Damage of two types but immunity to one

[Hazard_53188]

I can't find the rule for what happens when an attack has two damage types but the enemy struck has immunity to one of those two types. Can someone provide that rule and let me know where it is please?


Thank

 

[Solvarn]

I can't find the rule for what happens when an attack has two damage types but the enemy struck has immunity to one of those two types. Can someone provide that rule and let me know where it is please?

Thank

It should be in the section on resistances, but the monster will take full damage.

 

[the Jester]

Yeah, when you're hit by a multi-damage type attack (say, fire and cold), you have to resist both or be immune to both in order to resist or be immune to any of it.

 

[mneme]

That's not correct.

You always use the lower of your resistances when hit with multi-typed damage.

However, immunity is paramount. If you're immune to cold, you're immune to fire&cold damage, fire&lightning&cold, etc. "A creature that is immune to a damage type (such as cold or fire), a condition (such as dazed or petrified), or another specific effect (such as disease or forced movement) is not affected by it."

However, immunity to a damage type doesn't immunize you from the non-damaging effects of that type -- immuity to charm, fear, illusion, poison, or sleep will protect from non-damaging effects of powers with those types (and poison is both an effect and a damage type, so poison immunity does double duty), but fire or cold immunity won't.

Back to the topic, note that the verbage above is absolute. Combined damage types are hit with both immunities (ooh, if you do 3 fire damage and 25 radiant and necrotic damage, fire immunity will only stop 3 damage, despite the attack getting all three keywords and benefiting from all three vulnerabilities).

Note the difference in the language on resistance: "Against Combined Damage Types: Your resistance is ineffective against combined damage types unless you have resistance to each of the damage types, and then only the weakest of the resistances applies. For example, if you have resist 10 lightning and resist 5 thunder and an attack deals 15 lightning and thunder damage to you, you take 10 damage, because the resistance to the combined damage types is limited by the lesser of the two resistances."

 

[the Jester]

That's not correct.

You always use the lower of your resistances when hit with multi-typed damage.

However, immunity is paramount. If you're immune to cold, you're immune to fire&cold damage, fire&lightning&cold, etc. "A creature that is immune to a damage type (such as cold or fire), a condition (such as dazed or petrified), or another specific effect (such as disease or forced movement) is not affected by it."

Immunity doesn't work like that. Something that does 25 fire & cold damage is doing BOTH fire and cold damage. Your immunity to cold doesn't protect you from the "part" of that damage that is fire- and that's all 25 points of it.

Although, if you have a solid cite, I'd like to see it. Your quote doesn't address multiple damage types at all. Being immune to cold and taking 25 fire and cold damage is exactly the same, in terms of damage you will take, as simply taking 25 points of fire damage.

 

[SquareKnot]

In the PHB errata, found here, it says to update your PHB page 55 with this text:

Resistance or immunity to one keyword of a power does not protect a target from the power’s other effects. Also, resistance doesn’t reduce damage unless the target has resistance to each type of damage from the attack, and then only the weakest of the resistances applies. For example, a character who has resist 10 lightning and resist 5 thunder who takes 15 lightning and thunder damage takes 10 damage because the resistance value to the combined damage types is limited by the lesser of the two resistances.

 

[mneme]

Yes, SK. So immunity stops all the damage matching the type (even if it has other types), but resistance (not immunity) only works if you have all the types and then the lowest resistance applies.

Nowhere do they say that immunity stops working if you don't have immunity to all the types.

The "resistance or immunity to one keyword of a power"... refers to immunity to a damage type not affecting other affects of a power with that keyword, and immunity to sleep not meaning you don't take damage from a sleep power.

And no, Jester, that doesn't work. If you 're not immue to untyped damage and you take 25 fire damage, you don't get hit with 25 damage -- fire and cold isn't separable any more than fire and untyped damage is. If you're immune to cold and you're hit with 25 fire and cold damage, well, it's cold damage, isn't it? If you're hit with 15 fire and 15 cold damage, you'll just take the fire damage.

Wizards is -very- careful to not have immunity to damage have the "worst type applies" rule. If you're immune to a damage type, you're immune to that damage type and never take any damage that has that keyword (regardless of what other keywords it has). Let's roll the tape again:

. "A creature that is immune to a damage type (such as cold or fire), a condition (such as dazed or petrified), or another specific effect (such as disease or forced movement) is not affected by it."

Ignore everything you know about resistance; it's not relevant--immunity isn't resistance and you can't make arguments from one to the other.

Just based on the above (plus, sure "Resistance or immunity to one keyword of a power does not protect a target from the power’s other effects.") how would you rule attacks with fire and cold damage vs a cold immune character?

 

[cdrcjsn]

Just based on the above (plus, sure "Resistance or immunity to one keyword of a power does not protect a target from the power’s other effects.") how would you rule attacks with fire and cold damage vs a cold immune character?

"Resistance or immunity to one keyword of a power does not protect a target from the power’s other effects."

It affects it fully.

20 fire and cold damage isn't the same as 10 fire and 10 cold damage.

It's 20 fire/cold damage.

 

[keterys]

Full damage. Since they errata-ed combo damage types, they are almost always a good thing.

 

[Solvarn]

Just based on the above (plus, sure "Resistance or immunity to one keyword of a power does not protect a target from the power’s other effects.") how would you rule attacks with fire and cold damage vs a cold immune character?

If the character were being damaged by an attack that does fire and cold damage, and they were immune to cold damage, they would take the fire damage.

Recently errata'd rules made it clear that characters making attacks with one keyword and using a weapon with another keyword had to choose one keyword to apply to powers. I think the only way a character can achieve two keywords now is that:

a) they take the Energy Admixture (covers one power)
b) the power itself has multiple keywords