A Tormented Eternity [Archive] - Wizards Community

A Tormented Eternity [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Drome
12-28-04, 02:25 PM Hi,

I want to put together a device that can keep someone alive forever.

The reason:

It's story oriented and I don't want to get into all of the details but basicly this guy is being tortured for eternity for his "crime". I want the device to inflict constant damage to him with nasty blades/needles/bludgoning etc., project mental illusions of tormenting images etc. and heal him at an interval often enough to sustain life and consciousness in his body. However I'm pretty sure a cure moderate wounds will not do here. I need to keep him from dying from old age as well.

Thanks,
Drome
Tevish Szat
12-28-04, 02:41 PM there are many ways to do this.

The BoVD has a spell called "Eternity of Torture" or something like that. wonderful spell, IIRC it prevented mundane kinds of death while inflicting hideous torment. i can't recall if it lasts only for the target's natural life span or really forever. if it is just natural lifespan, have a timed mechanism that terminates and reincarnates the victim.

if you don't have the BoVD, you could use Symbol of Pain nad Temporal Stasis as the derivitave spells for creating the prison.

Or you could just say it does what you want it to without worrying about creation costs and stuff.
Arcuna
12-28-04, 02:45 PM Just out of curiosity, what crime(s) did he commit that are so horrible that he is damned to suffer for all of eternity?

My suggestion is that a powerful (epic) wizard cast a permanent spell on him that gives him really good regeneration that not only heals him, but also gives him the effect of a Ring of Sustenance (or, you could just say that the spell gives him immortality). Then, the wizard animated some sort of torture device to constantly stab, smash, cut, etc. the prisoner, but the wounds close over almost instantly, just slowly enough to cause serious pain, but fast enough that he won't die from it. You should also consider that a punishment like this could easily cause the person to go insane after a while, and the torture could become useless over time. You might want to implement an insanity failsafe as well.

Just my 2 cp, take it or leave it. :)
Shard of Suzail
12-28-04, 03:23 PM It`s also quite possible that such an experience might turn them into a fiend, a strange prestige class or some kind of evil monster. You are probably best off just killing them as, otherwise, they`ll get free and come slap you.

One way around it is, perhaps, to bind them into a magical weapon. Thats one of the ways sentient weapons come into the world (or other sentient items). Or just paralyse or petrify them, then put them on display to warn others not to do such bad things.

Hurting someone has no value, but putting them on display does (and would be considered more merciful by many, thus raising less opposition).

Last but not least, you could do the Arthas trick and turn them into an undead creature, like a banshee. Then they can roam the earth feeling bad and lamenting their wicked deeds (or be your retainer, if you are a rebuking cleric).
Dash Branaghan
12-28-04, 04:26 PM Well, the first thing that comes to mind is Temporal Stasis. All aging etc. ceases within the spell, and while you are in a suspended animation and cannot be harmed from outside forces, what if you were in a machine that had Temporal Stasis Field cast on it? You could state that the person is held immobile, but their mind still works, they are concious, and they can experience pain because the pain is generated within the machine.

You can also set it with a Contingency to Heal at the end of each day (a la Prometheus and the return of his liver) so the person survives. All damage is limited to 1pt of damage at a time, from items like dull razors that have to struggle, to dull puncturing points. Incorporate blasts of heat and cold, hallucinogenic chemicals...well, after even a month in there, a person would go mad.

Dash
Drome
12-30-04, 10:09 AM Thank you everyone for your input.

To clear things up, the person being tormented is an NPC that will be insane when the PCs uncover him and this device.

What did he do? He was a warrior fighting along side a great champion, (both evil). Durring the battle he "fumbled" I guess you could say haha, and struck a killing blow on the champion. The evil army burried the Champion in an elaborate tomb and as punishment created this device and placed it outside the burial chamber of the tomb.

The PCs will encounter this tortured soul, have the oportunity to free him (and fight him) as well as the undead version of the champion. Several golems and traps will line the way of course.

Thanks again!
Morka
12-30-04, 10:43 AM No one age in the Astral Plane. And a plane mildly positive-aligned give fast healing to everyone.
Guryaa, Turtle Cat
12-30-04, 01:25 PM I agree with Tevish Szat on the part that you shouldn't fully stat out the torture device. Just call it a minor artifact, make it part of the building so your PCs can't drag it to town and try to sell it there or make it one-use only, leaving behind a magicless object once the tortured entity is released.

I'd also like to submit an idea for the torture device: in stead of actively torturing the victim, it could also passively do so. In the game Knights of the Old Republic you encounter a prison which is basically an empty plane, except for a floor, which never ends in any direction and is completely white, where time stands still and captives do not need nourishment (like the Room of Space and Time in Dragonball Z). Since a mortal mind is usually unable to comprehense such a vast nothingness, the victim is almost definately sure to be completely insane when he is released.
Aelryk
12-31-04, 12:53 AM You could simply make it an Eldritch Machine (it's in the Eberron book p273)
It's basically just there as a plot device, hard to make, generally too big to move, and not an artifact (which sounds like this torture thing of yours)
penchant
12-31-04, 04:49 AM Make the device in a pocket dimension that has Astral properties. I'm sure you don't want to send your party to the Astral just for one effect, so this should work. Make it permanently imbedded in the rock and like a capsule that can be pulled out and unlocked. Make a big production of it opening up and detaching hoses, bloody needles and other implements from the glassteel tube with the guy inside. That makes it both not useful to party members AND creepy!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Drome 12-28-04, 02:25 PM	Hi, I want to put together a device that can keep someone alive forever. The reason: It's story oriented and I don't want to get into all of the details but basicly this guy is being tortured for eternity for his "crime". I want the device to inflict constant damage to him with nasty blades/needles/bludgoning etc., project mental illusions of tormenting images etc. and heal him at an interval often enough to sustain life and consciousness in his body. However I'm pretty sure a cure moderate wounds will not do here. I need to keep him from dying from old age as well. Thanks, Drome
Tevish Szat 12-28-04, 02:41 PM	there are many ways to do this. The BoVD has a spell called "Eternity of Torture" or something like that. wonderful spell, IIRC it prevented mundane kinds of death while inflicting hideous torment. i can't recall if it lasts only for the target's natural life span or really forever. if it is just natural lifespan, have a timed mechanism that terminates and reincarnates the victim. if you don't have the BoVD, you could use Symbol of Pain nad Temporal Stasis as the derivitave spells for creating the prison. Or you could just say it does what you want it to without worrying about creation costs and stuff.
Arcuna 12-28-04, 02:45 PM	Just out of curiosity, what crime(s) did he commit that are so horrible that he is damned to suffer for all of eternity? My suggestion is that a powerful (epic) wizard cast a permanent spell on him that gives him really good regeneration that not only heals him, but also gives him the effect of a Ring of Sustenance (or, you could just say that the spell gives him immortality). Then, the wizard animated some sort of torture device to constantly stab, smash, cut, etc. the prisoner, but the wounds close over almost instantly, just slowly enough to cause serious pain, but fast enough that he won't die from it. You should also consider that a punishment like this could easily cause the person to go insane after a while, and the torture could become useless over time. You might want to implement an insanity failsafe as well. Just my 2 cp, take it or leave it. :)
Shard of Suzail 12-28-04, 03:23 PM	It`s also quite possible that such an experience might turn them into a fiend, a strange prestige class or some kind of evil monster. You are probably best off just killing them as, otherwise, they`ll get free and come slap you. One way around it is, perhaps, to bind them into a magical weapon. Thats one of the ways sentient weapons come into the world (or other sentient items). Or just paralyse or petrify them, then put them on display to warn others not to do such bad things. Hurting someone has no value, but putting them on display does (and would be considered more merciful by many, thus raising less opposition). Last but not least, you could do the Arthas trick and turn them into an undead creature, like a banshee. Then they can roam the earth feeling bad and lamenting their wicked deeds (or be your retainer, if you are a rebuking cleric).
Dash Branaghan 12-28-04, 04:26 PM	Well, the first thing that comes to mind is Temporal Stasis. All aging etc. ceases within the spell, and while you are in a suspended animation and cannot be harmed from outside forces, what if you were in a machine that had Temporal Stasis Field cast on it? You could state that the person is held immobile, but their mind still works, they are concious, and they can experience pain because the pain is generated within the machine. You can also set it with a Contingency to Heal at the end of each day (a la Prometheus and the return of his liver) so the person survives. All damage is limited to 1pt of damage at a time, from items like dull razors that have to struggle, to dull puncturing points. Incorporate blasts of heat and cold, hallucinogenic chemicals...well, after even a month in there, a person would go mad. Dash
Drome 12-30-04, 10:09 AM	Thank you everyone for your input. To clear things up, the person being tormented is an NPC that will be insane when the PCs uncover him and this device. What did he do? He was a warrior fighting along side a great champion, (both evil). Durring the battle he "fumbled" I guess you could say haha, and struck a killing blow on the champion. The evil army burried the Champion in an elaborate tomb and as punishment created this device and placed it outside the burial chamber of the tomb. The PCs will encounter this tortured soul, have the oportunity to free him (and fight him) as well as the undead version of the champion. Several golems and traps will line the way of course. Thanks again!
Morka 12-30-04, 10:43 AM	No one age in the Astral Plane. And a plane mildly positive-aligned give fast healing to everyone.
Guryaa, Turtle Cat 12-30-04, 01:25 PM	I agree with Tevish Szat on the part that you shouldn't fully stat out the torture device. Just call it a minor artifact, make it part of the building so your PCs can't drag it to town and try to sell it there or make it one-use only, leaving behind a magicless object once the tortured entity is released. I'd also like to submit an idea for the torture device: in stead of actively torturing the victim, it could also passively do so. In the game Knights of the Old Republic you encounter a prison which is basically an empty plane, except for a floor, which never ends in any direction and is completely white, where time stands still and captives do not need nourishment (like the Room of Space and Time in Dragonball Z). Since a mortal mind is usually unable to comprehense such a vast nothingness, the victim is almost definately sure to be completely insane when he is released.
Aelryk 12-31-04, 12:53 AM	You could simply make it an Eldritch Machine (it's in the Eberron book p273) It's basically just there as a plot device, hard to make, generally too big to move, and not an artifact (which sounds like this torture thing of yours)
penchant 12-31-04, 04:49 AM	Make the device in a pocket dimension that has Astral properties. I'm sure you don't want to send your party to the Astral just for one effect, so this should work. Make it permanently imbedded in the rock and like a capsule that can be pulled out and unlocked. Make a big production of it opening up and detaching hoses, bloody needles and other implements from the glassteel tube with the guy inside. That makes it both not useful to party members AND creepy!