5th-Level Spells

Bind Undead (Necromancy)

Range: 10 yards/level

Components: V, S, M

Duration: 2 rounds/level

Casting Time: 5

Area of Effect: One undead/level

Saving Throw: Special

Bind undead is highly effective against certain kinds of undead (it has no effect on living creatures). This spell automatically affects all chosen corporeal undead of 6+ or less HD (including coffer corpses, crypt things, ghouls, ghasts, great ghuls, huecuva, mummies, all types of skeletons, sons of Kyuss, wights, and all manner of zombies), with no saving throw. Such creatures curl into a ball (if more than one undead is affected, they are all gathered into one tightly-packed sphere). Affected undead are held helpless and immobile, their special abilities in stasis, until the spell expires or the caster frees them. The diameter of this ball of undead is typically 2–3 feet per affected creature. Typically, this “boneball” is rolled off a cliff or into an obstacle or fire, or conveyed into the midst of foes, whereupon the caster ends the magic, freeing the undead to fight.

Against noncorporeal undead (such as ghosts and spectres) and all undead of 7 or more HD who don’t turn as “Special” (including vampires and liches), bind undead acts only as a slow spell. These undead are entitled to a saving throw vs. spells to resist the effect. Bind undead does not effect “Special” undead. The material component is the bone of any creature, held in the wizard’s left hand at the time of casting.

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