D&D 5E Polymorph vs. Petrified

[MarkB]

The situation: One of the party members was petrified at the end of the last session, with no means on hand of reversing the effect. The rest of the party need to get them back to town, where there is a friendly cleric who has the ability to cast greater restoration.

The problem: Petrification multiplies a creature's weight tenfold, and this one wasn't a lightweight to begin with. Their statue form currently weighs over 3,000 lb, which is not easy for three people, one of whom is a kobold, to carry.

Possible solution: One character has access to polymorph, and could cast it at least a few times, which would get them a significant portion of the way there if it can lighten the weight.

Polymorph targets a single creature, and can transform it into a beast. I'm thinking this could go one of three ways:

• A petrified creature is still a creature, as well as an object, and being polymorphed could transform them into a lightweight pocket-sized beast statue for easy transportation.
• A petrified creature is still a creature, as well as an object, and being polymorphed could transform them into a non-petrified beast for the duration, after which they go back to being a statue.
• A petrified creature is just an object, and cannot be targeted with polymorph.

Which way would you go, or is there a fourth option I haven't considered?

 

[aco175]

I'm under the initial thoughts to say that it is now an object and cannot be targeted. I seem to recall a recent thread about petrify and not eating and thus dying of starvation. There were some good thoughts these about being an object.

Rule of cool allows for anything, even chopping the statue into smaller pieces to carry and then cast mending to glue them back together later.

Rule of deviousness has a planned encounter with a wagon that could be used but the petrified PC's player controls the bad guys attacking the wagon. The other players could wait until the wagoners are dead and then use the wagon or help and maybe not get the wagon.

 

[Quickleaf]

I'd say the RAW rules make #3 (petrified creature = object) 100% totally and absolutely false.

If I cast detect thoughts... do I scan the thoughts of the petrified creature? Yes.

Also look at the Petrified condition (pasting it below, cause it's always best practice to paste the relevant rules being discussed). If it's no longer meant to be treated as a creature WHY go through all the trouble of saying the creature is "incapacitated", "automatically fails Strength and Dex saves", resistance to all damage, etc?

And then read the greater restoration spell – which is the main way to undo petrification – nothing in there about targeting an "object" is there?

Petrified​

• A petrified creature is transformed, along with any nonmagical object it is wearing or carrying, into a solid inanimate substance (usually stone). Its weight increases by a factor of ten, and it ceases aging.
• The creature is incapacitated (see the condition), can’t move or speak, and is unaware of its surroundings.
• Attack rolls against the creature have advantage.
• The creature automatically fails Strength and Dexterity saving throws.
• The creature has resistance to all damage.
• The creature is immune to poison and disease, although a poison or disease already in its system is suspended, not neutralized.

 

[el-remmen]

I’d say a petrified creature is an object (and has no thoughts, but that’s another argument).

I have been part of a group where we had to hide (bury) a petrified party member and come back to them with a cure later because moving them was too difficult/dangerous

 

[Moonmover]

I'd say a petrified creature is still a creature. But, if you polymorph it into a different creature, it remains petrified. So, the only way that would be helpful is if you polymorph it into something very small. Turn that man statue into a mouse statue for easy transport.

 

[MarkB]

I'd say the RAW rules make #3 (petrified creature = object) 100% totally and absolutely false.

If I cast detect thoughts... do I scan the thoughts of the petrified creature? Yes.

Also look at the Petrified condition (pasting it below, cause it's always best practice to paste the relevant rules being discussed). If it's no longer meant to be treated as a creature WHY go through all the trouble of saying the creature is "incapacitated", "automatically fails Strength and Dex saves", resistance to all damage, etc?

And then read the greater restoration spell – which is the main way to undo petrification – nothing in there about targeting an "object" is there?

Petrified​

• A petrified creature is transformed, along with any nonmagical object it is wearing or carrying, into a solid inanimate substance (usually stone). Its weight increases by a factor of ten, and it ceases aging.
• The creature is incapacitated (see the condition), can’t move or speak, and is unaware of its surroundings.
• Attack rolls against the creature have advantage.
• The creature automatically fails Strength and Dexterity saving throws.
• The creature has resistance to all damage.
• The creature is immune to poison and disease, although a poison or disease already in its system is suspended, not neutralized.

Yeah, that's the general direction my thoughts ran when considering that this might be viable - and every line of that condition refers to "the creature".

I did consider the reverse way to use polymorph in this situation - transform another party member into something big enough to easily carry the petrified one - but unless my maths is wrong, even a T-Rex only has a carrying capacity of 1,500 lbs.

 

[Rocker26a]

You could also Polymorph a party member into a Beast capable of transporting the petrified party member to town! Rules as written say no! Which seems ridiculous!

Or... Y'know. Just go into town, and. Ask the friendly Cleric to accompany you to the location where the petrified party member currently resides.

 

[Clint_L]

This is the kind of situation that inevitably produces much entertainment at games, whatever you rule. For the record, I would say they are now an object; specifically, a statue. And I would 100% allow a character to polymorph into a T-rex, just so I could remind them about those tiny arms. Also, the polymorphed character would have the intelligence of a T-rex, and I feel like roleplaying that situation would be a highlight of any evening.

 

[Rocker26a]

Yeah, that's the general direction my thoughts ran when considering that this might be viable - and every line of that condition refers to "the creature".

I did consider the reverse way to use polymorph in this situation - transform another party member into something big enough to easily carry the petrified one - but unless my maths is wrong, even a T-Rex only has a carrying capacity of 1,500 lbs.

I also had that thought, and as your maths suggest, it's a non-starter. I thought a Brontosaurus might be a workable alternative, that it's Gargantuan size would make up for it's lower Strength score than the Huge size Beasts, but. The rules on carrying capacity are less generous than those for "push, drag or lift". And that reduces your speed to 5ft a round, which makes them useless for this problem.

So, yeah. Just ask the Cleric to come with you to the spot you left the petrified party member.

 

[MarkB]

My maths and/or my interpretation of or awareness of the relevant rules may be off, but, here's what I've got. Let's run with the T-Rex example.



So, a T-Rex has a Strength score of 25. 750 pounds is our starting figure. Onto the next relevant passage!



So, a T-Rex is Huge, two size categories above Medium, so we're doubling twice. Giving us... 3,000 pounds exactly!
I would however also raise the Brontosaurus as a possibility. It has a lower Strength score than the T-Rex, but it's Gargantuan, giving them a maximum capacity of 5,040 pounds. Comfortably well above the requirement here.

(This is just rules as written, so it may not necessarily apply to your game, might be a much easier process than the rules could suggest.)

Push, Drag or Lift limits your speed to 5 feet, I believe. If they can fashion a cart that would help. Good call on the brontosaur.

In this scenario I am the DM, and the character who can cast polymorph is an NPC, so I'm basically deciding how much help she can offer them. I'll be letting them do their own planning before she steps in, so I look forward to seeing what they come up with.