Little Question about the "Grease" spell

[Warehouse23]

Notice how it does not so much burn as smoulder.

 

[werk]

Flammable, yes, combustible, not so much.

Is your ranger having trouble starting the campfire?

 

[TheGogmagog]

Is the lubricating substance produced by the "Grease" spell flammable?

As far as RAW, no, it is not. If it was it would be specified (see Web). There are other examples, such as spells that polymorph and enlarge, some specify that they do not have damage potential. The rule of thumb is if a damage amount or cap is not listed in the spell, It doesn't have any.

Butter burns? I'll have to try that. Even bacon grease, must first absorb a tremenous amount of thermal energy before igniting. I doubt an amount spread on a sidewalk or grass would burn. I'd try it but I am a grown man and that would freak out my neigbors. Perhaps I find some testamony on the net.

 

[werk]

As far as RAW, no, it is not. If it was it would be specified (see Web). There are other examples, such as spells that polymorph and enlarge, some specify that they do not have damage potential. The rule of thumb is if a damage amount or cap is not listed in the spell, It doesn't have any.

Butter burns? I'll have to try that. Even bacon grease, must first absorb a tremenous amount of thermal energy before igniting. I doubt an amount spread on a sidewalk or grass would burn. I'd try it but I am a grown man and that would freak out my neigbors. Perhaps I find some testamony on the net.

The real issue is the amount of oxygen needed to burn fats.

^First paragraph of Gog's post, spot on.

 

[Thunderfoot]

I'm going to dissagree with all of you on this - does it burn - Yes.

However, let me cavet this. If lit, grease does in fact burn, however, unlike, say gasoline, etc., you don't get a great whoosh and a roaring fire. What you do get is a low grade fire (minimal flame spread across the surface of the grease that appears to be smoldering) but the internal temperature of the grease increases rapidly causing the substance to boil(for lack of a better word) anything underneath. Cast on a surface - and lit, no big deal. Cast on the party's thief and lit - Mr. Thief has a mighty painful sunburn.

As for game mechanics - I would add no damage mods if set alight on a non-flammable natural surface (stone, dirt, etc). If cast upon a flammable surface I would allow the appropriate saving throw to the surface with maybe a smother modifier based on the circumstance. If lit on a living being, I would add maybe a +1d3 "fire" damage (actually boiling damage). Burnout would be 1 melee round, two at the most.

 

[vulcan_idic]

Even bacon grease, must first absorb a tremenous amount of thermal energy before igniting.

Which might easily be provided by something such as a Flaming Sphere, Fireball, or something - perhaps even Finger of Fire.

And actually in the cases where I have seen it played as flammable it wasn't flammable in a huge dangerous way... it was mosly more of, well, a caltrop type affect - minimal, if any, damage and a chance to be slowed. It was typically used more to control where the enemy attacked from or slow them down a bit more. Considering the effects of the spell anyway, the added effects were generally minimal, though occassionally useful (i.e. defense against a scarecrow animated by Animate Object)

As for the "damage cap" issue, the damage wasn't really seen as a spell effect any more than a person chocking on food summoned by "Create Food and Water" is a spell effect.

 

[Li Shenron]

Is the lubricating substance produced by the "Grease" spell flammable?

While I'm usually in favor of creative uses of spells, I'd rule that it does not ignite.

I don't like very much introducing these implications from a spell description, even if they are based on good common sense, it often opens up unwanted consequences.

So for me Grease is a spell that makes a surface or object slippery, nothing more. It doesn't actually create a particular kind of substance. There are already a lot of good creative uses of this property alone.

 

[RigaMortus]

I don't think the grease spell creates a substances that is especially flamable. Same way as Summon Nature's Ally doesn't create a creature that is especially flamable.

 

[Mouseferatu]

One of the reasons you might be seeing a lot of people play it as flammable is that it was specifically stated as being so in prior editions of the game. In 3E, however, that detail is not in there, so it is--as others have said--largely up to the DM.

 

[Space monkey]

however cast it on the ground 3 ft in front of your wall of fire and watch them slip slide and ignite, stop drop and roll not happening when gresed.