D&D 3E/3.5 friendly fire 3.5

[Luigiana]

I agree with Eric. Some other posters have already pointed out the salient points of area effects so I don't think I need to add much here. Greenfield's highlighted quote is probably best. You would have to add "except the caster" to the highlighted yellow text in order for a caster to be able to escape the effects of his own spells. That said, there ARE some spells that say the caster is unaffected by the spell, but those spells state so explicitly.

Strategically, area effects are ridiculously over-powered if you allow them to "wash over" allies, including yourself. It requires a significant expenditure of character-building resources and high level to get to the point where you can do that.

okay then psions are mega overpowered. with their mind thrust 1d10 per power point spend spell..

but then how does it work if i cast a spell like the psions Disable. Can i cancel that spell at any time?

 

[Dandu]

okay then psions are mega overpowered. With their mind thrust 1d10 per power point spend spell.

... yes, the spion is the most broken thing evar, more than even teh arcane trickster.

 

[billd91]

okay then psions are mega overpowered. with their mind thrust 1d10 per power point spend spell..

but then how does it work if i cast a spell like the psions Disable. Can i cancel that spell at any time?

Psions and the mind thrust may be too good, but I'm not sure what that has to do with area-effect abilities and the caster being immune. Mind thrust affects a single target.

Yes, the Disable power can be canceled at will because it has a (D) in the duration.

(D) Dismissible: If the Duration line ends with “(D),” you can dismiss the power at will. You must be within range of the power’s effect and must mentally will the dismissal, which causes the same display as when you first manifested the power. Dismissing a power is a standard action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. A power that depends on concentration is dismissible by its very nature, and dismissing it does not take an action or cause a display, since all you have to do to end the power is to stop concentrating on your turn.

 

[Dandu]

Psions and the mind thrust may be too good, but I'm not sure what that has to do with area-effect abilities and the caster being immune. Mind thrust affects a single target.

And is [Mind Affecting], which make it useless vs a wide variety of enemies.

 

[airwalkrr]

okay then psions are mega overpowered. with their mind thrust 1d10 per power point spend spell..

This statement demonstrates you have some underlying misconceptions about the rules in general. As billd91 already pointed out (thanks for that, gave you some XP), this is a single target power, not an area effect power. Aside from that, mind thrust is a useful power, but it is severely limited in numerous ways. First, and most importantly, it has no effect if the target saves, limiting its reliability to targets with weak Will saves, which isn't everything maybe half of your opponents if you're lucky, and generally isn't any powerful villain. Also as Dandu has pointed out (would have XP'd you if I could) it is mind-effecting, which automatically cancels out a lot of traditional D&D opponents like golems and zombies. But I digress. Let's not turn this thread into a "Psionics R brokin!" discussion.

but then how does it work if i cast a spell like the psions Disable. Can i cancel that spell at any time?

As has been pointed out, it has [D] in its duration, so yes, you can. Honestly, a lot of your questions could be answered by a simple reading of the rules. This isn't even gray area stuff here. I mean no offense, but perhaps you need to research your questions just a tiny bit before asking them. Maybe you are very new to D&D, which is fine, but it isn't like these are nebulous rules we are talking about. About 10 pages of rules regarding magic (much of which also applies to psionics) in Chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook will probably answer most of your questions. And unless you are an extremely terrible reader, this shouldn't take more than 30 minutes. If you have time to play D&D, surely you have time to read something like this, particularly if you are playing a spellcaster.

Edit: As an aside, I don't think anyone playing a spellcaster has an excuse for not reading the complete description of every spell one's character knows thoroughly from start to finish at least once. A single reading of the fireball spell would have pretty much nipped this entire thread in the bud.

 

[Dandu]

Rules for spells and psionics are available on the SRD.

 

[Luigiana]

This statement demonstrates you have some underlying misconceptions about the rules in general. As billd91 already pointed out (thanks for that, gave you some XP), this is a single target power, not an area effect power. Aside from that, mind thrust is a useful power, but it is severely limited in numerous ways. First, and most importantly, it has no effect if the target saves, limiting its reliability to targets with weak Will saves, which isn't everything maybe half of your opponents if you're lucky, and generally isn't any powerful villain. Also as Dandu has pointed out (would have XP'd you if I could) it is mind-effecting, which automatically cancels out a lot of traditional D&D opponents like golems and zombies. But I digress. Let's not turn this thread into a "Psionics R brokin!" discussion.As has been pointed out, it has [D] in its duration, so yes, you can. Honestly, a lot of your questions could be answered by a simple reading of the rules. This isn't even gray area stuff here. I mean no offense, but perhaps you need to research your questions just a tiny bit before asking them. Maybe you are very new to D&D, which is fine, but it isn't like these are nebulous rules we are talking about. About 10 pages of rules regarding magic (much of which also applies to psionics) in Chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook will probably answer most of your questions. And unless you are an extremely terrible reader, this shouldn't take more than 30 minutes. If you have time to play D&D, surely you have time to read something like this, particularly if you are playing a spellcaster.

Edit: As an aside, I don't think anyone playing a spellcaster has an excuse for not reading the complete description of every spell one's character knows thoroughly from start to finish at least once. A single reading of the fireball spell would have pretty much nipped this entire thread in the bud.

The reason for mentioning the psion is that it was stated that if the fireball didnt hit ur friends it was too overpowered.
Then i mentioned the psion cuz it have a freaking high save dc. im playing psion level 3 and have a save dc of 11+8+1d20

the reason for me being in doubt of the fireball was because i was sure i've read somewhere that the spell caster was in complete control of his spells.

im not new to dnd i have played it for 8 years but with a butt load of houserules.

 

[Dandu]

Then i mentioned the psion cuz it have a freaking high save dc. im playing psion level 3 and have a save dc of 11+8+1d20

So you're playing the spion with a different method of calculating save DCs that results in at least a one point increase, ten on average, and you're complaining about spions are overpowered?

That's kinda like overclocking your CPU and complaining that your motherboard fries itself due to overheating.

 

[rgard]

Fireballs were even more fun in 1E. No dice cap and the spell effect filled a large volume of cubic feet. I saw a TPK once when the MU lobbed a fireball into a 10'x10'x10' room (caster thought the room was larger). The fireball blast volume ended up overflowing into corridor the pcs were in. At least they killed the 3 bugbears in the room.

 

[Eldritch_Lord]

im playing psion level 3 and have a save dc of 11+8+1d20

The "+1d20" in your save DC means you're either using houserules (in which case the brokenness has nothing to do with psionics and everything to do with your houserules) or you're using the 3.0 Psionics Handbook instead of the 3.5 Expanded Psionics Handbook (in which case you should immediately burn that book and use the psionics rules here instead).