Transmutation • Transformation of Matter and Flesh
Polymorph Any Object
Polymorph Any Object can turn a living creature or an ordinary object into a very different form. The closer the new form is to the original, the longer the transformation lasts. In Pathfinder 1e and D&D 3.5e, the spell is 8th level and retains its distinctive duration-factor tables; it is not a core fifth-edition spell of the same name.
Polymorph Any Object at a Glance
| 5.5e / 2024 | No such spell in SRD 5.2.1 |
|---|---|
| 5e / 2014 | No core spell by this name |
| Pathfinder 1e | Sorcerer/Wizard 8; changes physical or mental ability scores using its own rule |
| D&D 3.5e | Sorcerer/Wizard 8, Trickery domain 8; Witch 8 is a historical archive placement |
Spell Rules by Edition
Polymorph Any Object — 5.5e / 2024
Status: no core spell by this exact name in SRD 5.2.1. Current polymorph and shapechanging spells have their own form limits and durations.
Polymorph Any Object — 5e / 2014
Status: no core spell of this name. The 2014 Polymorph spell affects creatures under much more limited conditions and does not use the older duration-factor table.
Polymorph Any Object — Pathfinder 1e
| School | Transmutation (Polymorph) |
|---|---|
| Level | Sorcerer/Wizard 8 |
| Components | V, S, M/DF (mercury, gum arabic and smoke) |
| Casting Time | 1 standard action |
| Range | Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels) |
| Target | One creature or one nonmagical object up to 100 cubic feet/level |
| Duration | See duration-factor rules below |
| Saving Throw | Fortitude negates (object); see text |
| Spell Resistance | Yes (object) |
Functions like Greater Polymorph, except that it can change living creatures into objects, objects into creatures or one kind of object into another. The duration factor increases by +5 for the same kingdom, +2 for the same class, +2 for the same size, +2 for closely related forms and +2 for the same or lower Intelligence. Add all applicable modifiers.
| Duration factor | Duration | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 20 minutes | Pebble to human |
| 2 | 1 hour | Marionette to human |
| 4 | 3 hours | Human to marionette |
| 5 | 12 hours | Lizard to manticore |
| 6 | 2 days | Sheep to wool coat |
| 7 | 1 week | Shrew to manticore |
| 9+ | Permanent | Manticore to shrew |
A new form gains a base score of 10 in any missing physical ability and 5 in any missing mental ability, under Pathfinder’s published rule. This spell cannot make magic items or valuable precious materials.
Rules source: Pathfinder 1e — Polymorph Any Object.
Polymorph Any Object — D&D 3.5e
The original 3.5e spell belongs to Sorcerer/Wizard 8 and Trickery domain 8, with the historical Witch archive additionally listing Witch 8. Unlike Pathfinder’s greater-polymorph foundation, this version follows the older Polymorph spell and its own rules for assigning mental ability scores.
This material is Open Game Content, and is licensed for public use under the terms of the Open Game License v1.0a.
This spell functions like polymorph, except that it changes one object or creature into another.
Transmutation
Level Sorcerer/Wizard 8, Trickery 8
Components V, S, M/DF
Casting Time 1 standard action
Range Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target One creature, or one nonmagical object of up to 100 cu. ft./level
Duration See text
Saving Throw Fortitude negates (object); see text
Spell Resistance Yes (object)
The duration of the spell depends on how radical a change is made from the original state to its enchanted state. The duration is determined by using the following guidelines.
| Changed Subject Is | Increase to Duration Factor1 |
| Same kingdom (animal, vegetable, mineral) | +5 |
| Same class (mammals, fungi, metals, etc.) | +2 |
| Same size | +2 |
| Related (twig is to tree, wolf fur is to wolf, etc.) | +2 |
| Same or lower Intelligence | +2 |
| 1 Add all that apply. Look up the total on the next table. |
| Duration Factor | Duration | Example |
| 0 | 20 minutes | Pebble to human |
| 2 | 1 hour | Marionette to human |
| 4 | 3 hours | Human to marionette |
| 5 | 12 hours | Lizard to manticore |
| 6 | 2 days | Sheep to wool coat |
| 7 | 1 week | Shrew to manticore |
| 9+ | Permanent | Manticore to shrew |
Unlike polymorph, polymorph any object does grant the creature the Intelligence score of its new form. If the original form didn’t have a Wisdom or Charisma score, it gains those scores as appropriate for the new form.
Damage taken by the new form can result in the injury or death of the polymorphed creature. In general, damage occurs when the new form is changed through physical force.
A nonmagical object cannot be made into a magic item with this spell. Magic items aren’t affected by this spell.
This spell cannot create material of great intrinsic value, such as copper, silver, gems, silk, gold, platinum, mithral, or adamantine. It also cannot reproduce the special properties of cold iron in order to overcome the damage reduction of certain creatures.
This spell can also be used to duplicate the effects of baleful polymorph, polymorph, flesh to stone, stone to flesh, transmute mud to rock, transmute metal to wood, or transmute rock to mud.
Arcane Material Component Mercury, gum arabic, and smoke.
Rules source: D&D 3.5 SRD — Polymorph Any Object. The original duration and similarity tables above are preserved without alteration.
What Changed?
The two d20 editions keep the same principle of duration factors but differ in their underlying polymorph spells and treatment of ability scores. Fifth edition offers other transformative magic rather than this exact 8th-level spell.
Using Polymorph Any Object in Play
Use the duration factors before a significant transformation. A dramatic change, such as stone to person, may last only minutes; a closely related form can be permanent. The spell is useful for disguises, breaches, rescuing a transformed victim or changing the nature of an obstacle—but it cannot produce wealth, precious metals or magic items.
Counterplay and GM Rulings
- Use the saving throw and spell resistance for the active edition and target type. An object’s defences are not identical to a creature’s.
- Compare kingdom, class, size, relation and Intelligence and total the duration factors carefully before announcing how long the effect will last.
- Exclude magical items and high-value materials, as the older source specifically requires.
- Counterspell can prevent the cast; Dispel Magic and other methods of ending the effect follow the edition’s transmutation rules.
Related Magic
Polymorph · Greater Polymorph · Flesh to Stone · Witch Spell Lists
Mythical Context
Transformation is central to Ovid’s Metamorphoses. The king Lyncus becomes a lynx, while gods and mortals elsewhere change into trees, animals and stone; shape can become a punishment, escape or revelation. Use that tradition when deciding what a transformation means to the subject, not only which statistics change. See the Metropolitan Museum’s depiction of Lyncus transformed into a lynx.
Historical Context
The Roman poet’s transformations continued to circulate in illustrated books long after antiquity. A Venetian edition of Ovid’s Metamorphoses printed in 1501 reused late-fifteenth-century woodcuts, showing how such myths were retold in early Renaissance Europe. Its illustrations are evidence of storytelling and print history, not historical transmutation. See The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s 1501 edition.
Rules Sources and Licensing
Pathfinder 1e and D&D 3.5e mechanics are preserved as their respective Open Game Content under the OGL v1.0a. The modern edition panels do not invent conversions. The transformation illustration is retained from the site’s media library.
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