Targetting Area Spells

[Laslo Tremaine]

I must confess that my group and I have been playing 3.x since it came out, but we are still hazy on how you target Area of Effect spells (fireball, darkness, flamestrike, etc).

In our games (as is common in most games, I would assume), the players of spellcasters spend a lot of time trying to target their spells, so as to get as many bad guys as possible, without getting any of the player characters.

Do you just use the rules for splash weapons? The SRD says this about them...

You can instead target a specific grid intersection. Treat this as a ranged attack against AC 5. However, if you target a grid intersection, creatures in all adjacent squares are dealt the splash damage, and the direct hit damage is not dealt to any creature. (You can’t target a grid intersection occupied by a creature, such as a Large or larger creature; in this case, you’re aiming at the creature.)

I suppose that works, but is there some specific rule that I am missing?

 

[mikebr99]

Nope... "Spellcasters, please tell me the direction you are pointing, and the distance..."


Hopefully they've taken the time, while other characters were completing their actions, to figure that out accurately with the mat in front of them.

Mike

 

[Shallown]

Its magic it hits exactly where the caster wants it to. Anything else becomes a pain to deal with.

It still falls to the player to choose the best area. Often it isn't worth the time, in my mind, to be perfect. I usually ball park it but my estimates are usually pretty close. I would rather keep the game moving than nit pick a the targeting of a spell.

Later

 

[mikebr99]

Its magic it hits exactly where the caster wants it to. Anything else becomes a pain to deal with.

It still falls to the player to choose the best area. Often it isn't worth the time, in my mind, to be perfect. I usually ball park it but my estimates are usually pretty close. I would rather keep the game moving than nit pick a the targeting of a spell.

Later

Except that you are allowing a PC to surgically strike with a fireball... which his character really only has 2ish seconds to decide on... while he's digging out the dung... etc. But hey... YMMV.


Mike

 

[Dr_Rictus]

Except that you are allowing a PC to surgically strike with a fireball... which his character really only has 2ish seconds to decide on... while he's digging out the dung... etc.

Yes, and that's what the D&D rules allow them to do.

As a DM, that doesn't mean you have to let them bog down the game with it, though. When it's their turn, they point at a grid intersection pronto or (if they want more time) they have to delay, in my game.

 

[Jeff Wilder]

Its magic it hits exactly where the caster wants it to. Anything else becomes a pain to deal with.

We use a very simple, but fun, house rule for this. Basically, for any ranged area-of-effect spell, the caster chooses his grid intersection and rolls (what else?) a d20. On 9-20, the spell goes exactly where chosen. On a 1-8, it misses by one square in the direction of the number rolled, with 1 being back toward the caster, counting clockwise around.

It's only one additional roll, which can be rolled with the damage dice for the spell, and we think it simulates the "chaos of combat" pretty well. Since it's a one-square shift at most, it's not too hard on the spellcasters, but it does make them think twice about the ol' "I'll blow up every bad guy and singe every good guy's nose" tactic.

 

[Laslo Tremaine]

We use a very simple, but fun, house rule for this. Basically, for any ranged area-of-effect spell, the caster chooses his grid intersection and rolls (what else?) a d20. On 9-20, the spell goes exactly where chosen. On a 1-8, it misses by one square in the direction of the number rolled, with 1 being back toward the caster, counting clockwise around.

That seems pretty elegant!

I'll have to see how my group feels about it.

 

[hong]

We use a very simple, but fun, house rule for this. Basically, for any ranged area-of-effect spell, the caster chooses his grid intersection and rolls (what else?) a d20. On 9-20, the spell goes exactly where chosen. On a 1-8, it misses by one square in the direction of the number rolled, with 1 being back toward the caster, counting clockwise around.

It's only one additional roll, which can be rolled with the damage dice for the spell, and we think it simulates the "chaos of combat" pretty well. Since it's a one-square shift at most, it's not too hard on the spellcasters, but it does make them think twice about the ol' "I'll blow up every bad guy and singe every good guy's nose" tactic.

That's not a bad rule.

 

[Someone]

I´ve heard of another, similar rule: you pick the square and roll a d4 to see in which corner is the spell actually centered.

 

[Ogrork the Mighty]

I'll make a spellcaster roll a Spellcraft check if there's a particular reason why placing the spell is more difficult than usual (e.g. a large number of people between the caster and the target point).