Azuth's Alteration Mantle

This spell creates an invisible magical aura around a willing (or unaware) creature. When either one of two specific spells or magical item effects chosen during casting impinges on any part of this aura, the mantle instantly absorbs the effects and presents the mantle-wearer with a threefold choice: use the spell energy for healing (either self-healing or healing a touched being), convert it to a single predetermined specific spell and hurl it back at the source, or convert it to the same predetermined specific spell and cast it at another target. If the mantle-wearer is not the caster, the caster can elect, when bestowing the spell, to force the magic to always make one of those choices or to leave each decision up to the mantle-wearer. (Nevertheless, the “free choice” cannot be restricted to two of the three options, nor can any of the “predetermined” spells be left unselected.)

Healing: If an incoming magic is used for healing, only lost hit points are restored. This healing can be used upon one creature only - it cannot be split.

A given being can be protected by only one alteration mantle at a time, and the mantle won't survive any contact with a dispel magic effect. Despite the fact that it can guard against two different spell attacks, they can only be transformed into a single magic. Over the years, Azuth has ignored the repeated supplications of his most powerful and devoted followers to provide two “end result” magics as well as two magics protected against.

Return Casting: The spell sent forth behaves as if cast by the original source in terms of level, alignment, and abilities. Targeting, however, depends on the vision and abilities of the mantle-wearer. (For instance, if an incoming polymorph other attack is converted to magic missile and hurled at a third party, the mantle-wearer, not the

original attacker, must be able to see the chosen target for the magic missile.)

Both the specific spells to be defended against and the spell they are to be converted to must be chosen by the caster of the alteration mantle during its casting and cannot be altered thereafter. The magic defended against must be one the mantle caster has cast, felt the effects of, or observed the effects of, and he must know its specific name. The magic sent forth must be a spell he has personally cast. The magic sent forth cannot exceed the magic defended against in spell level (for instance, polymorph other cannot be converted to flame strike). Azuth's alteration mantle defends against multiple attacks of the same sort of spell, and is not exhausted by one incoming spell. This spell is a variant of the greater mantle of Mystra spell used by priests of the goddess of magic.