Prerequisite: cr/level of 30 or higher, wisdom 20+, primary spellcasting stat 20+, ability to cast 9th level spells, spellcaster as primary class

You have gained the ability to develop and make use of 10th tier spells known as epic spells. The types of spells you can use are dependent on your class; if you are a sorcerer or wizard, you can learn arcane epic spells. If you are a cleric, bard or druid, you can learn divine epic spells. You get only one epic level spell slot per day.

Developing Epic Spells

An epic spell is developed from smaller pieces called seeds and connecting pieces called factors. Every epic seed has a base Spellcraft DC, and every factor has a Spell-craft DC adjustment. When a desired spell is developed, the spellcaster spends resources and time to assemble the pieces that make up the epic spell. The base Spellcraft DCs of each seed are added together; then the DC adjustments of the factors are added to that total. The sum equals the final Spellcraft DC for the epic spell.

The final Spellcraft DC is the most significant gauge of the epic spell’s power. A spellcaster attempts to cast an epic spell by making a Spellcraft check based on their spellcasting ability against the epic spell’s Spellcraft DC. Thus, a spellcaster knows immediately, based on his or her own Spellcasting bonus, what epic spells are within his or her capability to cast, which are risky, and which are beyond him or her. Epic casters don’t commit time and money to develop epic spells until they are powerful enough to cast them.

An epic spell developed by an arcane spellcaster is arcane, and an epic spell developed by a divine spellcaster is divine. A character who can cast both divine and arcane epic spells chooses whether a particular spell he or she develops will be arcane or divine. If that same caster uses the heal or life seed in an epic spell, that spell is always considered divine. All the epic spells described here can be developed independently by a character who spends the necessary time, money, and experience points. Alternatively, a character can use those spells as a starting point when creating customized versions of the spells.

Resource Cost

The development of an epic spell uses up raw materials costing a number of gold pieces equal to 9,000 × the final Spellcraft DC of the epic spell being developed.

Development Time

Developing an epic spell takes one day for each 50,000 gp in resources required to develop the spell, rounded up to whole days.

XP Cost

To develop an epic spell, a character must spend 1/25 of its resource price in experience points.

Adding Seed DCs

When two or more epic seeds are combined in an epic spell, their base Spellcraft DCs are added together. Both contribute toward the spell’s final Spellcraft DC.

Determining School

When combining two or more seeds to develop an epic spell, the school of the finished spell is decided by the caster from among the seeds that make up the epic spell.

Combining Descriptors

When two or more epic seeds are combined in an epic spell, all the descriptors from each seed apply to the finished spell.

Combining Components and Casting Times

Almost every epic spell has verbal and somatic components and a 1-minute casting time, regardless of the number of epic seeds combined. The only exceptions are epic spells with the heal and life seeds, which have divine focus components.

Combining Range, Targets, Area, and Effect

One seed might have a range of 12,000 feet, another seed might have a range of 400 feet, and a third seed might not have a range at all. Likewise, some seeds have targets, while others have an effect or an area. To determine which seed takes precedence in the finished epic spell, the character must decide which seed is the base seed. The seed most important to the spell’s overall purpose is the base seed, and it determines the casting time, range, target, and so on. The other seeds apply only their specific effects to the finished spell. It is occasionally difficult to determine a base seed by examining the spell’s effects. If no one seed is most important, simply pick one seed for the purposes of making this determination.

Combining Durations

When combining two or more seeds to develop an epic spell, the seed with the shortest duration determines the duration of the finished epic spell. If any seed of an epic spell is dismissible by the caster, the epic spell is dismissible.

Saving Throws

Even if more than one seed has an associated saving throw, the final spell will have only a single saving throw. If two or more seeds have the same kind of saving throw (Dexterity, Constitution, or Wisdom), then obviously that will be used for the spell’s saving throw. If the seeds have different kinds of saving throws, simply choose the saving throw that seems most appropriate for the final spell.

Approval

This is the final step, and it’s critically important. The epic spell development work and reasoning must be shown to the GM and receive his or her approval. If the GM doesn’t approve, then the epic spell cannot be developed. However, the GM should explain why the epic spell wasn’t approved and possibly offer suggestions on how to create an epic spell that will be acceptable.

Metamagic, Items, and Epic Spells

Metamagic feats and other epic feats that manipulate normal spells cannot be used with epic spells.

A character can’t craft a magic item that casts an epic spell, regardless of whether the item is activated with spell completion, a spell trigger, a command word, or is use-activated. Only major artifacts, which are beyond the means of even epic characters to create, can possibly contain magic of this power.

The saving throw against a character’s epic spell has a DC of 20 + the character’s relevant ability score modifier. It’s possible to develop epic spells that have even higher DCs, however, by applying the appropriate factor.

Seeds

Every custom epic spell created by spellcasters begins with a base effect called a seed. Seeds are the fundamental building blocks of epic spells. They can be derived from any spells the spellcaster knows, and the level of the spell ×2 is what their base spellcraft dc is.