MonsterEnvy
Legend
It does not mater which is brighter. The point is that Sunbeam is stated to be Sunlight. While Daylight is not. Vampires are not harmed by light. They are harmed by the Sun.
D&D 5E Vampires in 5e
- Thread starter Eric V
- Start date
It does not mater which is brighter. The point is that Sunbeam is stated to be Sunlight. While Daylight is not. Vampires are not harmed by light. They are harmed by the Sun.
Common sense would say that a you aren't supposed to be able to shut down half the abilities of a CR 13 legendary monster with a 3rd-level spell that doesn't even grant a save.
ExploderWizard
Hero
Do not mistake game balance balderdash for common sense.
MonsterEnvy
Legend
I don't think common sense means that stuff that is bright is the same as the sun.
One is stated to be Sunlight the other is not.
Common sense dictates the one stated to be sunlight is sunlight while the other is not. Vampires are not harmed by light. They are harmed by the Sun. Daylight makes a bright light, Sunbeam creates a mote of the sun that produces a bit of sunlight and can shoot sun lasers.
What is the cause/source of light...in the day...a.k.a. Daylight?
MonsterEnvy
Legend
In the day the sun. In the spell magic. It creates a sphere of light shines brightly. It's job to simulate daylight. But it is not actually the light of the sun.
Do not mistake your personal prejudices for common sense, either.
After thinking about this for a while (and actually allowing the Daylight spell to adversely affect a Vampire earlier in our current campaign), I think that I have to go with the side of the argument that states that the Daylight spell is not the equivalent of sunlight.
I came to this conclusion for several reasons:
1) The Daylight spell does not mention sunlight.
2) Both Sunlight Sensitivity and Sunlight Hypersensitivity both explicitly mention "sunlight", not daylight.
3) The name Daylight implies "light of the day", but in reality, this is just a spell name from earlier versions of the game.
4) The 3E version of the game stated "Despite its name, this spell is not the equivalent of daylight for the purposes of creatures that are damaged or destroyed by bright light.". Although that sentence is no longer in the spell, that's how the spell has always worked.
5) There is a spell called Sunbeam that is explicitly designed for this function. The light is sunlight.
6) The 3E version of Sunbeam was explicitly designed to harm undead creatures harmed by bright light.
7) Daylight is a 3rd level spell. Sunbeam is a 6th level spell. The version of the spell that harms vampires should be the higher level one that explicitly states that it is sunlight and explicitly states that undead get a disadvantage on their save.
So from what I can tell, the 3E version of Daylight did not harm undead and the 3E version of Sunbeam did harm undead. It is not unreasonable to maintain this interpretation in 5E, especially considering that the 5E version of Sunbeam does explicitly give this functionality and the 5E version of Daylight does not.
Note: Having said that, only Druids and Wizards get the Sunbeam spell. So, I could see a given DM allowing Daylight (which Clerics and Paladins get) to harm vampires due to motif. But I do think that a 3rd level spell is pretty low level for that amount of umph.
I came to this conclusion for several reasons:
1) The Daylight spell does not mention sunlight.
2) Both Sunlight Sensitivity and Sunlight Hypersensitivity both explicitly mention "sunlight", not daylight.
3) The name Daylight implies "light of the day", but in reality, this is just a spell name from earlier versions of the game.
4) The 3E version of the game stated "Despite its name, this spell is not the equivalent of daylight for the purposes of creatures that are damaged or destroyed by bright light.". Although that sentence is no longer in the spell, that's how the spell has always worked.
5) There is a spell called Sunbeam that is explicitly designed for this function. The light is sunlight.
6) The 3E version of Sunbeam was explicitly designed to harm undead creatures harmed by bright light.
7) Daylight is a 3rd level spell. Sunbeam is a 6th level spell. The version of the spell that harms vampires should be the higher level one that explicitly states that it is sunlight and explicitly states that undead get a disadvantage on their save.
So from what I can tell, the 3E version of Daylight did not harm undead and the 3E version of Sunbeam did harm undead. It is not unreasonable to maintain this interpretation in 5E, especially considering that the 5E version of Sunbeam does explicitly give this functionality and the 5E version of Daylight does not.
Note: Having said that, only Druids and Wizards get the Sunbeam spell. So, I could see a given DM allowing Daylight (which Clerics and Paladins get) to harm vampires due to motif. But I do think that a 3rd level spell is pretty low level for that amount of umph.
Hriston
Dungeon Master of Middle-earth
In the daytime, daylight is the blue light that comes from all directions of the sky. Sunlight is what comes directly from the sun.
ExploderWizard
Hero
I don't believe anyone is saying that Daylight has to have the same umph that Sunbeam does. As you say it is only a 3rd level spell rather than 6th so I would be inclined to rule that while it DOES affect creatures much like sunlight, it is weaker than the more powerful spell and such creatures would gain advantage on saving throws against it. This will make the spell weaker but not completely useless against vampires and similar creatures.
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