D&D General Air, Earth, and Water Damage

[Corinnguard]

Currently 5e has about 13 damage types: Acid, Cold, Fire, Force, Poison, Radiant, Necrotic, Bludgeoning, Piercing, Slashing, Thunder, Lightning, and Psychic. Most of these damage types in previous editions of D&D would have been seen as a form of energy damage. Piercing, Slashing and Bludgeoning were the only three that did physical damage to an opponent. Of the four classical elements, only fire did energy damage. The other three elements did physical damage (this was mentioned in PF1's Occult Adventures in the Kineticist Class). Damage for attacks from Air, Earth and Water should have been P/S/B. But for some strange reason, WoTC tied these three elements to a particular form of energy damage. Air with Lightning, Acid with Earth (in RL, it was the alkaline salts found in the earth itself) and Cold with Water.

Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed (and later Arcana Evolved) tried to separate Air, Earth and Water from Lightning, Acid and Cold. So, that 3e-adjacent RPG had it where you could be hit with elemental damage or energy damage during an attack. There was even an Elemental Resistance feat (Air 5, Earth 5, etc.)

 

[Staffan]

Elemental sorcerers in PF2 who use an element other than fire have those spells doing bludgeoning damage, and I think that works pretty well for actual air, earth, and water.

What I would like to see is more thought given to various spells and their energy/element types along with special effects. For example, there shouldn't be a waterball that's just like fireball except it does water/bludgeoning damage, because water isn't explosive in the same way fire is. A water-based spell dealing damage should be focused – it should probably be more like a line, or a wave travelling across an area. And there should be a hefty portion of forced movement linked to it, with perhaps less damage to balance things out. But that kind of thinking would have to be applied across the whole spell list from the start, so that would be an edition change thing.

 

[Remathilis]

While there is a way in D&D to change a fireball into a waterball or a coldball, there is the issue of what kind of damage they do against an opponent. A fireball does Fire damage. A coldball does Cold damage. But what kind of damage does a waterball do when someone is hit by one? Other than getting them, their gear and their clothing, all wet.

Save vs moisture

 

[Corinnguard]

Save vs moisture

Or save from pressure as several pounds of water are hitting several square inches of your body at a specific point.

 

[Remathilis]

WoTC tied these three elements to a particular form of energy damage. Air with Lightning, Acid with Earth (in RL, it was the alkaline salts found in the earth itself) and Cold with Water.

WotC has occasionally swapped these around in 5e. The Genie pact warlock gives resistance based on your patron, with the classics (air = lightning, water = cold, fire = fire) but bludgeoning for earth. And the water genasi doesn't have cold resistances but acid (and the earth gets limited p/s/b). But the new primordial warlock in the UA has gone back to the 3e era list you mentioned above. Thus there isn't even a consistent relationship between energy and element.

 

[Willie the Duck]

Save vs moisture

Extra effective against homeowners?

 

[bedir than]

Whistling winds
With a sharp whistle you summon wild winds that can flay skin and deafen a target
An air cantrip that does a d6, 90 feet range, V/S, Con save with deafened for a round on failure

I'd uses Magic stone for earth (but make it not awful)
Dice would climb as tiers advance

 

[jmartkdr2]

The problem with using bludgeoning as earth damage is that at higher levels lots of enemies are resistant or immune to bludgeoning. 5.5 doesn’t have magical bludgeoning damage anymore; those abilities have been replaced by force damage.

But making earth damage force seems like a bit much … I may be overvaluing force though.

 

[Corinnguard]

Whistling winds
With a sharp whistle you summon wild winds that can flay skin and deafen a target
An air cantrip that does a d6, 90 feet range, V/S, Con save with deafened for a round on failure

I'd uses Magic stone for earth (but make it not awful)
Dice would climb as tiers advance

If a Bard had the Whistling Winds cantrip, they would probably be singing "Whistling while I work' while casting it.

Wasn't there a spell back in 3e that could turn a pebble into a boulder?

 

[Tonguez]

I wont get in to details but I once did a magic system that allowed for flexible 'secondary effects'


Geomancer

• Rock (Solid) - Impact (Bludgeon)
• Sand/Soil (Particulate) - Scour (Abrasion Damage)
• Dust - Choking Damage, Blind
• Mud - Engulf, Slip
• Metal (Crush Armour)
• Crystal (Pierce)
• Petrify
• Earthquake (Knock Prone)
• Magma (Add fire secondary)

Hydromancer

• Water - bludgeon *soak
• Ice - Freeze *slow
• Engulf (Drown)
• Wave (Knock back)
• Mud
• Acid
• Steam (Add Fire)

Aeromancer

• Wind Blast - Bludgeon
• Whirl wind - Grapple and throw
• Vacuum - Suffocation
• Pressure - Organ Rupture
• Dust
• Scour