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Major Spellblights

Source Ultimate Magic pg. 96
The following list details some of the most common major spellblights.

Eldritch Cataracts: Each time a spellcaster with this spellblight casts a spell, her vision becomes fuzzier and fuzzier until eventually she is blinded. Each time the spellcaster casts a spell, she must succeed at a Fortitude save with a DC equal to 15 + the spell’s level. If she fails, she takes a –1 penalty on vision-based Perception checks until the spellblight is removed. Further failed saving throws increase the penalty by 1 until the character reaches a –4 penalty, at which point she becomes blinded instead.

Eldritch cataracts is a difficult spellblight to cure. Any effect that cures blindness reduces the penalty by 1. If the penalty is reduced to –3 or lower, any blindness is relieved until the caster fails the Fortitude saving throw enough times to bring the penalty back to –4. Reducing the penalty to 0 cures the spellblight.

Blind creatures and creatures that don’t use sight are immune to eldritch cataracts.

Nameless Dread: A caster with nameless dread believes strange beings from far dimensions or the blackness between the stars are hounding her and sapping her sanity. Every time the caster uses a spell or a spell-like ability, she sees a glimpse of her nameless pursuers. She must succeed at a concentration check (DC 15 + twice the spell’s level), or become shaken for 1 round per level of the spell. If already shaken, the spellcaster becomes frightened for the duration of the original effect or the duration of the new effect, whichever is greater. If she is already frightened, she becomes panicked (and cannot cast) for the duration of the current effect or the duration of the new effect, whichever is greater. Each time a spellcaster becomes panicked, there is a 5% chance she will become permanently insane (as the insanity spell, or the GM may choose a form of insanity listed on pages 250–251 of the GameMastery Guide).

A spellcaster suffering from nameless dread is particularly adept at wielding spells with the fear or chaos descriptor. When she casts a spell with that descriptor, the save DC for that spell is increased by 1, and she gains a +1 competence bonus on all caster level checks made to bypass spell resistance.

Spells that suppress fear work on nameless dread. Those that remove fear effects suppress the effects of nameless dread (and its benefits to spellcasting) for 1 hour.

Negated: A negated spellcaster has his ability to manipulate magical energies disrupted. He gains spell resistance equal to 10 plus twice the highest spell level he can cast. This spell resistance cannot be voluntarily lowered. In addition, anytime he casts a spell, he must make a caster level check (1d20 + caster level) against this spell resistance. On a successful check, the spell is completed and the spellcaster’s spell resistance is removed until the start of his next turn. Failure indicates he failed to muster up enough magical energy to cast the spell, but the spell is not lost and may be attempted again. Any feats or abilities that aid in bypassing spell resistance help with this check.

Restoration suppresses the negated spellblight for one day.

Obsessive Fixation: A spellcaster with an obsessive fixation develops a tendency toward repetition. This manifests itself differently depending on whether the spellcaster prepares spells, is a spontaneous caster, or uses spell-like abilities. When preparing spells, an afflicted spellcaster must attempt to prepare as many duplicate spells as she can, meaning she prepares two copies of each spell she picks, but cannot exceed her normal number of spell slots to do so. This need to prepare multiples (thus limiting her versatility) is the only effect. If the spellcaster is a spontaneous caster or uses spell-like abilities, when that spellcaster casts a spell or uses a spell-like ability, she must cast that spell again on her next turn, or becomes dazed for 1 round at the end of her turn. Once she casts two copies of the same spell in a row or becomes dazed, the obsessive fixation resets, and she can cast any spell she knows, starting the cycle again.

Obsessive fixation can be suppressed for 1 day with an effect that removes confusion or insanity.

Phase Blight: A spellcaster afflicted with spellblight fades in and out of existence. Each time she casts a spell, she phases in and out of reality for 1 round per level of the spell cast. While phasing, any physical attacks made against the spellcaster have a 50% miss chance, any individually targeted spell has a 50% chance to fail to affect the caster, and the spellcaster takes only half damage from area attacks. In addition, while actively phasing, all of a spellcaster’s physical attacks have a 50% miss chance, all of the caster’s spells that target creatures have a 50% chance of affecting the target, and all of the caster’s area attacks do 50% of their normal damage. Unlike when casting the blink spell, the spellcaster does not become ethereal; she blinks in and out of reality altogether.

Effects that block planar travel, like dimensional anchor, stabilize a phasing creature for the duration of the effect.

Spell Burn: Each time a spellcaster afflicted with this spellblight casts a spell or uses a spell-like ability, her skin feels like it burns, as if she were on fire. With a successful concentration check (DC 15 + twice the spell level cast), the spellcaster can ignore the pain of the effect, but if she fails, she is staggered for a round. While the caster is staggered by this spellblight, any spell with the fire descriptor that she casts has its saving throw DC increased by 1.

The burning sensation is a figment of the caster’s imagination. Spellcasters that are immune to mind-affecting effects are immune to this spellblight, and don’t gain the beneficial effect when casting spells with the fire descriptor.

Spell Sap: A spellcaster with spell sap is subject to blackouts when casting spells. She may become mentally locked, distant, or catatonic, or may even slip into unconsciousness. Each time the afflicted spellcaster casts a spell or uses a spell-like ability, she must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC 14 + caster level) or become dazed until the end of her next turn. If she fails the save by 10 or more, she instead falls prone and lapses into unconsciousness for 1d4 rounds.

Spell sap can be suppressed for 1 day with an effect that removes confusion or insanity.

Transference Block: A spellcaster with transference block has difficulty targeting allies with spell effects. Anytime she casts a spell on an ally, she must make a concentration check (DC 15 + twice the spell’s level) or the spell is lost.

Transference block can be cured by spending 1 hour in an antimagic field.

Vertigo: A spellcaster with vertigo becomes dizzy and lightheaded when she casts a spell. Each time she casts a spell or uses a spell-like ability, the world spins and shifts around her. She must succeed at a concentration check (with a DC equal to the 15 + twice the level of the spell being cast). If the spellcaster fails the check, she falls prone, and for 1d4 rounds takes a penalty on Acrobatics, Climb, Ride, Stealth, and Swim checks equal to 1 + the level of the spell. While the afflicted spellcaster takes those penalties, she must also succeed at a DC 10 Acrobatics check in order to stand up from prone.

A restoration cast on the afflicted spellcaster suppresses this spellblight for 1 day.