[New Spell] Manipulate Landscape -- New 6th Level MU Spell List

I’ve never much liked a few of the 6^th level spells included in the Expert rules – I always felt that lower water, move earth, and part water were kind of all the same spell in many ways, and so I have combined them into a single spell, manipulate landscape. I then added two higher-level spells to the 6^th level spell list – polymorph any object and shape change.

This has become a serious consideration of late as I am likely, going forward, to limit class levels – and thus magical spells – to 14^th, as per the Expert rules, and thus 5^th and 6^th level spells for clerics and magic-users, respectively.

1. Anti-Magic Shell

2. Control Weather

3. Death Spell

4. Disintegrate

5. Geas*

6. Invisible Stalker

7. Manipulate Landscape (NEW)

8. Polymorph Any Object**

9. Projected Image

10. Reincarnation

11. Shape Change**

12. Stone to Flesh*

* Reversible Spell

** Refer to Labyrinth Lord for these spells

Manipulate Landscape

Level: Magic-user 6

Duration: 12 turns

Range: Line of sight to one mile

This spell enables the caster to manipulate the nearby landscape as though she were playing with a sandbox or with modeling clay. The caster chooses one type of landscape and area to be manipulated, and during the duration she can play with and mold it as she wishes, even defying the laws of nature -- temporarily. The area that can be affected is as follows:

Water: An area 100’ by 100’ by 100’ or 1,000 10’ cubes

Soil/Sand/Gravel/Mud: An area 60’ x 60’ x 60’ or 216 10’ cubes

Stone: An area 30’ x 30’ x 30’ or 27 10’ cubes

Any form that works within the natural laws of the caster’s world remains permanent (when dealing with soil, sand, gravel, mud, or stone); otherwise when the spell ends the landscape quickly – and dangerously – re-conforms to the laws of gravity and nature. Note that the caster does not need to concentrate at all times during the spell, only when she is making changes; these remain until the end of the spell, or until the caster ends the spell. The caster may cast other spells while this spell is still in effect.

If the caster creates a bridge of sand and gravel spanning a canyon, it falls back into piles of sand and gravel at the bottom of the canyon (along with anyone still on it) at the end of the spell. A 20’ wide x 500’ deep by 1,000’ long canyon through a river would instantly collapse when the spell ends, as would a 20’ x 20’ x 510’ causeway made of mud and gravel, or a 50’ x 50’ x 400’ “statue” of water. Tunnels carved in solid stone, a new configuration of hills and valleys, a new bed for a river, or a ford created across a river from native stone -- these would remain in place provided they are not gravity-defying, and of course, are thereafter subject to natural erosion. Permanent effects cannot be undone by dispel magic or anti-magic effects, as the new landscape is “natural.”

Aliban's Tower by Jeff A. Menges

This spell is often used to create a permanent stone tower, complete with outer walls, inner walls, floors, stairways, doorways, and windows. One application can create a 30’ diameter round tower five stories tall (each 15’ tall counting stone floors, with 5’ thick outer walls). Multiple applications of the spell can be used to seamlessly build larger towers with thicker walls, dig dungeons through stone, or built permanent stone walls. A permanent stone wall 10’ thick by 20’ high by 100’ long (the missing area goes into merlons, crenellations, and machicolations) can be created with a single casting of the spell.

The spell can also be ended at any time by the caster before the duration is over.