Spells that avoid spell resistance...

[magnusmalkus]

I know you can look under any spell entry and see if the spell is subject to spell resistance.. .that's the rules lawyer approach...

BUT... by the spirit of the rules... what about a spell makes it subject or immune to spell resistance?

What about a spell makes it bypass spell resistance? You'd think it had to do with targetability vs area effects but... that doesn't hold up.

Why is Fireball subject to spell resistance and yet, the various Orb spells, (Orb of Acid, Orb of Fire, etc...) are not, and further yet, Magic Missile is?

 

[moritheil]

I know you can look under any spell entry and see if the spell is subject to spell resistance.. .that's the rules lawyer approach...

BUT... by the spirit of the rules... what about a spell makes it subject or immune to spell resistance?

What about a spell makes it bypass spell resistance? You'd think it had to do with targetability vs area effects but... that doesn't hold up.

Why is Fireball subject to spell resistance and yet, the various Orb spells, (Orb of Acid, Orb of Fire, etc...) are not, and further yet, Magic Missile is?

People answer variously about the orb spells, but they are widely viewed to be inconsistent with the rest of the magic system. The core concept was that summoning a quantity of material would be different than evoking a force or element - but the conjuration rules somewhat conflict with the orb spells as they are described.

 

[psionotic]

Basically all of the summoning and conjurations spells ignore SR, as the caster is summoning and hurling 'real' acid/fire/cold, etc. It does seem kind of wonky, especially because the orb spells are already very effective.

Glitterdust works the same way, which seems strange, because if it summons 'real' golden dust, then why does it still blind creatures that don't see through eyes or other biological sense organs?

 

[moritheil]

Basically all of the summoning and conjurations spells ignore SR, as the caster is summoning and hurling 'real' acid/fire/cold, etc. It does seem kind of wonky, especially because the orb spells are already very effective.

Not just that - a conjuration spell that has an instantaneous duration and is not resisted by SR is producing something that sticks around indefinitely. What the heck does an orb of force or orb of electricity behave like? Is it just a sphere that happens to be composed of paraelemental energy, that somehow retains the shape of a sphere without any ongoing magic applied to it? How does that work?

 

[Tiberius]

Is it just a sphere that happens to be composed of paraelemental energy, that somehow retains the shape of a sphere without any ongoing magic applied to it? How does that work?

Well, for all we know there are naturally-occurring orbs of $stuff floating around the various elemental, paraelemental, and quasielemental planes that conjurers grab.

Still doesn't explain Orb of Force, I grant, but I suppose one could occur somewhere.