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Message: <blockquote data-quote="uzagi_akimbo" data-source="post: 2023788" data-attributes="member: 15945">With the "helpless" rules being exceedingly shoddy in composition and execution, because there are dozens of possibilities where there exist paradoxical situations.E.G. You could try to bind an ooze with the "Iron Bands".. now is that being in any way inconvenienced by this ? Guess not - even if it cannot dissolve the bonds it will simply float through them. Throw it at a Beholder. How is that creature supposed to have its movement impaired, if it doesn't even employ any limbs to move....?  Or have its offensive powers limited ? Even if they are SLAs, just what exactly is a Beholder's compulsory somatic component in activating any SLA - hence is he helpless ? Or is his innate ability to fly in any direction at his leisure impaired ?Throw it a fire, air or water-elemental..... Just what is being "bound" and inconvenienced, hence rendered immobile and possibly "helpless"  ?What happens if this thing is thrown at an incorporeal undead - say a shadow, wraith, ghost etc etc etc - and the 50/50 miss-chance for targeting an incorporeal being actually works out for the attack and you hit..... or while we are at it, a "blinking" creature... or a "phasing" one ?"Helplessness" can be very situational , IMHO . And the rules about it are in very sorry state, atm. Starting at "helpless" = "motionless", extending into such wonderful areas like the un-categorized "paralysis" power  of some monsters (like ghouls) etc etc etc - because WotC churned out new monsters, abilities and options without ever reworking the rules to take these into account.I for one rather have a GM introduce/maintain some common sense IMCs, then follow slavishly down some road described by obviously insufficent rules. Makes for a much more enjoyable game - and keeps the suspension of utter disbelief in check.BTW, the spell the "Iron Bands" employ in their creation - "Bigby's Grasping Hand"  - only yields a result of "grappled". I wonder why an item created through the use of this spell should exceed the effect of the original magical.</blockquote>

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