Dimension Door to escape a grapple?

[irdeggman]

DD requires Verbal, you need to be able to speak. Unless Psionics (which I've never used) is very different, the V doesn't mean visual but rather verbal.

Yes they are substantially different.

Psionics require "no need for messy material components, verbal clues, or awkward gestures." Thus no ASF.

DISPLAY
When a power is manifested, a display may accompany the primary effect. This secondary effect may be auditory, material, mental, olfactory, or visual. No power’s display is significant enough to create consequences for the psionic creatures, allies, or opponents during combat. The secondary effect for a power occurs only if the power’s description indicates it. If multiple powers with similar displays are in effect simultaneously, the displays do not necessary become more intense. Instead, the overall display remains much the same, though with minute spikes in intensity. A Psicraft check (DC 10 + 1 per additional power in use) reveals the exact number of simultaneous powers in play.

Dispense with Displays: Despite the fact that almost every power has a display, a psionic character can always choose to manifest the power without the flashy accompaniment. To manifest a power without any display (no matter how many displays it might have), a manifester must make a Concentration check (DC 15 + the level of the power). This check is part of the action of manifesting the power. If the check is unsuccessful, the power manifests normally with its display.

Even if a manifester manifests a power without a display, he is still subject to attacks of opportunity in appropriate circumstances. (Of course, another Concentration check can be made as normal to either manifest defensively or maintain the power if attacked.)

Auditory: A bass-pitched hum issues from the manifester’s vicinity or in the vicinity of the power’s subject (manifester’s choice), eerily akin to many deep-pitched voices. The sound grows in a second from hardly noticeable to as loud as a shout strident enough to be heard within 100 feet. At the manifester’s option, the instantaneous sound can be so soft that it can be heard only within 15 feet with a successful DC 10 Listen check. Some powers describe unique auditory displays.

Material: The subject or the area is briefly slicked with a translucent, shimmering substance. The glistening substance evaporates after 1 round regardless of the power’s duration. Sophisticated psions recognize the material as ectoplasmic seepage from the Astral Plane; this substance is completely inert.

Mental: A subtle chime rings once in the minds of creatures within 15 feet of either the manifester or the subject (at the manifester’s option). At the manifester’s option, the chime can ring continuously for the power’s duration. Some powers describe unique mental displays.

Olfactory: An odd but familiar odor brings to mind a brief mental flash of a long-buried memory. The scent is difficult to pin down, and no two individuals ever describe it the same way. The odor originates from the manifester and spreads to a distance of 20 feet, then fades in less than a second (or lasts for the duration, at the manifester’s option).

Visual: The manifester’s eyes burn like points of silver fire while the power remains in effect. A rainbow-flash of light sweeps away from the manifester to a distance of 5 feet and then dissipates, unless a unique visual display is described. This is the case when the Display entry includes “see text,” which means that a visual effect is described somewhere in the text of the power.

 

[Jeff Wilder]

DD will not release a pinned grappled NPC/PC (because pinned = not able to speak)

Just to be nitpicky, being able to speak is at the option of the person doing the pinning ... so it's not an automatic result of being pinned.

Damn, James. Three paragraphs and three bits of wrong info! You're slipping, young man.

 

[risner]

Just to be nitpicky, being able to speak is at the option of the person doing the pinning ... so it's not an automatic result of being pinned.

True, I guess I was going from the point of view that if I had someone (a caster) pinned, I probably would wish they couldn't cast. As a result I'd prevent them from doing so.

But on the Internet, omission is dangerous as it leads to confusion. ;-)

 

[NewJeffCT]

True, I guess I was going from the point of view that if I had someone (a caster) pinned, I probably would wish they couldn't cast. As a result I'd prevent them from doing so.

But on the Internet, omission is dangerous as it leads to confusion. ;-)

Being able to speak is not necessary for manifesting the DD power, however. However, since it is a size Large creature (a 10' tall and 20' long, 4,000 pound marilith) grappling a size Small (3'6" tall, 45 pounds) halfling, it could conceivably completely wrap up the psion, covering him from head to toe so he cannot see a darn thing.

Of course, he could just manifest DD and say, "50 feet left" or similar, and then I could break out my Warhammer scatter die, or just use d8 to determine direction, with 8 being 50 feet up (assuming the demon twists him around a bit and he cannot tell up from down.)

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

However, since it is a size Large creature (a 10' tall and 20' long, 4,000 pound marilith) grappling a size Small (3'6" tall, 45 pounds) halfling, it could conceivably completely wrap up the psion, covering him from head to toe so he cannot see a darn thing.

You're assuming an awful lot there, and I strongly disagree.

 

[Hawking]

Here's the breakdown of the situation.

Large thing's turn: Large thing grapples halfling psion. Touch hits, grapples are rolled, large thing wins. Halfling is now grappled. If the large thing has a base attack of +6 or higher, it can choose to pin him as a second attack, a grapple check with a -5 penalty. If he does, another grapple check is rolled by both participants.

Halfling's turn: Halfling manifests psionic dimension door, and visualizes an area that can be described (and hereby labeled as) "over there". He needs to roll a Concentration check, DC 20. The check is necessary whether or not the display exists (a seperate check), and a seperate check is necessary to manifest defensively, say, to avoid AoOs from threatening enemies. There is no AoO from the large thing, he does not threaten squares. He does not need line of sight to "over there", nor can the large thing do anything to prevent this, outside of a readied action. He rolls the Concentration check and succeeds. He has full choice of whether to bring the large thing or not, assuming he's capable, and the large things has full choice of whether or not he goes as well. If both parties are willing, both are teleported; if not, the halfling teleports alone to "over there".

If the halfling is pinned, all of the above still applies. If the Concentration check fails, the power fails.

The End.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

Basically. Only part of that sequence I might disagree with is the second attack at -5 to get a pin the same round. If Large Thing was using a natural attacks sequence, he does not get iterative attacks for high BAB, and can't "trade" one of his remaining natural attacks to try to pin. That's assuming that Large Thing is using natural attack routine, otherwise, well done summarizing.

Oh, and maybe it's different for psionics, but for spells I think the concentration DC is 20 + spell level, so more like 24 than 20.

 

[Particle_Man]

Nope. You cannot cast spells with a somatic component at all while grappling:

Cast a Spell: You can attempt to cast a spell while grappling...provided its casting time is no more than 1 standard action, it has no somatic component, and you have in hand any material components or focuses you might need.

One of the reasons why the warlock's "flee the scene" is not so good as dimension door; unless one takes "Sudden Still" as a feat, all warlock invocations have somatic components. And barring a house rule there is no "Still Spell-like Ability" feat AFAIK, because most non-warlock spell-like abilities don't have somatic components in the first place.

 

[NewJeffCT]

One of the reasons why the warlock's "flee the scene" is not so good as dimension door; unless one takes "Sudden Still" as a feat, all warlock invocations have somatic components. And barring a house rule there is no "Still Spell-like Ability" feat AFAIK, because most non-warlock spell-like abilities don't have somatic components in the first place.

I think 3.5 warlocks are kind of underpowered anyhow, at least for my style of campaign that tends to be built around 1 big encounter per session instead of several smaller encounters.

but, that is another topic.

the grapple session already happened and there was no DD needed.