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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Gilladian" data-source="post: 6484865" data-attributes="member: 2093">My thinking would be along these lines: sit down at your desk. Imagine that you have one of those automatic grill lighter thingies that holds some lighter fluid. Snap it on. Wave it over your desk. What would light on fire? I have a pile of loose papers that would definitely ignite. I also have a stack of hardback books in a rack/shelf thing. They probably wouldn't light immediately. Although there are 2-3 sheets of paper mixed in with them that might. The wooden desk top and shelves would singe badly, but not light up unless the pile of papers wasn't put out fairly easily.So in game terms, I'd assume anything ON a desk or table would be ruined by burning hands, fireball, or similar brief, hot burst of flame. But anything that is IN the desk, or stacked up and somehow slightly protected by the shelves, would survive with only exterior damage. Leather books might blister, but not burn, etc...Same with carpet on floors; it would be scorched, but not outright destroyed. Tapestries on walls, etc... Things that are already dry, aged, and fragile, would be more badly damaged, possibly ruined. Magic items would be less hurt - the damage would be cosmetic, and would gradually disappear, because that's an established fact about magic items in my campaign world; they heal themselves of normal wear and tear. Now, anything I WANTED destroyed, would be ruined. I mean, if I tell the PCs there are six lovely crystal potion bottles on a table in a wizard's lab, and they STILL fireball the room, well, they may only recover 3 of them afterwards. And anything I DONT want destroyed, will be protected. If those six potion bottles are critical to the plot (why would I do something that stupid?) then naturally, they were sheltered by the other equipment and didn't crack in the heat.</blockquote>

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