Mesmer's Anti-Teleportation Shield was created by dozens of wizardry
grad students funded by Vlad Mesmer, a wealthy Wood Elf caravan owner. Mesmer
caravans and shipping fleets provide food, goods, and personal transportation
to over three quarters of human cities for thousands of miles.
With the increase in popularity of teleportation and planar
shifting, monarchs, fascists, elected leaders and the mortal avatars of snake
gods that rule the human cities were becoming frustrated with the lack of
control they had over who came and went through their borders and cities. What
good was a city guard or highway toll booth when every jock with a magic ring
or bush wizard could just say an incantation and appear miles away. The risks
to national security were great, not to mention losses in tariff revenue.
Mesmer was fed up for different reasons than his nation
ruling counterparts. Mesmer's bread and butter was long distance caravan
transportation of goods for merchants, now more often than not merchants were
opting to pay a premium to have a young wizard straight out of college magically
transport their goods. They were able to transport instantaneously, with no
risk of theft or damage, bypassing all import and export taxes, while often
charging less than traditional transport, (which Mesmer accredited to modern
Wizard schools lowering the number of mandatory business classes).
Mesmer's Anti-Teleportation Shield was pitched as a way to
increase tax revenue and national security by increasing control of the
borders. An added benefit was that it returned Mesmer's transportation company
to the top spot. The device is quite simple, coming in many sizes and price
ranges. Shaped like a small pyramid, around five feet squared at the base, the
device emits a powerful magic shield, that reaches out in a dome away from the
pyramid. Smaller models range about 100 feet from the device, while the
largest, most expensive range around 10 miles. The invisible shield prevents
all teleportation, planar travel, and communication through the shield.
The dome isn't necessarily spherical in shape, reaching
quite high into the sky. As an added benefit, (or negative depending on who you
are) the shield often interrupts teleportation that is targeted nowhere near
the dome, but who's magical energy passes through the dome, as teleportation
usually occurs in a straight line between origin and destination. Many teleporters
may find themselves severely inconvenienced, expecting to find themselves at
the party of the century on the island of Bul'toa, instead materializing in the
slums outside the city walls of the Metropolis of the Snake Gods.
Some unethical highway brigands have even modified Mesmer's
Anti-Teleportation Shields to act as a sort of net, allowing them to easily rob
the unsuspecting, and likely wealthy, wizard who is teleporting by.
Prices vary for the shields, depending on the size, order
quantity, and how much Mesmer's transportation company stands to profit from
increased trade.
A few days ago Master of Dungeons reviewed the absolutely amazing Encounter Decks 3 by Inkwell Ideas. (Check out the blog post here). If you missed it, the short version is the deck is amazing and everyone should go out and buy it to add to their table. I highly recommend you check it out if you haven't already. And as always you should follow us on the social media of your choice: Google Plus, Facebook, and Twitter
In previous quick tips we've discussed using improv to become a better Master of Dungeons, including how to "Yes, and" your players to help keep things moving. The most important thing about "Yes, and" is the yes, "and" that is where most of the attention is drawn, but in D&D the "and" is equally important.
