Counterspelling: What is the correct procedure?

[Lucius Foxhound]

BTW, is anybody aware of a specific rule about touch spells? To counter a touch spell with itself, do you need to succeed a touch attack yourself against the caster?

I think that normal RANGE of the spell still applies (you can't counter a spell cast too far, can you?).

You can counter a spell as long as you can see the caster. Which means, in starlight, Elves can counter a spell from further away than a human.

As for touch spells, no need to touch the caster. If you counter a touch attack spell, you're countering it before the spell ever goes off.

Think of it this way, if you counter a fireball, you're not throwing a fireball into the air and having it blast the other fireball to bits... you're altering the spell a bit so that its energies are cancelled out before they ever form.

 

[Li Shenron]

You can counter a spell as long as you can see the caster. Which means, in starlight, Elves can counter a spell from further away than a human.

Are you sure? Where did you read this? If I am scrying the caster from very far, can I counterspell him?

For touch spells, my doubts are from the fact that you can CAST but DISCHARGE later, and the counterspell attempt is done at the time of casting, before the caster makes the touch attack (although he can do both at the same time). It seems quite resonable that you don't need to touch the caster, but can you counter from ANY distance?

As for touch spells, no need to touch the caster. If you counter a touch attack spell, you're countering it before the spell ever goes off.

Think of it this way, if you counter a fireball, you're not throwing a fireball into the air and having it blast the other fireball to bits... you're altering the spell a bit so that its energies are cancelled out before they ever form.

I see, but what if the target caster is beyond the range of MY counterspelling Fireball? Sure it doesn't make a problem?

 

[Lucius Foxhound]

Are you sure? Where did you read this? If I am scrying the caster from very far, can I counterspell him?

For touch spells, my doubts are from the fact that you can CAST but DISCHARGE later, and the counterspell attempt is done at the time of casting, before the caster makes the touch attack (although he can do both at the same time). It seems quite resonable that you don't need to touch the caster, but can you counter from ANY distance?

I see, but what if the target caster is beyond the range of MY counterspelling Fireball? Sure it doesn't make a problem?

Hmmm... rereading it, I think I'm wrong about the counterspell. It says: If the target is within range, both spells automatically negate each other with no other results.

"Within range" of what? It seems like they're implying the range of the spell.

But here's the problem with that... what if you want to counter a spell with the range of "personal" or "0 feet"? Do you have to be standing right next to him? How would you then counter a Teleport spell?

That's why I'd go with the sight rule, but I'm not sure.

 

[Li Shenron]

I don't think that your ruling is bad, and definitely it does not make counterspelling a must-do tactic (which possibly nothing can make ). Well, if it says "within range" then I think I will stay with that, but I am afraid it really makes it simply impossible to counterspell touch/personal/0ft-range spells

 

[IceBear]

Well, from reading the FAQ there isn't much there either. It does say that the target of the counterspell is the caster of the spell (as it goes into spell turning could affect a counterspell) so there must be some mechanism to counter a personal spell.

IceBear

 

[Samhain California]

dispel magic....

for those 0/personal/touch spells remeber you can always use dispel/greater dispel magic against them.

and rember a 10th level divine oracle/counterspeller can always try to counter the timestop.

--josh