The Sky Is Falling - Dropping Stuff Damage!

[FCWesel]

Okay.

The DMG (p89) talks about dropping something on someone. I have a character that has made an enemy and I was going to have that enemy do just that.

In this case it will be (3) 50 lbs rocks, 600' on top of the character. Accordingly that should be 15D6 damage each rock.

Should there be an attack roll? What about a reflex save? I am just looking at the options and ideas.

If the enemy is invisible, do they become visible? I would say no because they are simply dropping an item, aren't they?

What about distance modifiers, after all, the distance mods for bows and arrows is in part because of gravity deteriorating the distance and force possible.

 

[maybeso]

In my opinion if you make an attack roll you have attacked and invisibility ends.
"just dropping" something to start an avalanche? Maybe that's not an attack, I'm not sure. Dropping rocks so they land on someone sounds like you need to make an attack roll, most likely at -4 unless you are proficient in dropping rocks.

I suppose you could "just drop" the rocks, and then treat them like a grenadelike area attack and figure out the scatter, squares struck, what DC's and saves, etc. but I think you would have to drop a LOT of rocks to hope for a hit...

If you care when and where the rocks hit I think that is an attack roll.

 

[Piratecat]

A 50 lb. rock is a small item. An ranged attack roll would be made, with the normal -2 penalty per range increment. I'd have to check the MM to see what the rock-throwing range increment is for a hill giant, but off the top of my head I'd probably pick a 30' range increment for a human dropping a rock. Given that, the enemy would be 20 range increments away, for a total of -40 to his roll.

Good luck! There is a reason that creatures don't use this sort of attack more often. Even a more liberal range increment (say, 50') would give -24 to the attack.

In addition, this is definitely an attack, so invisibility would disappear.

Hey, check out the R&R spell Ganest's Farstrike. The only range increment is line of sight, which makes it a fun (and dodgeable) long-range attack.

 

[FCWesel]

Thanks for your opinions, ideas and thoughts guys!

 

[Ferret]

It takes a full round action a strengh check of DC 6, at 40 ft it does 1d6 every 10ft after it does an extra 1d6 to a max of 20d6, so thats 20 X10 = 200ft

At two-hundred feet your 3 50lb rocks will do 20d6 each Dragon 306 doesn't say how to avoid, and it shows that Krusk can hit it all the time.... I'd say a Reflex DC of X2 the push/drop throw DC so in your case 12.

 

[green slime]

When dropping items, apart from the penalties given by PirateCat, I also penalise for the target being reduced in size: when dropping a rock, you can only see the target's head and shoulders. Cover bonus to AC...

 

[FCWesel]

Reread your dmg Ferret.

Might want to re-read that section / table in the dmg again, Ferret. The 200' = 20D6 is wrong.

Pg89: Table 3-18; *EVERY* 40 feet = 1D6

So to get to 20D6 a 35-50 lb object would have to fall 800 feet.

 

[Saeviomagy]

The best way is probably to assume that the range increment of a thrown rock is 10' (the same as the range increment of a thrown club, which seems to be the closest analogue), regardless of size, and that range penalties apply to dropped objects.

Furthermore, divebombing (holding the object while flying downwards, then releasing close to the opponent) still follows this rule.

Finally, the limit of 5 range increments doesn't apply to dropped objects.

Then, for every 1d6 you wish to inflict above the items base damage, you take a -2 to hit.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Rocks?

In my campaign, we're traditionalists. If you're planning on dropping something on someone, it had better be a piano, a safe, an anvil, or a big weight with "10T" stamped on the side...

-Hyp.

 

[Darklone]

In my campaign, we're traditionalists. If you're planning on dropping something on someone, it had better be a piano, a safe, an anvil, or a big weight with "10T" stamped on the side...

-Hyp.

We use cows.