D&D 5E Spiritual Weapon vs. Fire Shield

[Rya.Reisender]

Simple rules question: If you are within 5ft of a creature that has Fire Shield active and you hit it with a Spiritual Weapon, do you take damage?

 

[Enrico Poli1]

I would rule NO, because the spell is intended to harm melee attacks within 5'

 

[Rya.Reisender]

Spiritual Weapon is defined as a melee spell attack and the creature is within 5', though. So what would make you rule no?

 

[mellored]

Spiritual Weapon is defined as a melee spell attack and the creature is within 5', though. So what would make you rule no?

The same reason you are asking in the first place. It doesn't make sense from a story perspective, and the DM can make rulings to fit the story.

Rules as written, you would take damage.

 

[Oofta]

I would rule no. This is one of those areas where a purely technical reading of the rules may say otherwise but the caster is not physically swinging the spiritual weapon, they are not in direct physical contact nor are they holding an object (i.e. weapon) making direct physical contact.

 

[DND_Reborn]

RAW yes. As a DM, no.

Interesting idea: since the spectral hammer occupies no space, but must be within 5' of the creature it hits, what if the fire shield erupted into the space the hammer was in?

Example: Cleric casts Spiritual Weapon (SW), which is "in" the space occupied by X, an ally to the fire shield caster. When the hammer hits, the fire shield erupts into the space the attack came from, hitting X instead!

 

[Ancalagon]

Spiritual Weapon is defined as a melee spell attack and the creature is within 5', though. So what would make you rule no?

But it's not you physically interacting with the spell, it's the spiritual weapon. The spiritual weapon is engulfed in flames and ... takes no damage because it doesn't have HP. Would you take damage if your goblin friend attacked the fire-shield warded target? Of course not, the goblin would take damage.

From a rule as written, maybe. But this is why the GM is there, to make sure that things make sense .

 

[Ancalagon]

RAW yes. As a DM, no.

Interesting idea: since the spectral hammer occupies no space, but must be within 5' of the creature it hits, what if the fire shield erupted into the space the hammer was in?

Example: Cleric casts Spiritual Weapon (SW), which is "in" the space occupied by X, an ally to the fire shield caster. When the hammer hits, the fire shield erupts into the space the attack came from, hitting X instead!

View attachment 267757

See now that might hit X. I'm not sure I would run it that way, but it makes more sense than the cleric taking damage...

 

[billd91]

I’d go with no since the melee attack comes through the spiritual weapon, not the caster who just happens to be within 5 feet of the shielded target.

 

[Ancalagon]

No one has used fireshield in a 5e game of mine, but here is another scenario where I would house rule: what if the attacker is 10 feet away and using a melee attack (they have range, say a polearm or large size?)

I would damage the attacker if they were attacking with a natural weapon (they get singed) but not if the attack was delivered with a weapon (pole arm, big sword with big arms).