D&D 5E The Dangers of Overreliance on Leomund's Tiny Hut (3rd Level Spell)

[Baron Opal II]

I've seen a lot of discussion on how much a party of PCs can benefit from using Leomund's Tiny Hut, and the woes of some DMs having to deal with parties that rely on the spell too frequently.

While this is a four year old question, discussions of this spell seems to be one of the most commonly debated topics in 5e. So I have to ask, what do you want?

Do you want a magical tent that protects you from vermin and all but the most extreme weather?
Do you want a magical yurt that protects you from weak monsters, vermin, and all weather?
Do you want a magical bunker that protects you from all hazard, monstrous and environmental?

What does the casting time or ritual casting mean?
Can you erect the shelter in a light rain or snowfall?
Can you erect the shelter in a thunderstorm or blizzard?
Can you erect the shelter in the middle of combat, hurricane, or earthquake?

I think having the wizard be able to instantly* erect a shelter for the party to be very appropriate thematically. And, it is the same level as fireball and dispel magic. Therefore it is, to my mind, one of the "workhorse" spells of the magician who has come into his own power-wise. I tend to view wizard spells in the light of "with this spell I can solve a problem immediately that might otherwise take the whole team significant time and resources to address." The concept of LTH fits that theme exceptionally. Personally, I go with "magical tent" and "cast during thunderstorm or blizzard" options.

 

[ad_hoc]

#6 is the biggest one.

Most objectives are going to be time based in some way. Whether the PCs are on a time sensitive mission from the start or trigger an escalation once they have engaged in an adventure site.

In most cases it will be no different than a normal long rest.

The main issue with it is counter intuitive - it actually heightens the danger from resting.

Most of the time, sure, it is protection. But sometimes the DM will have the environment react to it and set up some kind of ambush or sabotage. That is a recipe for a TPK. So it ends up presenting a problem for the narrative if the PCs see themselves as invulnerable.

Personally I use the rule "no long resting outside of friendly settlements" so the spell is a non-issue. The main purpose of the rule is not to make adventure sites more difficult but to have overland travel encounters to be dangerous. I recommend it.

 

[ECMO3]

I've seen a lot of discussion on how much a party of PCs can benefit from using Leomund's Tiny Hut, and the woes of some DMs having to deal with parties that rely on the spell too frequently.

Over-reliance on the spell does not come without its drawbacks or dangers however.

Here are some potentially overlooked facts.

1. Although the dome is opaque from the outside, it is not invisible to other creatures.

2. The dome does not necessarily block the sounds and odors produced from inside from being detected outside the dome. It may prevent the production of particularly powerful stenches (such as from defecation) inside it (since it keeps the atmosphere inside dry and comfortable), but other smells that would not normally bother the PCs will freely travel beyond the dome.

3. Although the dome is transparent from the inside, it does not illuminate the surrounding area, nor can it prevent materials from covering the dome (effectively blocking the party's view of the outside).

4. The dome does not provide privacy. If anyone needs to excrete bodily wastes, they will have to either leave the dome for privacy or find some other way to hide their bodily maintenance procedures.

5. The dome does not anchor the ground that it is cast upon to the position it is in. If the ground breaks apart or otherwise shifts, the dome may shift with it (for example in the case of an earthquake or effect produced by a creature).

6. Spending time inside the dome does not freeze the time outside of it. Other things may be going on while the PCs are resting...

I don't think that the spell is broken as written. It will definitely make certain types of adventures much easier, but using it too much could lead to situations that are dangerous for the party, or can result in objective failures.

What do you think?

Meh I have never had much problem with it. It is a 3rd level spell so unless they find a copy to scribe (and that would be the DMs fault) the wizard has to use one of his four 3rd level spells to take it and the bard needs to use a spell known.

It makes rests safer and free from the elements, but then there is a big dome standing in the middle of the area. So for example in the underdark, you can use it to rest safely, but when that Drow patrol comes by and sees the dome it is a safe bet they are bringing back reinforcements (and maybe a wizard to dispel it). So you are going to have to leave the dome and attack or otherwise subdue them anyway, just like you would have needed to do if you were just resting on the floor.

In this respect it is much more effective against wild animals and weather than it is as a refuge against intelligent enemies.

I find Rope Trick to be more abusable.

 

[Lyxen]

I find Rope Trick to be more abusable.

We had tons of fun with Rope Trick in AD&D, but it was when the duration was much longer. Now, with a duration of only 1 hour, it only allows short rests, although it's cool enough for that.

 

[Baron Opal II]

If the dome has a flat floor, what does it do to the ground underneath, which is presumably not perfectly flat? Does it slice off chunks? Leave gaps for protrusions to poke through? Or does the whole hut just rest unsteadily on top of uneven ground?

I think it's both simpler and more balanced to say there is no floor, and the spell magically warms or cools the air inside. If the dome can be dug under, that allows noncasting foes a way to assault it--difficult and slow, but doable.

I think coming up with a concise explanation of the limits of this or any other spell is important. Your players should know what the obvious benefits are, and perhaps a clue as to how they or others can exploit any weaknesses of the spell. What you developed is great. I explain it as a magical tent that protects you from vermin and all but extreme weather (arctic cold, hurricanes, desert heat, &c.). As long as it is clear, explicable, and extrapolatable you're good to go.

I find that I look to adjust spells to remove "you can ignore [situation]" in favor of "you can mitigate or bypass [situation]".

 

[Lyxen]

I think coming up with a concise explanation of the limits of this or any other spell is important. Your players should know what the obvious benefits are, and perhaps a clue as to how they or others can exploit any weaknesses of the spell. What you developed is great. I explain it as a magical tent that protects you from vermin and all but extreme weather (arctic cold, hurricanes, desert heat, &c.). As long as it is clear, explicable, and extrapolatable you're good to go.

I find that I look to adjust spells to remove "you can ignore [situation]" in favor of "you can mitigate or bypass [situation]".

To be fair, the problem never comes from people coming in with low expectations and that kind of description, it almost always comes from a ruleslawyer saying "but the spell says... so it should do this..."

 

[ECMO3]

We had tons of fun with Rope Trick in AD&D, but it was when the duration was much longer. Now, with a duration of only 1 hour, it only allows short rests, although it's cool enough for that.

But it is only an action cast. The best use of it is to hide from enemies.

RAW you can even cast it in the middle of combat to take a break for an hour.

 

[Oofta]

But it is only an action cast. The best use of it is to hide from enemies.

RAW you can even cast it in the middle of combat to take a break for an hour.

If someone tried to case rope trick in the middle of combat in my campaign they'd come down to either an empty location, a bonfire or a couple dozen reinforcements.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

Leomund is a quack archmage. He graduated by publishing his thesis on the Tiny Hut spell, but most of the theoretical groundwork for the spell was made by a student from his class, whose spell Illian's Soggy Bedroll with a Monochrome Umbrella got laughed out of class. Changing a dome to an hemisphere was trivial. Leomund was so sloppy with editing hat you can still spot references to the original "dome" spell in the abstract.

Illian's solution, the next year, which relied on casting his spell twice, one normally, then while doing a headstand, never gained any traction in academic circles. Illian was last seen in Foggy Bottom's main drinking establishment, lamenting over the injustice of Candlekeep's doctoral curriculum.

BTW isn't there a color name in English for the color of military uniforms, with green and brown? It would be better than "pink" in a forest.

 

[Helldritch]

If someone tried to case rope trick in the middle of combat in my campaign they'd come down to either an empty location, a bonfire or a couple dozen reinforcements.

My players know better than to do such a silly thing. They know that they would be in for a massive counter attack by the opponents involved. Unless these opponents are animal or of low and I mean very low intelligence.