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ICEWIND DALE SPELL FAQ
By the Last Avenger (Karl Schaumann)
Email: lastavenger@yahoo.com
Date: February 19, 2001
Version 1.0
Hi, and thanks for visiting my FAQ. I wrote this guide, seeing that no
other site had one. Have fun!
SPELLS
Spells are an integral part of this game. I will list every single
wizard and priest spell here, with comments such as their effectiveness
(or lack of,) duration, and product.
1st level wizard spells
ARMOR
Gives you AC 6 for a while. I really don't see the points of this, as
it doesn't help much, but then again, 1st level spells rarely do. I
don't really recommend this spell.
BURNING HANDS
Really, really bad at first. You have to get right up to the enemy to
cast this. Even when you are stronger, it's more difficult because it
has a terrible range and the area of effect isn't so great. Still, it's
good for taking out multiple enemies (that are too close for Fireball)
and can do more damage than any other 1st. Until you reach about 6th
level, however, skip this spell.
CHARM PERSON
Haven't found the scroll for it yet… I think it makes a person obey you
for a period of time. This has obvious strengths, and could really be
damaging if you took control of a spell caster. It only works on biped
creatures of man sized or smaller though, and undead aren't affected in
the slightest. You get a saving throw as well to avoid the effects.
CHILL TOUCH
Eh, not so great. The spell is like Burning Hands in which you have to
get really close, and have to make an attack roll besides. On top of
that, the damage dealt is pathetic, and they suffer a –1 penalty to
their attack rolls. If they're undead, they run away for some time.
Bottom line? Don't bother.
CHROMATIC ORB
Really great spell… maybe better than Magic Missile… anyhow, it's a
guaranteed hit (unless the target has magic resistance or saves) and
deals increasing damage as the caster rises in level. Also, each level
orb has a special effect, also getting more powerful as the caster
rises in level. At first level, the orb does little damage but blinds
the target for one round. At second level, it does a bit more damage
and inflicts pain upon the victim. What they mean by "pain" is not
defined, and I don't have any idea what it does. At third level, it
does more damage and burns the victim for extra damage. At fourth
level, it does more damage and blinds the victim for a longer time. At
fifth and sixth level, it does even more damage and stuns them for
about twenty seconds besides. At seventh level and above, it does the
most damage (2-16) and paralyzes them for a minute and a half… haste a
Master archer and have him focus his sights on the paralyzed victim and
they'll live no more. The manual said it would keep increasing until
the twelfth level, but it doesn't… they must have removed those
effects.
COLOR SPRAY
Sort of like Burning Hands, but has different effects. If your caster
is stronger than the target(s), the latter gets knocked out, if they
are equally powerful, they get blinded, and everyone above that is
stunned for a little while. It has the same cons as Burning Hands… I
wouldn't bother if I were you. I think undead are immune to this spell,
but I haven't checked this yet.
FRIENDS
Utter waste of time. Do not start with this spell, and don't buy it
either. All it does is raise your Charisma by five or so points for a
little while. Hostile creatures are still hostile, though, and no one
frankly seems to care about how high your Charisma is (except for maybe
in stores; where you can save ONE gold piece on all purchases.) Don't
even think about taking this spell.
GREASE
Covers a small area in purple goo. Anyone (including your own party)
who walks over it has their movement reduced to practically nothing.
This can be good for stalling enemies, giving your long range
characters a chance to throw a few arrows or a spell, or seeing just
how slow an enemy can really go (rhyme!) This spell isn't bad, but
isn't a first priority.
IDENTIFY
This spell identifies any magical item in your inventory. Absolutely
essential if you don't have a bard, but otherwise useless. Still, if
you're in the middle of a dungeon, don't have a bard, and seriously
need a sword you KNOW is +3, this spell is for you. Like Grease,
though, it's not a top priority.
INFRAVISION
Another utterly useless spell. If you have an elf or dwarf or halfling
or whoever, turn Group Infravision on and save yourself a lot of time.
Don't bother with this.
LARLOCH'S MINOR DRAIN
Sucks a VERY small amount of hit points from the target and adds them
to your own. You can actually go above your maximum, but they disappear
after about a minute (of real time.) Not really useful. Stick with
Magic Missile or Chromatic Orb.
MAGIC MISSILE
In my mind, this is the best first level wizard spell (Chromatic Orb is
a so very close runner up.) It shoots purple darts that always hit for
2-5 points of damage. At third, fifth, seventh, and ninth level, you
get more an extra missile (for a total of five at ninth level.) This
spell is good because it does good damage and is quick to cast besides.
PROTECTION FROM EVIL
Gives you a small boost to AC and saving throws, even if the creature
attacking you isn't evil. Odd… anyhow, an okay spell I suppose.
PROTECTION FROM PETRIFICATION
If your party members are getting turned to stone, cast this on them
beforehand. A little obvious.
SHIELD
This is a good defensive spell. It gives you AC 4, 2 against missile
weapons, and renders you immune to all Magic Missiles. This is handy in
the case of fighter/mages who get pounded by Imbued Wights and such.
SHOCKING GRASP
Touches an enemy in a not-so-nice place. Just kidding, it creates some
sort of blue thing which zaps the enemy for 1-8 points of damage, plus
one for every level. Like Color Spray and its ilk, this spell requires
you to get up close and personal. Use this spell with caution.
SLEEP
Puts enemies to sleep for a while. Stronger creatures and undead aren't
affected. You get a saving throw to avoid the effects, and while it can
help reduce the scale of a battle, it only affects a few Hit Dice worth
of monsters, and it's really not all that powerful anyway…
Wizard Spells, level 2
(AGANNAZAR'S) SCORCHER
Great spell… shoots green fire at an enemy, who takes decent damage,
and anyone in its path suffers too. Once it "anchors" to an enemy (has
hit it once) it stays on to damage them one more time before vanishing.
Be sure that your fighters are out of the way, or they'll take damage
too. You can find this in Kuldahar in the mage tower or in the coffin
where the skeletal mage is standing in the first big battle in
Kresselack's tomb.
BLINDNESS
Haven't found the scroll for this one yet… supposedly blinds them and
gives them a huge penalty to their attack rolls. Interesting, but I'd
rather take a Scorcher. They get a saving throw too.
BLUR
When cast, the caster gets a very blurred perspective of things… it
actually causes his form to appear about six times to all sides of him,
giving him a large boost to AC and saving throws. Try casting this with
Mirror Image. You'll be happy.
DECASTAVE
Haven't found the scroll for this one yet… creates a magic staff which
can hit creatures. On the first hit, it drains a ridiculously tiny
amount of hit points and adds it to your own.
DETECT EVIL
More useless than Friends and Infravision, if that's possible. This
spell is a total waste of time. You don't even need it. Whenever
something approaches you, pause the game. If they have a red circle
under them, that means they're trying to kill you, and you should do
the same. If they're blue, they want to talk or otherwise parley. If
they're green, then that means you have a serious problem 'cause you're
losing track of your party.
DETECT INVISIBILITY
I dunno. Really not that useful, since most enemies aren't invisible
anyhow. Useless at first, in fact, but later in Dorn's Deep you can
detect some backstabbing (literally!) thieves.
GHOUL TOUCH
Like Burning Hands and such, Ghoul Touch is an up-and-personal type of
spell. If a melee attack hits, they get paralyzed for about thirty
seconds, maybe more. I'd rather take Chromatic Orb.
HORROR
Affects weak monsters within a radius, making them run for their lives.
Good if you're badly hurt, but otherwise pointless as you then have to
track them down. For some reason, this is the very first second level
spell you get.
INVISIBILITY
You can find this in Therik's tomb. In the room with all the coffins,
look to the north. A very small treasure hoard has this scroll.
Anyhow, it's pretty fun. You turn completely invisible (and obviously
silent as well) and is thus perfect for scouting. Alternately, you can
use this to hide someone who's badly hurt or set them up for a
devastating attack. Note that if you attack or cast a spell while
invisible, you will lose the spell. Otherwise, it lasts for a REALLY
long time.
KNOCK…
Knock, who's there? This spell unlocks locked doors and chests and
stuff! If you don't get the dude in Dragon's Eye, use this to unlock
Conlan's chest. Otherwise, this spell is kind of useless, as the
"really" locked stuff you can't open anyway, and the "un-really" locked
stuff you can simply force open.
KNOW ALIGNMENT
THE most useless spell in the game. Exactly the same as Detect Evil,
but now they get a saving throw! Don't even think about taking this
spell. Don't!
LUCK
.Gives a small boost to many dice rolls… doesn't last long enough to be
really effective though. Skip it.
(MELF'S) ACID ARROW
The parentheses are the "extras" that aren't mentioned in a walkthrough
(i.e. this spell will be listed as Acid Arrow.) This is a very handy
spell, close to Scorcher. It does small damage, then lasts for a while,
dealing more damage after that. Great for spellcasters, as it ruins
their rituals and poses and stuff. Also fun to use against orcs or
someone then watching as they frantically chase you and die before
laying a finger. Handy for trolls, too.
MIRROR IMAGE
Brings blurry copies of the mage into being. Every time you would have
gotten hit, an image vanishes, essentially giving you a grace period to
throw a Magic Missile or something similar. Combine this with Blur, and
you will have your next 2-4 spells succeed GUARANTEED! Seriously, this
is a handy spell.
RESIST FEAR
Lasts one hour game time. Raises your morale score and makes you immune
to one fear spell (Horror, Cloak of Fear, etc.) This isn't a good spell
to pick unless you know of someone (or something) that can scare you.
SNILLOC'S SNOWBALL SWARM
Behold, the ultimate snowball fight weapon! It's like a lesser version
of Fireball, but when used against fire-based creatures, it kicks butt!
Better yet, if you have a melee fighter with Kaylessa's chain mail or
Mantle of the Coming Storm, you can cast this in the middle of a group
of enemies, and your fighter will take less damage! Note that undead
aren't affected by this spell.
STINKING CLOUD
You can only cast this spell if your mage has a serious problem… thank
heavens it isn't so, because this is a very useful spell. Anyone
(including your own guys, unfortunately) must save or fall unconscious
to the floor. This does NOT work on undead creatures (I've tried) but
it does work to disrupt spellcasters and such. Once enemies are down,
you can hit them automatically. Same goes for you, unfortunately.
STRENGTH
Raises your Strength score for a little while. Pretty useless, as it is
only good for fighters with low Strength scores (which they should NOT
have.) Don't bother.
VOCALIZE
Haven't found the scroll for this one… anyhow, according to the
description, it negates a Silence spell. Good only for that spell,
otherwise I would presume it's useless… if you find it, sell it or
write it just for fun.
WEB
Many spider webs appear on the ground and entangle anyone who gets
caught in them… actually they get paralyzed, so you can pound on them
for a while… try using this in Yxonumei and attack her with fighters
wearing Rings of Free Action and you'll hurt her pretty badly. Handy
spell, and works on anyone.
3rd level wizard spells
DIRE CHARM
I can't really figure out the difference between this and Charm Person,
except that it lasts longer and the charmed will immediately attack
anyone who attacks the caster. You could just do the same with Charm
Person. A better name might be Improved Charm Person, just because it
lasts double the duration of the normal, and also the charmed fights
automatically (which is the only real reason you would want to cast
this spell…)
DISPEL MAGIC
Very useful spell. Gets rid of all magical effects like Slow, Entangle,
Cloudkill, etc. and if they're using magical items, it will negate
their effects for a little while. Very useful for getting characters
out of a status problem, since a good portion of those are caused by
magic.
FIREBALL
For some reason, the game lists this spell as FireBall. Don't know why…
anyhow, a really useful area-effect spell. Just a few more things would
make this spell perfect… it explodes in a 20 foot radius for HUGE
damage on anyone in the area of effect. Do not cast this on engaged
enemies as you'll hurt your own characters. Also, don't cast this too
close to yourself (the limit of your vision is a good starting point.)
If you have good distance judgment, you can catch enemies at the very
fringe while making your fighters outside the area of effect. You
absolutely must get this spell. It's in the snake statue with the
lizard king and his friends.
FLAME ARROW
Another fun spell. Deals anywhere from 5-30 points of damage, and most
of it is fire. Great for picking off trolls. It's also a guaranteed
hit. At tenth level, you can throw another one. Be sure to get this
one. You can get it in the Temple of the Forgotten God or I think in
the mage tower back in Kuldahar.
GHOST ARMOR
Creates weightless plate mail which doesn't hinder spellcasting at all.
Handy I suppose, but once you get Kaylessa's armor, it becomes useless.
HASTE
To me, the best third level wizard spell (Fireball is close, but has
significant drawbacks.) Doubles the movement and attacks of your
characters… cast this on someone with Boots of Speed and they'll be
zipping around the battle field so fast it's not even funny… also use
this on someone with a long bow and high level for six attacks per
round. This spell has great potential. Use it wisely.
Oh yeah, before I forget, once this spell is over your characters get
fatigued quickly. Still, this is a wonderful spell. I think it's in
Kresselack's tomb, but I would have to check that one.
HOLD PERSON
Paralyzes a few people for a while. At higher levels, they get held for
a ridiculously long time. This doesn't work on monsters that aren't
"people" (see the Charm Person description) and doesn't affect undead
either. Acolytes and Skeletal Mages are rather fond of this spell.
ICELANCE
A lot like Flame Arrow, except the damage is ice damage and stuns the
target if they don't save. Not bad, but I'd rather take Haste.
LIGHTNING BOLT
I have mixed feelings about this spell. On one hand, it deals lots of
damage (has the same potential as Fireball) and can hit multiple
enemies if you're lucky. It also bounces off walls and such. Once, I
managed to hit an ettin three times, and it died right there…
Unfortunately, it is horribly inaccurate. Most of the time, I'll hit a
single enemy before it bounces off some wall into nowhere. I definitely
would not take this spell if I just reached fifth level. Pick Fireball
or Haste instead.
MONSTER SUMMONING I
Summons VERY weak monsters to help you for a while. By the time you get
this, they won't be able to help you at all except maybe as fodder to
slow your enemies down. Grease does the same and I'd rather take that.
NON-DETECTION
Makes your characters immune to any Detect spell. I don't know if any
enemies even cast that type of spell, so I really am not sure… again,
stick with a more powerful spell.
PROTECTION FROM NORMAL MISSILES
Makes you immune to normal arrows, bolts, sling stones, etc. Handy at
first, but later the missiles shot at you aren't normal anymore… you
can find the scroll for this in a treasure chest on the first level of
Dragon's Eye, I believe.
SKULL TRAP
The "skull" thrown by this spell does not look like a skull… anyhow,
it's like a Fireball except for it only blows up when someone gets
really close to it… there are quite a few mechanical traps that release
this on the third level of Dragon's Eye, so be warned.
SLOW
Essentially the opposite of Haste. Those affected get slowed movement,
worse AC and attack roll penalty, all three very significant losses. If
someone casts this on you, Dispel it immediately, or you'll have a hard
time winning the battle… also, targets suffer a huge penalty to save
against this spell. Definitely a useful spell.
VAMPIRIC TOUCH
Sort of like a weakened Fireball, except for that it only affects one
target and siphons hit points drained to you… last longer than Minor
Drain as well. A great alternative to healing. Don't overlook this
spell.
4th level wizard spells
BELTYN'S BURNING BLOOD
Useless. Doesn't affect everyone, and while the damage is decent,
doesn't stand up to Fireball or Lightning Bolt. Do not choose this
spell.
CONFUSION
Makes your enemies act weirdly, either standing and doing nothing,
attacking whoever happens to be closest to them, or running in a random
direction. Confusing spell (no pun intended.) Okay, I suppose.
DIMENSION DOOR
Teleports your wizard to any location within sight. I might be missing
out on a use for this spell, but I find Invisibility to be a better
"escape" spell.
EMOTION: COURAGE
Gives you a small boost to attack and damage rolls, as well as a few
extra hit points. Not really significant, but against tough battles,
you might need all the help you can get. I'd rather take Ice Storm or
Improved Invisibility.
EMOTION: FEAR
As far as I can tell, this acts like Horror. Don't bother, since
chasing down enemies gets tedious, and fourth level spell slots are
precious.
EMOTION: HOPE
Sort of like the courage emotion, except for you get a morale boost as
well. I don't know if morale is even important for your characters, as
I never see a Morale Failure thing in the message window… anyhow, use
it like the courage version.
EMOTION: HOPELESSNESS
Makes targets stand still and do nothing while you pound them to
oblivion… I once got myself stuck in this and stood still for about ten
minutes. Funny, but annoying… probably the most useful of the Emotion
spells.
GREATER MALISON
I never saw a Lesser Malison… gives enemies a saving throw penalty for
a while. Again, sort of useful but do you really want to use up a
fourth level spell slot for this?
ICE STORM
Like a lesser fireball, except for damage is never improved. It also
looks cooler, in my opinion. Not bad.
IMPROVED INVISIBILITY
Same as Invisibility, but lasts much shorter. In return, though, you
can attack, cast spells, etc. and still remain invisible. Once you do
so, however, they can attack you, suffering a big penalty to their
attack roll (and giving you a substantial boost in saving throws as
well.)
MINOR GLOBE OF INVULNERABILITY
Makes you immune to 1st-3rd level spells. A good spell to pick, as quite
a few of the annoying spells (such as Magic Missile, Hold Person, Charm
Person, etc.) are in that level range.
MONSTER SUMMONING II
Summons more powerful monsters, just like its predecessor. See that
spell for hints on how to use this.
OTILUKE'S RESILIENT SPHERE
Traps the enemy in some sort of bubble which makes them invincible. It
also makes you immune to anything they do. Weird spell, but useful. Too
bad you don't get this until later, it would be great to use on
Yxonumei.
REMOVE CURSE
Removes a curse. Duh.
SHADOW MONSTERS
A lot like Monster Summoning, except for they have even less hit
points, somewhere like 20% of their real counterparts. Waste of time,
in my opinion.
SPIRIT ARMOR
Like Ghost Armor, except for now it's like Full Plate armor. However,
when it ends, you take 2-8 points of damage. I dunno. Take it if you
think you'll need it.
STONESKIN
Much better than the previous spell. Makes you TOTALLY invincible to
the next few attacks, as long as they aren't magical. Good for mages,
since they get killed so easily. You can get this in the Severed Hand,
I think. Don't miss it.
5th level wizard spells
ANIMATE DEAD
Summons extremely weak undead creatures to fight for you. Utterly
useless, since by the time you get this, they'll die quicker than you
can say "dusted bones."
CHAOS
Like Confusion, but the saving throw aisle is narrowed so not everyone
gets to save.
CLOUDKILL
Immediately kills weak creatures. Moderately creatures must save at –4
or die. Strong creatures merely take damage. Pretty good spell.
CONE OF COLD
Summons a powerful blast of cold air that freezes your enemies. Lots of
damage. For some reason, the game really slows down while this spell is
in effect. Still, a powerful offensive attack spell.
CONJURE EARTH ELEMENTAL
Summons a weird-looking earth elemental to attack your enemies. He is
really slow to attack, but deals lots of damage. Not a bad spell, but I
prefer Cone of Cold.
CONJURE FIRE ELEMENTAL
Summons a very un-fiery looking elemental to fight again. He attacks
quicker than the earth elemental, and deals good damage besides.
CONJURE WATER ELEMENTAL
Haven't experimented with this one yet… summons a water elemental
(duh.) According to the official AD&D rules, they can do huge damage,
but I haven't tried this spell out yet.
DEMI-SHADOW MONSTERS
Like Shadow Monsters, except for these "half" monsters are stronger.
Why, I don't know. Anyhow, they have about half the hit points of their
real world counterparts.
DOMINATION
A lot like Charm Person, except for that is lasts for a ridiculously
long amount of time. Heck, I once did this on an ettin in Dorn's Deep
and it followed me all the way until chapter five… fun spell to use,
and hard to save against too.
FEEBLEMIND
Basically permanently eliminates any spellcasting ability. You have to
get Heal to remove it. Really useful against spellcasters, for obvious
reasons.
HOLD MONSTER
Like Hold Person, but anyone can be affected. Only undead are immune.
Good spell, since it works on most things.
MONSTER SUMMONING III
Now the monsters summoned are a bit stronger. I think this is the first
time you can get bears, but I'm not sure.
SHROUD OF FLAME
A somewhat dangerous spell to use, Shroud of Flame sets the enemy on
fire for a while, one round per level of the caster. They get a saving
throw each round, failure resulting in decent fire damage. Anyone
around him gets hurt too. Use this well away from your party, maybe
against archers since they rarely move… might be handy against
spellcasters too, for the same reasons as Acid Arrow.
SUMMON SHADOW
Creates a shadow (not lesser) to attack your enemies. They're not that
strong and you can't summon all that many anyway (three at most) so
don't bother.
6th level wizard spells
ANTIMAGIC SHELL
Creates a bubble which renders you completely immune to any cast spell,
at the expense of you not being able to cast anything. Really not that
useful unless you're getting pounded by mages.
CHAIN LIGHTNING
A lot like Lightning Bolt, except for this hits up to twelve different
enemies, dealing less damage with each strike. Be careful though, as it
can hurt members of your own party.
DEATH FOG
Creates a powerful acid cloud which does increasing damage with each
round, and slows them down besides. Great spell, since the damage racks
up rather quickly… I think there's a trap that sets this off in the
last level of Dragon's Eye…
DEATH SPELL
Kills creatures. End of story. If they're stronger, fewer of them will
be affected. Undead aren't subject to this spell. The manual says
creatures so affected can't be raised. Not like enemies get raised
anyway…
DISINTEGRATE
Heh heh… a focused version of the above spell. Works on one creature.
If they fail saving throw, they die permanently. Really dangerous and
useful spell, and works on undead besides.
FLESH TO STONE
Haven't found the scroll for this one yet… the manual says it turns a
fleshy creature to stone if a saving throw is failed. Works on undead
too.
GLOBE ON INVULNERABILITY
Exactly like Minor Globe of Invulnerability, except for now the caster
is immune to 4th level spells as well. Useful for preventing those
irritating Static Charges…
INVISIBLE STALKER
Summons an airy creature to serve you for a while. Kind of like a
thief. Useful if you don't have one, useless of you do. Enough said.
LICH TOUCH
Nope. This spell makes you immune to paralysis, fear, and you can do
damage if you hit, plus paralyze. Sounds useful, but given how it's a
sixth level spell, there are better spells to use than this.
MONSTER SUMMONING IV
We're getting stronger… these spells are starting to be life savers.
OTILUKE'S FREEZING SPHERE
This shoots a ray, not a sphere. Funny how that works out. Anyhow, like
a beefed up Cone of Cold, but a successful saving throw negates all
damage. Kind of risky for that reason, but otherwise a damaging spell.
POWER WORD: SILENCE
Like Silence, 15' radius, but there's no saving throw allowed. If only
it lasted longer.
SHADES
The strongest of the shadow summons spells. The shadowy guys don't have
as many hits points as the real ones, but they're stronger than the
ones created by the others. Not bad.
STONE TO FLESH
Opposite of Flesh to Stone. That's all there is to it.
TENSER'S TRANSFORMATION
Whoa… turns the wizard into a fighter. Hit points are doubled, they get
an enormous boost to AC, and can attack twice with a damage bonus.
Definitely a useful spell. One of the first I ever used, in fact.
7th level mage spells (you only get one of these. Pick carefully.)
ACID STORM
This is a powerful spell. Enemies suffer big damage, and even if they
exit, damage continues… like a mass version of Acid Arrow. A good
choice.
FINGER OF DEATH
The caster gives the finger to someone, and they die of shocked horror…
if only. Nope. You point your INDEX finger at them, and if they fail,
they're permanently dead. If they succeed, they take damage anyway.
BEWARE OF THIS SPELL!
MASS INVISIBILITY
Turns a whole bunch of creatures invisible. Sort of obvious.
MONSTER SUMMONING V
Stronger and stronger… the duration seems longer too.
MORDENKAINEN'S SWORD
A long distance sword… deals damage around that of an Oil of Fiery
Burning, and can hit anyone within sight. Wish I had one of these…
POWER WORD: STUN
Affects someone with up to 90 hit points (current, not total.) The
lower the hit points, the longer they're stunned… I picked this spell
for my first seventh level.
PRISMATIC SPRAY
I switched to this soon after. Like a really powerful version of color
spray, but deals a ridiculous amount of damage, and a multitude of
other effects. Really great spell. Probably the best of the level.
8th level wizard spells (you can never cast these. Don't waste time
copying them, just cast them from the scroll.)
INCENDIARY CLOUD
Brings about a smoke cloud. At first, it doesn't do anything, but for
the next few rounds, it dishes out insane amounts of damage to anyone
caught in it. A useful spell.
MIND BLANK
Makes you immune to Charm, Domination, etc. I never found the scroll
for this, but I could see why it might be useful.
MONSTER SUMMONING VI
Really, really powerful creatures now. Winter wolves and such.
9th level wizard spells (see 8th level wizard spells for information)
MONSTER SUMMONING VII
Holy… I got three rhinoceros beetles when I used my only scroll, and
they kicked butt. Really wonderful spell. Lasts longer than the others
too.
POWER WORD: KILL
Kills any creature with less than 60 current hit points. No saving
throw. No possibility to survive. Death. This is the strongest spell in
the game.
1st level priest spells
BLESS
Improves your rolls for a while. Sort of like Luck, but affects
multiple creatures for a longer time.
COMMAND WORD: DIE
Though the name sounds powerful, all it does is make the target fall
asleep for one round. That is REALLY stupid. Don't bother.
CURE LIGHT WOUNDS
Cures a creature of eight hit points. Essential in the first stage of
the game, but later becomes useless as monsters deal out 20-30 damage
at a time.
CURSE
Enemies suffer small penalties to a few rolls for the same duration of
Bless. Not too bad.
DETECT EVIL
Very dumb spell. See the second level wizard spell of the same name to
find out why.
ENTANGLE
A less powerful Web. Entangle only prevents you from moving, and you
can still fight and casts spells. Good for skeletons and such, since
they are armed with melee and you can shoot at them for a while they
stand there helplessly.
MAGICAL STONE
Creates a projectile that flies forward and does damage. Works well on
undead creatures.
PROTECTION FROM EVIL
See the wizard spell of the same name.
REMOVE FEAR
As far as I can tell, this is the exact same as Resist Fear (a wizard
spell.) See that spell for details.
SANCTUARY
Like a limited Invisibility. While the spell is in effect, you get
ignored, and can heal yourself or Bless or whatever. Casting spells on
anyone (except yourself) ends the spell prematurely.
SHILLELAGH
Creates a green staff that deals okay damage. Handy in the beginning
stages, not so handy later on.
2nd level priest spells
AID
Like a focused Bless. Affects one person. They get all the benefits of
a Bless and some extra hit points to boot.
BARKSKIN
The target gets a boost to AC. It starts out as AC 6, and improves
every couple levels the priest attains. Doesn't last all that long, but
not too awful.
CHANT
Sort of like a Bless and Curse at the same time. It lasts longer, but
the priest can't cast other spells, and his movement is halved. Useful
if your priest is at the back of battle and not really doing anything.
CHARM PERSON OR MAMMAL
Exact same thing as Charm Person. Doesn't even affect other mammals
(I've tried it.) Good for the same reasons as Charm Person.
CURE MODERATE WOUNDS
Heals 11 points of damage. Slightly more useful than Cure Light Wounds
later on, but not by much.
DRAW UPON HOLY MIGHT
Grants you a +1 bonus to all physical ability scores for every three or
so levels you attain. Pretty useful if you have a fighting priest and
need some ability boosts.
FIND TRAPS
Like the thief skill, except for it lasts even when the priest does
something else. Always detects them too. The only thing is that you
can't disarm anything, so if there's an "unavoidable" trap, you're out
of luck. Trust me, take a thief.
FLAME BLADE
Only druids can get this spell. Creates a burning sword which does okay
damage… like a lot of low-level priest spells, it is good at first, but
later is too ineffective to be of any use.
GOODBERRY
Creates a few low strength healing potions. Actually, is they are all
taken at once, is heals 25 points of damage, but otherwise they heal
almost nothing to speak of.
HOLD PERSON
Exactly like the wizard spell of the same name.
KNOW ALIGNMENT
Extremely, totally not useful spell. DO NOT TAKE THIS SPELL. NEVER,
EVER, EVER. Did I get my points across?
RESIST FIRE/COLD
Gives a big resistance to fire and cold… good against Winter Wolves,
cutting damage in half. Combine this with Kaylessa's chain mail and/or
Mantle of the Coming Storm, and you'll be almost entirely cold
resistant.
SILENCE, 15' RADIUS
Good for spellcasters, since if they fails a saving throw, they're
helpless for a little while. Affects everyone within fifteen feet of
the center point, and after that stops.
SLOW POISON
Greatly slows poison down. A lot. If a low hit point character is
poisoned (say, in Dragon's Eye,) cast this spell on him and take him up
to Mother Egenia. Very useful for that purpose.
SPIRITUAL HAMMER
Sort of like Flame Blade, except for that the weapon is a hammer and
doesn't inflict fire damage.
3rd level priest spells
ANIMATE DEAD
Creates a few skeletons and zombies to help you out for a while.
They're really only good for drones for your foes to play around with
while you kill them from a distance.
CALL LIGHTNING
Calls down a bolt of lightning every minute or so. Can only be cast
outdoors. For that reason, this spell is almost completely useless.
Besides, few battles at all last more than a minute, much less outdoor
ones. Don't even bother.
CURE DISEASE
Cures a disease and restores a few hit points.
DISPEL MAGIC
See the wizard spell of the same name.
GLYPH OF WARDING
Like a weaker Skull Trap. See the wizard spell for details.
HOLD ANIMAL
Paralyzes an animal for a while. End of story.
INVISIBILITY PURGE
Removes all invisibility, unless, of course, they're under the effects
of Non-detection. Good in the first few floors of the Severed Hand.
MISCAST MAGIC
Spellcasters affected by this spell have a big change to fail their
spells, and is really good against Yxonumei and others. It only works
on wizard spells, though.
PRAYER
Exactly like Chant, except for now it lets the priest move normally and
cast more spells. Not bad.
PROTECTION FROM FIRE
Gives a huge percentage bonus against fire. Great if combined with
Mantle of the Coming Storm. You'll take practically nothing from spells
like Flame Strike and Fireball, making it good against enemies, or if
you want to cast this spell, feel free to do so, with your protected
character taking minimal damage.
REMOVE CURSE
Removes a curse.
REMOVE PARALYSIS
Removes paralysis.
RIGID THINKING
Exactly like Confusion. This is getting easier and easier.
STRENGTH OF ONE
Makes everyone's Strength 18/76. Good if everyone is engaged in melee
combat, which they shouldn't be. Lizard men are fond of this spell.
4th level priest spells
ANIMAL SUMMONING I
Summons a few weak animals to fight for the caster. The summoned
creatures depend on where you are when you cast this.
CLOAK OF FEAR
Makes you a very fearsome being. Anyone within an area of effect has to
save or run like heck away from you. Great if you're taking damage, but
annoying since you'll have to track the deserters down individually.
CURE SERIOUS WOUNDS
Heals 17 points of damage. Very useful.
DEFENSIVE HARMONY
Grants everyone a huge AC bonus. Use it in hard battles along with
Haste, and the odds will almost certainly be stacked on your favor.
This spell saved my life when I fought Yxonumei.
FREE ACTION
Makes you immune to Hold Person, Web, Grease, and anything else that
impedes movement. This spell has obvious strengths.
GIANT INSECT
Creates a big bug to scare your enemies. If someone casts this on you,
hope you have a barrel sized can of Raid, you'll need it.
MENTAL DOMINATION
Same as Domination. Don't know why they added the 'mental' prefix.
NEUTRALIZE POISON
Totally eliminates poison. Absolutely essential if you don't have a
thief, and even if you do.
PRODUCE FIRE
Blasts an enemy with a large fire. Damage is respectable, but can't
compare to Fireball.
PROTECTION FROM EVIL, 10' RADIUS
Eh, like Protection from Evil, but can affect all your party if they're
grouped close together. A good defensive spell.
PROTECTION FROM LIGHTNING
Protects against lightning for a little while.
RECITATION
Like a double strength Prayer. You can cast the two at once to get some
major benefits.
STATIC CHARGE
Like Call Lightning, but can be cast indoors. Very handy.
5th level priest spells
ANIMAL SUMMONING II
Like a more powerful version of the weaker spell, Animal Summoning I.
The animals summoned are a little stronger.
CHAMPION'S STRENGTH
Gives the target giant strength for a little while. Unfortunately, it
doesn't last much past one battle, and fatigues you as well. In
addition, no spells can be cast while in effect. An okay combat spell,
but has some serious drawbacks.
CHAOTIC COMMANDS
Makes the target immune to spells or effects that "command" you to do
anything. This includes sleep, charm, domination, etc. Useful for that
purpose only.
CURE CRITICAL WOUNDS
Really handy spell. Heals 27 points of damage. This may not mean much
to your fighter with 176 hit points, but for your 50 hit point wizard,
it can do a lot. If you have two slots, take this spell along with:
FLAME STRIKE
For some reason, the symbol for this spell looks like a cigarette.
Anyhow, it calls down a column of fire to burn the enemies for big
damage. A good spell for the damage, but takes a long time to cast.
INSECT PLAGUE
Haven't experimented with this one yet… it does only one point of
damage, but makes spellcasting impossible. Interesting. And if the
affected are weak enough, they immediately try to run away. Of course,
anyone would want to run away from the cloud, but this is forced.
RAISE DEAD
A very obvious and very useful spell. This returns a dead character to
life, but only at one hit point, so doing this in battle is likely a
waste unless you can pull off a quick Heal. It works anywhere, but a
scroll can only be used in the locale where the character died.
RIGHTEOUS WRATH OF THE FAITHFUL
Now that's a darn cool name. For any allies, they're affected as if by
and Aid spell, but those of the same alignments get a +2 bonus to
attack, saving, and damage rolls, plus an extra attack every round. One
of the best priest spells anywhere.
SPIKE STONES
Weird spell. Sort of like Web, except for that it does damage and
doesn't paralyze. Good for the same reasons as web. Only druids can get
this spell, I think.
6th level priest spells
ANIMAL SUMMONING III
Same as the other Animal Summoning spells, but is more powerful. A
little obvious.
CONJURE FIRE ELEMENTAL
Like the wizard spell of the same name, but fire elementals conjured by
this spell are stronger than those created by the wizard spell.
ENTROPY SHIELD
The ultimate in defensive spells, this gives a huge bonus to AC, a
saving throw bonus, a 50% resistance to almost everything, and TOTAL
invulnerability to missile attacks. Though this is powerful, I'd rather
take Heal.
FIRE SEEDS
Creates small grenades that you can throw. A good spell to use against
the dude in Lower Dorn's Deep after you get all the badges. The damage
isn't great, but it is quick.
HEAL
The best restorative spell. Completely eliminates blindness, disease,
feeblemind, etc. and restores hit points to their MAXIMUM. Is that
cool, or what? If used in conjunction with a Raise Dead spell, you can
get a character back into combat quickly.
SOL'S SEARING ORB
Throws a fireball at a target. When it hits, it blows up for good fire
damage and blinds the target besides. If used against undead… well,
just use it and see what happens.
7th level priest spells (you only get one of these, so choose
carefully.)
CONFUSION
Exact same thing as the wizard spell. In fact, it's the same as Rigid
Thinking as well. Do not pick this, unless for some reason you want
another Rigid Thinker.
CONJURE EARTH ELEMENTAL
Like the wizard spell, but the elemental conjured is stronger.
CREEPING DOOM
Whoa… this spell should be banned, it's so good. Creates a whole bunch
of bugs that kill anything not immune to normal attacks… great against
cyclops and their ilk.
FIRE STORM
A weaker fireball spell. Okay, but given the level, the damage isn't
acceptable.
IMPERVIOUS SANCTITY OF MIND
Like the wizard spell Mind Blank, with a more elaborate name. See Mind
Blank for details.
RESURRECTION
Probably the most useful priest spell in the game. Anyone resurrected
is instantly restored to full health, basically making it a Raise Dead
and Heal in one. Since you only have one slot for seventh level spells,
this is probably the way to go.
SUNRAY
If this were a lower level spell, I might consider it, but the previous
spell is a better choice than this one. Basically, a ray of light comes
around and blinds creatures. Against undead and fungoid creatures, it
deals lots of damage to those directly exposed and minor damage to
those off to one side.
SYMBOL OF HOPELESSNESS
Like a spread version of the wizard spell Emotion: Hopelessness. Not
bad, but again I would rather choose Resurrection.
SYMBOL OF PAIN
Makes enemies suffer penalties to their AC, saving throw, and attack
rolls. Not too shabby, but for the third time, go with Resurrection.
This FAQ was written in February of 2001 by the Last Avenger. Feel free
to use any information from it to help you in your game, but don't copy
anything! As of yet, this is only allowed on the following sites:
GameFAQs
Contact me at lastavenger@yahoo.com if you see this anywhere else.
Thanks!
Copyright 2001 by Karl Schaumann
By the Last Avenger (Karl Schaumann)
Email: lastavenger@yahoo.com
Date: February 19, 2001
Version 1.0
Hi, and thanks for visiting my FAQ. I wrote this guide, seeing that no
other site had one. Have fun!
SPELLS
Spells are an integral part of this game. I will list every single
wizard and priest spell here, with comments such as their effectiveness
(or lack of,) duration, and product.
1st level wizard spells
ARMOR
Gives you AC 6 for a while. I really don't see the points of this, as
it doesn't help much, but then again, 1st level spells rarely do. I
don't really recommend this spell.
BURNING HANDS
Really, really bad at first. You have to get right up to the enemy to
cast this. Even when you are stronger, it's more difficult because it
has a terrible range and the area of effect isn't so great. Still, it's
good for taking out multiple enemies (that are too close for Fireball)
and can do more damage than any other 1st. Until you reach about 6th
level, however, skip this spell.
CHARM PERSON
Haven't found the scroll for it yet… I think it makes a person obey you
for a period of time. This has obvious strengths, and could really be
damaging if you took control of a spell caster. It only works on biped
creatures of man sized or smaller though, and undead aren't affected in
the slightest. You get a saving throw as well to avoid the effects.
CHILL TOUCH
Eh, not so great. The spell is like Burning Hands in which you have to
get really close, and have to make an attack roll besides. On top of
that, the damage dealt is pathetic, and they suffer a –1 penalty to
their attack rolls. If they're undead, they run away for some time.
Bottom line? Don't bother.
CHROMATIC ORB
Really great spell… maybe better than Magic Missile… anyhow, it's a
guaranteed hit (unless the target has magic resistance or saves) and
deals increasing damage as the caster rises in level. Also, each level
orb has a special effect, also getting more powerful as the caster
rises in level. At first level, the orb does little damage but blinds
the target for one round. At second level, it does a bit more damage
and inflicts pain upon the victim. What they mean by "pain" is not
defined, and I don't have any idea what it does. At third level, it
does more damage and burns the victim for extra damage. At fourth
level, it does more damage and blinds the victim for a longer time. At
fifth and sixth level, it does even more damage and stuns them for
about twenty seconds besides. At seventh level and above, it does the
most damage (2-16) and paralyzes them for a minute and a half… haste a
Master archer and have him focus his sights on the paralyzed victim and
they'll live no more. The manual said it would keep increasing until
the twelfth level, but it doesn't… they must have removed those
effects.
COLOR SPRAY
Sort of like Burning Hands, but has different effects. If your caster
is stronger than the target(s), the latter gets knocked out, if they
are equally powerful, they get blinded, and everyone above that is
stunned for a little while. It has the same cons as Burning Hands… I
wouldn't bother if I were you. I think undead are immune to this spell,
but I haven't checked this yet.
FRIENDS
Utter waste of time. Do not start with this spell, and don't buy it
either. All it does is raise your Charisma by five or so points for a
little while. Hostile creatures are still hostile, though, and no one
frankly seems to care about how high your Charisma is (except for maybe
in stores; where you can save ONE gold piece on all purchases.) Don't
even think about taking this spell.
GREASE
Covers a small area in purple goo. Anyone (including your own party)
who walks over it has their movement reduced to practically nothing.
This can be good for stalling enemies, giving your long range
characters a chance to throw a few arrows or a spell, or seeing just
how slow an enemy can really go (rhyme!) This spell isn't bad, but
isn't a first priority.
IDENTIFY
This spell identifies any magical item in your inventory. Absolutely
essential if you don't have a bard, but otherwise useless. Still, if
you're in the middle of a dungeon, don't have a bard, and seriously
need a sword you KNOW is +3, this spell is for you. Like Grease,
though, it's not a top priority.
INFRAVISION
Another utterly useless spell. If you have an elf or dwarf or halfling
or whoever, turn Group Infravision on and save yourself a lot of time.
Don't bother with this.
LARLOCH'S MINOR DRAIN
Sucks a VERY small amount of hit points from the target and adds them
to your own. You can actually go above your maximum, but they disappear
after about a minute (of real time.) Not really useful. Stick with
Magic Missile or Chromatic Orb.
MAGIC MISSILE
In my mind, this is the best first level wizard spell (Chromatic Orb is
a so very close runner up.) It shoots purple darts that always hit for
2-5 points of damage. At third, fifth, seventh, and ninth level, you
get more an extra missile (for a total of five at ninth level.) This
spell is good because it does good damage and is quick to cast besides.
PROTECTION FROM EVIL
Gives you a small boost to AC and saving throws, even if the creature
attacking you isn't evil. Odd… anyhow, an okay spell I suppose.
PROTECTION FROM PETRIFICATION
If your party members are getting turned to stone, cast this on them
beforehand. A little obvious.
SHIELD
This is a good defensive spell. It gives you AC 4, 2 against missile
weapons, and renders you immune to all Magic Missiles. This is handy in
the case of fighter/mages who get pounded by Imbued Wights and such.
SHOCKING GRASP
Touches an enemy in a not-so-nice place. Just kidding, it creates some
sort of blue thing which zaps the enemy for 1-8 points of damage, plus
one for every level. Like Color Spray and its ilk, this spell requires
you to get up close and personal. Use this spell with caution.
SLEEP
Puts enemies to sleep for a while. Stronger creatures and undead aren't
affected. You get a saving throw to avoid the effects, and while it can
help reduce the scale of a battle, it only affects a few Hit Dice worth
of monsters, and it's really not all that powerful anyway…
Wizard Spells, level 2
(AGANNAZAR'S) SCORCHER
Great spell… shoots green fire at an enemy, who takes decent damage,
and anyone in its path suffers too. Once it "anchors" to an enemy (has
hit it once) it stays on to damage them one more time before vanishing.
Be sure that your fighters are out of the way, or they'll take damage
too. You can find this in Kuldahar in the mage tower or in the coffin
where the skeletal mage is standing in the first big battle in
Kresselack's tomb.
BLINDNESS
Haven't found the scroll for this one yet… supposedly blinds them and
gives them a huge penalty to their attack rolls. Interesting, but I'd
rather take a Scorcher. They get a saving throw too.
BLUR
When cast, the caster gets a very blurred perspective of things… it
actually causes his form to appear about six times to all sides of him,
giving him a large boost to AC and saving throws. Try casting this with
Mirror Image. You'll be happy.
DECASTAVE
Haven't found the scroll for this one yet… creates a magic staff which
can hit creatures. On the first hit, it drains a ridiculously tiny
amount of hit points and adds it to your own.
DETECT EVIL
More useless than Friends and Infravision, if that's possible. This
spell is a total waste of time. You don't even need it. Whenever
something approaches you, pause the game. If they have a red circle
under them, that means they're trying to kill you, and you should do
the same. If they're blue, they want to talk or otherwise parley. If
they're green, then that means you have a serious problem 'cause you're
losing track of your party.
DETECT INVISIBILITY
I dunno. Really not that useful, since most enemies aren't invisible
anyhow. Useless at first, in fact, but later in Dorn's Deep you can
detect some backstabbing (literally!) thieves.
GHOUL TOUCH
Like Burning Hands and such, Ghoul Touch is an up-and-personal type of
spell. If a melee attack hits, they get paralyzed for about thirty
seconds, maybe more. I'd rather take Chromatic Orb.
HORROR
Affects weak monsters within a radius, making them run for their lives.
Good if you're badly hurt, but otherwise pointless as you then have to
track them down. For some reason, this is the very first second level
spell you get.
INVISIBILITY
You can find this in Therik's tomb. In the room with all the coffins,
look to the north. A very small treasure hoard has this scroll.
Anyhow, it's pretty fun. You turn completely invisible (and obviously
silent as well) and is thus perfect for scouting. Alternately, you can
use this to hide someone who's badly hurt or set them up for a
devastating attack. Note that if you attack or cast a spell while
invisible, you will lose the spell. Otherwise, it lasts for a REALLY
long time.
KNOCK…
Knock, who's there? This spell unlocks locked doors and chests and
stuff! If you don't get the dude in Dragon's Eye, use this to unlock
Conlan's chest. Otherwise, this spell is kind of useless, as the
"really" locked stuff you can't open anyway, and the "un-really" locked
stuff you can simply force open.
KNOW ALIGNMENT
THE most useless spell in the game. Exactly the same as Detect Evil,
but now they get a saving throw! Don't even think about taking this
spell. Don't!
LUCK
.Gives a small boost to many dice rolls… doesn't last long enough to be
really effective though. Skip it.
(MELF'S) ACID ARROW
The parentheses are the "extras" that aren't mentioned in a walkthrough
(i.e. this spell will be listed as Acid Arrow.) This is a very handy
spell, close to Scorcher. It does small damage, then lasts for a while,
dealing more damage after that. Great for spellcasters, as it ruins
their rituals and poses and stuff. Also fun to use against orcs or
someone then watching as they frantically chase you and die before
laying a finger. Handy for trolls, too.
MIRROR IMAGE
Brings blurry copies of the mage into being. Every time you would have
gotten hit, an image vanishes, essentially giving you a grace period to
throw a Magic Missile or something similar. Combine this with Blur, and
you will have your next 2-4 spells succeed GUARANTEED! Seriously, this
is a handy spell.
RESIST FEAR
Lasts one hour game time. Raises your morale score and makes you immune
to one fear spell (Horror, Cloak of Fear, etc.) This isn't a good spell
to pick unless you know of someone (or something) that can scare you.
SNILLOC'S SNOWBALL SWARM
Behold, the ultimate snowball fight weapon! It's like a lesser version
of Fireball, but when used against fire-based creatures, it kicks butt!
Better yet, if you have a melee fighter with Kaylessa's chain mail or
Mantle of the Coming Storm, you can cast this in the middle of a group
of enemies, and your fighter will take less damage! Note that undead
aren't affected by this spell.
STINKING CLOUD
You can only cast this spell if your mage has a serious problem… thank
heavens it isn't so, because this is a very useful spell. Anyone
(including your own guys, unfortunately) must save or fall unconscious
to the floor. This does NOT work on undead creatures (I've tried) but
it does work to disrupt spellcasters and such. Once enemies are down,
you can hit them automatically. Same goes for you, unfortunately.
STRENGTH
Raises your Strength score for a little while. Pretty useless, as it is
only good for fighters with low Strength scores (which they should NOT
have.) Don't bother.
VOCALIZE
Haven't found the scroll for this one… anyhow, according to the
description, it negates a Silence spell. Good only for that spell,
otherwise I would presume it's useless… if you find it, sell it or
write it just for fun.
WEB
Many spider webs appear on the ground and entangle anyone who gets
caught in them… actually they get paralyzed, so you can pound on them
for a while… try using this in Yxonumei and attack her with fighters
wearing Rings of Free Action and you'll hurt her pretty badly. Handy
spell, and works on anyone.
3rd level wizard spells
DIRE CHARM
I can't really figure out the difference between this and Charm Person,
except that it lasts longer and the charmed will immediately attack
anyone who attacks the caster. You could just do the same with Charm
Person. A better name might be Improved Charm Person, just because it
lasts double the duration of the normal, and also the charmed fights
automatically (which is the only real reason you would want to cast
this spell…)
DISPEL MAGIC
Very useful spell. Gets rid of all magical effects like Slow, Entangle,
Cloudkill, etc. and if they're using magical items, it will negate
their effects for a little while. Very useful for getting characters
out of a status problem, since a good portion of those are caused by
magic.
FIREBALL
For some reason, the game lists this spell as FireBall. Don't know why…
anyhow, a really useful area-effect spell. Just a few more things would
make this spell perfect… it explodes in a 20 foot radius for HUGE
damage on anyone in the area of effect. Do not cast this on engaged
enemies as you'll hurt your own characters. Also, don't cast this too
close to yourself (the limit of your vision is a good starting point.)
If you have good distance judgment, you can catch enemies at the very
fringe while making your fighters outside the area of effect. You
absolutely must get this spell. It's in the snake statue with the
lizard king and his friends.
FLAME ARROW
Another fun spell. Deals anywhere from 5-30 points of damage, and most
of it is fire. Great for picking off trolls. It's also a guaranteed
hit. At tenth level, you can throw another one. Be sure to get this
one. You can get it in the Temple of the Forgotten God or I think in
the mage tower back in Kuldahar.
GHOST ARMOR
Creates weightless plate mail which doesn't hinder spellcasting at all.
Handy I suppose, but once you get Kaylessa's armor, it becomes useless.
HASTE
To me, the best third level wizard spell (Fireball is close, but has
significant drawbacks.) Doubles the movement and attacks of your
characters… cast this on someone with Boots of Speed and they'll be
zipping around the battle field so fast it's not even funny… also use
this on someone with a long bow and high level for six attacks per
round. This spell has great potential. Use it wisely.
Oh yeah, before I forget, once this spell is over your characters get
fatigued quickly. Still, this is a wonderful spell. I think it's in
Kresselack's tomb, but I would have to check that one.
HOLD PERSON
Paralyzes a few people for a while. At higher levels, they get held for
a ridiculously long time. This doesn't work on monsters that aren't
"people" (see the Charm Person description) and doesn't affect undead
either. Acolytes and Skeletal Mages are rather fond of this spell.
ICELANCE
A lot like Flame Arrow, except the damage is ice damage and stuns the
target if they don't save. Not bad, but I'd rather take Haste.
LIGHTNING BOLT
I have mixed feelings about this spell. On one hand, it deals lots of
damage (has the same potential as Fireball) and can hit multiple
enemies if you're lucky. It also bounces off walls and such. Once, I
managed to hit an ettin three times, and it died right there…
Unfortunately, it is horribly inaccurate. Most of the time, I'll hit a
single enemy before it bounces off some wall into nowhere. I definitely
would not take this spell if I just reached fifth level. Pick Fireball
or Haste instead.
MONSTER SUMMONING I
Summons VERY weak monsters to help you for a while. By the time you get
this, they won't be able to help you at all except maybe as fodder to
slow your enemies down. Grease does the same and I'd rather take that.
NON-DETECTION
Makes your characters immune to any Detect spell. I don't know if any
enemies even cast that type of spell, so I really am not sure… again,
stick with a more powerful spell.
PROTECTION FROM NORMAL MISSILES
Makes you immune to normal arrows, bolts, sling stones, etc. Handy at
first, but later the missiles shot at you aren't normal anymore… you
can find the scroll for this in a treasure chest on the first level of
Dragon's Eye, I believe.
SKULL TRAP
The "skull" thrown by this spell does not look like a skull… anyhow,
it's like a Fireball except for it only blows up when someone gets
really close to it… there are quite a few mechanical traps that release
this on the third level of Dragon's Eye, so be warned.
SLOW
Essentially the opposite of Haste. Those affected get slowed movement,
worse AC and attack roll penalty, all three very significant losses. If
someone casts this on you, Dispel it immediately, or you'll have a hard
time winning the battle… also, targets suffer a huge penalty to save
against this spell. Definitely a useful spell.
VAMPIRIC TOUCH
Sort of like a weakened Fireball, except for that it only affects one
target and siphons hit points drained to you… last longer than Minor
Drain as well. A great alternative to healing. Don't overlook this
spell.
4th level wizard spells
BELTYN'S BURNING BLOOD
Useless. Doesn't affect everyone, and while the damage is decent,
doesn't stand up to Fireball or Lightning Bolt. Do not choose this
spell.
CONFUSION
Makes your enemies act weirdly, either standing and doing nothing,
attacking whoever happens to be closest to them, or running in a random
direction. Confusing spell (no pun intended.) Okay, I suppose.
DIMENSION DOOR
Teleports your wizard to any location within sight. I might be missing
out on a use for this spell, but I find Invisibility to be a better
"escape" spell.
EMOTION: COURAGE
Gives you a small boost to attack and damage rolls, as well as a few
extra hit points. Not really significant, but against tough battles,
you might need all the help you can get. I'd rather take Ice Storm or
Improved Invisibility.
EMOTION: FEAR
As far as I can tell, this acts like Horror. Don't bother, since
chasing down enemies gets tedious, and fourth level spell slots are
precious.
EMOTION: HOPE
Sort of like the courage emotion, except for you get a morale boost as
well. I don't know if morale is even important for your characters, as
I never see a Morale Failure thing in the message window… anyhow, use
it like the courage version.
EMOTION: HOPELESSNESS
Makes targets stand still and do nothing while you pound them to
oblivion… I once got myself stuck in this and stood still for about ten
minutes. Funny, but annoying… probably the most useful of the Emotion
spells.
GREATER MALISON
I never saw a Lesser Malison… gives enemies a saving throw penalty for
a while. Again, sort of useful but do you really want to use up a
fourth level spell slot for this?
ICE STORM
Like a lesser fireball, except for damage is never improved. It also
looks cooler, in my opinion. Not bad.
IMPROVED INVISIBILITY
Same as Invisibility, but lasts much shorter. In return, though, you
can attack, cast spells, etc. and still remain invisible. Once you do
so, however, they can attack you, suffering a big penalty to their
attack roll (and giving you a substantial boost in saving throws as
well.)
MINOR GLOBE OF INVULNERABILITY
Makes you immune to 1st-3rd level spells. A good spell to pick, as quite
a few of the annoying spells (such as Magic Missile, Hold Person, Charm
Person, etc.) are in that level range.
MONSTER SUMMONING II
Summons more powerful monsters, just like its predecessor. See that
spell for hints on how to use this.
OTILUKE'S RESILIENT SPHERE
Traps the enemy in some sort of bubble which makes them invincible. It
also makes you immune to anything they do. Weird spell, but useful. Too
bad you don't get this until later, it would be great to use on
Yxonumei.
REMOVE CURSE
Removes a curse. Duh.
SHADOW MONSTERS
A lot like Monster Summoning, except for they have even less hit
points, somewhere like 20% of their real counterparts. Waste of time,
in my opinion.
SPIRIT ARMOR
Like Ghost Armor, except for now it's like Full Plate armor. However,
when it ends, you take 2-8 points of damage. I dunno. Take it if you
think you'll need it.
STONESKIN
Much better than the previous spell. Makes you TOTALLY invincible to
the next few attacks, as long as they aren't magical. Good for mages,
since they get killed so easily. You can get this in the Severed Hand,
I think. Don't miss it.
5th level wizard spells
ANIMATE DEAD
Summons extremely weak undead creatures to fight for you. Utterly
useless, since by the time you get this, they'll die quicker than you
can say "dusted bones."
CHAOS
Like Confusion, but the saving throw aisle is narrowed so not everyone
gets to save.
CLOUDKILL
Immediately kills weak creatures. Moderately creatures must save at –4
or die. Strong creatures merely take damage. Pretty good spell.
CONE OF COLD
Summons a powerful blast of cold air that freezes your enemies. Lots of
damage. For some reason, the game really slows down while this spell is
in effect. Still, a powerful offensive attack spell.
CONJURE EARTH ELEMENTAL
Summons a weird-looking earth elemental to attack your enemies. He is
really slow to attack, but deals lots of damage. Not a bad spell, but I
prefer Cone of Cold.
CONJURE FIRE ELEMENTAL
Summons a very un-fiery looking elemental to fight again. He attacks
quicker than the earth elemental, and deals good damage besides.
CONJURE WATER ELEMENTAL
Haven't experimented with this one yet… summons a water elemental
(duh.) According to the official AD&D rules, they can do huge damage,
but I haven't tried this spell out yet.
DEMI-SHADOW MONSTERS
Like Shadow Monsters, except for these "half" monsters are stronger.
Why, I don't know. Anyhow, they have about half the hit points of their
real world counterparts.
DOMINATION
A lot like Charm Person, except for that is lasts for a ridiculously
long amount of time. Heck, I once did this on an ettin in Dorn's Deep
and it followed me all the way until chapter five… fun spell to use,
and hard to save against too.
FEEBLEMIND
Basically permanently eliminates any spellcasting ability. You have to
get Heal to remove it. Really useful against spellcasters, for obvious
reasons.
HOLD MONSTER
Like Hold Person, but anyone can be affected. Only undead are immune.
Good spell, since it works on most things.
MONSTER SUMMONING III
Now the monsters summoned are a bit stronger. I think this is the first
time you can get bears, but I'm not sure.
SHROUD OF FLAME
A somewhat dangerous spell to use, Shroud of Flame sets the enemy on
fire for a while, one round per level of the caster. They get a saving
throw each round, failure resulting in decent fire damage. Anyone
around him gets hurt too. Use this well away from your party, maybe
against archers since they rarely move… might be handy against
spellcasters too, for the same reasons as Acid Arrow.
SUMMON SHADOW
Creates a shadow (not lesser) to attack your enemies. They're not that
strong and you can't summon all that many anyway (three at most) so
don't bother.
6th level wizard spells
ANTIMAGIC SHELL
Creates a bubble which renders you completely immune to any cast spell,
at the expense of you not being able to cast anything. Really not that
useful unless you're getting pounded by mages.
CHAIN LIGHTNING
A lot like Lightning Bolt, except for this hits up to twelve different
enemies, dealing less damage with each strike. Be careful though, as it
can hurt members of your own party.
DEATH FOG
Creates a powerful acid cloud which does increasing damage with each
round, and slows them down besides. Great spell, since the damage racks
up rather quickly… I think there's a trap that sets this off in the
last level of Dragon's Eye…
DEATH SPELL
Kills creatures. End of story. If they're stronger, fewer of them will
be affected. Undead aren't subject to this spell. The manual says
creatures so affected can't be raised. Not like enemies get raised
anyway…
DISINTEGRATE
Heh heh… a focused version of the above spell. Works on one creature.
If they fail saving throw, they die permanently. Really dangerous and
useful spell, and works on undead besides.
FLESH TO STONE
Haven't found the scroll for this one yet… the manual says it turns a
fleshy creature to stone if a saving throw is failed. Works on undead
too.
GLOBE ON INVULNERABILITY
Exactly like Minor Globe of Invulnerability, except for now the caster
is immune to 4th level spells as well. Useful for preventing those
irritating Static Charges…
INVISIBLE STALKER
Summons an airy creature to serve you for a while. Kind of like a
thief. Useful if you don't have one, useless of you do. Enough said.
LICH TOUCH
Nope. This spell makes you immune to paralysis, fear, and you can do
damage if you hit, plus paralyze. Sounds useful, but given how it's a
sixth level spell, there are better spells to use than this.
MONSTER SUMMONING IV
We're getting stronger… these spells are starting to be life savers.
OTILUKE'S FREEZING SPHERE
This shoots a ray, not a sphere. Funny how that works out. Anyhow, like
a beefed up Cone of Cold, but a successful saving throw negates all
damage. Kind of risky for that reason, but otherwise a damaging spell.
POWER WORD: SILENCE
Like Silence, 15' radius, but there's no saving throw allowed. If only
it lasted longer.
SHADES
The strongest of the shadow summons spells. The shadowy guys don't have
as many hits points as the real ones, but they're stronger than the
ones created by the others. Not bad.
STONE TO FLESH
Opposite of Flesh to Stone. That's all there is to it.
TENSER'S TRANSFORMATION
Whoa… turns the wizard into a fighter. Hit points are doubled, they get
an enormous boost to AC, and can attack twice with a damage bonus.
Definitely a useful spell. One of the first I ever used, in fact.
7th level mage spells (you only get one of these. Pick carefully.)
ACID STORM
This is a powerful spell. Enemies suffer big damage, and even if they
exit, damage continues… like a mass version of Acid Arrow. A good
choice.
FINGER OF DEATH
The caster gives the finger to someone, and they die of shocked horror…
if only. Nope. You point your INDEX finger at them, and if they fail,
they're permanently dead. If they succeed, they take damage anyway.
BEWARE OF THIS SPELL!
MASS INVISIBILITY
Turns a whole bunch of creatures invisible. Sort of obvious.
MONSTER SUMMONING V
Stronger and stronger… the duration seems longer too.
MORDENKAINEN'S SWORD
A long distance sword… deals damage around that of an Oil of Fiery
Burning, and can hit anyone within sight. Wish I had one of these…
POWER WORD: STUN
Affects someone with up to 90 hit points (current, not total.) The
lower the hit points, the longer they're stunned… I picked this spell
for my first seventh level.
PRISMATIC SPRAY
I switched to this soon after. Like a really powerful version of color
spray, but deals a ridiculous amount of damage, and a multitude of
other effects. Really great spell. Probably the best of the level.
8th level wizard spells (you can never cast these. Don't waste time
copying them, just cast them from the scroll.)
INCENDIARY CLOUD
Brings about a smoke cloud. At first, it doesn't do anything, but for
the next few rounds, it dishes out insane amounts of damage to anyone
caught in it. A useful spell.
MIND BLANK
Makes you immune to Charm, Domination, etc. I never found the scroll
for this, but I could see why it might be useful.
MONSTER SUMMONING VI
Really, really powerful creatures now. Winter wolves and such.
9th level wizard spells (see 8th level wizard spells for information)
MONSTER SUMMONING VII
Holy… I got three rhinoceros beetles when I used my only scroll, and
they kicked butt. Really wonderful spell. Lasts longer than the others
too.
POWER WORD: KILL
Kills any creature with less than 60 current hit points. No saving
throw. No possibility to survive. Death. This is the strongest spell in
the game.
1st level priest spells
BLESS
Improves your rolls for a while. Sort of like Luck, but affects
multiple creatures for a longer time.
COMMAND WORD: DIE
Though the name sounds powerful, all it does is make the target fall
asleep for one round. That is REALLY stupid. Don't bother.
CURE LIGHT WOUNDS
Cures a creature of eight hit points. Essential in the first stage of
the game, but later becomes useless as monsters deal out 20-30 damage
at a time.
CURSE
Enemies suffer small penalties to a few rolls for the same duration of
Bless. Not too bad.
DETECT EVIL
Very dumb spell. See the second level wizard spell of the same name to
find out why.
ENTANGLE
A less powerful Web. Entangle only prevents you from moving, and you
can still fight and casts spells. Good for skeletons and such, since
they are armed with melee and you can shoot at them for a while they
stand there helplessly.
MAGICAL STONE
Creates a projectile that flies forward and does damage. Works well on
undead creatures.
PROTECTION FROM EVIL
See the wizard spell of the same name.
REMOVE FEAR
As far as I can tell, this is the exact same as Resist Fear (a wizard
spell.) See that spell for details.
SANCTUARY
Like a limited Invisibility. While the spell is in effect, you get
ignored, and can heal yourself or Bless or whatever. Casting spells on
anyone (except yourself) ends the spell prematurely.
SHILLELAGH
Creates a green staff that deals okay damage. Handy in the beginning
stages, not so handy later on.
2nd level priest spells
AID
Like a focused Bless. Affects one person. They get all the benefits of
a Bless and some extra hit points to boot.
BARKSKIN
The target gets a boost to AC. It starts out as AC 6, and improves
every couple levels the priest attains. Doesn't last all that long, but
not too awful.
CHANT
Sort of like a Bless and Curse at the same time. It lasts longer, but
the priest can't cast other spells, and his movement is halved. Useful
if your priest is at the back of battle and not really doing anything.
CHARM PERSON OR MAMMAL
Exact same thing as Charm Person. Doesn't even affect other mammals
(I've tried it.) Good for the same reasons as Charm Person.
CURE MODERATE WOUNDS
Heals 11 points of damage. Slightly more useful than Cure Light Wounds
later on, but not by much.
DRAW UPON HOLY MIGHT
Grants you a +1 bonus to all physical ability scores for every three or
so levels you attain. Pretty useful if you have a fighting priest and
need some ability boosts.
FIND TRAPS
Like the thief skill, except for it lasts even when the priest does
something else. Always detects them too. The only thing is that you
can't disarm anything, so if there's an "unavoidable" trap, you're out
of luck. Trust me, take a thief.
FLAME BLADE
Only druids can get this spell. Creates a burning sword which does okay
damage… like a lot of low-level priest spells, it is good at first, but
later is too ineffective to be of any use.
GOODBERRY
Creates a few low strength healing potions. Actually, is they are all
taken at once, is heals 25 points of damage, but otherwise they heal
almost nothing to speak of.
HOLD PERSON
Exactly like the wizard spell of the same name.
KNOW ALIGNMENT
Extremely, totally not useful spell. DO NOT TAKE THIS SPELL. NEVER,
EVER, EVER. Did I get my points across?
RESIST FIRE/COLD
Gives a big resistance to fire and cold… good against Winter Wolves,
cutting damage in half. Combine this with Kaylessa's chain mail and/or
Mantle of the Coming Storm, and you'll be almost entirely cold
resistant.
SILENCE, 15' RADIUS
Good for spellcasters, since if they fails a saving throw, they're
helpless for a little while. Affects everyone within fifteen feet of
the center point, and after that stops.
SLOW POISON
Greatly slows poison down. A lot. If a low hit point character is
poisoned (say, in Dragon's Eye,) cast this spell on him and take him up
to Mother Egenia. Very useful for that purpose.
SPIRITUAL HAMMER
Sort of like Flame Blade, except for that the weapon is a hammer and
doesn't inflict fire damage.
3rd level priest spells
ANIMATE DEAD
Creates a few skeletons and zombies to help you out for a while.
They're really only good for drones for your foes to play around with
while you kill them from a distance.
CALL LIGHTNING
Calls down a bolt of lightning every minute or so. Can only be cast
outdoors. For that reason, this spell is almost completely useless.
Besides, few battles at all last more than a minute, much less outdoor
ones. Don't even bother.
CURE DISEASE
Cures a disease and restores a few hit points.
DISPEL MAGIC
See the wizard spell of the same name.
GLYPH OF WARDING
Like a weaker Skull Trap. See the wizard spell for details.
HOLD ANIMAL
Paralyzes an animal for a while. End of story.
INVISIBILITY PURGE
Removes all invisibility, unless, of course, they're under the effects
of Non-detection. Good in the first few floors of the Severed Hand.
MISCAST MAGIC
Spellcasters affected by this spell have a big change to fail their
spells, and is really good against Yxonumei and others. It only works
on wizard spells, though.
PRAYER
Exactly like Chant, except for now it lets the priest move normally and
cast more spells. Not bad.
PROTECTION FROM FIRE
Gives a huge percentage bonus against fire. Great if combined with
Mantle of the Coming Storm. You'll take practically nothing from spells
like Flame Strike and Fireball, making it good against enemies, or if
you want to cast this spell, feel free to do so, with your protected
character taking minimal damage.
REMOVE CURSE
Removes a curse.
REMOVE PARALYSIS
Removes paralysis.
RIGID THINKING
Exactly like Confusion. This is getting easier and easier.
STRENGTH OF ONE
Makes everyone's Strength 18/76. Good if everyone is engaged in melee
combat, which they shouldn't be. Lizard men are fond of this spell.
4th level priest spells
ANIMAL SUMMONING I
Summons a few weak animals to fight for the caster. The summoned
creatures depend on where you are when you cast this.
CLOAK OF FEAR
Makes you a very fearsome being. Anyone within an area of effect has to
save or run like heck away from you. Great if you're taking damage, but
annoying since you'll have to track the deserters down individually.
CURE SERIOUS WOUNDS
Heals 17 points of damage. Very useful.
DEFENSIVE HARMONY
Grants everyone a huge AC bonus. Use it in hard battles along with
Haste, and the odds will almost certainly be stacked on your favor.
This spell saved my life when I fought Yxonumei.
FREE ACTION
Makes you immune to Hold Person, Web, Grease, and anything else that
impedes movement. This spell has obvious strengths.
GIANT INSECT
Creates a big bug to scare your enemies. If someone casts this on you,
hope you have a barrel sized can of Raid, you'll need it.
MENTAL DOMINATION
Same as Domination. Don't know why they added the 'mental' prefix.
NEUTRALIZE POISON
Totally eliminates poison. Absolutely essential if you don't have a
thief, and even if you do.
PRODUCE FIRE
Blasts an enemy with a large fire. Damage is respectable, but can't
compare to Fireball.
PROTECTION FROM EVIL, 10' RADIUS
Eh, like Protection from Evil, but can affect all your party if they're
grouped close together. A good defensive spell.
PROTECTION FROM LIGHTNING
Protects against lightning for a little while.
RECITATION
Like a double strength Prayer. You can cast the two at once to get some
major benefits.
STATIC CHARGE
Like Call Lightning, but can be cast indoors. Very handy.
5th level priest spells
ANIMAL SUMMONING II
Like a more powerful version of the weaker spell, Animal Summoning I.
The animals summoned are a little stronger.
CHAMPION'S STRENGTH
Gives the target giant strength for a little while. Unfortunately, it
doesn't last much past one battle, and fatigues you as well. In
addition, no spells can be cast while in effect. An okay combat spell,
but has some serious drawbacks.
CHAOTIC COMMANDS
Makes the target immune to spells or effects that "command" you to do
anything. This includes sleep, charm, domination, etc. Useful for that
purpose only.
CURE CRITICAL WOUNDS
Really handy spell. Heals 27 points of damage. This may not mean much
to your fighter with 176 hit points, but for your 50 hit point wizard,
it can do a lot. If you have two slots, take this spell along with:
FLAME STRIKE
For some reason, the symbol for this spell looks like a cigarette.
Anyhow, it calls down a column of fire to burn the enemies for big
damage. A good spell for the damage, but takes a long time to cast.
INSECT PLAGUE
Haven't experimented with this one yet… it does only one point of
damage, but makes spellcasting impossible. Interesting. And if the
affected are weak enough, they immediately try to run away. Of course,
anyone would want to run away from the cloud, but this is forced.
RAISE DEAD
A very obvious and very useful spell. This returns a dead character to
life, but only at one hit point, so doing this in battle is likely a
waste unless you can pull off a quick Heal. It works anywhere, but a
scroll can only be used in the locale where the character died.
RIGHTEOUS WRATH OF THE FAITHFUL
Now that's a darn cool name. For any allies, they're affected as if by
and Aid spell, but those of the same alignments get a +2 bonus to
attack, saving, and damage rolls, plus an extra attack every round. One
of the best priest spells anywhere.
SPIKE STONES
Weird spell. Sort of like Web, except for that it does damage and
doesn't paralyze. Good for the same reasons as web. Only druids can get
this spell, I think.
6th level priest spells
ANIMAL SUMMONING III
Same as the other Animal Summoning spells, but is more powerful. A
little obvious.
CONJURE FIRE ELEMENTAL
Like the wizard spell of the same name, but fire elementals conjured by
this spell are stronger than those created by the wizard spell.
ENTROPY SHIELD
The ultimate in defensive spells, this gives a huge bonus to AC, a
saving throw bonus, a 50% resistance to almost everything, and TOTAL
invulnerability to missile attacks. Though this is powerful, I'd rather
take Heal.
FIRE SEEDS
Creates small grenades that you can throw. A good spell to use against
the dude in Lower Dorn's Deep after you get all the badges. The damage
isn't great, but it is quick.
HEAL
The best restorative spell. Completely eliminates blindness, disease,
feeblemind, etc. and restores hit points to their MAXIMUM. Is that
cool, or what? If used in conjunction with a Raise Dead spell, you can
get a character back into combat quickly.
SOL'S SEARING ORB
Throws a fireball at a target. When it hits, it blows up for good fire
damage and blinds the target besides. If used against undead… well,
just use it and see what happens.
7th level priest spells (you only get one of these, so choose
carefully.)
CONFUSION
Exact same thing as the wizard spell. In fact, it's the same as Rigid
Thinking as well. Do not pick this, unless for some reason you want
another Rigid Thinker.
CONJURE EARTH ELEMENTAL
Like the wizard spell, but the elemental conjured is stronger.
CREEPING DOOM
Whoa… this spell should be banned, it's so good. Creates a whole bunch
of bugs that kill anything not immune to normal attacks… great against
cyclops and their ilk.
FIRE STORM
A weaker fireball spell. Okay, but given the level, the damage isn't
acceptable.
IMPERVIOUS SANCTITY OF MIND
Like the wizard spell Mind Blank, with a more elaborate name. See Mind
Blank for details.
RESURRECTION
Probably the most useful priest spell in the game. Anyone resurrected
is instantly restored to full health, basically making it a Raise Dead
and Heal in one. Since you only have one slot for seventh level spells,
this is probably the way to go.
SUNRAY
If this were a lower level spell, I might consider it, but the previous
spell is a better choice than this one. Basically, a ray of light comes
around and blinds creatures. Against undead and fungoid creatures, it
deals lots of damage to those directly exposed and minor damage to
those off to one side.
SYMBOL OF HOPELESSNESS
Like a spread version of the wizard spell Emotion: Hopelessness. Not
bad, but again I would rather choose Resurrection.
SYMBOL OF PAIN
Makes enemies suffer penalties to their AC, saving throw, and attack
rolls. Not too shabby, but for the third time, go with Resurrection.
This FAQ was written in February of 2001 by the Last Avenger. Feel free
to use any information from it to help you in your game, but don't copy
anything! As of yet, this is only allowed on the following sites:
GameFAQs
Contact me at lastavenger@yahoo.com if you see this anywhere else.
Thanks!
Copyright 2001 by Karl Schaumann