Call Lightning

[Aerich]

Ok, am I stupid or is the spell description wrong?

I finally got around to trying to use this spell en masse. I was under the impression, from the spell description in the game as well as in the 2nd Ed PH, that this spell lasted for turns, like Static Charge. So I memorized 5 of them, hoping to utterly destroy all the trolls and yeti outside in Wyrm's Tooth.

And I took an invisibility potion for utter cheesiness (hey, I don't normally play that way, but my druid was feeling underused), and sat around. And sat around. And nothing happened, other than at my initial casting.

So is this a one-time deal only, like a big single-target mage-style lightning bolt? If so, I'm disappointed. [img]tongue.gif[/img]

[Stratos]

In all the DnD CRPG's I've played, Call Lightning works as it does in IWD. Perhaps you're having it mixed up with another spell.

Edit: Judging from the description at Gamebanshee, you can call down one bolt of lightning per turn. The spell last for 1 turn/level, so a lv. 10 caster would call down 10 bolts, each striking the targets once a turn. The damage also increases with the levels.

[ 11-29-2004, 04:41 AM: Message edited by: Stratos ]

[Aerich]

So are you saying that it does or does not work like Static Charge? Probably not, eh? That would be kind of unbalanced for a 3rd level spell.

I don't know of any way to "call" successive bolts after the original casting.

[Q'alooaith]

You only direct the first bolt, all the rest hit at random..

I think the area of effect is also bassed around the original target, though I'm not sure.

[Aerich]

Hmm. I didn't get any additional bolts. If it is restricted to the range of sight when first cast, that would explain a few things. I was wandering around wondering when those icky snow trolls would get blasted by the Zeus spears. [img]smile.gif[/img]

One thing that really threw me off is that you get no feedback - with Static Charge, it at least tells you when one has "disappated harmlessly". So you CAN get more than one bolt per casting, right?

[Marty4]

In a limited AoE. For example, casting it in the midst of a fight works, but if you move on to the next fight then it won't follow.

[Aerich]

Blast and bebother. [img]tongue.gif[/img] I was hoping I could abuse this. Still can, I suppose, just have to draw all the monsters in a map to the Kill Zone, although that's more trouble than it's probably worth. Ah well, it's slightly less cheesy than I thought it was. I'm past that bit anyway. Maybe I'll try to use it in HoW.

[ 11-29-2004, 04:46 PM: Message edited by: Aerich ]

[Otto]

Call Lightning doesn't seem to follow with you the way static charge does. Once you leave the area where it was cast, the spell is lost.

[Stratos]

If I understand the spell correctly, a bolt strikes once per turn. One turn is 60 seconds.

Edit: I like the 3rd Edition version of Call Lightning better.

[ 11-30-2004, 07:09 AM: Message edited by: Stratos ]

[Otto]

Originally posted by Stratos: If I understand the spell correctly, a bolt strikes once per turn. One turn is 60 seconds.

Yeah, but I think only in the area where you cast the spell. Let's say you cast call lightning in the Vale of Shadows, hoping to strike down some yetis. You see a single yeti and target him with the spell, lightning strikes and he dies. There are no more yetis in that area. Now when you follow the trail a little ways to the next yeti, he won't get struck by lightning because you left the area where the spell was cast.

I'm pretty sure the spell works like this because I've tried it a couple of times. Static charge stays with the caster, so it's a lot better.