How does resist actually work?

[Omen Damakos]

I can't seem to find the answer clearly anywhere.
The wording seems to indicate that you apply resist to each damage source.

Resist: Resistance means you take less damage from
a specific damage type. If you have resist 5 fire, then
any time you take fire damage, you reduce that damage
by 5. (An attack can’t do less than 0 damage to you.)​

The scenario that generated the question was with multiple instances of ongoing damage. I had resist 5 poison, and two ongoing 5 poison damage from the same creature. Does the resist negate all the damage because each ongoing source is separate, or does only half (5) get resisted because they essentially occur at the same time?
My group hasn't arrived at a consensus. The other questions that were raised in relation are: If it only is resisted once, is that once per creature that is providing the damage, once per round, once per each turn (multiple turns per round), or something else we didn't think of?

 

[Mr. Wilson]

When you take ongoing damage, you only apply the highest ongoing damage from a given effect type (fire, cold, poison, etc).

For instance, in your case, you would only be subject to ongoing 5 poison damage that would then be negated by your resist 5 poison. However, if you were taking 5 ongoing poison from one source and 5 ongoing fire from another, you would take them both (again, modified by your resistances).

In the second case, resist is pretty clear: every time you take damage from the keyword you are resistant to, it is reduced by X damage where X is the value of your resistance.

 

[Omen Damakos]

Thank you.

When you take ongoing damage, you only apply the highest ongoing damage from a given effect type (fire, cold, poison, etc).

I first read this to mean that you can only have one ongoing damage of a type at one time, but it upon second reading what makes more sense is that the ongoing are still there but only the highest one actually occurs. If you save from the highest one the next highest kicks in if you fail its save.

 

[the Jester]

Thank you.

I first read this to mean that you can only have one ongoing damage of a type at one time, but it upon second reading what makes more sense is that the ongoing are still there but only the highest one actually occurs. If you save from the highest one the next highest kicks in if you fail its save.

Not exactly.

Say the bad guys in a fight inflict ongoing 5 fire, ongoing 5 poison twice, ongoing 5 (generic, typeless damage) and ongoing 10 damage on you (again, typeless).

At the start of your turn, you will take 5 fire, 5 poison and 10 "untyped" damage. At the end of your turn, if you succeed on three saving throws, you will no longer be taking any ongoing damage of any type- the "extra" ongoing 5 poison and the untyped ongoing 5 don't "hang around" and start up the next round.

Edit: Resist counts against each damage that it applies to, so if you have resist 5 poison, you will avoid your poison damage. The 'extra' instance of ongoing 5 poison is irrelevant.

 

[Shin Okada]

Not exactly.

Say the bad guys in a fight inflict ongoing 5 fire, ongoing 5 poison twice, ongoing 5 (generic, typeless damage) and ongoing 10 damage on you (again, typeless).

At the start of your turn, you will take 5 fire, 5 poison and 10 "untyped" damage. At the end of your turn, if you succeed on three saving throws, you will no longer be taking any ongoing damage of any type- the "extra" ongoing 5 poison and the untyped ongoing 5 don't "hang around" and start up the next round.

Edit: Resist counts against each damage that it applies to, so if you have resist 5 poison, you will avoid your poison damage. The 'extra' instance of ongoing 5 poison is irrelevant.

This is slightly more complex IMHO,

The Same Type of Ongoing Damage: If effects deal ongoing damage of the same type, or if the damage has no type, only the higher number applies. Example: You’re taking ongoing 5 damage (no type) when a power causes you to take ongoing 10 damage. You’re now taking ongoing 10 damage, not 15.

This rule text seems to be suggesting that you can actually have multiple ongoing damage of the same type (or no type) at the same type but only the higher number is applied.

then,

Identical Effects That a Save Can End: If you are subjected to identical effects that a save can end, including ongoing damage, you ignore all but one of those effects. For example, if you are dazed (save ends) and then you are attacked and again dazed (save ends), you ignore the second effect, since it is identical to the effect you are already subject to.

In the said situation, you took

ongoing 5 fire damage
ongoing 5 poison damage, twice
ongoing 5 damage (typeless)
ongoing 10 damage (typeless).

Those 5 effects. You are taking "ongoing 5 poison damage" twice, but as they are identical, you ignore all but one of those effects. So now it is 4 effects.

But I doubt if "ongoing 5 damage (typeless)" and "ongoing 10 damage (typeless)" are considered to be "identical". It seems to be a gray zone, though.

 

[Mapache]

This rule text seems to be suggesting that you can actually have multiple ongoing damage of the same type (or no type) at the same type but only the higher number is applied.

That's not what it says. It's says you're taking 10 ongoing damage. That's it. If it meant that you needed to keep saving against the ongoing 5 damage because it would still be there if you saved against the 10 ongoing damage, then it would say that.

 

[Shin Okada]

That's not what it says. It's says you're taking 10 ongoing damage. That's it. If it meant that you needed to keep saving against the ongoing 5 damage because it would still be there if you saved against the 10 ongoing damage, then it would say that.

But basically, a saving throw is made against an effect. Not against a condition or an ongoing damage.

An effect happen to include only an ongoing damage (or only one condition and such). But there are a lot of effects which do include ongoing damage and some other effect simultaneously, such as "the target takes a -2 penalty to attack rolls and ongoing 2 poison damage (save ends both)".

If you are taking

1) the target takes a -2 penalty to attack rolls and ongoing 2 poison damage (save ends both)
2) the target takes ongoing 2 poison damage and is slowed (save ends both).

Those two effects, you will surely take only 2 ongoing poison damage per start of your turn. But also, it is no doubt that you need to save 1 each for those 2 effects, as they are identical. And even if one effect ends, you still suffer from ongoing 2 poison damage from the other effect.

If both of the effects are just "ongoing 2 poison damage (save ends)", then those 2 effects are clearly "identical" and thus you ignore all but one of those effects.

So the issue is if "ongoing 5 damage (save ends)" and "ongoing 10 damage (save ends)" are considered to be "identical" or not.

I vote for "not".