Avian Messenger

Spell — see Magic and Spellcasting for the rules and the Spell Index for the full list.

Arcane 3, Divine 3 Type: summoning, transmogrification

Range: special Duration: 12 hours

This spell allows the caster to relay a message to a recipient by means of an avian messenger. The messenger will be a small, winged creature capable of long-distance flight. The spell will conscript the nearest suitable creature to serve as the avian messenger so it might be, e.g., a pigeon, a raven, a bat, or even a dragonfly, depending on what is nearby when the spell is cast. As soon as the spell is cast, the avian messenger will begin traveling to the caster, typically arriving within 2d6 rounds. If the avian messenger is somehow prevented from reaching the caster (e.g. if he is imprisoned deep underground), it will circle in the vicinity until it is able to reach him or until the spell expires.

Once the avian messenger reaches the caster, it will wait up to 10 minutes (one turn) for the caster to whisper his desired message into its ear. If the caster fails to whisper a message into the messenger’s ear within 10 minutes, the spell ends, and the creature flies off. The avian messenger can understand any language(s) the caster speaks and remember a message up to 1 minute (one round) long per level of the caster.

Once the caster has finished whispering his message, he must designate a recipient for the message. The caster must know the proper name or identifying title of the recipient and the location of his residence (either firsthand, from scrying, or from a map). Once the recipient has been designated, the avian messenger will begin traveling to the recipient’s residence. The avian messenger will travel for up to 12 hours at a rate of 48 miles per hour in order to reach the recipient’s residence. If the recipient is present when the messenger arrives, it will whisper the message into his ear in whatever language the caster spoke. If the recipient is absent, or somehow inaccessible (e.g. in a windowless room), the avian messenger will circle in the vicinity until it is able to reach him or until the spell expires.