 hour period: attempting to do so immediately exhausts the target creature (no save), and the spell fails.

COMMANDING WHISTLE

School evocation [sonic]; Level bard 3, druid 3, ranger 2
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, F (a reed whistle)
Range long (400 ft. + 40 ft./level)
Target see text
Duration 1 min./level, see text
Saving Throw none; Spell Resistance no

You blow upon the reed used as a focus for the spell, but no audible sound emerges. Nearby animals, however, perk up and await your instruction.
Upon casting commanding whistle and as a standard action at any point during the spell’s duration, you can blow upon the reed to emit a silent command. This allows you to make Handle Animal checks to handle an animal or push one from a distance using the normal DC. You do not need line of sight to an animal to affect it, but the sound of the whistle must reach it: a deaf animal is unaffected, and the spell does not pierce through an area of silence or similar spells.
You can choose to command only a subset of animals, such as only canines or only equines, but your whistle (and Handle Animal check) affects all creatures of that type that can hear it within the spell’s range.
While the spell’s effects are typically only audible to creatures of the animal type, dragons and creatures with echolocation and other sound-based detection can also pick up on the sound, though they are not affected unless they are also animals themselves.

DESICCATE

School necromancy [water]; Level antipaladin 2, druid 3, sorcerer/wizard 3
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Area 30-ft.-radius spread
Duration instantaneous
Saving Throw Fortitude negates; Spell Resistance yes

A wave of entropic energy washes over the area, draining it of water. This has several effects, as outlined below.
First, water (both liquid and mist) evaporates. The spell can evaporate up to 10 gallons of liquid water per caster level. Any natural fog or mist in the area vanishes, and magical fog of 2nd level or lower (such as fog cloud) is likewise removed. Solid ice and snow evaporates at half the rate of liquid water.
Second, non-creature plant life that is medium or smaller withers and dies, including grass, shrubbery, and so on. Plant life that is large or bigger in the area lose some moisture, but it is not enough to fell most trees or larger plants without repeated castings.
Finally, creatures affected by desiccate have moisture drawn from their bodies. Creatures must make a Fortitude save or become dehydrated (see the Starvation and Thirst section in Chapter 13 of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook), causing them to immediately take 1d6 points of nonlethal damage and become fatigued. This nonlethal damage and fatigue cannot be overcome until the creature sates its thirst. Plant creatures, water elementals, and other water-based creatures that fail their saving throw instead take 1d8 points of lethal damage per two caster levels (max 5d8) and are fatigued.

Path of the Wilds - Update #1

Hey everyone,

For those that saw the post a few weeks ago, I’ll still be continuing forward with Path of the Wilds. This will be the first of many progress updates you’ll be seeing from me. These posts aren’t going to be very formalized or consistent (compared to the Kickstarter updates), but I’ll be aiming for every two weeks or so.

WIth that out of the way…

The main thing I’ve been doing lately was filling out the spells chapter.

When I go about writing these supplements, I usually make big tables so I can get an organized list of ideas. I won’t typically write out the actual rules for anything, generally just getting the concept/name, its prerequisites (or spell level), and a brief idea of its function. Concept generation is always the most difficult part of writing for me, and I can write the rules themselves pretty fast, so filling out such lists are often the majority of the effort for me to write a book.

Right now I’m sitting at nearly 60 spells, with a spread of elemental, plant and animal spells, and some utility effects. The spells vary from pretty standard/simple effects like tremorsense to more complex spells like living storm (which gives you a more powerful version of the whirlwind monster ability).

There’s also some class-exclusive spells for elementer and invoker. If you’ve read Path of Shadows or Path of Iron, you may recall that each caster got its own exclusive spell line. Nightblade had umbral spells which conjured various shadowy allies, saboteur has trap extensions which modified other traps, and the vanguard had discharge spells which ended a resonance to create a secondary effect that could ignore friendly fire. For Path of the Wilds, I wanted to keep up that trend.

Elementers gain what are currently named prism spells, which are spells that use acid, cold, electricity, and fire at once. Prism bolt, for example, deals 1d4 of each when you first get it, and scales up with caster level. The baseline effects of prism spells aren’t too crazy, but the kicker is when you use a prism spell for the elementer’s spell twist. When you do, they essentially act as a metamagic effect: you treat the spell twist as one or two levels lower than normal, but can apply things like Extend, Piercing, or Empower to their effect.

Invoker’s spirit companions gain dominion spells. These spells don’t have any unified function, covering offense, defense, support, and control. However, the spell gains additional effects based on the dominions of the invoker’s currently invoked spirit(s). This gives another avenue for the invoker to influence the companion’s ability.

I’ll end this post by listing out the names of the current spells I’ve got ideas for. I’m going to try to focus on this chapter exclusively over the next few weeks to hammer it out: that way I can get it properly formatted and start filling it with artwork.

  • Living Storm

  • Maelstrom

  • Natural Order

  • Nettle Burst

  • Pillar of Stone

  • Primal Fury

  • Primordial Fang

  • Prism Assault

  • Prism Barrage

  • Prism Blast

  • Prism Bolt

  • Prism Shield

  • Rain of Fire

  • Seek Foe

  • Solar Body

  • Solar Flare

  • Stinging Thorns

  • Stone Shard

  • Stormguard

  • Stormlash

  • Sundering Earth

  • Symbiosis

  • Tempest Hammer

  • Toxic Bloom

  • Tremorsense

  • Wasp Sting

  • Wild Growth

  • Wildfire

  • Animal Sense

  • Apex Predator

  • Clear Terrain

  • Clipped Wings

  • Cloudburst

  • Cold Snap

  • Commanding Whistle

  • Control Ice

  • Control Temperature

  • Crushing Roots

  • Desiccate

  • Dominion’s Blessing

  • Dominion’s Curse

  • Dominion’s Shield

  • Dominion’s Wrath

  • Downpour

  • Embrace the Deep

  • Energy Missiles

  • Erode

  • Eruption

  • Expose

  • Expose, Greater

  • Flame Dash

  • Hand of Stone

  • Heat Wave

  • Ice Walk

  • Lava Field

  • Leeching Spores

  • Lightning Strike