D&D 5E protection from elements?

[CapnZapp]

Quick question:

What are the 5e options to resist, endure, protect yourself against or plain ignore conditions like snowstorms, baking sun, avalanches, lava pools, icy water, extreme altitudes, and other environmental extremes?

I would like to build a handy "complete index" that covers all possible equipment, class features, spells, magic items etc that a DM should be aware of before trying to build an adventure where the environment itself is supposed to be a challenge?

I'm especially interested in low level options.

Any comparisons to d20/3E would also be welcome. For instance, 3e offered a spell called Endure Elements which pretty much trivialized any desert or winter challenge all by itself.

Thanks

 

[Joe Liker]

Extreme heat and cold cause exhaustion, as does icy water, and there's nothing that I know of that will protect against that. The fact that it takes a rare potion (vitality) or a 5th-level spell (greater restoration) to artificially recover from exhaustion should tell you that these are not conditions a low-level party is intended to endure easily.

Similarly, the only way to avoid an avalanche is to not be under it.

Water walk will get you across lava, but you'd better hope you find solid ground before it wears off!

Anyway, off the top of my head, here are some things that might help in some of these situations:

-- A bag of holding or similar to carry lots of extra provisions (especially water)

-- The mundane basics: warm clothes, fishing tackle, climber's kit, hunter's trap, tent, etc.

-- Rope trick can give you a comfortable short rest. If you can manage eight castings, you can get a long rest.

-- Leomund's tiny hut

-- Mordenkainen's magnificent mansion

-- Daern's instant fortress

-- Water walk

-- Heroes' feast

-- Create food & water

-- Create water

-- A ranger who favors the terrain in question (Natural Explorer)

-- Survival skill

-- Land's Stride (druid or ranger)

-- Locate animals or plants

-- Control weather

-- Horseshoes of a zephyr

 

[CapnZapp]

Thank you!

So, really only "lack of water" can't be used as an adventure challenge (most if not all parties will feature a cleric or similar with access to Create Water already at level 1)

Lack of food, lack of warmth and lack of cool is still on the table, then, since I can't find anything like Endure Elements in your list that would trivialize such challenges on levels 1-4?

Interestingly, you didn't put Protection from Energy on the list. How would you say that spell interacts with a desert sun (Protection from fire) or a windy glacier (... from Cold)? I'm thinking some generosity is warranted here, since a single caster can't trivialize conditions for everybody, just one selected character.

(Of course, the DMG states winter clothing makes you plain immune to winter conditions. Talk about trivializing... but that's easy to ignore)

 

[Joe Liker]

Lack of food, lack of warmth and lack of cool is still on the table, then, since I can't find anything like Endure Elements in your list that would trivialize such challenges on levels 1-4?

Yes. I think you've actually zeroed in on a slight shift in design philosophy here. Harsh environments are meant to provide more of a challenge now, whether you have a cleric/druid or not.

Interestingly, you didn't put Protection from Energy on the list. How would you say that spell interacts with a desert sun (Protection from fire) or a windy glacier (... from Cold)? I'm thinking some generosity is warranted here, since a single caster can't trivialize conditions for everybody, just one selected character.

(Of course, the DMG states winter clothing makes you plain immune to winter conditions. Talk about trivializing... but that's easy to ignore)

Protection from energy doesn't last long enough to provide any meaningful relief, but I suppose a case could be made if you were to chain together several castings. Even so, environments tend to cause exhaustion, not hp damage, so RAW it doesn't help.

In any case, it's a level 3 spell, so any character capable of keeping it up all day is probably capable of making the trip easier in lots of other ways.

 

[Fralex]

Protection from energy doesn't last long enough to provide any meaningful relief, but I suppose a case could be made if you were to chain together several castings. Even so, environments tend to cause exhaustion, not hp damage, so RAW it doesn't help.

Actually, the rules specifically state that any creature resistant or immune to fire damage will not suffer from extreme heat, and any creatures resistant or immune to cold damage will not suffer from extreme cold or frigid water.

 

[CapnZapp]

Here it is. Thanks.

"Creatures with
resistance or immunity to cold damage automatically
succeed on the saving throw, as do creatures wearing
cold weather gear (thick coats, gloves, and the like) and
creatures naturally adapted to cold climates."

Of course, any rule mentioned in the same breath as "just wear a coat, and any winter danger is immediately and automatically shut down" is not a rule I put much weight to...

For Protection against Cold, this is okay:ish, specifically since the spell only protects a single individual (each spellcaster can only concentrate either on himself or an ally, not the entire party) and only during especially critical moments (duration 1 hour).

But for cold weather gear, ...

I would say there's grades of "extreme cold", and that the DMG talks about the lightest degree only, when the DM says "it's a cold day", everybody crosses off a gold piece to retroactively buy winter clothing, and then the adventure continues... Cold weather as window dressing, as it were.

But I fully assume any adventure set in a specifically wintry locale, or even fantastical cold climes (such as when you visit other planes) would come with specific rules that trump this general one.

Rules that add new grades of cold, where cold weather gear grants proficiency bonus or advantage on the saves but definitely no automatic immunity, and perhaps also such intense cold that you normally get disadvantage on the roll (meaning that winter gear only cancel that disadvantage and nothing more).

 

[Joe Liker]

Actually, the rules specifically state that any creature resistant or immune to fire damage will not suffer from extreme heat, and any creatures resistant or immune to cold damage will not suffer from extreme cold or frigid water.

Good point.

In that case, add ring of resistance and its cousins to the list.

 

[Vigil_of_Helm]

Eight years too late but:
Prestidigitation- warm clothing
Tiny Hut - warm shelter
Shape Water - cantrip ice shelter
Create Bonfire - cooking
Create Water - clean water
Purify Food and Water
Mold Earth - shelter
Message - communicate through storm
Fabricate - make clothing, shelter, bridges, anything
Pass Without Trace - avoid predators
Phantom Steed - beast without vulnerability to cold

(I'm sure there are many more!)

 

[Quickleaf]

Quick question:

What are the 5e options to resist, endure, protect yourself against or plain ignore conditions like snowstorms, baking sun, avalanches, lava pools, icy water, extreme altitudes, and other environmental extremes?

I would like to build a handy "complete index" that covers all possible equipment, class features, spells, magic items etc that a DM should be aware of before trying to build an adventure where the environment itself is supposed to be a challenge?

I'm especially interested in low level options.

Any comparisons to d20/3E would also be welcome. For instance, 3e offered a spell called Endure Elements which pretty much trivialized any desert or winter challenge all by itself.

Thanks

Boots of the Winterlands (an uncommon item) have a clause very similar to endure elements, just specific to extreme cold/ice and snow.

IIRC, the general rule in 5e is if you have resistance to cold or fire damage, you are immune to extreme cold or extreme heat. Good reasons to change them up in homebrew, but iirc that's RAW.

 

[ECMO3]

Quick question:

What are the 5e options to resist, endure, protect yourself against or plain ignore conditions like snowstorms, baking sun, avalanches, lava pools, icy water, extreme altitudes, and other environmental extremes?

I would like to build a handy "complete index" that covers all possible equipment, class features, spells, magic items etc that a DM should be aware of before trying to build an adventure where the environment itself is supposed to be a challenge?

I'm especially interested in low level options.

Any comparisons to d20/3E would also be welcome. For instance, 3e offered a spell called Endure Elements which pretty much trivialized any desert or winter challenge all by itself.

Thanks

The one people don't think of often is prestigitation. Cast it on your clothing and you have essentially heated or chilled clothing for an hour. Would not work on Lava, but would work in the baking sun, icy water or a snowstorm.