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Beholder Antimagic Ray vs Wiz Antimagic field

Frostbiter01

First Post
OK I Have an issue: I am DMing a 3.5 D&D game where the party is approaching a floating beholder. The Beholder has his antimagc ray eye open at a range 150' and the party has asked if they are in their own anti magic field does his cancel theirs? Can they activate it once in his field? If he turns away and they activate their antimagic field does this cancel his eye and rays from working or do these fields overlap. They just battled a Mummy Lord an backed him into the corner of the room while the 12th level Ranger and 13th Dwarf just pulverized him, very unfair spell indeed.
 

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OK I Have an issue: I am DMing a 3.5 D&D game where the party is approaching a floating beholder. The Beholder has his antimagc ray eye open at a range 150' and the party has asked if they are in their own anti magic field does his cancel theirs?


Two or more antimagic fields sharing any of the same space have no effect on each other.


Can they activate it once in his field?
An antimagic field suppresses any spell or magical effect used within, brought into, or cast into the area, but does not dispel it.

If he turns away and they activate their antimagic field does this cancel his eye and rays from working or do these fields overlap.
These creatures’ spell-like or supernatural abilities may be temporarily nullified by the field.
 
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Dandu

Thanks for the response. I have another question this one on tactics. The shaft they have to climb was created by the beholder and is 140' tall. The beholder is at the top facing the hole about 20' from it. The Beholder has flyby attack. He is alerted by his minions that they have entered the upper shaft and are coming upward fly and other items to lift them like boots of levitation. Can the beholder fly up to the hole and tilt, firing 3 eye rays down then use the 2nd movement to place the eye facing down the shaft, to cut off their magic? Secondly, is their fall (Fly or levitation spells cutoff) happen as part of the Beholders initiative or do they fall and then they can take one action on their init? It seems if I allow them to take an action as a reaction to the beholder then they would still get their full action on their turn in order?


As an example, the cleric wishes to pull out his ring of feather falling in case the ground is outside of the beholder ray while the Rogue wishes to tumble down the 10' wide diameter shaft to limit any damage.
 

The shaft they have to climb was created by the beholder and is 140' tall. The beholder is at the top facing the hole about 20' from it. The Beholder has flyby attack. He is alerted by his minions that they have entered the upper shaft and are coming upward fly and other items to lift them like boots of levitation. Can the beholder fly up to the hole and tilt, firing 3 eye rays down then use the 2nd movement to place the eye facing down the shaft, to cut off their magic?
I don't have the entry on Beholders on hand, but what action is activating a bunch of eyes?

I can tell you that D&D 3.5e doesn't have facing, so I do not believe he needs to spend an action pointing his eye in a specific direction, unless there is something specifically in the monster description saying so.

Secondly, is their fall (Fly or levitation spells cutoff) happen as part of the Beholders initiative or do they fall and then they can take one action on their init? It seems if I allow them to take an action as a reaction to the beholder then they would still get their full action on their turn in order?
I believe they fall on the Beholder's turn, when the anti-magic field is activated. They would have to take actions on their initiative, unless someone were to use an Immediate action ability or some other exemption.

It is not unreasonable to allow certain actions in response to the beholder, like a reflex save to grab onto a piece of rock to stop falling.
 

Eye Rays (Su): Each of a beholder's small eyes can produce a magical ray once per round as a free action. During a single round, the beholder can only aim three eye rays at targets in any one 90-degree arc (up, forward, backward, left, right, or down.) The remaining eyes must aim at targets in other arcs, or not at all. A beholder can tilt and pan its body each round to change which rays it can bring to bear in any given arc.

According to the description, the beholder can tilt and pan its body each round. It isn't described as costing him an action, (so I presume its a free action) but the text implies that he does tilt and pan once per round. Its facing is rather important to determine in what direction the antimagic cone is facing, and which enemies he can target with its eyes.

Antimagic Cone (Su): A beholder's central eye continually produces a 150-foot cone of antimagic. This functions just like antimagic field (caster level 13th). All magical and supernatural powers and effects within the cone are suppressed - even the beholder's own eye rays. Once each round, during its turn, the beholder decides whether the cone is active or not (the beholder deactivates the cone by shutting its central eye).
 


Ok thank you very much.

I am taking the free action of the 3 eye attacks in any one 90 degree arc can be used then face downward thus putting a 90 degree arc and cone of antimagic ray down the shaft. So that question is answered though not sure if you are saying he can do that because of Flyby attack or because it was a free actin to pan or tilt.

The question that was not answered is reaction and initiative. The Beholder moved after the PCs as they ascended upward in the shaft magically. I asked when he looks downward with his anti magi ray and engulfs them all, and none of their flying or darkvision items work, does the effect happen right then and there so they get a reaction to it plus their initiative before the Beholder goes again or do they fall on their initiative? We have the same issue when in the middle of battle the Cleric turns undead. Do they run then or can other players strike on their initiative and then the undead run on their initiative?

thanks
 


I am taking the free action of the 3 eye attacks in any one 90 degree arc can be used then face downward thus putting a 90 degree arc and cone of antimagic ray down the shaft.

Aiming all three eye attacks downward is but one of many options. You can aim them forward, backward, left, right, up, down. To aim the antimagic ray, he would also need to tilt towards the shaft, which is another free action. He can do all of that during his round if he pleases.

beholder-01.jpg

So that question is answered though not sure if you are saying he can do that because of Flyby attack or because it was a free actin to pan or tilt.

Its a free action. The text says he can tilt during his round. Tilting is not an attack. He simply adjusts his facing.

The question that was not answered is reaction and initiative. The Beholder moved after the PCs as they ascended upward in the shaft magically. I asked when he looks downward with his anti magi ray and engulfs them all, and none of their flying or darkvision items work, does the effect happen right then and there so they get a reaction to it plus their initiative before the Beholder goes again or do they fall on their initiative?

The moment the Beholder hits them with the anti-magic ray, that is when they fall. So it happens during the Beholder's round.

Whether you allow them to react to it is up to you. You can rule that they get a Reflex save DC 15, to grab hold of something. Or you can rule that they immediately fall down and take damage. If the players have items that require only a free action to activate, then I would allow that, even if its not their turn yet. Of course a ring of feather fall isn't going to do much good while they are still inside the anti-magic effect. But any free action, which can be done in a split second, should be possible. As a DM you can make rulings whether an action that the players want to attempt can be done as a free action, or requires a full action. When in doubt, use common sense. Falling happens really fast, so they have to react in a split second.

We have the same issue when in the middle of battle the Cleric turns undead. Do they run then or can other players strike on their initiative and then the undead run on their initiative?

Movement takes place during the turn of the creature. Hypothetically, if the creatures were to run during the round of the cleric, then what happens when its actually their turn? Do they move again? That would effectively give them double movement. So the answer is, no, they move when its their turn. But you can tell the players that the undead react to the spell and are repelled.

Effect and Duration of Turning

Turned undead flee from you by the best and fastest means available to them. They flee for 10 rounds (1 minute). If they cannot flee, they cower (giving any attack rolls against them a +2 bonus). If you approach within 10 feet of them, however, they overcome being turned and act normally. (You can stand within 10 feet without breaking the turning effect—you just can’t approach them.) You can attack them with ranged attacks (from at least 10 feet away), and others can attack them in any fashion, without breaking the turning effect.
 

Aiming all three eye attacks downward is but one of many options. You can aim them forward, backward, left, right, up, down. To aim the antimagic ray, he would also need to tilt towards the shaft, which is another free action. He can do all of that during his round if he pleases.

Imaculata thank you for those pointers. SO if he has flyby then you are saying I could tilt left hit with 3 eyes keep moving tilt to the right and hit with 3 eyes and finally come to an end of my double move facing down filing the tube like tunnel that it made (very smooth) and hit them with antimagic ray? Also when I let them fall they can use a free action or grab if there was anything (there is not) as a DC 15 reflex but don't allow the rogue to tumble to ignore some damage? Just how far of a fall must a character be falling to get at least a standard action like pull a ring out of their pouch?
 

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