Since Chronal Sovereign mentions phanes, I have was thinking about what might happen if one of the Sorcerer Monarchs or other advanced being’s like Farcluun came across a phane. Most likely the would try to replicate the phane’s signature power as an epic spell. Here it is.
Summon Temporal Duplicate
Conjuration (Summoning)
Spellcraft DC: 78 (unmitigated base)[regular version], 55 (with Chronal Sovereign feat), 36 (mitigated)[Farcluun’s version]
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: 75 ft.
Effect: One summoned temporal duplicate of a foe
Duration: 20 rounds (D)
Saving Throw: None (see text)
Spell Resistance: None (see text)
To Develop: 702,000 gp; 15 days; 28,080 XP. Seed: summon (DC 14). Factors: summon non-outsider (+10 DC), summon up to CR 25 creature (+46 DC), temporal creature summoning (+4 DC), summoning HD-appropriate equipment (+4 DC) [unmitigated base subtotal: DC 78].
Mitigating factors: Chronal Sovereign salient feat (-30% of unmitigated base DC = -23) [subtotal: DC 55], expend epic psionic power slot (-19 DC) [mitigated total: DC 36].
This spell allows the caster to summon a temporal duplicate of one of their foes from a parallel alternate past, including outsiders. The stolen time duplicate has the same stats, abilities, and skills as the original, but its HD is reduced by 2 compared to the original, capped at a maximum of 25 HD, simulating a less experienced version of the original.
The temporal duplicate’s equipment is HD-appropriate, ensuring that it does not possess overpowered items or artifacts that the original might have. Due to the different timeline, the temporal duplicate may have radically different experiences from the original, and thus, does not necessarily possess the secrets of the original. However, it still serves the caster loyally like any summoned creature.
If the temporal duplicate is slain, the original is not harmed because the duplicate was pulled from a parallel past. However, the original does not necessarily realize this, and must make a Will save (DC 30) or be shaken for 1d4 rounds after witnessing the death of a duplicate for the first time.
Flavour Text
Farcluun, the malevolent wizard-psion, stood atop a raised platform, his eyes gleaming with sinister intent. The walls of Farcluun’s lair were shrouded in an ancient darkness, as if the stones themselves had absorbed the weight of centuries-old secrets. Moss and lichen clung to the cold surfaces, while overhead, jagged stalactites hung like the fangs of some great, slumbering beast. Far beyond the chamber, the surrounding lands were twisted and blighted, bearing the unmistakable mark of the malevolent wizard-psion’s influence. He was a man of fearsome intellect and wickedness, commanding both arcane and psionic might. He had studied the group of adventurers who now entered his lair, savoring the anticipation of the torment he was about to inflict upon them.
The chamber was dimly lit, shadows flickering ominously against the rough stone walls. The air was heavy with the scent of ancient secrets and decay. As the adventurers cautiously stepped inside, Farcluun’s gaze locked onto them, and a malevolent grin spread across his face. “Welcome, my dear adversaries,” he taunted, his voice echoing through the room. “I trust you’re prepared for the surprise I have in store for you.”
Without warning, Farcluun began to weave intricate patterns in the air, his fingers dancing with precision and grace. He uttered an eldritch incantation, his voice low and resonant, his eyes burning with the power of the spell he was about to unleash. The very fabric of time and space seemed to bend to his will as he completed the casting.
A maelstrom of temporal energy erupted before the party, the air crackling with the force of Farcluun’s power. From the vortex, eerie doppelgängers of the adventurers emerged, their faces and forms strikingly familiar, yet subtly different, as if drawn from earlier moments in their lives. The original party members stared in horror at their otherworldly counterparts, who stood before them with an unsettling devotion to the twisted mage.
Farcluun’s laughter reverberated through the chamber, his sadistic delight in the party’s anguish palpable. “What better torment than to face the shadows of your own past?” He ordered the temporal duplicates to attack, reveling in the cruel irony of his scheme.
The ensuing battle was a maelstrom of clashing weapons, the air thick with the tension of a deeply personal conflict. Each adventurer grappled with the uncanny presence of their duplicate, forced to confront not only their own past selves but the fears and vulnerabilities that came with it.
As the adventurers fought, the room seemed to come alive with the energy of their struggles. Swords clashed, spells crackled, and the very air was charged with the intensity of their emotions. In the heat of battle, one of the adventurers was gripped by a sudden flashback. A memory of a time when their fellowship was whole, and a dear comrade fought by their side. But that comrade was now lost to the darkness, ensnared by Farcluun’s insidious manipulation. The memory stung, like salt in a fresh wound, and it fueled the adventurer’s resolve to fight even harder against the forces that had torn their friend away. Through the chaos of battle, the heroes found themselves drawing upon their hard-won experience, using their newfound skills and abilities to ultimately best their temporal counterparts.
When the final duplicate fell, the adventurers were left to face the bitter truth of their own mortality. They had witnessed the deaths of versions of themselves, plucked from alternate pasts and twisted to serve a malevolent master. Some found themselves shaken to their core, struggling to maintain their composure, while others steeled their resolve, determined to avenge the suffering they had endured.
With renewed determination, the party turned their attention back to Farcluun, their eyes blazing with anger and defiance. However, the sinister wizard-psion was far from finished with his torment. His laughter echoed through the chamber, cold and mocking, as he prepared to unleash his twisted power once more.
“Oh, you think you’ve bested me?” Farcluun sneered, his voice dripping with malice. “You’ve merely played into my hands. I’ve seen your strengths, your weaknesses, and now you will face the full extent of my mastery over time itself.”
As the adventurers braced themselves for whatever fresh horror Farcluun had in store, he began another incantation, his fingers weaving complex patterns in the air. The room vibrated with the power of his spell, and once again, the vortex of temporal energy roared to life.
From the maw of the swirling portal, new duplicates emerged, their appearances reflecting the very essence of the party’s past selves. Exhausted and battered from their previous battle, the adventurers now faced the daunting prospect of fighting once again against the shadows of their own history.
Farcluun’s maniacal laughter rang out as he sent the newly summoned duplicates into the fray, eager to watch the heroes struggle against the mirror images of their former selves. The weary adventurers steeled themselves for the grueling battle ahead, each drawing upon their deepest reserves of strength and determination.
As the clash of steel and the crackle of magical energy filled the chamber once more, the adventurers were forced to confront not only the physical manifestations of their pasts but the emotional turmoil that accompanied them. The weight of their past mistakes and hardships threatened to overwhelm them, but they knew they could not falter in the face of Farcluun’s cruelty.
With each swing of their weapons and each spell unleashed, the heroes fought not only for their lives but for the redemption of their past selves. Through the chaos and the pain, they stood united, drawing upon the bonds forged in the heat of countless battles to push back against the darkness that sought to consume them.
Farcluun’s expression shifted subtly as he observed the heroes battling their duplicates with fierce determination that defied his expectations. The adventurers, though battered and wearied, refused to yield, their resolve unbroken by the twisted sorcerer’s machinations.
As the battle raged on, the wizard-psion’s frustration gradually morphed into sinister glee, his grin widening and his eyes glinting with malicious delight. Sensing the opportune moment, he raised his hands, effortlessly silencing the clamor of the chamber, and addressed the party with a voice that chilled them to the bone.
“You fools!” he spat, reveling in their growing despair. “Do you really think you can defeat me? I have journeyed beyond the boundaries of space and time, fought and bested beings that lurk in the shadows between worlds, and learned the secrets of existence that you cannot even fathom. In the face of such power, you are like insects crawling across the pages of eternity.”
Farcluun’s eyes blazed with an unholy light as he continued, his voice echoing through the chamber like a curse. “Your struggles are meaningless, your victories fleeting. Time itself is my plaything, and with each passing moment, I grow stronger while you wither and fade like the mortals you are. You may stand before me now, defiant and proud, but know that in the end, you are nothing more than shadows cast by the flickering flame of existence.”
With a final, scornful laugh, Farcluun gestured once again, and the vortex of temporal energy swirled back to life. The adventurers could only watch in horror as even more duplicates stepped through the portal, their faces contorted with the same dark purpose as their master.
As they steeled themselves for the next wave of battle, they realized that, for now, they had no choice but to flee. The twisted wizard-psion had pushed them to their limits, and with the newly summoned duplicates bearing down upon them, escape was their only hope of survival.
The party scrambled, using every ounce of their remaining strength to break free from the chamber, as Farcluun’s maniacal laughter echoed in their ears. As the party fled, Farcluun’s chilling laughter followed them through the dark corridors. Just as they were about to disappear from his sight, the twisted wizard-psion called out to them with a voice that seemed to creep into their very souls.
“Run, little insects!” he hissed ominously. “Run as far and as fast as you can! But remember this: I am the master of time itself. You may evade me today, but I can find you yesterday, and every day before that. There is no escape from my reach, and our paths will cross again!”
His sinister words reverberated through the air, filling the adventurers with a dread that clung to them as they continued their desperate flight. They knew that Farcluun’s threat was no idle boast, and that as long as he remained at large, they would never be truly safe from his malevolent influence.
How is Farcluun summoning four temporal duplicates at once? Let’s take a look.
Farcluun’s Summon Temporal Heroes
Conjuration (Summoning)
Spellcraft DC: 312 (unmitigated base), 220 (with Chronal Sovereign feat), 145 (post-mitigation)
Components: V, S, F, XP
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: 75 ft.
Effect: Four summoned temporal duplicates, one of each of up to four different foes
Duration: 20 rounds (D)
Saving Throw: None (see text)
Spell Resistance: None (see text)
To Develop: 1,059,000 gp; 22 days; 42,360 XP. Seed: summon (DC 14). Factors: summon non-outsider (+10 DC), summon up to CR 25 creature (+46 DC), temporal creature summoning (+4 DC), summoning HD-appropriate equipment (+4 DC) [subtotal: DC 78], summon four creatures (x4 DC = 312 unmitigated base DC).
Mitigating factors: Chronal Sovereign salient feat (-30% of unmitigated base DC = -92) [subtotal: DC 220], 200,000 gp time crystal focus (-20 DC), use of an epic psionic power slot (-19 DC), expend 3,600 XP (-36 DC).
Focus: A time crystal worth 200,000 gp. The time crystal is not expended during casting but cannot be used for this particular spell again for 1,000 years.
XP Cost: 3,600 XP.
This spell allows the caster to summon four temporal duplicates, one of each of up to four different foes from a parallel alternate past, including outsiders. The stolen time duplicates have the same stats, abilities, and skills as the original, but their HD is reduced by 2 compared to the original, capped at a maximum of 25 HD, simulating a less experienced version of the original.
The temporal duplicates’ equipment is HD-appropriate, ensuring that they do not possess overpowered items or artifacts that the original might have. Due to the different timeline, the temporal duplicates may have radically different experiences from the original, and thus, do not necessarily possess the secrets of the original. However, they still serve the caster loyally like any summoned creature.
If a temporal duplicate is slain, the original is not harmed because the duplicate was pulled from a parallel past. However, the original does not necessarily realize this, and must make a Will save (DC 30) or be shaken for 1d4 rounds after witnessing the death of a duplicate for the first time.
Having the Chronal Sovereign salient feat allows the caster to manipulate time more effectively, resulting in a 30% reduction in the Spellcraft DC before other mitigating factors. The use of a time crystal as a focus, worth 200,000 gp, also contributes to lowering the DC further. The time crystal is not expended during casting but cannot be used for this particular spell again for 1,000 years.