Summon Beast

[MadDog]

For the Summon Beast spell, does the animal appear instantly at the casters side when summoned, or does it have to move from where it is to the caster ?

thanks,

Mad Dog

 

[Yogah of Yag]

The only thing I have found thus far states that the animal must be within one mile of the caster. Obviously it would then have to traverse the distance to reach the caster. (Core Rules, paperback ed., p. 312)

Addendum: If a turtle is summoned a mile away, expect a long wait. :wink: :lol:

 

[MadDog]

The problem if it works that way is that it only lasts 1 min/level which means the animal may not even be able to make it to the caster in time.

What about the white color of the picts summonings ? There cant be white animals hanging around everywhere.

Mad Dog

 

[Yogah of Yag]

What I would do (as GM of course) is to simply say that the beastie materialized out of thin air beside the caster snarling, frothing at the mouth and ready to pounce (the beast that is, not the caster). :wink: This is obviously more "cinematic" and exciting, although it clashes with the spell description.

I think what is meant that if the caster is in a particular environment, say the Vendhyan jungle (there used to be jungles in historical India. I know this for a fact. The word jungle itself comes from ancient Sanskrit!) then the caster may summon a beast which is plausibly of that ecosystem or environment, but not one that is from another. So a Vendhyan tiger (Hyborian version of a Bengal Tiger, perhaps) could appear, but not an Arctic polar bear, or man-eating penguin of Hyperborea! :lol:

I agree that there should be a more considerate rewrite of this spell in the future.

 

[MadDog]

I wonder if there will ever be a second edition, or at least some Errata PDFs ?

Mad Dog

 

[Yogah of Yag]

I wonder if there will ever be a second edition, or at least some Errata PDFs ?

Mad Dog

If Mongoose makes a habit of putting out addenda, corrigenda, errata, they will evolve (devolve?) into Wizards of the Coast! :roll:

I always say: Do it right the first time!!!

 

[MadDog]

If Mongoose makes a habit of putting out addenda, corrigenda, errata, they will evolve (devolve?) into Wizards of the Coast!

I always say: Do it right the first time!!!

Not to be too critical, but Mongoose hasnt done it right the first time (yes, the recent stuff is much better). You could do a lot worse than WoC with the FAQ and errata.

Mad Dog

 

[Yogah of Yag]

If Mongoose makes a habit of putting out addenda, corrigenda, errata, they will evolve (devolve?) into Wizards of the Coast!

I always say: Do it right the first time!!!

Not to be too critical, but Mongoose hasnt done it right the first time (yes, the recent stuff is much better). You could do a lot worse than WoC with the FAQ and errata.

Mad Dog

I am willing to be patient and give the 'Goose some room to grow and mature as professionals. But a little editing goes a very long way. Mr. Darlage has done a great job with Hyboria's Fiercest--I would give it nine out of ten stars, but (according to the author) there were some things trimmed out of the work (e.g. sample NPCs), and a few, small, forgiveable typos. The artwork is much more competent than that of, say, Free Companies. True, they are getting better as time goes on. I will be getting Aquilonia in a few days. I hope it is as good as I have heard.

 

[René]

The problem if it works that way is that it only lasts 1 min/level which means the animal may not even be able to make it to the caster in time.

What about the white color of the picts summonings ? There cant be white animals hanging around everywhere.

Let the time run from the moment on when the beast is appearing, i.e. not popping up from nowhere, but coming out from the bushes.

The white colour is IIRC something that radiates from the beast, not his true colour, but my memory may be wrong - I think it was in Beyond the Black River, where Zogar Sag summons his animal minions.

 

[René]

What I would do (as GM of course) is to simply say that the beastie materialized out of thin air beside the caster snarling, frothing at the mouth and ready to pounce (the beast that is, not the caster). :wink: This is obviously more "cinematic" and exciting, although it clashes with the spell description.

I don't want to intrude into your game, but I think the "out of thin air"-solution is more D&D than REH / CONAN.

 

[argo]

I too must vote againt the "materalize from thin air" explanation, that is so inapropriate for the Hyborian age.

I have the beast "emerge" onto the battelfield at the beginning of the caster's next round. How it "emerges" depends on the monster and the situation. A panther may leap out from behind some bushes or down from the concealing branches of a tree. Something like that.

Hope that helps.

 

[Yogah of Yag]

What I would do (as GM of course) is to simply say that the beastie materialized out of thin air beside the caster snarling, frothing at the mouth and ready to pounce (the beast that is, not the caster). :wink: This is obviously more "cinematic" and exciting, although it clashes with the spell description.

I don't want to intrude into your game, but I think the "out of thin air"-solution is more D&D than REH / CONAN.

After a moment of quiet reflection, I would have to agree with you all and retract my previous statement regarding "appearing from thin air." I guess spending several years studying the SRD has left an unsavoury aftertaste. I never expected to be nailed to the Tree of Woe for it. :shock: I've only been involved in RPG for four to five years total, so go easier on me next time. Now that I know of how great Conan RPG is, I will not have any interest in returning to the muddled gameworld of DnD.

 

[Raven Blackwell]

The way I have played it is that the animal must come to the caster at its own speed and manner- and then the normal one minute per level of Scholar duration of the spell begins. Seem to be an easy way to handle it and the caster has to put some foresite into what animal is called- the more abidant the animal in the environment about him, the sooner he gets it.