Working on a new critter.. and need some opinions on a spell effect.

[TheTSKoala]

So, here's my what I'm looking at.  Zone of Truth, but instead of truth, making it do one of the following effects:

+ to INT skill checks and spell casting.
+ to crafting.
+ healing / wellness of some sort.
+ Pacification.

The last one I'm having the hardest time nailing down to game terms.  I essentially want this critter to have an aura that makes everything around it not want to fight.  Anyone better at 'gaming terms' want to try their hand at wording that?  The other effects are just going to be number modifiers, those are easy.  Zone of Pacification though... blargh!

[MilitiaJim]

Zone of Pacification:  Everyone inside feels so calm, almost like something is suppressing their emotions. 
DC 10+threat level Resolve check or have disposition towards all things inside the zone improve to neutral.

Does that help at all, or did I misunderstand the question?

[TheTSKoala]

Actually, that's just about right.  My brain is still adjusting to FantasyCraft... so my wording abilities are still hampered.  

DC 10+threat level Resolve check or have disposition towards all things inside the zone improve to neutral.
Zone of Pacification:  Everyone inside feels so calm, almost like something is suppressing their emotions.  

DC 10+threat level Resolve check or have all dispositions towards all things improve to neutral while within the zone.


Minor word tweak highlighted in italics.  Essentially, while you're in the zone, everyone is at least neutral to everyone else.

[Mister Andersen]

You may want to look at the level 2 spell Calm Emotions.

[Gentry]

Can you fight in the zone (assuming you fail your save)? Or are you so calm/apathetic that you just can't get the gumption up to get it on?

You may be well-served re-flavoring a Stunning Attack (flat-footed, no actions), and giving it an area.

[TheTSKoala]

You may want to look at the level 2 spell Calm Emotions.

Seriously.. I scoured the book last night looking for a spell like that.  Deliberately.  The only spell I was looking for.. yet.. I still missed it.  *slaps forehead*

Can you fight in the zone (assuming you fail your save)? Or are you so calm/apathetic that you just can't get the gumption up to get it on?

You may be well-served re-flavoring a Stunning Attack (flat-footed, no actions), and giving it an area.

And yes 'can' fight within the zone.  Doing so would trigger the critters side 'b'.

[Gentry]

And yes 'can' fight within the zone.  Doing so would trigger the critters side 'b'.

Just so I understand what you're saying, let me rephrase my question with an in-play scenario:

My character's in the party that meets this monster.  You give us the box-text and we decide it's best for everyone if this creature gets dead, so we roll initiative. On the creature's turn, you say "It wiggles part of itself at you--make a Will save."

And I roll a 3, failing miserably. So now I'm affected by the Zone of Pacification. Obviously, my character is now affected by some mechanic that precludes me taking attack actions.

And now it's my turn in initiative. What can I do?

Is there an active area of this effect that I can exit in order to start making violent decisions again? If so, am I allowed to exit the area, since I'm doing so solely for the purpose of opening the option up for myself once again (i.e. Am I so pacified that I don't want to want to fight)?

Or is the effect duration-based and I can't attack anything regardless of where I go, until X number of rounds/minutes have elapsed?

Either way, if I'm still pacified when the beast starts to eat my head (i.e. makes a successful attack check against me and deals me damage), can I then move to defend myself by killing it before it can kill me (i.e. does this break the effect of the Zone)? Or am I so mellowed by the Zone of Pacification that I allow my head to be eaten?

There's no right or wrong answer, of course. I just want to make sure we don't start talking past each other, so you spelling out exactly how you want this effect to work will help us zero in on mechanics you can use.

[TheTSKoala]

A little more sinister and ALOT less straight forward.  Here's what I'm thinking.

A genus of plants that alter the sentient life around it.  Passively.

Red flower:  No one wants to fight.  Everything is peaceful.
Blue flower:  Everyone feels creative.  Bonus to crafting.
Green flower:  Everyone is ALOT more charismatic.  (Think Green M&M mythos)
Big Tree:  Boss.  Hive Mind of all the other plants.  Treats them like children.  Really tough fight if need be.

etc etc.

Now, if you go against these fauna's natural abilities, they get pissed.  So much so, they stop being normal potted, beautiful plants and become ravaging, savagely angry plant with a ceramic pot as a diaper.  When they transform, their auras stop, as they're now focused on killing whatever is disturbing it.

(Cross between Little Shop of Horrors and the critters from Pitch Black). 

[Crafty_Alex]

Beguiling works really well as a pacification effect. If you want people to "stand in place," using an extraordinary attack that inflicts entangled or slowed are both solid.

[TheTSKoala]

I really like Beguiling as a protective engine for one of their defenses.  Sorta like a Siren's song.. plant style.  Sorta like a Crowd Control plant.  When the garden is endanger, everyone sorta just stops what they're doing and stares for awhile... hmmm...

Here's my main idea:

Players come into a very serene town.  Everyone is polite, smart, charming and healthy.  ..a little too polite, a little too smart, etc etc.  Players need to uncover what is going on.. which is that these semi-intelligent plants have a symbiotic (almost parasitic) relationship with the town.  They make the town prosperous, peaceful, enjoyable and healthy while the town cares for them, helps their group (bouquet?) flourish and expand.  Everything seems to play out naturally, however, the town seems to have lost just a sliver (or perhaps more) of their free will.

The final scene would come down to the players vs. the Tree (Not a rootwalker).  Tree being a hive minded protector with reasonable, albeit floral, intelligence.  One helluva fight if the players try to brute force the campaign.  Thus the idea for a transforming plant.  If my players just try to burn down the group of flora, it'd be like pointing one Orc with a stick. ...in the middle of a legion of Orcs.

Oh.. and this is only the sub-plot.  The real plot is the temple of unnatural evil to the east.  This city just happens to be the player's staging theatre.