Protection from Prime

(See also: Protection Spells)

The Planewalker's Handbook Text

When this spell is cast, it creates a magical barrier that protects the recipient against prime-material characters or creatures. Aside from the differences in duration and casting time, this spell is identical to the 2nd-level wizard spell protection from prime.

Priest's Spell Compendium

When this spell is cast, it creates a magical barrier around the recipient at a distance of 1 foot. This barrier moves with the recipient. The subject of the spell must be a planar creature or being. Protection from prime does not function at all on the Prime Material Plane.

In effect, this spell is a version of the protection from evil spell. As such, it has three major effects:

First, all attacks made by beings from the Prime Material Plane against the protected creature suffer -2 penalties to attack rolls; any saving throws necessitated by such attacks are made with +2 bonuses.

Second, any attempt to possess (as by a magic jar attack) or to exercise mental control over the protected creature (as by a vampire's charm ability) is blocked by this spell. Note that the protection does not prevent the vampire's charm itself, but it does prevent the exercise of mental control through the barrier. Likewise, a possessing life force is merely kept out. It would not be expelled if in place before the protection is cast.

Third, the spell prevents direct bodily contact by creatures from the Prime Material Plane. This causes the natural (body) weapon attacks of such beings to fail and the beings to recoil, if such attacks require touching the protected being. Animals or monsters summoned from the Prime Material Plane are likewise hedged from the character.

This third protection ends if the protected character makes a melee attack against or tries to force the barrier against the blocked being. The penalty applied to attacks from Prime-Material beings presented as the first spell effect remains active in any event, however.

To complete this spell, the priest must trace a 3-foot-diameter circle on the floor (or ground) with the powdered bone of a Prime-Material creature.