How to Escape from a Portable Hole

[DreadArchon]

I dunno if there's an actual ruling on this, but I'm pretty sure you can't use extra-dimensional travel, like teleport.

I think you can access the Astral from any plane in the standard cosmology, unless it's specifically warded against such travel (like Sigil). I doubt that the pocket dimensions in question have their own Ethereals or Planes of Shadow, though.

Of course, Teleport would only let you move within the bag, but Plane Shift should work fine.

Also, I've seen argument as to the meaning of "Lost." People who are against using Bags of Holding to destroy artifacts seem to prefer that "Lost" mean "randomly cast into the Astral or Deep Ethereal;" these also argue that throwing your phylactery into the bag won't make it unfindable, which is usually a response to those who say "break a bag of holding with your phylactery in it and you're perfectly safe, because the phylactery is lost but not destroyed!"

So, yeah, these rules cause a lot of confusion. For the record: If I had a player break a bag from within, he'd wind up in the Deep Ethereal.

 

[robberbaron]

You have to remember that a portable hole can only be opened on a flat horizontal surface.
Most of the time it will be rolled/folded up so the occupant couldn't get out.

Bag of Holding is different but, if I had one, I would make sure it was securely done up.

Plane Shift wouldn't work as portable holes and bags of holding open into non-dimensional spaces, not onto another plane.

 

[kreynolds]

Plane Shift wouldn't work as portable holes and bags of holding open into non-dimensional spaces, not onto another plane.

Plane Shift would definately work. You may need to be able to cast it twice, to get back to the prime, but it would still work.

 

[DreadArchon]

You have to remember that a portable hole can only be opened on a flat horizontal surface.
Most of the time it will be rolled/folded up so the occupant couldn't get out.

Ooh, good point.

Plane Shift wouldn't work as portable holes and bags of holding open into non-dimensional spaces, not onto another plane.

Depends on the cosmology. I think the default D&D cosmology puts the Astral plane pretty much everywhere, and Plane Shift (by default) accesses the Astral to get where it's going.

 

[Destil]

You have to remember that a portable hole can only be opened on a flat horizontal surface.
Most of the time it will be rolled/folded up so the occupant couldn't get out.

Bag of Holding is different but, if I had one, I would make sure it was securely done up.

Plane Shift wouldn't work as portable holes and bags of holding open into non-dimensional spaces, not onto another plane.

You know, a long time ago there was a thread on attempts to separate the rules for extra-dimensional spaces (demiplanes) and non-dimensional spaces. Interesting idea, with the ones that had no weight limit being relegated to demiplanes, and those with a defined weight limit as nondimentional spaces. The idea being a extradimensional space follows the planar rules and the nondimensional did not allow other-planar access as they weren't planes at all.