Is Rope Trick broken!?

[Noman]

The wizard's familiar, a bat, flew through the hole to tell them someone had come.

How does the familiar even find the hole? The spell says no one from the outside can find it, unless of course the rope is dangling down.

And, Dispel magic will ruin a rope trick right on time. A pair of Evard's tentacles positioned below a rope trick would not be friendly.

I get the point, but wouldn't the others have to know where the spot is to even target the spell(s)? I mean can you scry on someone in another dimension?

 

[Thanee]

I guess, that noone from outside - who does not already know where the entry is - can find it.

I think it's safe to assume, that the familiar of the wizard who probably cast the rope trick does know where the entry is.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Xarlen]

How does the familiar even find the hole? The spell says no one from the outside can find it, unless of course the rope is dangling down.

A) The rope was down.
B) The window is invisible, and since the Bat's blindsight can spot invisible things, it could see the hole.

I get the point, but wouldn't the others have to know where the spot is to even target the spell(s)? I mean can you scry on someone in another dimension?

Detect magic should tell you where it's at, roughly. I could think of say, the outline of it? The room is just big enough to fit 7 people (Plus rope) so it can't be enormous. The tentacles are within a 15' radius, so somebody's going to get snatched up. Especially if it's within a dungeon hallway or small room, so the extra dimensional space doesn't have a wide area to be located in.

And, I don't know about scry, but the people inside are considered in another plane. Thus, 'Nightmare' doesn't hurt them.

 

[Macbrea]

Cool, just read the spell. It brought up an encounter idea for me!


Scene:

A hall in an abandoned manor house. In an area that the citzens have been forced into the main city by humanoids. Assuming the party stops by the old manor house for a bit of rest. They enter the main hall to find the floor covered with little dusty footprints.

In the ceiling is two groups of kobolds preparing an ambush for the party.

Rope trick 1:
Kobold Sorceror 3 with light crossbow
6 Kobolds armed with light crossbows, 1 tanglefoot bag each, 3 bottles of alchemist fire each

Rope trick 2:
Kobold Sorceror 3 with light crossbow
6 Kobolds armed with Light crossbows, 1 thunderstone each, 3 bottles of alchemist fire each


Hmm, now, I wonder what the encounter level of this encounter would be?

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Well 2 lvl 3 kobolds, 6 cr 1/2 (?) kobolds, plus: Very well prepared opponent. I believe the DMG tells somewhere what an apropriate modifer would be. Probably something around EL 6 to 9...

Mustrum Ridcully

 

[Xarlen]

I use this for a good CR calculator: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/ELCALC/Welcome.asp

Note that A) The kobolds have cover, B) Should be seen firing from the holes, C) That their placement (And getting them *OUT*) should raise the EL by 1 or 2.

Why not place a rogue or two amid those kobolds? Let them get some sneak attacks for surprise rounds.

And, this would make a good way to pull off an ambush on a roadside area. Like, kobolds guarding a bridge, inacting a toll.

Edit: 2 lvl 3 Kobolds is a EL 5. Now, 12 kobolds at cr 1/2 is a EL 6.

EL 5 and EL 6 makes EL 7. + the two being in ropetricks, I'd make it an EL 8 or 9, due to circumstance.

 

[Macbrea]

You realize the 9th level characters that have to deal with 14 stupid kobolds in a pair of rope tricks are going to be very annoyed when they are told they get 100 exp each for the encounter.

 

[Caliban]

Then it's safe to say that you don't allow haversacks or bags of holding to be opened while inside Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion either, even thought the rules allow it? (I just wanna make sure I'm on the same wavelength as you)

Where do the rules "allow" this? Specifically?

The sages clarification only states that they pose no danger to take within an extradimensional space, not that they are fully functional within one.

Both the rope trick and Mordenkain's mansion create a space that is outside the normal multi-verse. It seems reasonable to rule that taking a bag/haversack/belt into that extradimensional space cuts you off from the "nondimensional" space the bag accesses, until the bag is brought back into the normal world.

Really, I think WOTC should have given better definitions of nondimensional space, extradimensional space, and how they interact with each other, and with spells such as rope trick, mordenkainen's magnificent mansion, teleport, plane shift, and gate.

 

[kreynolds]

Where do the rules "allow" this? Specifically?

I'm deducing that from the Sage's clarification.

The sages clarification only states that they pose no danger to take within an extradimensional space, not that they are fully functional within one.

Only because he didn't specifically say it. That isn't the trump card though, as the books also didn't specifically say that you could take a bag of holding into a rope trick safely either, when in fact, the rope trick spell falsely warned against it. If you won't blow up the universe (figure of speach) by taking a bag of holding inside a rope trick or Mordenkain's mansion, I don't see why you couldn't use it.

The Sage didn't specifically say so, so it might not be so.
The books specifically said so, and they were wrong.
Which one to trust? Choices, choices, choices.

Really, I think WOTC should have given better definitions of nondimensional space, extradimensional space, and how they interact with each other, and with spells such as rope trick, mordenkainen's magnificent mansion, teleport, plane shift, and gate.

I couldn't agree more.

 

[Jeremy]

<head vibrates as blood rushes to it to feed it while it does calculations of known and theorized space and tries to absorb this information and process and understand how extra dimensional and and nondimensional space with measureable capacity dimensions within concrete dimensional apparati can possibly counter react with negative space in a seperately contained local access point to said extradimensi----->

*POP*

<head explodes>