Sustain without line of sight?

[RangerWickett]

Can a villain conjure a wall of fire to cover his escape, then run away, using a minor action each round as he flees, even if he turns a corner?

Can he sustain once he is farther from the wall than the power's original range (10 squares)?

Where is this spelled out? I can't seem to find a clear rule in the compendium.

 

[Aulirophile]

Only moveable zones/conjurations have rules about LoE/LoS in the RC. You're fine for stuff that doesn't move, regardless of range. Up to 5 minutes of fine, anyway.

 

[DracoSuave]

Of course not, why would it?

All sustain is is a type of duration. It doesn't have any special rules other than how effects end.

LoS is not inherently necessary for effects to maintain existance. If you use a power that gives the weakened condition to a rogue, with save ends, for instance, if he manages to sneak away and leave LoS, he doesn't suddenly lose the weakened condition. LoS to you is not relevant to the effect you have placed.

Sustain doesn't -add- any rules to this, so it follows the same general rules for all powers that have durations.

Of course, there are exceptions. As noted above, moveable conjurations must remain in the range of the conjurer. But that is part of the conjuration keyword, and has nothing to do with Sustain.

 

[Kingreaper]

It seems like LoE would be needed.

My logic: If you don't have Line of Effect, you can't act on the zone at all, and sustaining the zone requires acting on it.

But I'll freely admit, i'm not sure if that's how it actually works.

 

[wedgeski]

Huh. That sound you hear is me mis-adjudicating Wall of Fire for the last couple of sessions. Still, I'm not sure I like the idea of being able to sustain something you have no LoE to.

 

[Sorenson]

The only thing the entry for Sustain in the Rules Compendium mentions is that you can only sustain an effect for up to 5 minutes. No mention of LoS or LoE.

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

Right, by RAW the default state is that you can sustain any sustainable power for 5 minutes with no regard to other considerations, you just have to expend the required type of action each round. Technically a character could step through a gateway to the other side of the multiverse and STILL maintain the power for 5 minutes. This makes walls and other sustainable non-movable zones rather handy if you can drop them so as to cut off pursuit.

 

[Kingreaper]

Right, by RAW the default state is that you can sustain any sustainable power for 5 minutes with no regard to other considerations, you just have to expend the required type of action each round. Technically a character could step through a gateway to the other side of the multiverse and STILL maintain the power for 5 minutes. This makes walls and other sustainable non-movable zones rather handy if you can drop them so as to cut off pursuit.

The rules for Line of Effect would seem to contradict that:

A clear line from one point to another point in an encounter that doesn’t pass through or touch blocking terrain. Unless noted otherwise, there must be line of effect between the origin square of an effect and its intended target for that target to be affected.

Does anything state otherwise with regards to sustaining powers?
I mean the sustain effect is definitely affecting the sustained zone (by causing it to continue to exist)

What am I misunderstanding here?

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

The rules for Line of Effect would seem to contradict that:


Does anything state otherwise with regards to sustaining powers?
I mean the sustain effect is definitely affecting the sustained zone (by causing it to continue to exist)

What am I misunderstanding here?

The terms target and origin square are precisely defined terms in 4e. They refer to a target of a spell (which must be a creature or object generally, though in a few cases like Dispel Magic the target could be an effect itself, or a square), and the square from which the attack is made, either a square in the caster's space (melee, close, or ranged) or the target square of the power (area burst). The rule you're citing doesn't have anything to do with sustaining, only actually using the power to begin with. In fact there's an FAQ entry that states flat out that sustaining a power is not a use of the power (clarification needed due to restrictions imposed by Wild Shape). Now, IF the power is a movable zone, then at least one square of the zone must be in range and LoE in order for the power to be sustained. Otherwise, no restrictions.