Champion's Strength is a 5th level priest spell that allows the priest to draw strength from the divine and lend it to an ally.
Description[]
| “ | When this spells is cast, the priest effectively draws on the strength of the priest's god and lends it to the target creature, in effect creating a champion. The target gains a bonus to their THAC0 at a rate of 1 for every 3 levels of the caster. So a 9th level priest would confer a THAC0 bonus of 3 to the target, and so on. Also the target's Strength is set to 18/00 for the duration of the spell and receives all the bonuses to hit and damage rolls that this Strength confers. Note also that if the target's strength is above 18/00, it will actually be reduced to this value. The drawback to this is that the priest must concentrate on the connection between the target and the priest's god for the duration of the spell, hence losing the ability to cast any spells during this time. The effect lasts for 3 rounds for every level of the caster or until dispelled. |
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Scroll Locations[]
Baldur's Gate[]
- Durlag's Tower (Labyrinth Level Two) — Middle Practice Dummy
Gameplay[]
- The true value of this spell resides in the boost provided to the target's THAC0: -3 at level 9, -6 at level 20 (max, as there's no scaling past this point).
- Since both cleric and wizard spells are disabled for the duration of the spell, buffs and summons from spells should be cast first. Abilities from kit or HLAs remain available after Champion's Strength is cast.
- This spell can be combined very effectively with Righteous Magic for devastating effects: when cast first, Righteous Magic will increase the targets's strength to a high value (typically above 20 and up to 25, depending on cleric's casting level and natural strength value) in addition to ensuring maximum damage for the duration of the spell. Champion's Strength will then apply a huge bonus to THAC0 (-6 at level 20 for instance).
- The combination described above does not work with Draw Upon Holy Might or Barbarian Rage unless the spells are cast after Champion's Strength. For example, a cleric first casts Champion's Strength on themselves then casts Draw Upon Holy Might from their Bhaal special abilities.
- It is also possible to by-pass the "set strength to 18/00" effect by drinking a Giant Strength potion after casting of the spell.
- The +1 bonus to strength provided by Holy Symbols is unaffected by the spell, whereas the strength effects from Crom Faeyr (set to 25) or Angurvadal +5 (set to 22) are negated entirely (unequipping and re-equipping does not override the spell effect).
- In a general manner, it seems that the incremental bonuses to strength (from spells or equipment) are unaffected by Champion's Strength, however the set values are overridden by the spell, except when applied after Champion's Strength (ex: Runehammer +5's charge ability "Fire Giant Strength once per day").
- The duration of the spell (3 rounds per level) makes the use of a clone from Vhailor's Helm or Project Image when casting Champion's Strength very useful for letting the original caster continue to cast spells.
- The THAC0 bonus gained from Champion's Strength stacks with itself. A successful Dispel Magic cast on the priest will allow for multiple castings, with a significant reduction of THAC0 for the targeted creature being possible. An easy way to achieve this is with a Cleric/Mage, who may use spell triggers to be able to cast Dispel Magic on themselves through the special abilities menu (which is not affected by the spell disabling effect). Spell triggers can also be used to cast multiple instances of Champion's Strength at once, making the whole process easier and also viable for Cleric/Mages to stack the spell on themselves (because the Dispel Magic method would remove the buff along with the spellcast disabling effect).
Bug[]
- Using hotkeys, spells with an area-of-effect target or single point target, such as Dispel Magic and Animate Dead, can still be cast while Champion's Strength is active. This identified issue still hasn't been resolved by Beamdog as of version 2.6.
Mod content[]
This section is about unofficial content that is only available via fan-made mods.
Spell Revisions mod has changed this Divine spell, revising its effects, duration, casting time and description. See below:
Champion's Strength
Level: 5
School: Alteration
Sphere: Law
Range: Medium
Duration: 1 round/level
Casting Time: 5
Area of Effect: 1 creature
Saving Throw: None
When this spell is cast, the priest draws on the power of his god and lends it to the target creature, in effect creating a champion. The target gains a bonus to strength, dexterity, and constitution scores at a rate of 1 for every 3 levels of the caster, up to a maximum bonus of 6 at 18th level. The effect lasts for 1 round for every level of the caster or until dispelled. This spell is not cumulative with itself or with other similar spells.
Note: Only usable by Cleric/Paladin classes.
External links[]
- Champion's strength on the Forgotten Realms Wiki, a wiki for the Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting Forgotten Realms.