Example of Research

Following is a step-by-step example of spell research. In this example, an 8th-level wizard with an Intelligence of 12 is attempting to research a 3rd-level spell. This is his first attempt at researching a spell. He has no library or laboratory, but he has plenty of money. The DM has decided that no special components are necessary to research this spell.

1. The wizard has no lab, so the DM determines that the wizard must spend 1,000 gp to establish a suitable lab.

2. The wizard has no library, so he spends 8,000 gp over the next eight weeks locating the appropriate books. (The wizard must have an 8,000 gp library to research a 3rd-level spell.)

3. The DM establishes the Operating Costs to research this spell at 500 gp per week.

4. The wizard spends four weeks of preparation time before beginning his research. (The preparation time is the number of weeks equal to the level of the spell plus 1.)

5. The wizard begins his research. He spends six consecutive, uninterrupted weeks in research, the minimum number required to research a 3rd-level spell. During this period, he invests 3,000 gp in Operating Costs (500 gp for six weeks). At the end of six weeks, he's ready to check whether his research has been successful. Note that the value of his library has grown to 9,500 gp during this period.

6. The DM determines that the wizard's chance of success is equal to 10 (the base chance) + 12 (the wizard's Intelligence) + 8 (the wizard's level)-6 (the level of the spell, multiplied by 2), which is 24 percent. The DM rolls percentile dice, and the result is 66. The check fails. (If the wizard gives up at this point, he won't be able to learn the proposed spell unless he starts from scratch at some point in the future; in the meantime, he can console himself with the fact that he has acquired a nice library.)

7. The wizard continues his research for another week. He spends the required 500 gp for his Operating Costs, but also spends an additional 4,000 gp to raise his success chance by 20 percent (the cost is 2,000 gp per 10 percent boost). The increased investment affects the percentage chance for this week only.

8. At the end of the week, the DM checks again to see if the wizard has been successful. This time, the wizard's chance of success is 44 percent (the 20 percent increase represents the additional investment of 4,000 gp). The roll is 34, so the wizard is successful--he can add the new spell to his spell book.

If the check had failed again, the wizard could continue the research for as many weeks as he is willing, until either his patience or his money run out. He must pay the Operational Costs each week.

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