Sticky Flame

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Sticky flame.png Sticky Flame
Level 4
School1 Alchemy
School2 Fire
Source(s) Everburning Encyclopedia
Book of Flames
Casting noise 4
Spell noise 1
Power Cap 100
Range 1
Flags Dir or target, Needs tracer
Unleashes a short-ranged spray of incindiary goo that clings to an adjacent creature and deals armour-ignoring fire damage over several turns. If the victim is allowed to move, it will put out the fire prematurely.

“Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm
for the rest of his life.”
-Terry Pratchett, “Jingo”. 1997.

Spell Details
Damage Formula 2d(1.5+Power/24) fire
Max Damage 2d(5.67)
Max Power 100
Range 1
Targeting Touch
To-hit
Special Never misses, the target is covered in sticky flames that inflict 2d4-1 fire damage every 10 auts

Sticky Flame is a level 4 Conjurations/Fire Magic spell which causes the target to burn for decent damage over several rounds. It has perfect accuracy, and as an added bonus, it causes the target to glow, negating their invisibility and making them easier targets for other attacks. Even at moderate power, it can take down such dangerous creatures as hydras or death yaks. Unfortunately, its max range cannot exceed 1 (even if you worship Vehumet).

The duration of the effect is approximately 4 or 5 turns per every level of the enchantment. The level of this enchantment is a value that depends on the hit dice of the victim, but never a value greater than 4. At maximum duration, the average amount of damage done is approximately:

(Damage per turn) * (Turns per level) * (Levels) = 
= 4 * 4.5 * 4 = 72

Tips & Tricks

  • This is a great spell if you don't mind being up close and personal. Fragile spellcasters should be wary of monsters that can generate a one-shot kill; try confusing or otherwise disabling dangerous opponents before setting them on fire. More durable hybrid characters can use Sticky Flame as a powerful opening salvo before engaging in melee combat.
  • With Sticky Flame, you can take down melee-oriented monsters that are otherwise too strong for you to handle (so long as they're not fire resistant and/or faster than you, that is). Simply set them on fire and run away -- if they stop burning before they die, recast Sticky Flame. Just make sure you already have a monster-free path to retreat along!
  • Hitting invisible monsters with this spell (using Z) will cause them to be revealed for its duration. This is a useful strategy for dealing with unseen horrors and flickering sky beasts.
  • Entering water will put out the lingering flames (even if you are flying at the time). This tactic works for both players and monsters, so avoid using Sticky Flame around water features.
    • If there's no water around, a phial of floods will create enough water to put out the fire.

Resistance

Some monsters (including all insubstantial monsters) are intrinsically resistant to sticky flames, meaning the flame will not "stick" to them (though they still take a small amount of fire damage from the initial impact).

Standing in or flying above shallow or deep water will grant a similar form of protection. The only other way for players to gain protection from sticky flame is to become insubstantial themselves (through transformations like Wisp Form or Dithmenos's Shadow Form), but the ongoing damage is low enough (especially with fire resistance) that having resistance specifically to sticky flames is largely redundant.

Monster Version

Player ghosts are the only monsters you'll see that will cast the player version of Sticky Flame. Other monsters use the Sticky Flame Range spell instead, which is identical apart from having a range of 4.

History