Daze vs. swimming creature

[MerakSpielman]

This happened a while ago IMC but I just remembered it and wondered what you thought.

What happens if you cast Daze on somebody who is swimming?

What happens if they're wearing chain mail and have, up to this point, been barely making their swim checks? Do they just sink?

 

[shilsen]

The swimmer sinks. It takes at least a move action to keep swimming and a dazed chaarcter can take no actions, so he sinks.

 

[Gizzard]

Daze is kinda funny. Says flat out that the victim can take "no actions", but then further explains that "A dazed subject is not stunned, so attackers get no special advantage against it."

So being Dazed doesn't mean that you are immobile; you can still duck around and try to avoid people trying to skewer you. You don't drop your weapon either.

To me, I imagine that being Dazed means you can't find the mental coherence to form a plan, so you take "no action". You still have the mental coherence to defend yourself from threats, and to perform simple tasks like holding on to your weapon.

Following this picture of Daze, I'd allow a swimmer to make a Swim check in order to tread water. I'd allow a tightrope walker a Balance check to stay on the rope rather than falling off as well.

 

[MerakSpielman]

So I have two contradictory opinions....

When it happened, I ruled that the creature sank, then I rolled some swim checks after the spell wore off to see if it could get to the surface... it couldn't, not with all that armor on.

 

[Marimmar@Home]

I'd let the dazed creature tread water as well. After all they just can't act normally. I wouldn't let them swim anywhere but keeping afloat would be okay since their survival instincts are still functioning (being able to dodge blows normally).

~Marimmar

 

[KarinsDad]

From a rules perspective, the character sinks.

This also happens to other creatures such as a fish or a dolphin if they are the target of Daze unless they can perform some form of on surface or underwater hover (which would be the equivalent of standing for a human, but I do not know of any such ability, so it would have to fall under DM adjudication, e.g. a jellyfish might be able to do this).

Ditto for a flying dragon if it has the Hover feat. If it was hovering before getting Dazed, then it can continue to hover without using movement. If it was flying before getting Dazed, then it cannot use a move action to hover, so it falls.

We had a discussion on Daze a short time back and the general consensus is that you cannot even do things like AoOs since if you cannot take an action on your turn, you do not threaten on your turn and hence, you do not threaten before (or after) your turn.


Since it is magic, it is ok for someone to maintain their Dex, but lose their movement.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

This also happens to other creatures such as a fish or a dolphin if they are the target of Daze unless they can perform some form of on surface or underwater hover (which would be the equivalent of standing for a human, but I do not know of any such ability, so it would have to fall under DM adjudication, e.g. a jellyfish might be able to do this).

Fish, at least, have a bladder which they use in a manner similar to a diver's compensation vest.

It allows them to "set" themselves for a particular depth, and remain there without much moving of limbs.

In the above situation, I'd rule that the target of the Daze spell gets a Swim check to tread water, but cannot actively change his position, just as someone on land subject to a Daze spell cannot actively move, but may resist a Bull Rush normally.

 

[Gizzard]

Well, let's take this in another direction; would people let a Dazed tightrope-walker keep making Balance checks to stay on his rope? Can you make that sort of Skill Check while Dazed?