Dancing Lantern (Ranger Poultice)

Level: Ranger 1

School: Enchantment

Casting

Casting Time: Standard Action, or the first attack of a Full Attack Action

Components: V, S, M (A tiny clay figurine of a lantern, worth 1 gp.)

Effect

Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./two lvls)

Target or Area: one target creature

Duration: Until the end of the current encounter, the end of the next encounter, or until the start of a full night's rest, whichever is sooner

Saving Throw: No saving throw granted
 Save DC: -

Spell Resistance: No

Description

This poultice is based on glowing herbs, although it is possible to substitute fireflies, glow-worms, and other luminescent ingredients. It has a rich scent of woodsmoke and savory musk. The holder of this plaster loads the sticky mixture into a tiny clay lantern, and the whole thing, clay and all, bursts into heatless foxfire, floating as the holder directs.

The lantern flame floats at shoulder height of the holder of the poultice and remains within 5 feet of the holder, no matter how fast they move, unless they spend a standard action directing it to attack. The flame cannot support any additional weight. The lantern-flame illuminates as a hooded lantern as long as it persists.

As a standard action (which can be included in the action of loading the lantern with the mixture), the flame can be directed by the holder to dance forth, moving erratically as it gutters wildly from the speed of its motion, to the limit of its range. This is a ray attack, and if the holder succeeds in a ranged touch attack, the lantern flame impacts a creature they choose to attack and inflicts (Circle 1 damage): 1d6 points of damage per character level (max 4d6 at character level 4) of fire (energy, common) damage to them. Whether the ray hits or misses, the poultice is expended.

This spell lays an arcane charge on its target(s). If the targets are something other than you or another creature (such as an object or area), the spell lays an arcane charge on you, the caster. Targets which already have an arcane charge present must choose which to keep if the new spell has the same charge type. Only one arcane charge can ever be present on a target at a time.