Mistwell
Crusty Old Meatwad
I have been composing a list of creative uses for the various Image spells (silent, minor, major, programmed).
Here is what I have found so far (almost all written by others, who I unfortunately do not have the names to credit with their work). I would really like some more ideas for these excellent spells:
1. Silent Image a wall, to persuade opponants to go around;
2. Have your party press up against an existing wall, and silent image an identical wall in front of the party - super cheap mass invisibility, if cast outside the sight of the opponants;
3. Silent Image a box large enough for the party to hide in;
4. Create an illusion of a pit trap with spikes, with already dead bodies in it, about 10 feet wide;
5. Image backup bow-snipers for free for moral effect and extra false targets for the opponants? Let the first 2 die fast, so more shots are wasted on them;
6. Add more trees in a forest to hide behind;
7. Add a grassy hill on top of your party, and ambush from it;
8. Create an image of a sack over the opponent's head. Technically, there's no save until he takes an action to physically interact with the illusion;
9. Image some fire and smoke in a building or hallway to stop or slow a chase;
10. Image obscuring mist (or other fog-like spell). Your group (knowing it is an illusion) can see through it, but your opponants will not;
11. Create an image of a wizard casting invisibility. Opponents with spellcraft will go nuts. Alternatively, the "wizard" can cast spells without obvious effects (stoneskin, resist fire) or ones duplicable by an illusion (fly, blink, mirror image). Intelligent opponents will concentrate on attacking the wizard;
12. Create an image of spirits rising from dead bodies (ghosts, shadows, wraiths, spectres- whatever is appropriate) as a distraction, since your weapons swinging through them will not seem unusual given they are incorporeal beings that are being copied;
13. Can you say "surprise round?" I think we killed all but one before the surprise round ended;
14. Create an image of utter darkness (which you can see through, as you know it is an illusion);
15. Create an illusion of your party members in other places to split the opposition;
16. Create an illusion of a wall breaking down and a monster entering. If they disbelieve, do it again but this time summon a real creature, and let them ignore it until it does them some damage (might even be able to attack ignoring your dex and dodge bonuses if opponants actively ignore it);
17. Make an illusion of a Blade Barrier - less likely to be touched and interacted with;
18. Make a bridge over a chasm you just crossed and hope opponants try to chase you over it (particularly good if you are fleeing and flying, while you seem to be walking over the birdge - or just hide and create an image of you fleeing over the illusionary bridge);
19. Create an illusionary archer who fires arrows at opponents that always misses. The archer has an AC of 10 + size modifier + range and vision modifiers as appropriate (probably also cover and such);
20. If one of the party members is down or in danger of being swarmed by reinforcements, make an illusion of a few more bad guys and make it appear they are being dealt with and perhaps give them a few minutes to catch their breath;
21. Make what appears to be a patch of entangling ground;
22. Image of a metal cage with sharp pointy spikes covered with dripping poison appearing around the enemy. He doesn't get a save unless he touches it because he hasn't interacted with it and he's not going to touch it because it looks like poison;
23. Create illusionary monsters to intimidate your foes: Beholders, demons, etc. are good. They can move around the battlefield and look menacing. Low-grade opponents should hopefully avoid things like this and run. I'm more of a GM than a player, but one way I'd rule this tactic is to allow the illusionist to make intimidate checks with a +2 (up to +4) illusion bonus to the check;
24. In addition to duplicating dungewon walls, you can copy spells that make sudden walls or objects or obsticles: illusionary walls of stone, iron, ice, prismatic shifting colors.. can sometimes seal off an escape route. So can patches of writihing shadowy black tentacles, or areas covered in illusionary webs. If your'e up to the Major image spell, you can use walls of fire or crackling electricity. The idea is to conceal or discourage interaction, but by the time anyone egts close enough to determine that he can feel heat from the wall of fire- he's already interacted with it. So having a high saving throw DC would be good as always
25. Create window dressing: I use this when I'm GMing villians, sometimes. It's not especially useful so much as it is "cool" to change the appearance of a location to something weird or disturbing. Change the battlefield to look like a gigantic chessboard with melting clocks or an arena with spiked walls or something;
26. Distraction. Use your IC knowledge. Confront an NPC with an illusionary figment of one of his previous victims or a family member. Yeah, yeah, he gets a saving throw. Still, sometimes it will throw people off for a round or two, even after the illusion cancels;
27 Create an image on the floor of green slime, randomly surfacing buzz-saws, caltrops, or some other hazard and leave an easy path through it that serves your purposes. A single file path, or perhaps one that takes the enemy through someones threatened area, or within bull-rush range of a fighter and another (real) hazard;
28. Use image spells as 3-d maps that hover in mid air for team briefings, team huddle strategy sessions, etc. An illusionist can be like the party VCR or instant replay guy, creating a tactical map for everyone to look at while the fighter draws on it like John Madden;
29. Use a a percieved threat as flanking (note - some DMs say this is not allowed because the illusion is not actually threatening the opponants square, while others feel that the perception of the threat is what creates the flanking, not the actual threat);
30. Mis up illusions and reality - For example, you are invisible, then cast an illusion of yourself casting a illusion spell, then the real you appear (as if you were the figment) and cast something, perhaps a spell like transmute rock to mud or wall of fire. It´s likely that any enemy spellcaster think you and the real spell are the illusions, waste a round on the fake you, and walk like an idiot on the real spell;
31. Make the illusion of the party coming out of a translucent wall. Chances are that the enemies will think they are the real ones, doing the trick of hiding behind a illusory wall, and be fooled. While you are invisible, use the higher level illusion spells (like programmed image) to make a copy of yourself casting illusions, while the real you (invisible) cast Summon Monster N. Maybe they think they really are illusions, and ignore the monsters; if they learn from their errors, start casting illusions of summoned monsters;
32. Make an illusion of a shield guardian protecting you, which should dissuade many opponents from charging.
Here is what I have found so far (almost all written by others, who I unfortunately do not have the names to credit with their work). I would really like some more ideas for these excellent spells:
1. Silent Image a wall, to persuade opponants to go around;
2. Have your party press up against an existing wall, and silent image an identical wall in front of the party - super cheap mass invisibility, if cast outside the sight of the opponants;
3. Silent Image a box large enough for the party to hide in;
4. Create an illusion of a pit trap with spikes, with already dead bodies in it, about 10 feet wide;
5. Image backup bow-snipers for free for moral effect and extra false targets for the opponants? Let the first 2 die fast, so more shots are wasted on them;
6. Add more trees in a forest to hide behind;
7. Add a grassy hill on top of your party, and ambush from it;
8. Create an image of a sack over the opponent's head. Technically, there's no save until he takes an action to physically interact with the illusion;
9. Image some fire and smoke in a building or hallway to stop or slow a chase;
10. Image obscuring mist (or other fog-like spell). Your group (knowing it is an illusion) can see through it, but your opponants will not;
11. Create an image of a wizard casting invisibility. Opponents with spellcraft will go nuts. Alternatively, the "wizard" can cast spells without obvious effects (stoneskin, resist fire) or ones duplicable by an illusion (fly, blink, mirror image). Intelligent opponents will concentrate on attacking the wizard;
12. Create an image of spirits rising from dead bodies (ghosts, shadows, wraiths, spectres- whatever is appropriate) as a distraction, since your weapons swinging through them will not seem unusual given they are incorporeal beings that are being copied;
13. Can you say "surprise round?" I think we killed all but one before the surprise round ended;
14. Create an image of utter darkness (which you can see through, as you know it is an illusion);
15. Create an illusion of your party members in other places to split the opposition;
16. Create an illusion of a wall breaking down and a monster entering. If they disbelieve, do it again but this time summon a real creature, and let them ignore it until it does them some damage (might even be able to attack ignoring your dex and dodge bonuses if opponants actively ignore it);
17. Make an illusion of a Blade Barrier - less likely to be touched and interacted with;
18. Make a bridge over a chasm you just crossed and hope opponants try to chase you over it (particularly good if you are fleeing and flying, while you seem to be walking over the birdge - or just hide and create an image of you fleeing over the illusionary bridge);
19. Create an illusionary archer who fires arrows at opponents that always misses. The archer has an AC of 10 + size modifier + range and vision modifiers as appropriate (probably also cover and such);
20. If one of the party members is down or in danger of being swarmed by reinforcements, make an illusion of a few more bad guys and make it appear they are being dealt with and perhaps give them a few minutes to catch their breath;
21. Make what appears to be a patch of entangling ground;
22. Image of a metal cage with sharp pointy spikes covered with dripping poison appearing around the enemy. He doesn't get a save unless he touches it because he hasn't interacted with it and he's not going to touch it because it looks like poison;
23. Create illusionary monsters to intimidate your foes: Beholders, demons, etc. are good. They can move around the battlefield and look menacing. Low-grade opponents should hopefully avoid things like this and run. I'm more of a GM than a player, but one way I'd rule this tactic is to allow the illusionist to make intimidate checks with a +2 (up to +4) illusion bonus to the check;
24. In addition to duplicating dungewon walls, you can copy spells that make sudden walls or objects or obsticles: illusionary walls of stone, iron, ice, prismatic shifting colors.. can sometimes seal off an escape route. So can patches of writihing shadowy black tentacles, or areas covered in illusionary webs. If your'e up to the Major image spell, you can use walls of fire or crackling electricity. The idea is to conceal or discourage interaction, but by the time anyone egts close enough to determine that he can feel heat from the wall of fire- he's already interacted with it. So having a high saving throw DC would be good as always
25. Create window dressing: I use this when I'm GMing villians, sometimes. It's not especially useful so much as it is "cool" to change the appearance of a location to something weird or disturbing. Change the battlefield to look like a gigantic chessboard with melting clocks or an arena with spiked walls or something;
26. Distraction. Use your IC knowledge. Confront an NPC with an illusionary figment of one of his previous victims or a family member. Yeah, yeah, he gets a saving throw. Still, sometimes it will throw people off for a round or two, even after the illusion cancels;
27 Create an image on the floor of green slime, randomly surfacing buzz-saws, caltrops, or some other hazard and leave an easy path through it that serves your purposes. A single file path, or perhaps one that takes the enemy through someones threatened area, or within bull-rush range of a fighter and another (real) hazard;
28. Use image spells as 3-d maps that hover in mid air for team briefings, team huddle strategy sessions, etc. An illusionist can be like the party VCR or instant replay guy, creating a tactical map for everyone to look at while the fighter draws on it like John Madden;
29. Use a a percieved threat as flanking (note - some DMs say this is not allowed because the illusion is not actually threatening the opponants square, while others feel that the perception of the threat is what creates the flanking, not the actual threat);
30. Mis up illusions and reality - For example, you are invisible, then cast an illusion of yourself casting a illusion spell, then the real you appear (as if you were the figment) and cast something, perhaps a spell like transmute rock to mud or wall of fire. It´s likely that any enemy spellcaster think you and the real spell are the illusions, waste a round on the fake you, and walk like an idiot on the real spell;
31. Make the illusion of the party coming out of a translucent wall. Chances are that the enemies will think they are the real ones, doing the trick of hiding behind a illusory wall, and be fooled. While you are invisible, use the higher level illusion spells (like programmed image) to make a copy of yourself casting illusions, while the real you (invisible) cast Summon Monster N. Maybe they think they really are illusions, and ignore the monsters; if they learn from their errors, start casting illusions of summoned monsters;
32. Make an illusion of a shield guardian protecting you, which should dissuade many opponents from charging.
