Doctor Johann Georg Faust (Epic Stoic of Mephistopheles)
Mephistopheles has a bet with an Archangel that he can corrupt a righteous man’s soul and destroy in him what is divine. If he succeeds, the he will win dominion over earth.
Mephistopheles delivered a plague to the village where Johann Georg Faust, an elderly wizard, lived. Though he prays to stop the death and starvation, nothing happens. Faust then summoned Mephistopheles, who offered to serve him for a trial, 24-hour period. Faust will have Mephistopheles’s service till the sand runs out in an Hourglass,at which time Mephistopheles will rescind the pact. At first, Faust uses his new power to help the people of the village, but they shun him when they find out that he cannot face a holy symbol.
Later, Faust makes a further deal with Mephistopheles, who offers to serve him as long as Faust lives. He gives Faust back his youth and offers him earthly pleasures and a kingdom, in return for his immortal soul. Mephistopheles then takes him to the Walpurgisnacht celebration on “Bald Mountain”, to finish his tryst with an Italian Duchess. Faust seals the deal permanently; he is Mephistopheles forever. Faust soon grows weary of debauchery and yearns for “Home”. Here Faust falls in love with an innocent girl, Gretchen, but he is later framed for the murder of her brother by Mephistopheles and must flee (with Mephistopheles‘ encouragement). The girl has a child (by Faust) but is cast out into a blizzard where the child dies, and she is sent to the stake as a murderess. Faust sees what is happening and demands Mephistopheles take him there. Faust arrives just as the fire has been started to burn his lover. Faust wishes he had never asked to have his youth back and runs through
the assembled mob towards Gretchen; Mephisto gleefully grants Faust his wish and it is as an old man that Faust throws himself onto the fire to be with his beloved.
Gretchen recognizes Faust and sees him in her heart as a young man again as the fire consumes them together.
The angel reveals to Mephistopheles that he has lost the bet because love has triumphed over all.
Doctor Johann Georg Faust | |
Wizard 10, Stoic of Mephistopheles 18 | |
Medium humanoid (Sapien) | |
Hit Dice | 28d4+28 (99 hp) |
Initiative | +1 (+1 Dexterity) |
Speed | 30 ft. (6 squares) |
Armor Class | 21 (+1 Dexterity, +5 armor, +5 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 20 |
Base Attack/Grapple | +14/+14 |
Attack | +1 Dagger +15 melee (1d4+1/19-20); or spell +14 melee touch or +15 ranged touch. |
Full Attack | +1 Dagger +15/+10 melee (1d4+1/19-20); or spell +14 melee touch or +15 ranged touch. |
Space/Reach | 5 ft./5ft. |
Special Attacks | Spells |
Special Qualities | Cold mind, cold shoulder, contempt for corruption, immunity to cold, summon familiar, Spell Resistance 18, stoic sage |
Saves | Fort +15, Ref +15, Will +30 |
Abilities | Strength 10, Dexterity 12, Constitution 13, Intelligence 35, Wisdom 15, Charisma 11 |
Skills | Appraise +25, Concentration +21 (+29 when casting or maintaining a spell), Decipher Script +27, Diplomacy +2, Knowledge (Arcana) +49, Knowledge (architecture and engineering) +22, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +32, Knowledge (Geography) +30, Knowledge (history) +48, Knowledge (nature) +32, Knowledge (religion) +34, Knowledge (the planes) +46, Search +12 (+14 to find secret doors or hidden compartments), Sense Motive +15, Spellcraft +47, Survival +2 (+4 in natural environments, +6 on other planes, +4 to avoid getting lost), Use Magic Device +10 (+16 to use scrolls) |
Feats | Craft Staff, Craft Wondrous Item, Dark Speech, Devotee of Darkness (Mephistopheles), Extraordinary Concentration , Forge Ring, Iron Will, Maximize Spell, Quicken Spell, Scribe Scroll |
Epic Feats | Epic Spellcasting, Epic Will, Improved Cold Mind, Improved Cold Soul, Improved Spell Capacity (10th), Improved Spell Capacity (11th) |
Environment | Any land or underground |
Organization | Solitary (unique) |
Challenge Rating | 28 |
Treasure | 558gp, +1 Dagger, amulet of natural armor +3, belt pouch (x4) (with 90 sp), black robes of the archmagi, diamond (500 gp), diamond (1000 gp), eye ointment (of mushroom powder, saffron, and fat; 250 gp), forked metal rod, headband of intellect +6, incense (250 gp), inkpen, jeweled ivory statuette (1,500gp), pearl (100 gp), polished silver mirror (2 ft. by 4 ft.; 1,000 gp),rectangle of ivory stripes (200 gp), ring of wizardry I, ring of wizardry II, ruby dust (1,500 gp), sapphire lens in a golden loop (1,500 gp), scholar’ soutfit, scroll case, scroll of arcane sight, scroll of expeditious retreat, scroll of greater Dispel magic, scroll of greater invisibility, scroll of identify, scroll of polar ray, scroll of protection from arrows, scroll of teleport, scroll of undetectable alignment, sheet of parchment (x20), spellbook (x4), spell component pouch (x6), staff of frost, vial of ink (1 oz.), wand of Charm Person (50 charges), wand of magic missile (CL 9th, 50 charges), waterskin |
Alignment | Lawful evil |
Faust has received a +1 inherent bonus to his Intelligence score.
Cold Mind (Su): Faust has become cold and inhuman in every aspect of his thought process. He is immune to enchantments and mind-influencing spells and effects.
Cold Shoulder (Su): Faust is immune to the following spells: antipathy, crushing despair, fear, greater
heroism, heroism, hideous laughter, rage, and sympathy. Furthermore, Faust is no longer affected by morale bonuses or penalties of any sort.
Cold Soul (Ex): Faust is dispassionate in every fiber of his being. He can alter an arcane spell when cast so that it utilizes cold energy rather than the one it normally uses. This ability can only alter a spell with the acid, cold, fire, electricity, or sonic descriptor. Faust decides whether to alter the spell’s energy type when he begins casting, and the spell’s casting time is unaffected. Additionally, spells with the cold descriptor are cast as if Faust were one level higher, the save DC increases by +1, and they ignore cold resistance. Creatures with cold immunity take half damage (unless they have the cold subtype, in which case they remain immune).
Contempt for Corruption (Su): The corrupt knowledge with which Faust acquaints himself on a regular basis no longer has any effect on him. If a spell has a corruption cost, he no longer pays that cost.
Devotee of Darkness: Once per day, Faust can call upon the aid of Mephistopheles, granting him a +3 profane bonus to any one roll. Against chaotic or good foes, Faust gains a +1 profane bonus to Armor Class, and once per day can gain a +2 profane bonus on saving throws against a spell with the chaotic or good descriptor. He also gains Spell Resistance 28 against chaotic and good spells and spell-like abilities.
Whenever dealing with a higher-ranking servant of Mephistopheles (or the Lord of Loss himself), Faust takes a -2 penalty on attacks, checks, and other rolls, a – 3 penalty to Armor Class, and a -6 penalty to saving throws. In addition, no Spell Resistance Faust obtains is ever effective against such creatures.
Stoic Sage (Ex): Faust is disciplined in his spellcasting efforts. He gains a +9 competence bonus on Concentration checks made in relation to casting or maintaining a spell or spell-like ability. This discipline also extends to his research. Faust’s maximum ranks in Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (history), and Knowledge
(the planes) are equal to his level +9 rather than his level +3.
Typical Wizard Spells Prepared (4/10/10/6/6/5/5/5/5/4/2/2; save DC 22 + spell level):
- 0 – Detect Magic, mage hand, message, read magic;
- 1st – alarm, cause fear, Charm Person, chill touch, feather fall, identify, magic missile, obscuring mist, shield,
True Strike; - 2nd – alter self, blindness/deafness, blur, detect thoughts, invisibility, misdirection, protection from arrows,
see invisibility, shatter, whispering wind; - 3rd – deep slumber, Dispel magic, fly, gaseous form, Nondetection, tongues;
- 4th – bestow curse, dimension door, enervation, ice storm, scrying, wall of ice;
- 5th – cloudkill, dominate person, telekinesis, teleport, True Strike (quickened);
- 6th – Analyze Dweomer, freezing sphere, legend lore, lightning bolt (maximized), true seeing;
- 7th – finger of death, fireball (maximized), greater teleport, insanity, spell turning;
- 8th – cone of cold (maximized), horrid wilting, polar ray, power word stun, screen;
- 9th – gate, power word kill, shapechange, time stop;
- 10th – chain lightning (quickened), delayed blast fireball (maximized);
- 11th – greater teleport (quickened), polar ray (maximized).
Epic Spells Known (3 per day; save DC 32): animus blast, epic mage armor, let go of me, soul scry.
Spellbook 1:
- 0 – acid splash, arcane mark, dancing lights, daze, detect magic, detect poison, disrupt undead, flare, ghost sound, light, mage hand, mending, message, open/close, prestidigitation, ray of frost, read magic, resistance, touch of fatigue;
- 1st – cause fear, charm person, comprehend languages, endure elements, feather fall, magic missile, obscuring mist, shield, True Strike;
- 2nd – detect thoughts, protection from arrows, see invisibility, whispering wind;
- 3rd – deep slumber, fly, gaseous form, tongues;
- 4th – bestow curse, dimension door, enervation, scrying;
- 5th – cone of cold, permanency, telekinesis, teleport;
- 6th – Analyze Dweomer, legend lore.
Pages Used: 96/100
Spellbook 2:
- 6th – contingency, true seeing;
- 7th – delayed blast fireball, greater teleport, plane shift, spell turning;
- 8th – discern location, mind blank, polar ray, protection from spells;
- 9th – power word kill, mage’s disjunction, time stop.
Pages Used: 99/100
Spellbook 3:
- 1st – alarm, chill touch, identify, mage armor;
- 2nd – alter self, invisibility,
- 3rd – Dispel magic, Nondetection,
- 6th – chain lightning, freezing sphere;
- 7th – finger of death, Forcecage, limited wish;
- 8th – greater Prying Eyes, mass charm monster, power word stun;
- 9th – energy drain, meteor swarm, wish.
Pages Used: 98/100
Spellbook 4:
- 2nd – blindness/deafness, blur, darkvision, hideous laughter, misdirection, shatter, touch of idiocy;
- 3rd – clairaudience/clairvoyance, explosive runes, fireball, haste, lightning bolt, slow;
- 4th – confusion, ice storm, solid fog, wall of ice;
- 5th – break enchantment, cloudkill, dominate person, feeblemind, mind fog;
- 8th – horrid wilting, moment of prescience;
- 9th – dominate monster.
Pages Used: 98/100
Spellbook 5:
- 5th – blight;
- 6th – globe of invulnerability, wall of iron;
- 7th – insanity, teleport object;
- 8th – clenched fist, screen;
- 9th – gate, shapechange.
Pages Used: 65/100
Faust (1926 film)
Faust is a silent film produced in 1926 by UFA, directed by F.W. Murnau, starring Gösta Ekman as Faust, Emil Jannings as Mephisto, Camilla Horn as Gretchen/Marguerite, Frida Richard as her mother, Wilhelm Dieterle as her brother and Yvette Guilbert as Marthe Schwerdtlein, her aunt. Murnau’s film draws on older traditions of the legendary tale of Faust as well as on Goethe’s classic version. UFA wanted Ludwig Berger to direct Faust, as Murnau was engaged with Variety; Murnau pressured the producer and, backed by Jannings, eventually persuaded Erich Pommer to let him direct the movie.
Faust was Murnau’s last German movie, and directly afterward he moved to the US under contract to William Fox to direct Sunrise (1927); when the film premiered in the Ufa-Palast am Zoo of Berlin, Murnau was already shooting in Hollywood.