Blade barrier - I don't get it...

[Maitre Du Donjon]

Hello all, maybe i'm being dense, but how the bleep does a blade barrier work / what does it look like???

from the SRD:

Effect: Spinning disk of blades, up to
30-ft. radius
This spell creates a spinning disk of blades. These whirl around a central point, creating an immobile, circular barrier. Any creature passing through the blade barrier takes 1d6 points of slashing damage per caster level (maximum 20d6). The plane of rotation of the blades can be horizontal, vertical, or slanted.
Creatures within the blade barrier when it is invoked take the damage as well. They can negate the damage with a successful Reflex saving throw, provided they can and do physically leave the area of the blades by the shortest possible route. Once the barrier is in place, anything entering or passing through the blades automatically takes damage.

Thanks in advance...

Maitre D

 

[thalmin]

I picture a huge fan blade.

 

[Maitre Du Donjon]

I picture a huge fan blade.

that i can orientate (sp?) horizontally / vertically / diagonally?

 

[mmu1]

I usually just picture a circular area of shimmering air, with no blades visible, as such...

 

[Angcuru]

I picture a whole bunch of whirling sword-like blades circling around the caster, and anyone who tries to move into, through, or out of the blade barrier takes a LOTTTA damage, unless they are nimble enough to get through.

 

[Maitre Du Donjon]

could the barrier be, for example, place horizontally, and thus, crouching monsters / characters could walk under it unharmed?

 

[mmu1]

could the barrier be, for example, place horizontally, and thus, crouching monsters / characters could walk under it unharmed?

It could be, which is why a lot of people just end up putting it a few inches off the ground.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

We're fighting a lot of demons lately (big ones), and I just put the thing around 10 feet above ground. So I get all the demons, but my allies aren't affected.

 

[Sejs]

I always pictured a big cloud of spinning swords, knives, axes, etc moving around each other, swinging at different angles, etc while the whole thing rotating along the axis the caster set it at, at high speed

 

[Kae'Yoss]

Nope, it's a disc.