D&D 4E Not always about Martial - The Heat Metal Spell (sort of)

[Garthanos]

A lot of my posts probably make it seem I am only interested in the martial non-magical element of D&D. This fits with the Primal is about Spirits storyline very well. And a mass disarm with fun flavor rocks.

 

[Garthanos]

This is the official 4e heat metal its just not as satisfying to me.

 

[Tony Vargas]

This fits with the Primal is about Spirits storyline very well. And a mass disarm with fun flavor rocks.

I had fun with Heat Metal a few times back in the day. On the rare occasion I had a target in metal armor, or for ye ol' "creative" uses, and, rarest of all, actually, for the 'mass disarm' (though, honestly, at 2nd, you needed cure light wounds in the slots, an by the time you could skimp on those, the kinds of enemies that would all be holding non-magical metal weapons were kinda off the menu). Still, potentially very fun, if hightly situational (though really, what wasn't) spell back in the day.

The 4e version made a bit of sense for a hafted weapon like a spear, but it working on light/heavy blades was pushing it. The offensive use, as well, would've been a nice touch, because controllers, not just wizards, were supposed to be a little versatile.

5e version has 'fast combat' written all over it. No warm-up, higher damage, upcast for just moar damage. Stronger, vs one victim in armor, certainly.

 

[Garthanos]

Yeah

I had fun with Heat Metal a few times back in the day. On the rare occasion I had a target in metal armor, or for ye ol' "creative" uses, and, rarest of all, actually, for the 'mass disarm' (though, honestly, at 2nd, you needed cure light wounds in the slots, an by the time you could skimp on those, the kinds of enemies that would all be holding non-magical metal weapons were kinda off the menu). Still, potentially very fun, if hightly situational (though really, what wasn't) spell back in the day.

The 4e version made a bit of sense for a hafted weapon like a spear, but it working on light/heavy blades was pushing it. The offensive use, as well, would've been a nice touch, because controllers, not just wizards, were supposed to be a little versatile.

5e version has 'fast combat' written all over it. No warm-up, higher damage, upcast for just moar damage. Stronger, vs one victim in armor, certainly.

I like mine better...no damn aggressive spirits in the armor to heat with what do they think I am some extra planar elementalist

 

[Garthanos]

The heat my own weapon to attack- does work even in conjunction with or along side my mass disarm (perhaps learning 1 you always learn the other). I think that leaves the heat enemy armor ... perhaps the defending spirits in the armor start rejecting the wearer. Not sure that works for the heat damage model as nice of symbolics though.

 

[Garthanos]

It occured to me some science or pseudoscience as the case may be would treat the spikes sprouting from the wood and the weapons heating up as very distinct things and not have them in the same power but magical thinking most definitely works fine setting them as part of the same magic. This relates to a discussion elsewhere that has me thinking about how magic is very much not scientific and how recognizing that can make the games experience richer/more exotic/more original.

 

[Garthanos]

Another way of expressing the above which might spark people ... magical thinking was more "gamist" - ie things were perceived as being more "how we interact with them" and less "what they really are" and so categorization came from that. It's not consistently true after all science developed out of philosophy and chemistry out of alchemy... so their were pathways to the other side so to speak.