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From: jmd@inmet.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.games.frp
Subject: Re: Dealing with Illusions - (nf)
Message-ID: <1614@inmet.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 13-Jul-84 05:04:52 EDT
Article-I.D.: inmet.1614
Posted: Fri Jul 13 05:04:52 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 19-Jul-84 02:14:43 EDT
Lines: 36

#R:qantel:-14300:inmet:20400006:000:1906
inmet!jmd    Jul 11 14:25:00 1984

<What do you mean, this floor isn't real???>

I must disagree with one point that you make.  Your claim is that illusions
are sight-oriented.  The best-known spells, as described in the PH, are, 
indeed, sight-based.  This is why the AD&D illusionist is so poorly designed.
First, illusionists are primarily mind-control experts - creating an illusion
that you BELIEVE is so real that it can hurt you.  Second, this illusion 
usually has sight components, but doesn't have to to be effective.  It could
affect any one of the other four senses (or some combination of all of 
the senses) to have a similar effect.  This is where the AD&D illusionist is
so lacking in ability.  Why can't an illusionist create the illusion of the
smell of a dragon - strong enough to make you think that there is a BIG dragon
there - in the entrance to a cave that the illusionist is hiding in?  Why
can't the illusionist create the image of a Cloudkill cloud, along with the
odor of chlorine - so that even a stupid goblin who has never seen a cloudkill
would know that this is bad stuff?  Why can't the illusionist create an
illusionary texture - a wall perhaps?  Why can't the illusionist create a
meal that tastes increadibly good - even though it is laced with a strong
poison?

The answers: because the AD&D illusionist concentrates on the sense of sight.
This is such a gross waste of a such good character.  One must rememeber the
other spells that the illusionist has - they are more mind-control spells.
So, that would indicate that the simple illusions have a taste of mind-control
in them as well.

The illusionist character class in AD&D is a poorly thought out class.  It 
needs a major overhaul - not the attempted patches that have been offered
in the Dragon.  I have done so in my campaign - and boy is it better!

				<This is an illusionary signature line>
				Jeff Diewald
				{harpo|ihnp4|ima}!inmet!jmd