Air ideas - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Air ideas

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
drakerunner
Oct 21, 2003 19:13:51 Thinking of a way for an orbital base to gain air... drop ropes down into the atmosphere, since they have a minute air envelope, they should connect the two and give you fresh air.
#2
nightdruid
Oct 21, 2003 19:36:48 Base could also have a greenhouse with lots of plants to refreash the air.

The only trouble with the rope idea is getting that much rope...that'd probably (but not always) be several miles of rope :O Either that or a magical rope (there's a magical anchor in Wildspace that can be dropped from orbit and moor a ship to a planet hundreds of miles below). Could also use a magical device to create air, as per the spell.

:D
#3
zombiegleemax
Oct 21, 2003 23:31:27 Why not make a small open portal to the elemental plane of air? Maybe a series of portals that open and close continuously (might keep out some (definately not all!) of the weird things that might periodicly try to come through it!

I wonder...could it be possible to make an object not unlike the endless decanter of water? Except, air. Haha...I've GOT to give that out as a party treasure! Think about how useless that would be in most campaigns!
#4
drakerunner
Oct 22, 2003 8:03:21 Good ideas you guys. That magic item may be useful if it has a 3rd mode like the Decanter.

Man, I thought I was clever...

:feelstupid:
#5
nightdruid
Oct 22, 2003 11:58:51 It wasn't a dumb idea by any stretch of the imagination; afterall, there's no quarantee that the base would have access to said magic items. The rope idea was a good one for places that are more, mundane (aka not swimming in magic). There was only one small hole I saw with it, that being the rope needed to be very, very, very long. Otherwise, it was good :D
#6
nightdruid
Oct 22, 2003 14:02:14 Just wanted to add something:

The rope idea would actually be a great idea for a low orbiting base (say 1-mile above the atmosphere) for flying races. They could use the rope(s) to drop into the atmosphere, and then climb back up when they want to go back. All without having to use spelljammers what-so-ever.
#7
wyvern76
Oct 22, 2003 22:44:34
Originally posted by neverness
Why not make a small open portal to the elemental plane of air? Maybe a series of portals that open and close continuously (might keep out some (definately not all!) of the weird things that might periodicly try to come through it!

I was going to post a link to a website I know that had rules for more realistic physics in Spelljammer, which included a magic item very similar to this. However, I just discovered that the website no longer exists. Fortunately I was able to pull up a cached copy using Google so I could cut-and-paste the relevant rules (along with a couple of other nifty magic items). These are 2nd edition rules, but should be easily convertible to 3rd edtion. I especially like the rules for mishaps with the atmospheric refresher. :D

Atmospheric Retainer
Cost: Spelljammer's keel length x beam length, in gp.
Description: The atmospheric retainer is an extremely important device which generates an atmospheric bubble for spacebound objects. (Note that this device is built into most known types of helms and functions automatically, even when the helm is unoccupied. The device creates an ovoid bubble the same as the standard air bubble described in the Spelljammer Books.
The atmospheric retainer cannot refresh the air inside the bubble, and the air can easily be tainted by contact with the air bubbles of other ships. Entry into any planetary atmosphere will completely replace any stale or fatal air with fresh air.
These are also built by the arcane, but no wizard spells are yet known which can reproduce the effects. There is also a personal version, which is typically fashioned in the form of a ring, bracelet, earring, or other type of jewelry. This will provide air for any creature up to size L that can wear it. These cost much less, usually around 1000 gp.

Atmospheric Refresher
Cost: 75,000 gp.
Description: This extremely useful device quickly regenerates the air supply of spelljamming vessels, using a small, controlled 1-way gate from the elemental plane of air. Operating at the normal maximum crew capacity, a vessel equipped with such a device will never have to refresh its air supply. If a vessel's air bubble becomes tainted from contact with another ship, the air will become fresh again after 1 turn passes for every ton the ship weighs. Deadly air is upgraded to tainted after 1 hour passes for every ton of the ship.
These devices have drawbacks, however. Once per month, there is a 5% noncumulative chance that an elemental or other creature on the plane of air is sucked through the gate. Needless to say, the creature will probably not be pleased. The DM should decide what creature appears, and how hostile it is (if at all).
Once per month, there is also a 1% noncumulative chance that the gate drifts towards the borders of the Paraelemental planes of Smoke or Steam. If this happens, effects remain for 1d4 days:
Steam: Hot, thick, foggy air comes billowing through the device, completely filling the air bubble in 10 minutes per ton of ship. Anyone standing 5' or closer to the device takes 1 HP damage per round from the scalding air. The ship is totally obscured, and it looks like an ovoid cloud to observers. Vision is reduced to 10 feet, and everything becomes thoroughly damp (definitely bad for spellbooks, scrolls, and maps).
Smoke: Thick, sooty, smoke similar to that of coal-powered steam locomotives billows out of the device. The ship's air becomes tainted in 1 turn, deadly in 1 hour. When tainted, visibility is reduced to 10 feet, and 1 foot when deadly. Aside from the air and visibility, the smoke deposits soot on everything, making the entire ship extremely messy. Entering an atmosphere will clean the air, but won't remove this soot.

Artificial Gravity Generator
Cost: 100 gp per ton of ship/asteroid
Description: The artificial gravity generator (or "Gravitron" as some have called it), is a short, cylindrical device crafted of granite and shaped like a large hockey puck. They range in size from 1 foot diameter for elven flitters, to 20 feet, for huge asteroid stations like the Rock of Bral. The height is equal to 1/4 the diameter. On the top of the disk is a small dial, and an inscription giving the device's manufacturer and rating, equal to the maximum tonnage of ship it can supply gravity for. The device must be bolted to the floor of the lowest deck, and is usually built under the floorboards, with a hatch for maintenance. When the dial is first turned, it clicks slightly, and it generates a small amount of artificial gravity for the ship it's mounted to. If the dial is turned further (much like the way volume is adjusted on your radio), the amount of gravity provided increases, up to 5 G's (a wild guess, because I have no idea what would be reasonable--DMs, use your better judgment). A bit of experimentation will yield a result agreeable to the crew. The command word is then spoken, and the dial locks in the current setting, and can only be adjusted by repeating the word backwards.
When the ship enters a natural gravity well like a planet's, the gravitron automatically shuts itself off, until the ship is again clear of the outside influence. Note that other artificial gravity wells from other Gravitrons will not affect its operation.
These devices are always well hidden onboard the ship, and are often disguised by illusion if a ship-mage is available, as a boarder may cause total chaos if he knows the item's command word.
They should also be placed onto the critical hit table, listed as a "Gravitron Struck" critical. If this happens, the gravity is changed randomly, until the system automatically corrects itself 1d4 rounds later.
A Gravitron may be removed and replaced onboard any ship, although if two are mounted, only the larger will function. If a Gravitron is mounted on a ship that is greater than its rating allows, the device will function, but will only produce a small amount of gravity, with effects determined by the DM.
Permanent versions are currently built only by the Arcane, as usual, but other wizards may create temporary versions with the 4th-level spell "Gary's Lesser Gravitron" or the 7th-level spell "Gary's Greater Gravitron"
Please note that the Gravitron also acts as an inertial dampener, so that when the ship enters spelljamming speed, all the crew doesn't turn into (in the words of the ST technical manual), "chunky salsa." ;)

Celestial Scope of Sighting
Cost: 10,000 gp
Description: This device is a magically enchanted telescope, usually made from brass. When using the scope to gaze upon a distant star, a character with the space navigation proficiency (no more wildspace or crystal spheres) can determine the approximate distance between it and his location. He can then decide how many days it would take, based on the SR of his ship.

Copyright © 1997-2002 Alistair J. R. Young.
#8
sildatorak
Oct 25, 2003 3:09:16
Originally posted by DrakeRunner
That magic item may be useful if it has a 3rd mode like the Decanter.

I'd say that would be on par with a gust of wind spell, at the least.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 drakerunner Oct 21, 2003 19:13:51	Thinking of a way for an orbital base to gain air... drop ropes down into the atmosphere, since they have a minute air envelope, they should connect the two and give you fresh air.
#2 nightdruid Oct 21, 2003 19:36:48	Base could also have a greenhouse with lots of plants to refreash the air. The only trouble with the rope idea is getting that much rope...that'd probably (but not always) be several miles of rope :O Either that or a magical rope (there's a magical anchor in Wildspace that can be dropped from orbit and moor a ship to a planet hundreds of miles below). Could also use a magical device to create air, as per the spell. :D
#3 zombiegleemax Oct 21, 2003 23:31:27	Why not make a small open portal to the elemental plane of air? Maybe a series of portals that open and close continuously (might keep out some (definately not all!) of the weird things that might periodicly try to come through it! I wonder...could it be possible to make an object not unlike the endless decanter of water? Except, air. Haha...I've GOT to give that out as a party treasure! Think about how useless that would be in most campaigns!
#4 drakerunner Oct 22, 2003 8:03:21	Good ideas you guys. That magic item may be useful if it has a 3rd mode like the Decanter. Man, I thought I was clever... :feelstupid:
#5 nightdruid Oct 22, 2003 11:58:51	It wasn't a dumb idea by any stretch of the imagination; afterall, there's no quarantee that the base would have access to said magic items. The rope idea was a good one for places that are more, mundane (aka not swimming in magic). There was only one small hole I saw with it, that being the rope needed to be very, very, very long. Otherwise, it was good :D
#6 nightdruid Oct 22, 2003 14:02:14	Just wanted to add something: The rope idea would actually be a great idea for a low orbiting base (say 1-mile above the atmosphere) for flying races. They could use the rope(s) to drop into the atmosphere, and then climb back up when they want to go back. All without having to use spelljammers what-so-ever.
#7 wyvern76 Oct 22, 2003 22:44:34	Originally posted by neverness Why not make a small open portal to the elemental plane of air? Maybe a series of portals that open and close continuously (might keep out some (definately not all!) of the weird things that might periodicly try to come through it! I was going to post a link to a website I know that had rules for more realistic physics in Spelljammer, which included a magic item very similar to this. However, I just discovered that the website no longer exists. Fortunately I was able to pull up a cached copy using Google so I could cut-and-paste the relevant rules (along with a couple of other nifty magic items). These are 2nd edition rules, but should be easily convertible to 3rd edtion. I especially like the rules for mishaps with the atmospheric refresher. :D Atmospheric Retainer Cost: Spelljammer's keel length x beam length, in gp. Description: The atmospheric retainer is an extremely important device which generates an atmospheric bubble for spacebound objects. (Note that this device is built into most known types of helms and functions automatically, even when the helm is unoccupied. The device creates an ovoid bubble the same as the standard air bubble described in the Spelljammer Books. The atmospheric retainer cannot refresh the air inside the bubble, and the air can easily be tainted by contact with the air bubbles of other ships. Entry into any planetary atmosphere will completely replace any stale or fatal air with fresh air. These are also built by the arcane, but no wizard spells are yet known which can reproduce the effects. There is also a personal version, which is typically fashioned in the form of a ring, bracelet, earring, or other type of jewelry. This will provide air for any creature up to size L that can wear it. These cost much less, usually around 1000 gp. Atmospheric Refresher Cost: 75,000 gp. Description: This extremely useful device quickly regenerates the air supply of spelljamming vessels, using a small, controlled 1-way gate from the elemental plane of air. Operating at the normal maximum crew capacity, a vessel equipped with such a device will never have to refresh its air supply. If a vessel's air bubble becomes tainted from contact with another ship, the air will become fresh again after 1 turn passes for every ton the ship weighs. Deadly air is upgraded to tainted after 1 hour passes for every ton of the ship. These devices have drawbacks, however. Once per month, there is a 5% noncumulative chance that an elemental or other creature on the plane of air is sucked through the gate. Needless to say, the creature will probably not be pleased. The DM should decide what creature appears, and how hostile it is (if at all). Once per month, there is also a 1% noncumulative chance that the gate drifts towards the borders of the Paraelemental planes of Smoke or Steam. If this happens, effects remain for 1d4 days: Steam: Hot, thick, foggy air comes billowing through the device, completely filling the air bubble in 10 minutes per ton of ship. Anyone standing 5' or closer to the device takes 1 HP damage per round from the scalding air. The ship is totally obscured, and it looks like an ovoid cloud to observers. Vision is reduced to 10 feet, and everything becomes thoroughly damp (definitely bad for spellbooks, scrolls, and maps). Smoke: Thick, sooty, smoke similar to that of coal-powered steam locomotives billows out of the device. The ship's air becomes tainted in 1 turn, deadly in 1 hour. When tainted, visibility is reduced to 10 feet, and 1 foot when deadly. Aside from the air and visibility, the smoke deposits soot on everything, making the entire ship extremely messy. Entering an atmosphere will clean the air, but won't remove this soot. Artificial Gravity Generator Cost: 100 gp per ton of ship/asteroid Description: The artificial gravity generator (or "Gravitron" as some have called it), is a short, cylindrical device crafted of granite and shaped like a large hockey puck. They range in size from 1 foot diameter for elven flitters, to 20 feet, for huge asteroid stations like the Rock of Bral. The height is equal to 1/4 the diameter. On the top of the disk is a small dial, and an inscription giving the device's manufacturer and rating, equal to the maximum tonnage of ship it can supply gravity for. The device must be bolted to the floor of the lowest deck, and is usually built under the floorboards, with a hatch for maintenance. When the dial is first turned, it clicks slightly, and it generates a small amount of artificial gravity for the ship it's mounted to. If the dial is turned further (much like the way volume is adjusted on your radio), the amount of gravity provided increases, up to 5 G's (a wild guess, because I have no idea what would be reasonable--DMs, use your better judgment). A bit of experimentation will yield a result agreeable to the crew. The command word is then spoken, and the dial locks in the current setting, and can only be adjusted by repeating the word backwards. When the ship enters a natural gravity well like a planet's, the gravitron automatically shuts itself off, until the ship is again clear of the outside influence. Note that other artificial gravity wells from other Gravitrons will not affect its operation. These devices are always well hidden onboard the ship, and are often disguised by illusion if a ship-mage is available, as a boarder may cause total chaos if he knows the item's command word. They should also be placed onto the critical hit table, listed as a "Gravitron Struck" critical. If this happens, the gravity is changed randomly, until the system automatically corrects itself 1d4 rounds later. A Gravitron may be removed and replaced onboard any ship, although if two are mounted, only the larger will function. If a Gravitron is mounted on a ship that is greater than its rating allows, the device will function, but will only produce a small amount of gravity, with effects determined by the DM. Permanent versions are currently built only by the Arcane, as usual, but other wizards may create temporary versions with the 4th-level spell "Gary's Lesser Gravitron" or the 7th-level spell "Gary's Greater Gravitron" Please note that the Gravitron also acts as an inertial dampener, so that when the ship enters spelljamming speed, all the crew doesn't turn into (in the words of the ST technical manual), "chunky salsa." ;) Celestial Scope of Sighting Cost: 10,000 gp Description: This device is a magically enchanted telescope, usually made from brass. When using the scope to gaze upon a distant star, a character with the space navigation proficiency (no more wildspace or crystal spheres) can determine the approximate distance between it and his location. He can then decide how many days it would take, based on the SR of his ship. Copyright © 1997-2002 Alistair J. R. Young.
#8 sildatorak Oct 25, 2003 3:09:16	Originally posted by DrakeRunner That magic item may be useful if it has a 3rd mode like the Decanter. I'd say that would be on par with a gust of wind spell, at the least.