Waterspout Waterspout was a divine magic spell available to priests of Umberlee , the Bitch Queen , and cleric s of other deities that claimed the ocean as their domain . It created a towering column of water that could pick up objects and creatures , pummel them mercilessly , and then eject them high above the water level . A rare arcane conjuration / summoning version of this spell also existed , mainly used by water elementalist s . Effects . There were two divine versions of this spell , an earlier one used by priests of Umberlee and a later version that had more wide - spread use among followers of deities associated with oceans . The spells were very similar with minor differences in range and duration , but with one major difference : the later spell required a source of water at least 10 ft ( 3 m ) across by 20 ft ( 6 . 1 m ) deep and could create enough water to form a column 10 ft ( 3 m ) wide by 80 ft ( 24 m ) tall , whereas the earlier version required a body of water large enough to supply all the water for such a column . Both versions required a water depth of at least 20 ft ( 6 . 1 m ) below the surface of the water source to support the " waterspout " . If there was insufficient water or space for the water column , the spell fizzled and was wasted . The even more powerful arcane version allowed to form a " waterspout " 20 yds . ( 18 m ) in diameter , with a height of 160 ft ( 49 m ) , or taller for wizards of greater power . The earlier version could be cast at a point up to 330 ft ( 101 m ) away , whereas the later version had a much longer range of 920 ft ( 280 m ) . The arcane " waterspout " spell extended 260 yds . ( 238 m ) . More experienced casters could extend this range even farther . When cast , a whirling cylinder of raging water rose up and could travel at a slow pace at the direction of the caster . All creatures and objects in its path were battered by the quickly rotating water , often with enough force to crush and shatter normal ( non - magical ) items and severely injure creatures that failed to dodge out of the way . Creatures hit by a " waterspout " were sucked into the column and spun about , taking further damage . Creatures that could not breathe water , were poor swimmers , or did not have the strength and constitution to hold their breath , stood a good chance of suffering death by drowning . Medium - sized creatures already in the water and within 10 ft ( 3 m ) of the " waterspout " were sucked in unless they managed to maneuver away . The same fate met very small watercraft such as rowboats or canoes , but the " waterspout " was not big enough to grab larger vessels . Creatures caught by a " waterspout " were battered , crushed , and suffocated until they reached the top of the water column and were flung about 100 ft ( 30 m ) in a random ( horizontal ) direction . If they were still alive at that point , the impact of their landing was another severe blow . Spellcasters had no chance to cast any spell until they were free of the " waterspout " , and then only a quick spell or magic item activation was possible before the crash landing . If the " waterspout " moved out of an area of sufficient depth , then it collapsed abruptly and all those trapped inside were subject to injury caused by falling . If the spell ended normally , then the water column slowly sank back into the source of water and caused no further harm . The arcane version summoned a tornado in order to form the column of water . Thus it could be countered by appropriate wind magic or the actions of an air elemental . Components . In addition to verbal and somatic components , the early version of this spell required a drop of water blessed by Umberlee or one of her senior priests . The later version needed only the caster ' s holy symbol or divine focus , while the arcane version needed verbal and somatic components only .