Sage Advice Collection

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 21DR054 Dragon #54 Are demons and devils immune to Sleep and Charm spells, just like the undead are?  Not exactly, although the end result is about the same. Demons and devils are not by nature immune to Sleep and Charm spells- except for the manes and lemures, which are specifically described as being immune to both those types of magic. The rest of the ranks don’t need to be “made” immune to Sleep spells — they already are, because the spell only affects creatures of up to 4+4 hit dice, and none of the demons or devils (except for manes and lemures) has a hit-dice figure lower than 5+5. Demons and devils are technically vulnerable to the effects of a Charm Monster spell, but the percentages aren’t exactly in favor of the character who tries to use such a spell -and keep it working after it is cast. Considering the magic resistance of demons and devils, plus the fact that they get a saving throw against the spell even if their magic resistance fails, plus the fact that they can successfully “break” the charm after it is cast, the odds are definitely against the spell caster. For example, consider an 11th-level magic-user trying to snare a “lowly” Type I demon with Charm Monster: The demon has a 50% chance (magic resistance) of being unaffected, a 35% chance to make a saving throw vs. the spell even if its magic resistance fails, and a 45% chance per week thereafter of snapping out of it. That all adds up to less than an 18% chance that the spell will succeed and be effective for longer than one week. The chance of success is a lot lower for the most powerful demons and devils, and it would not be improper for a DM to simply rule that the “big names” (Demogorgon, Juiblex, Orcus, Yeenoghu, Asmodeus, Baalzebul, Dispater, Geryon) are effectively immune to the spell. The idea of being able to bring one of the demon princes or arch-devils under control by means of a mere 4th-level spell is hard to accept. 
 22DR043 Dragon #43 Are giants entitled to save vs. death magic when struck by a Hammer of Thunderbolts?  No. The power of the weapon, when used by a being with Gauntlets of Ogre Power and a Girdle of Giant Strength, is so awesome that it will automatically destroy a “normal” giant. However, giants with unusual powers or strengths like Surtur, Thrym or Mordagz (see Deities & Demigods) will only take the proper amount of damage from a successful strike. 
 23DR043 Dragon #43 Are Haste spells cumulative?  No. 
 24DR043 Dragon #43 Are lawful good characters able to use poisoned weapons?  Page 107 of the Players Handbook discusses poison in detail, with the major conclusion being that poison usage should be severely limited. Ultimately, the decision lies with your DM. 
 25DR054 Dragon #54 Are liches or vampires destroyed or damaged by sunlight or torchlight? What other undead, if any, are adversely affected by exposure to sunlight or some other bright light source?  From the various descriptions of the undead monsters in the Monster Manual, it appears that only the vampire, the spectre and the wraith are adversely affected by light — and even then, the light must be actual sunlight or at least a light source of daylight-level intensity. The light from a torch or a lantern, or a Light spell, or a small-scale “fire” spell such as Flame Arrow, is not bright enough to be harmful. The status of wights is questionable; wraiths are said to be “similar in nature to wights,” and wraiths have no power in full sunlight, but wights are only said to “hate sunlight,” leaving unanswered the question of whether they are harmed by it. The sage recommends that wights be treated differently from wraiths, because the wight is a weaker type of undead with less of a “link” to the negative material plane than the wraith, and it is the wraith’s strong connection to the eternal darkness of the negative material plane that makes the creature so vulnerable to bright light. All of the undead prefer to lurk about in darkness. Ghosts and shadows especially like places where light does not shine, but daylight doesn’t bother them if they have to put up with it. A lich’s hidden chambers are “very dark,” says the MM, but obviously the lich has powers even in an illuminated area; otherwise, how could anyone flee in fear of something they can’t see? Same goes for the ghost, whose power to cause aging and panic can’t be effective unless the victim has at least enough light to see by. The other types of undead — ghasts, ghouls, skeletons, mummies, and zombies — are not affected by the presence of light. While we’re on the subject, exactly what is “some other bright light source” — what will produce the effect of daylight when sunlight is not available? For one thing, a Continual Light spell, which is said to be “nearly as illuminating as full daylight.” But does a Continual Light suffice as a replacement for actual sunlight? The sage’s suggestion here is that Continual Light should be effective in rendering wraiths and spectres powerless, but that only actual sunlight (“direct sunlight,” in the words of the MM, is able to make a vampire helpless. Artificial sunlight, even if created magically, has no effect upon the creature which the MM calls “the most dreaded of the chaotic evil undead.” As with any general guidelines, the ones stated above have exceptions: For instance, the “sunburst” effect of a Wand of illumination does “light”damage to any undead within its range. It’s up to the DM to known when these exceptions should take precedence. Are there other light-producing magics that equal or surpass a Continual Light spell in intensity? Yes, but most of them are flame-producing (Flame Strike, a Wand of Fire, a Produce fire spell, a fire Storm, and so forth) as opposed to light-producing, and thus might be disallowed as a “light source” for the purpose of immobilizing an undead. Similarly, a Lightning Bolt spell or the use of a Gem of Brightness produces a flash of light bright enough to blind, and it is certainly brighter than normal daylight. But in most cases, the extremely short duration of the “light blast” makes it unlikely that a DM would allow such things to be used as light sources. 
 26DR044 Dragon #44 Are longbows or composite longbows permissible for use underground?  It is theoretically possible to use any sort of weapon underground if the conditions are proper. We know of a campaign which includes catapults manned by orcs in large underground caverns. The use of a longbow or composite longbow underground would involve some inherent problems that should be evident to any DM (or bow carrier) worth his salt — but they can be used. 
 27DR047 Dragon #47 Are player characters allowed to be drawn from Grey Elf stock or Drow stock?  Each DM must decide whether such unusual player-character types will be allowed in his/her campaign. In the case of unusual elf types, there should be a possibility for a player character to become any of the elf subspecies, including aquatic elves and wood elves. However, it should be apparent that life as a player character under such conditions would be hard — for the character, the player, and most of all the DM, who must be prepared to cope with the added responsibility of trying to incorporate such a “rare” character into the campaign without sacrificing its balance and flexibility. 
 28DR058 Dragon #58 Are there any alignment restrictions for dwarves? The Monster Manual says they are lawful good.  Many of the particulars of the Monster Manual description of dwarves are intended only to strictly apply to non-player character dwarves. Alignment is one of these particulars: Not all player character dwarves have to be lawful good, just like not all player character dwarves have to have just one hit die, and not all player character dwarves will be “Very” intelligent. No player character race is restricted as to what alignment a member of that race can be. The only restrictions placed on races concern what classes they can become — and some of those classes have alignment restrictions, but that’s a different matter. A player character dwarf can be a thief, an assassin, or a fighter, or certain combinations of those classes. If all dwarves had to be lawful good, no dwarf would be able to be a thief or assassin. Player character dwarves can theoretically be of any alignment, as long as it fits the rules for the class(es) they belong to. Non-player character dwarves, as described in the Monster Manual, are considered differently. NPC dwarves will be predominantly, if not exclusively, lawful good in alignment. Virtually all of them, except for leader types, will have no more than 1 hit die, and virtually all of them will be above average in intelligence. Also note that the MM makes no mention of dwarven thieves or assassins being encountered in a large group; all of the higher-level dwarves in a group of NPCs are either fighters or fighter/clerics. If you play NPC dwarves “by the book,” there can never be dwarven thieves or assassins, and if those character types are included in an adventure or a campaign, the Monster Manual information (at least with regard to alignment, armor and weaponry in this instance) will have to be “modified” accordingly. 
 29DR133 Dragon #133 Are there any limits on the polymorph other spell? It seems that this spell is easily abused. For example, a magic-user could turn himself into a gold dragon. Since the spell grants all the abilities of the new form, the magic-user could assume human form again whenever it wasn’t convenient to be a dragon and still be able to fly, use breath weapons, etc. Would such a character lose his character class abilities? Can he still earn experience? Would an adult magic-user be turned into an adult dragon by this spell? Would the character then age as his original race, or would he age as a dragon? Could he reproduce with other gold dragons? What would happen if a fire lizard or other unintelligent creature were polymorphed into a gold dragon?  To start, polymorph other means just that; a caster may not use the spell on himself. A polymorph other spell can turn any creature into any other creature type that is not unique. Remember the system shock survival roll; the DM must assign the polymorphed creature a constitution score if one isn’t listed. Even if the systemshock check is successful, the polymorphed creature retains its own mind and tends to act like the original. Exceedingly stupid creatures might not even notice the change. This fourth-level spell is not powerful enough to establish a connection between a recipient creature and another plane, nor can it bestow magical abilities (a character turned into a vampire, for example, could not drain energy levels). It cannot give the recipient any skill or ability that must be learned — such as spells, psionic abilities, or languages. The recipient, however, physically becomes the creature into which he has been polymorphed, and he could breed with others of his new ilk. Furthermore, the recipient can think like the type of creature into which he has been polymorphed, and has certain instinctive knowledge such as what he should eat, how to use the new body’s locomotion and physical attack capabilities, and how to interpret what his new senses tell him. This is not the same as actually becoming the creature in mind, which happens with a failed intelligence check as noted in the spell description on page 78 of the Players Handbook. As long as the recipient keeps his mind, he can use his character class abilities (provided that this is physically possible) and may draw upon his own knowledge. The Players Handbook indicates that a polymorphed player character can hold and use tools and weapons only if his new “hands” have digits. Items carried by a character when polymorphed become part of the creature when the change takes place, and cannot be recovered until the creature reassumes its normal form. A polymorphed character can earn experience as long as he keeps his own mind. In the example you have provided (assuming that the recipient of the spell is another magic-user), the caster of the spell would have to decide how big a gold dragon the recipient magic-user will become. When the spell takes effect, the recipient must make a constitution check. As you suggest, the adult magic-user would become an adult dragon with appropriate hit points (if he makes his constitution check). When determining the character’s chance to assume a gold dragon’s mentality, divide the dragon’s total hit points by 4 to determine its effective hit dice (see the Monster Manual, page 31, Dragon’s Saving Throws). There should be at least a 1% chance per day that the recipient will assume the creature’s mentality, regardless of adjustments. This magic-user would be able to speak (in the magic-user’s languages only), fly (and carry passengers), and use the dragon’s breath weapons. The magic-user could use his spells provided that material components were still at hand, and he could still read his books and renew spells. He does not gain the ability to speak a gold dragon’s native tongue, nor use any of an adult dragon’s spells, and he cannot polymorph himself as a gold dragon can. A fire lizard cannot be polymorphed into a gold dragon because it is not as intelligent as a gold dragon (see the second sentence of the spells description in the Players Handbook); the spell would fail. In the example involving the magic-user above, the recipient is assumed to be at least as intelligent as an average gold dragon (intelligence 17 or better). If a polymorphed creature assumes the mentality of his new form, however, all of the originals abilities and memories are lost, and the creature gains the full spectrum of its new form’s abilities. You may rule that the acquisition of these abilities will take time and perhaps instruction, but you can assume that the creature will eventually learn them. If the new gold dragon in the above example ever learned to use a gold dragon’s polymorph self ability, however, any change of form will dispel the polymorph other spell. The creature will return to normal and must make a system shock survival roll. Shapechanging creatures who are the unwilling recipients of polymorph other spells can negate the spell in a similar manner (see the DMG, page 45). The polymorphed gold dragon in our example would grow as a gold dragon would, but he would age as a human as long as he kept his mind. Aging in the AD&D game is sometimes a function of the mind, not the body. 
 30DR042 Dragon #42 Are there limitations on the usage of such items as an Amulet of the Planes? If not, the character can merely speak a command word and blink out to his own alignment plane any time, right?  Amulets are powerful, arcane devices that are designed to be used over and over again. Because of their great power, there should not be many of them running around (one to a universal plane is enough). The action of running to another plane for safety is risky, when you consider that the other planes are populated by powerful beings who resent intrusion! 
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