D&D 5E Ruling Rope Trick

[Hexmage-EN]

New spell ruling questions, this time about Rope Trick:

• Is the portal that is generated intangible so that creatures and objects could move through its space?
• If cast while on or in a moving object, like a vehicle, will the portal stay in place or move along with the object?

I ask because a friend of mine once mused that, depending on how you rule it, Rope Trick could hypothetically be used for covert entry of vehicles. For example, set the portal at the elevation where you expect the interior of a carriage to be within the hour to drop in, or if on one ship being pursued by another ship cast the spell in the hold, climb in, and wait for the portal to be situated inside the other ship's hold before quickly dropping out. However, this would effectively mean it would be impossible to use Rope Trick to take a Short Rest inside something that is moving, such as a ship or something more fantastical like a flying fortress.

 

[Maxperson]

or if on one ship being pursued by another ship cast the spell in the hold, climb in, and wait for the portal to be situated inside the other ship's hold before quickly dropping out. However, this would effectively mean it would be impossible to use Rope Trick to take a Short Rest inside something that is moving, such as a ship or something more fantastical like a flying fortress.

They'd better pray that the ship doesn't sail 10-15 feet to the right or left of their ship or they're swimming a long, long way.

 

[Maxperson]

Which reminds me of another Rope Trick question that had our DM a bit stumped the other night: if someone is in a Rope Trick and uses an extremely magical weapon to (in this case accidentally) try to cut their way out, what happens? The weapon has stone-cutting as a property.

Rope Trick is an extradimensional space, not a rock house. Unless the sword can rip it's way through dimensions, I'd say no.

 

[Stormonu]

This brings up another question ... what if you try to do the same thing with Leomund's Tiny Hut or Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion ? In fact, should there be variants such as Leomund's Houseboat and Mordenkainen's Magnificent Yacht ?

 

[Hexmage-EN]

I guess I could have titled this thread "Persistent Spell Effects: Do Any Move Along With Vehicles"?

 

[Oofta]

This brings up another question ... what if you try to do the same thing with Leomund's Tiny Hut or Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion ? In fact, should there be variants such as Leomund's Houseboat and Mordenkainen's Magnificent Yacht ?

Which is why I simplify it and say it moves with whatever it's on/in. If I have a floating castle, I want the option of portals that move with it. There are a lot of spells that state that the effect can't be moved, the tiny hut is "stationary around you". If you cast wall of force on the hull of a moving ship, does the ship immediately crash into the wall? Even a guardian of faith appears in an unoccupied space. It never moves on it's own accord so would it also float off in the expanse?

Stationary, fixed in place, will always be relative to the perspective of the observer. It's just easier and it's not just portals.

 

[Lanefan]

Rope Trick is an extradimensional space, not a rock house. Unless the sword can rip it's way through dimensions, I'd say no.

It's made of something, though - you can stand on it, lean against the walls, etc. Otherwise it wouldn't be limited to 10x10 feet; you could free-float forever.

 

[Lanefan]

Which is why I simplify it and say it moves with whatever it's on/in. If I have a floating castle, I want the option of portals that move with it. There are a lot of spells that state that the effect can't be moved, the tiny hut is "stationary around you". If you cast wall of force on the hull of a moving ship, does the ship immediately crash into the wall?

Absolutely yes! And as wall of force can't appear in a solid object anyway, you'd be casting it above the deck or in front of/behind/etc. the ship. We recently used this tactic in a naval combat - walls of force right in front of large fast-moving ships cause all sorts of chaos!

Even a guardian of faith appears in an unoccupied space. It never moves on it's own accord so would it also float off in the expanse?

Not familiar with guardian of faith - once it appears, does it just work like a normal statue or is there something magical holding it in place? If the former, then it moves wherever the ship carries it. If the latter, well, probably not the best idea of the day.

Stationary, fixed in place, will always be relative to the perspective of the observer. It's just easier and it's not just portals.

Easier perhaps, but also way less fun.

 

[Rabulias]

It's made of something, though - you can stand on it, lean against the walls, etc. Otherwise it wouldn't be limited to 10x10 feet; you could free-float forever.

It's an extradimensional space that is only that size. It is defined as that size and no larger; there is nothing outside of it even if you could cut it. You can't "cut through" to the Prime Material as that is not what is outside the space. The entrance is the only connection to the Prime.

 

[Lanefan]

It's an extradimensional space that is only that size. It is defined as that size and no larger; there is nothing outside of it even if you could cut it. You can't "cut through" to the Prime Material as that is not what is outside the space. The entrance is the only connection to the Prime.

Not necessarily saying it'd be the Prime you cut through to...but what solid material is that border made of, that you can stand on it etc. (and while we're at it, why/how does gravity work in there?)

 

[Rabulias]

Not necessarily saying it'd be the Prime you cut through to...but what solid material is that border made of, that you can stand on it etc. (and while we're at it, why/how does gravity work in there?)

It is not made of anything; that is the edge of possible space in that miniature dimension. You don't "fall through the floor" as there is nowhere for three-dimensional matter to go beyond that.

You do raise an interesting question about gravity. I would say the caster can set the gravity orientation within the space when the spell is cast.