Spells ruling: Shatter

[DungeonMaester]

Does this work on a person? Can you target some one's hair or fingernails or a bone in their body?

I argued against it, and it ultimately ended the campiagn for good, but am I right or wrong? (Please use page numbers and links as sources for your agrument one way or another)

---Rusty

 

[Jhulae]

Shatter creates a loud, ringing noise that breaks brittle, nonmagical objects; sunders a single solid, nonmagical object; or damages a crystalline creature.

Living beings are not 'objects'. Living beings are creatures. The only creature Shatter damages are crystalline creatures.

 

[darthkilmor]

Living beings are not 'objects'. Living beings are creatures. The only creature Shatter damages are crystalline creatures.

QED.

 

[Corsair]

Ditto.

 

[Darklone]

And it would be a little strange to allow a spell to target some body part while weapons (which can be used to destroy objects too) can't be used in that manner.

 

[AnonymousOne]

Right so how does shatter actually work? I assume the objects get some kind of save but where are those saves found?

 

[Aleolus]

Magic items get a save at the standard DC (10+spell level+casting stat mod), normal items don't, and crystaline objects take pretty hefty damage from it, iirc.

 

[Infiniti2000]

Magical objects are immune to shatter, so that part is irrelevant. Objects in a creature's possession (attended items) would use the saving throw of the creature.

I have no idea why this would end the campaign for good, especially since the answer is so seemingly self-evident as Jhulae pointed out. What was the argument for allowing it, may we ask?

 

[MarkB]

I have no idea why this would end the campaign for good, especially since the answer is so seemingly self-evident as Jhulae pointed out. What was the argument for allowing it, may we ask?

Just speculating, but one guess would be someone playing a warlock with Baleful Utterance, who wants to do something silly like defeating each opponent by shattering a joint in their spine.

 

[Kat']

Magical objects are immune to shatter, so that part is irrelevant.

Reference, please... From what I can read in the SRD, nothing makes a magical item immune to Shatter. Difference is, the item gets a Will save even if it is unattended.

Coming back to the start: Shatter works on objects and on crystalline creatures. Body parts aren't objects.