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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Man in the Funny Hat" data-source="post: 7401462" data-attributes="member: 32740">Well looking at the text I have at hand here, which is not the black cover edition, it does not mention yards at all.  I think it's safe to say this would be an error in the black cover text, not a rule.  With D&D in particular one should never assume intent if aberrations in the books are more easily explained by bad writing or crappy editing.2E does, it seems, still retain different movement rates between dungeon and outdoors (feet vs. yards), but says nothing I can find about different range or spell area/volume.  As for spells like Rock to Mud, again you can thank bumbling writing and editing.  They simply fail to consistently write what they mean.  When they first talk about spell areas of effect they even describe what it is they're TRYING to say when they talk about cube volumes:So when TransRtM SEEMS to give an area that can result in an effect MILES long it's just an error.  What I read for area of effect for rock to mud is:Not the symbol ", nor the symbol ', but the abbreviation "ft."  All of this is surely a product of TRYING to edit out the scaling mechanics of 1E as I suggested.  Not fully removing the use of the symbol " as a scale measurement for movement, range/distance, and areas of effect, and even when editing AGAIN for release of new-cover versions they only introduced more errors even while they may be removing others.  I don't really blame editors as I used to.  Editing game rule books like these is a monumental task requiring an attention to details beyond proper spelling and grammar.  But you can't take even well-edited rule books for D&D as if they are tablets graven in stone without error.  You have to be able to question even those elements that might seem at first glance to be "clearly stated".  Is Fireball REALLY meant to be the sole exception throughout the game that in an all-new first-ever change will triple its volume (and I note that it doesn't say under what circumstances this new unique feature should apply where the volume becomes yards rather than feet)?  Is Rock to Mud REALLY meant to be capable of an area of effect that extends for MILES?  Or are these just simple errors that are only astonishing when people assume them to be infallible imperatives?</blockquote>

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