Pool Hit Points with Multiple Shield Other

[HoboGod]

I'm inbetween DMing to backseat DM for a friend of mine in an Oriental Adventures campaign. She asked me to make a few generic baddies to supplement her monsters. I randomly made a creature with Shield Other as an at will spell-like ability and it came to me that these things, each casting Shield Other on each other, could pool their hit points in the same way computers linked together make a cluster. I searched around to see if I was mistaken about this spell, but found nothing. I frequent these forums often for help, so I figured this would be the place to ask. Can Shield Other be used this way?

 

[milo]

I don't see why it couldn't be. It would take all of them casting it on every other one. They would have to stay close together, close range spell and if they get out of range the spell ends. If nothing else since they are created monsters they can get a special ability/Rule 0 the issue. I do think it would work by RAW though.

 

[frankthedm]

Shield other is a useful ability, but really dangerous with how large area attack radii are.

Also, don't allow shield other to divide damage more than one time, otherwise it is too easy to abuse. Also, the original victim should be the only one to apply any resistances to the damage dealt.

http://www.enworld.org/forum/d-d-legacy-discussion/203281-shield-other.html

http://www.enworld.org/forum/d-d-legacy-discussion/199435-shield-other-damage-reduction.html

http://www.enworld.org/forum/d-d-legacy-discussion/182893-shield-other-maximum-targets.html

http://www.enworld.org/forum/d-d-legacy-discussion/266483-fatal-flaw-low-hitpoints.html

 

[HoboGod]

Thank you for the reply. A second question, however.

Hypothetically, there exists two Cleric PCs, Joey and Sandra. Joey casts shield other on Sandra. Sandra turns around and casts shield other on Joey. The two rings used for casting are labeled F for focus. The PHB states "a focus is not consumed when the spell is cast and can be reused" p174. Can the rings Joey uses for the spell focus be the same rings Sandra uses so that no matter how many times Joey casts shield other on someone else and someone else casts shield other on him, he only wears one non-magical ring?

 

[Nebten]

Yes. You can interchange spell focuses as long as you have a pair of rings for each casting of the spell.