Akiro's Spell in "Conan the Barbarian"

[Spectator]

WHen Conan was at deaths door (0 hit points) after his crucifixion, Akiro summons spirits to heal him back to health. As you Rememebr Valeria and Subotai had to hold his body to prevent it from being taken to another plane (Hell, I presume).

Well, I got to say I really like the essence of that spell and I would wish to incorporate that into a spell list ( maybee Necromancy or demonology).

Anyone want to give me some bare bones on how they would 'stat' out the spell? Here's my guess:

Bring Back from Death's Door
School: Necromancy
PP cost: 12pts
Casting Time: 2hours
Range: NA
Target: One human
Duration: NA
Saving Throw: Special
Pre-Requisites: Master Words and Signs; Raise Dead; & Agonising Doom.
Nightime at an outdoors location. Perform Ritual:15 skill levels

Description: Character who suffers Massive Damage and uses a fate point to Stabilize himself, may be healed overnight to full Hitpoint and Health (including ability loss, detoxification of poisons, etc...). if a sorceror is able to bring him to an outdoor location.
Step 1: For 2 hours bind the target in embalming cotton, mumble incantations (ritual check) and paint cool looking sorcerous symbols on the dude's face.
Step 2: Bind subject to the ground (optional step; although highly recommended for later saving throws).
Step 3: Haul ass back to your hut on Stilts in the godforsaken desert while keeping the mumbling at a dull roar.
Step 4: Enlist silly nomad and hot Queen of thieves to hold the target down (don't tell them that they willl be scared out of their minds).
Step 5: Have whoever is 'holding' the target add their combined strengths. Make a strength check against a DC of 35 for 5 times (5 minutes). If the dude is bound to the ground they may add 5 to their combined strengths.
Each round the person(s) making the test must make a Will Check against 15, each passed will-check adds a cumulative +2 bonus. NOTE: Any failed strenth checks means the howling spirits take your companion off to hell, any failed Will checks mean you chicken out and runaway into Akiros hut. If one dude runs away at the 2nd to last round and leves the other person to Hold the body, then that person has to make the strength check on his own.
Step 6: Each person doing the holding may suffer 1-4 points of damage per minute (50% chance per minute per person) from the spirits getting Pissed and taking their anger out on you in forms of howling wind and debris slashing at you.


Ok this was my qwik and easy version, I'd love to see some other's if they are so inclined. I am not saying this is CANON, just something to fool around with so have fun, be constructive in your criticism and keep wondering about the Riddle of Steel.

 

[Lord Jolly the Scribe]

Sounds good. I would make it subject to Runaway Magic too though. But that is just me. Perhaps the demons were trying to take him before Crom to send him to the grey side.

 

[Krushnak]

you also have to have a person willing to be a sacrifice for the spell to work.

strength check of 35 seems alittle to over the top. i would randomnly roll to see which demon has come to claim the soul and have them roll opposed strength checks against the characters and all add their MAB to the rolls.

also pp cost should be really high like base 10 +1 pp for every hp you want to increase above 0 and +2 for every ability score you wish to gain back for the target.

 

[The King]

I consider essentially this spell as a variation of restore life with other means.

 

[kintire]

Why is Agonising Doom a prerequisite? Akiro showed no signs of knowing such a devastating spell in the tombs battle... he used a spear (really really badly...). I think this is basically raise dead with some wierd extra effects

 

[slaughterj]

How about Nature Magic rather than Necromancy? I don't see Akiro being a necromancer, and nature seems like a reasonable fit.

 

[kintire]

How about Nature Magic rather than Necromancy? I don't see Akiro being a necromancer, and nature seems like a reasonable fit.

Yes, I think thats a good idea. The requirement for someone else to die so that the subject may live fits a preserving the natural order view well.

 

[Bregales]

By the way, this question has been asked about a dozen times on this forum. Last time it was asked, Vincent Darlage wrote back that Conan WASN'T DEAD. So he wasn't raised from the dead because he wasn't dead to begin with.

This scene was stolen from the Howard story "A Witch Shall Be Born" with some notable differences:
1)Conan was crucified to a tree outside the city gates in the desert
2)Kozaki ride up and decide to free him (if he lives he's worth it) so they get out an axe (IIRC) and chop down the cross, a bandit pries a stake from one arm and Conan, agonized over the man's poor use of pincers, grabs the device and pries his other mangled hand free I(and legs IIRC). He staggers over to a horse, gets up and rides off.
Similarities:
1)Crucified (cross, not tree, but still the same)
2)Vulture lands on him and starts biting, whereat Conan bites the head of the bird and drinks it's salty blood

In the story, the scene ends and we next hear of him a long time later, after he has recovered his strength and his wounds became scars.

Anyways, back to the magic discussion.

 

[Yogah of Yag]

Bring Back from Death's Door
School: Necromancy
PP cost: 12pts
Casting Time: 2hours
Range: NA
Target: One human
Duration: NA
Saving Throw: Special
Pre-Requisites: Master Words and Signs; Raise Dead; & Agonising Doom.
Nightime at an outdoors location. Perform Ritual:15 skill levels

Description: Character who suffers Massive Damage and uses a fate point to Stabilize himself, may be healed overnight to full Hitpoint and Health (including ability loss, detoxification of poisons, etc...). if a sorceror is able to bring him to an outdoor location.
Step 1: For 2 hours bind the target in embalming cotton, mumble incantations (ritual check) and paint cool looking sorcerous symbols on the dude's face.
Step 2: Bind subject to the ground (optional step; although highly recommended for later saving throws).
Step 3: Haul ass back to your hut on Stilts in the godforsaken desert while keeping the mumbling at a dull roar.
Step 4: Enlist silly nomad and hot Queen of thieves to hold the target down (don't tell them that they willl be scared out of their minds).
Step 5: Have whoever is 'holding' the target add their combined strengths. Make a strength check against a DC of 35 for 5 times (5 minutes). If the dude is bound to the ground they may add 5 to their combined strengths.
Each round the person(s) making the test must make a Will Check against 15, each passed will-check adds a cumulative +2 bonus. NOTE: Any failed strenth checks means the howling spirits take your companion off to hell, any failed Will checks mean you chicken out and runaway into Akiros hut. If one dude runs away at the 2nd to last round and leves the other person to Hold the body, then that person has to make the strength check on his own.
Step 6: Each person doing the holding may suffer 1-4 points of damage per minute (50% chance per minute per person) from the spirits getting Pissed and taking their anger out on you in forms of howling wind and debris slashing at you.


Ok this was my qwik and easy version, I'd love to see some other's if they are so inclined. I am not saying this is CANON, just something to fool around with so have fun, be constructive in your criticism and keep wondering about the Riddle of Steel.

I wouldn't say DC 35, I would require a combined Strength of 35. If both Subotai and Valeria have a Str of 17 (I'm being very generous for both of them!) then their combined Str is of course 34. I don't know if the +2 aid another feature is an option here...?
Really we are talking about an opposed grapple check vs. the 'spirit-beings', so these critters would have to be statted out first to make them an actual force/opponent to be reckoned with. They are 'ethereal', non-corporeal but can obviously affect physical objects (i.e. sleeping Ahnold). How does the story of the movie tie-in book describe this scene?

I know this is probably heresy, but maybe we should open a new thread for "CONAN THE BARBARIAN, The Movie: stats and things."
*Hides his face from the barrage of rotten vegetables*

 

[Bregales]

While that thread title hasn't been used (and I think it's a good idea), I quickly found these threads all about Akiro using that spell:

• Demonstrating the usefulness of Scholars
• Akiro
• The Sorceror from Conan the Barbarian

So this should help.

 

[Yogah of Yag]

One way to educate people as to the deeply fundamental differences between the real REH Conan and the Milius proto-samurai, meek, slave-boy Conan of the movie would be to stat out the latter competently. That could be the ideal starting-point for the proposed thread.
*Ducks vegetables and vorpal rabbits*

 

[urdinaran]

Yeah, I too am in wonder why peeps insist on statting things out from the movie when we have all this great stuff from REH, the REAL DEAL.

 

[Spectator]

Well I got to admit, statting out is fun thing to do in your spare time.
I recently did a 'stat' on Akiro as a 13th level scholar and Salome', also as a 13th level bad A$$ biotch.

I'll stat anything right now since I don't have a roleplaying cadre to game with, plus I never really had a fun experience gaming with my poor decision choics, bad rolls, and sadistic Dungeon Mistress 10 years ago.

Hmm.......
To respond to the inquiries:
A. Yep I totally agree and meant to say a COMBINED STRENGTH check of 35. Obviously the more the merrier, however I would put a special rule that more than 3 people on the body would scare the spirits away from retrieving their goal. So if you put a whole bunc of mooks on the body, the spellis wasted. the spirits know they wont succeed (possibly) and your 12 points is wasted and you homeboy has wasted another fatepoint.

B. Nature magic vs. Necromancy. Good call, I personally have a lot of spells statted out already for Nature magic (a lot pilfered and modified and CONAN-ized from DeedleDee, so they wont overpour). Natue magic is such a broad spectrum and since the spirits were somewhat demonic looking, I wanted to keep it on the dark side of magic. I made Masterwords and Signs a Pre-req since it requires 12th level casting and essentially a non-corrupt sorceror. I put in Agonising doom, well cuz I really liked the mental image of the spell with its 'Dark tendrils of Power' and seemed very fitting in the way the spooky spirits trailed off in their smoky tendrils at their wastes.


C. As for higher Powerpoints to cast the spell, well sure thats fine, I kept them kinda low, since there is so much crap you have to with the spell to make it work, I did not think making a BPP uber amount requirement a necessary thing. Very similar to the spell with the cobras in jars and the elaborate set-up (the name escape me, right now); the more elaborate, the less raw BPP you need to use.

Once again thanks guys for your constructive criticism and sure why not continue to stat out Akiro's spells

 

[kintire]

By the way, this question has been asked about a dozen times on this forum. Last time it was asked, Vincent Darlage wrote back that Conan WASN'T DEAD. So he wasn't raised from the dead because he wasn't dead to begin with.

He looked pretty dead to me. At the very least, he was beyond help.

This scene was stolen from the Howard story "A Witch Shall Be Born"

The scene we are discussing; the spell that restores Conan, is afaik original to the film. The preceeding crucifixion scene is from WSBB

 

[The King]

By the way, this question has been asked about a dozen times on this forum. Last time it was asked, Vincent Darlage wrote back that Conan WASN'T DEAD. So he wasn't raised from the dead because he wasn't dead to begin with.

Technically, I don't see much difference between -1HP and -10HP (or even beyond).

 

[Bregales]

By the way, this question has been asked about a dozen times on this forum. Last time it was asked, Vincent Darlage wrote back that Conan WASN'T DEAD. So he wasn't raised from the dead because he wasn't dead to begin with.

Technically, I don't see much difference between -1HP and -10HP (or even beyond).

Well, for one thing, people who aren't dead yet and whose wounds aren't aggravated can regain hit points (helped when drinking that wonderful wine). Then there's the use of a Fate Point allowing for Left for Dead.

Using damage rules for this game system, anyone at -1 hp or worse can keep losing hit points on his initiative until he stabilizes. Then unless his wounds are aggravated (he takes another hp or does something ridiculous) he heals naturally. The Conan rpg allows faster healing than the deedle dee system it's based on, in part due to the harshness of people written about by REH, partly in game terms as there are no clerics to cast millions of cure spells to instantly restore people. Once you hit -10hp you're irresistably, irrevocably dead, kaput, nunca, nada, nil, vertoten. Dead dead dead. Roll up a new character.

(Okay, I just started re-reading the AE rules last night and I'm only half way through the racial descriptions, but as we may start a new group out in January I'm trying to keep a more active eye on these boards, and at times I either overspeak or make a fool of myself, but it's all in fun )

 

[The King]

This negative HP status is a curious status indeed. It is only in this state that the great heroes can see the Valkyries of Valhalla. (or so the legend at least).

 

[Bregales]

One could argue that's when they see Atali as well... :twisted:

 

[The King]

One could argue that's when they see Atali as well... :twisted:

yes that's exactly what (or whom) I thought about for Conan, as he was in a state of near-death when he recovers.