I cast a blast spell, you say: how high?

[Herzog]

This is something we ran in to when running a 4e trial game yesterday.

There were a couple of hobgoblins on a ridge.

The ridge was approximately 10 feet above ground level.

Question: if I stand next to the ridge (on ground level), does my blast reach the hobgoblins on the ridge?

I haven't been able to find anything on hight-differences.
Maybe because I haven't read the books cover to cover.
Maybe because there is nothing to find?

Can someone help me out here?

Thanx!

Herzog

 

[Leatherhead]

As far as I can tell, blasts are squares. They specifically target an X square by X square area, and lack the bursts clause about spreading in all directions.

 

[VannATLC]

Diagonals are a single square.

Personally, IMC, all blasts are 5ft high, so you can angle a blast upwards, or stand on something 5ft high and fire a blast above your nearest dwarfs head.

 

[Alarius]

Diagonals are a single square.

Personally, IMC, all blasts are 5ft high, so you can angle a blast upwards, or stand on something 5ft high and fire a blast above your nearest dwarfs head.

That makes no sense...

A blast must necessary be the same in all direction, although the idea of a disc 5' high instead of a cube sounds weird. So a blast must be 5x5x5 squares. Otherwise, why is there no rule to make an acrobatic check to jump up and avoid being hit altogether?

 

[VannATLC]

What exactly do you think a reflex save is?

 

[Vaeron]

The DMG has some rules about combatants at different heights, but nothing specific to blast or burst effects (that I recall). But if they were on a ridge above you they would probably have at least partial cover. You can't aim a blast diagonally, and it doesn't really move diagonally, but in a big box. If that big box overlaps their square, and the edge of the ridge doesn't completely obstruct, then you should have some chance of doing damage. If you made the origin adjacent to you five feet up (since the DMG says the grid should be considered to expand in all directions) you would get a better angle on hitting them, while still hitting any other medium sized enemies along ground level.

 

[Oompa]

And what about an tall dragonborn, if he uses his breath does that mean everyone less then 5ft tall is unexposed.. nah dont think so.. i would rule something like 15 feet from the ground of..

 

[Big J Money]

Two simple ways to quick rule this, pick one:

1) Blasts occur on one elevation level (thus only 5' high/one square)

2) Blasts are cube shaped and you can position then vertically however you wish (since diagonals count as straights, this is no problem)

Both are easy. The first one is safer (power-wise), the second is more realistic.

 

[Torg Smith]

I would use the line of effect rule on this. The origin square is at your location. Depending on how the DM rules on the third dimension would determine if you could hit the creatures in the first row on the ledge. The back rows would probably lose line of effect.

 

[Danceofmasks]

A square in any direction is a square AFAIK, according to 3 dimensions, DMG p.45
Now, though I would think a blast would be a cube in 3D, I can't find a reference .. but in any 3D combat, it seems to make sense for AoEs to be as high as they are wide.

If the blast is a cube, you'd simply determine cover the same way as you normally would.
Look at the terrain from the side, and count squares/draw lines/whatever.

In 3e at least, I'd often angle a cone 45 degrees up, so it would have a line-ish effect one square up .. to single out those pesky tall folks.
4e area effects are meant to do away with such complications.