Fireball or Lightning Bolt?
- Thread starter Tarrasque Wrangler
- Start date
Agamon
Adventurer
Everybody talks about how area is so much better than line. It is if you win initiative, otherwise, either the foes go first and close with the party, or other party members go first and close with the enemy. After the first round or two, the two sides are so intermingled, fireball is useless, whereas the surgical strike of a lightning bolt is still likely possible.
Also, a line effect is great when encountering foes in a hallway. That, and the fact that fire resistance is plentiful, I prefer lightning bolt (though, watch out for those flesh golems and shambling mounds
).
Also, a line effect is great when encountering foes in a hallway. That, and the fact that fire resistance is plentiful, I prefer lightning bolt (though, watch out for those flesh golems and shambling mounds
).
TheAuldGrump
First Post
You shake my nerves and you rattle my brain
Too much love drives a man insane
You broke my will, oh what a thrill
Goodness gracious great balls of fire!
'Nuff said!
The Auld Grump
Too much love drives a man insane
You broke my will, oh what a thrill
Goodness gracious great balls of fire!
'Nuff said!
The Auld Grump
Sunderstone
First Post
Fireball for AoE alone is worth it.
I'll still take Lightning Bolt as well, but Fireball is preferable. My first choice for a 3rd level spell will always be Dispel Magic though. I cant see anyone not taking Dispel Magic first.
Someone mentioned Fireball as the first decent AoE or something, I disagree. Sleep and Color Spray are EXTREMELY usefull before you get to Fireball.
I'll still take Lightning Bolt as well, but Fireball is preferable. My first choice for a 3rd level spell will always be Dispel Magic though. I cant see anyone not taking Dispel Magic first.
Someone mentioned Fireball as the first decent AoE or something, I disagree. Sleep and Color Spray are EXTREMELY usefull before you get to Fireball.
(Psi)SeveredHead
Adventurer
Sunderstone said:Fireball for AoE alone is worth it.
I'll still take Lightning Bolt as well, but Fireball is preferable. My first choice for a 3rd level spell will always be Dispel Magic though. I cant see anyone not taking Dispel Magic first.
Someone mentioned Fireball as the first decent AoE or something, I disagree. Sleep and Color Spray are EXTREMELY usefull before you get to Fireball.
Nah, Sleep always sucks.
greymist
Lurker Extraordinaire
It's kind of sad how many people are worried about maxing damage or AoE or what have you...a sign of the times, I think.
I picked fireballs simply because I have had characters tossing them around for the past 25 years and they have the most opportunity for creating havoc, especially the classic 1E fireball blasting down a narrow hallway into a room too small to contain the blast!
I picked fireballs simply because I have had characters tossing them around for the past 25 years and they have the most opportunity for creating havoc, especially the classic 1E fireball blasting down a narrow hallway into a room too small to contain the blast!
Last edited:
Woas
First Post
was said:Personally, I think taking a Fireball and using energy substitution to make it a Frostball is the coolest...
I always liked the idea of a Sonicball myself.
I picked Lightningbolt because for me, Fireball is like the text-book defenition of "rollplaying". For example, I kinda get annoyed with D&D combat because of how "blocky" it is. People moving exactly 30ft... being able to count 100ft to see if that last goblin is just within the range of your bow, etc. I mean really, does the character have magical Range-Finding eyes or something? And well, fireball falls under this category too. I've seen many a time where a player will calculate the exact square where their fireball needs to go off to get every possible monster in the radius and not hit an ally who is in melee with said monster... I mean really, can the character truely pin-point that little bead that good? What if their off by a foot and the blast comes into the allies square? How do they know where exactly 20 feet starts and stops.
Ok ok, I'm done.. for another thread sometime I guess.
Evilhalfling
Adventurer
Tangent warnings: 2nd ed.
Worst use of LB - a vampire mage and a paladin in a 10x10 room. the mist floated away laughing.
Worst use of FB - in an evil party a newbie was blaying an Envoker. After the third time PCs were caught in webs/color sprays, one player says -" If he ever learns Fireball we kill him."
a few weeks later the newbie droped out. I had his char come up to the other others: "Hey guys I just learned Fireball!" They killed him and took his stuff.
Worst use of LB - a vampire mage and a paladin in a 10x10 room. the mist floated away laughing.
Worst use of FB - in an evil party a newbie was blaying an Envoker. After the third time PCs were caught in webs/color sprays, one player says -" If he ever learns Fireball we kill him."
a few weeks later the newbie droped out. I had his char come up to the other others: "Hey guys I just learned Fireball!" They killed him and took his stuff.
Arkhandus
First Post
I too love the Lightning Bolt for stylistic purposes, and my characters usually pick it over Fireball..... Fireball's too common and obviously superior for most situations (enemies just don't like to stand in line for some reason.....), but I prefer flinging Lightning Bolts in play..... I miss the 2E version where the Lightning Bolt could ricochet around until traveling its full range in distance, however chaotic and gleefully devastating it could be (to both sides). Lightning Bolt is still great for hurling down long corridors though, and it's less likely to be resisted or negated.
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