Kill all the Wraith-men...

[Dr Divago]

Sanctify Weapons (FHG 251) make a weapon "sacred"; so today my group's fighter (with glaive, high str and a couple of CSL) could be able to kill a wraith with a single hit (well, two to be honest but he almost killed it in the first round :cool: )

am i wrong and the spell is completely useless?
or am i right and this almost-useless spell can overcome one of most powerfull undead's most powerfull defense?
or just somethig between (like: he can harm undead but does minimal damage, or can harm undead but doesonly 1 body, etc)?

ty for answer :)

[Tandem Esk]

The spell only works on critters Susceptible to "holy-ocity". I can't find wraiths in HS Beastiary. Where'd you get them?

Remember, Susceptibility only does STUN. No BODY. If the PC can take out a critter by adding 1 or 2 or 3 dice of STUN, with almost-one hit, he probably doesn't need the blessing, much.

If you goofed and did 1 or 2 or 3 dice of Killing Damage, that would mean he needed the blessing. It also means you got to go back to the players and say "Ooops! OK, now on, that blessing only does the damage it was supposed to. Sorry for getting it wrong." If your players are good folx, they'll understand. If they whine/throw fits/complain, they're bad players and no friends.

[AmadanNaBriona]

Wraiths are in Monsters, Minions & Marauders.

No special weaknesses to Holy anything by the write up, but their Desolid is hit by "magic" so I'd say a weapon that had had "Sanctify" cast on it would count.

If your fighter waltzed over it like that, then he played it well or the Wraith/GM was overconfident. It's even noted in the write up that their big weakness is a lack of Resistant defenses, and their tendency to withdraw if threatened with foes who can harm them.
A fairly normal fighter type might have problems with a foe who can summon darkness, scares the bejebburs out of you (45 Offensive PRE), drains your lifeforce and vitality with a touch, moves quickly (21 dex, 4 speed) and flies, even if he can hurt it.
I don't have the FHG, but if the wraith can tell with any of it's spooky senses that the weapon is Holy, it's not gonna stand there and just take the shot.

Edit: Also... there's nothing saying you can't have a wraith pull a Nazgul and wear some armor. Spectral black iron with spiky bits & gothic fluting seems to be the usual fashion of the day for wraith armor styles. Oh, and tattered maile.
I'd be a sport and build it something like this:
10 Ancient and Ornate Burial Armor +8 PD +8ED Armor (24 points), Partial Coverage/Activation Roll 14- (-1/2: I'd use locations only for the armor, but a roll works just as well for a critter with No Hit Locations), Ablative (-1: attacks that penetrate the armor decrease the activation roll, this was to somewhat replace a Focus Limitation, which doesn't really feel right for a permanently Desolid critter, and rather give a "feel" of smashing off bits of the Wraiths armor as you fight it, because I imagine the main thing this armor has going for it is that it's desolid.... once a weapon can hit it it's just baroque and somewhat crumbling ceremonial armor)

[Tandem Esk]

Wraiths are in Monsters, Minions & Marauders.
Thanks! :)


No special weaknesses to Holy anything by the write up, but their Desolid is hit by "magic" so I'd say a weapon that had had "Sanctify" cast on it would count.
Hmm... That's a puzzle. :think:

One hand, yeah it sounds like the weapon's now "magikal." Other hand, the "Sanctify Weapon" spell specially says its for "...exploit the Susceptibility to holy objects that most infernal beings, and even some forms of undead, possess." So your stretching the spell for something it doesn't say it can be used for.

:think: :think:
I know! Let the GM decide! :winkgrin:

[AmadanNaBriona]

Thanks! :)


Hmm... That's a puzzle. :think:

One hand, yeah it sounds like the weapon's now "magikal." Other hand, the "Sanctify Weapon" spell specially says its for "...exploit the Susceptibility to holy objects that most infernal beings, and even some forms of undead, possess." So your stretching the spell for something it doesn't say it can be used for.

:think: :think:
I know! Let the GM decide! :winkgrin:
Well, that's ALWAYS the right answer. ;)

IMO, it's not so much stretching the spell as looking at the SFX to which the Wraith's desolidification is vulnerable. "Magic" is a huge category.
I'm presuming Sanctify Weapon is a Spiritual Transformation that makes a weapon "holy" for purposes of triggering Vunerabilities, Susceptiblities, and Limitations related to such. The Wraith as written has none, but the weapon hitting it is still "magic", unless you consider deity style miracles a separate effect from Magic. Pretty much any weapon buffing type spells are going to also count as magic for purposes of hitting here, like a Paladin's Smite Evil Deadly Blow ability.

Wraiths don't really need a weakness to Holy stuff because they already have a huge hole in their defenses against an overarching special effect that in many cases also includes the Holy FX under it's umbrella.

[Hugh Neilson]

One reasonable interpretation would be that the ineffectiveness of the Wraith's desolidification against magic allows only the magical damage to pass through.

A spell inflicting a 2d6 RKA would have full effect.

A Sharpening spell that adds 1 DC, applies to a 2d6 Greatsword wielded by a skilled, high STR user who would do 4d6 HKA with no enhancement, or 4 1/2d6 with the magical enhancement does either 1 point (just the enhancement itself) or 1/2d6 (the magical HKA enhancement augmented by STR/Skill), but the base damage of the weapon is not magical and does not work.

The Sanctify weapon makes it holy, but adds no damage, so the wraith is unaffected (or, perhaps, is made uncomfortable by the weapon due to its SFX).

[Dr Divago]

Well, to be honest damaging a wraith is no really a problem (can cast darkness, can fly, drain body and stun and can desol into solid object still "seeing" life energy and jump sneak attacking :cool: )

just i stated "ok now the weapon is magic so can damage someone with `desolidification, damaged by magic`";
then i thought:
The Sanctify weapon makes it holy, but adds no damage, so the wraith is unaffected (or, perhaps, is made uncomfortable by the weapon due to its SFX).
this is what i thought: sanctify weapon make weapon damage "holy" just to trigger vulnerabilities and like; btw adds no damage...

and then i feared "oh my god... maybe i did somethiing wrong?"

i got no problem with that; just to know if i did something wrong, 'cause *now* i can change things saying "ok guys, i did something wrong"; the next year, when they'll be fighting The Lord Of Wraithness at the end of Kill Wraith story arc, it could be little disappointing :) (joking, not planning to use wraith like cannon fodder neither to make'em plot villans :) )

btw, thankyou guys; now if i feel wraith too much "vulnerable" i can
a) make'em more powerful adding an armor, force field resistant damage, etc
b) create a SuppaWraith with added item/armor/things
c) just use'em more "tactical" like:
- starting with a pre attack to scare PC
- use darkness to disorienting
- use desolidification to merge into solid things then sneak attacking
:cool:

[Tandem Esk]

Yeah, its good to say "Sorry folx; read it wrong. What happened is done--water over the bridge. Now on, by the rules."
:D