Death Armor

This spell surrounds the caster with a crackling black aura that injures any creature that comes into contact with it. Once the caster activates the spell's protection, any creature that strikes the wizard with bare hands or its own natural weapons must make a saving throw vs. death magic. Failure means the creature suffers 2d6 points of damage. The wizard sustains full damage from any successful attack.

Most normal animals and any monster attacking without weapons are subject to this spell, including humanoid creatures that choose to grapple, pummel, or overbear the caster. Weapons and ranged attacks inflict damage on the caster normally. Any number of creatures can be affected by the death armor, suffering the effect for each attack they make. Animal and semiintelligent creatures, if they attack at all, will usually abort a multiple-attack routine when they first take damage.

The death armor spell is a passive defense; the wizard himself must save against its effects if he tries to grasp or grapple an enemy. The spell ends after 1 round per caster level. A caster slain while wearing the death armor is engulfed in a burst of black energy; his next resurrection survival check is made at a -20% penalty.

Preparations: Any time within 8 hours of casting this spell, the wizard must spend two full rounds anointing his garments and body with a rare unguent worth at least 300 gp. Once the wizard has coated himself, the death armor can then be invoked at any time in the next 8 hours with a casting time of 2. If the wizard does not activate the spell's protection during this time, the unguent is expended with no effect. Notes: Restricted to necromancers; rare. (Updated from DRAGON Magazine.)

Type of Magic

Mage

Spell Level

2nd

School

Abjuration (House Quintus), Necromancy (House Titus)​

Sphere

Reversible?

No

Range

0

Components

Verbal, Somatic, Material

Duration

1 rd./level

Casting Time

2

Area of Effect

The caster

Saving Throw

Special