Help with Repel Wood tactics

[Brown Jenkin]

<reads over spell description>
Hmmm. I was under the mistaken impression that wooden items might be "pinned" against the far wall.

Now that might warrant a 6th level spell.

Reads over spell description again as well. I will have to talk with my DM about this. There is nothing in the description that says one way or the other. If wooden objects are pinned I can see a use for it.

Anyone able to make a case for or against this?

 

[Lamoni]

He dosen't loose his bow and arrows, they drag him along with them at 40' round. The archer spends 1 round moving through the field including being dragged backwards for 40' (not a problem for an archer) then next round opens fire on you again. With a fixed range of 60' feet if you are outdoors the archer happily stays at the end of the line and fires to either side. Even indoor in the room you mention once the archer is at the end of the emination (assuming it is at a wall) he can move back and forth across it with no penalty since the wall prevents any further backwards movement.

Once again a Wind Wall (3 levels lower) achieves the same effect with a better deplyment and length and the ability to stop bolts as well.

Surely there is some tactic out there that warrents this being a 6th level spell.

I actually don't see why you are interpreting the spell like that. My interpretation is that it is a 60 foot wide line emanating from you that travels in waves to a range of 60 feet. Sort of like creating waves on a body of water... they can be 60 ft. wide and travel 60 feet. I am guessing that you are interpreting it like it is a wave on a 60 foot cord. If that was the case, it would be useless. How I see it, it would greatly affect many characters. The barbarian would lose his axe, the druid would lose his shield, any javelins could be shattered and the archers would be made sort of useless. Or they could all just be moved back 60 feet while the spellcasters and archers hit them at range. (it would only affect arrows going one way).

Here is a picture of how I interpret it.

 

[Brown Jenkin]

I actually don't see why you are interpreting the spell like that. My interpretation is that it is a 60 foot wide line emanating from you that travels in waves to a range of 60 feet. Sort of like creating waves on a body of water... they can be 60 ft. wide and travel 60 feet. I am guessing that you are interpreting it like it is a wave on a 60 foot cord. If that was the case, it would be useless. How I see it, it would greatly affect many characters. The barbarian would lose his axe, the druid would lose his shield, any javelins could be shattered and the archers would be made sort of useless. Or they could all just be moved back 60 feet while the spellcasters and archers hit them at range. (it would only affect arrows going one way).

Here is a picture of how I interpret it.

Thats the way it used to work but the key word is line-shaped. This is a new thing in 3.5 and line in 3.5 means just that a 5' wide line. See Lightning Bolt.

 

[Steverooo]

Wooden items less than three inches in diameter, which are fixed, splinter...

The Cleric's wooden Holy Symbol, firmly fixed to the thong about his neck, is splintered. The Cleric cannot cast spells! Same for one in a pocket, pouch, etc. Bags of Holding I am unsure of, but extraplanar and/or extradimensional storage places (Heward's Handy Haversack, Portable Hole) are unaffected.

(Note here, as I have said innumerable times before, that ALL Clerics and Paladins need multiple copies of their Holy Symbol, in multiple materials, as Turn Wood, Warp Wood, Heat Metal, and Shatter for the stone crystal, and more exotic ones, will render him or her a second-class Fighter with only a few Verbal/Somatic/Non-DF spells!)

Cast down the center of a corridor, at archers, they lose all their arrow, and are dragged back 40 feet by their bow (unless they drop it). IMO, all arrows would be "pushed" out of the quiver, requiring them to get more, or go 60 feet, to where the spell ends and wait for them, or try to "pick some up" while being pushed back... Even if they did, and fired a shot along the path, the arrows would be pushed back, as well. Hence, no missile attacks along that line, save by all-metal weapons.

Most shield are made of wood, banded by iron. Hence, either drop shield (losing at least 2 AC, in MOST cases), or be pushed back 60 feet over two rounds, and have no ability to attack with missile, unless all-metal. This is very bad, for most mook armies! It will also pretty much block a 10 foot wide corridor, if cast down the middle (2.5' on either side, with (N)PCs needing 5' to get through).

Backed up by a Wizard/Sorcerer/Bard with some magical attacks, it seems pretty effective, to me!

 

[Steverooo]

Ps

If a fixed door is open, it would also do some damage as it is flung open, too! Although, if it is closed and/or locked, it would be unaffected.

 

[Brown Jenkin]

Holy symbols around necks are not splintered. They would be like arrow shafts and drag the holder along the path of the emination.

As for its use in corridors I will grant that, but I expect a 6th level spell to be more useful than just being able to cast in corridors to be effective. The best I have heard so ar is if the DM allows the objects to be pinned against a wall forcing people to remain pinned or drop them.

Anything else?