Touch attack for Evard's Black Tentacles?

[Abraxas]

Well I managed to do 86 points of damage to the BBEG before he got EBT off, I was 6 points of damage short of taking him out when I got EBT'd

 

[Thanee]

Tough luck, I guess. So, did you still have a 4th level damaging spell prepared, which could have been Dimension Door?

Bye
Thanee

 

[Abraxas]

No.
Its the only time I considered playing a sorcerer also.

 

[Thanee]

Heh. Yep, for combat-heavy campaigns, Sorcerer is probably the better choice.

Bye
Thanee

 

[DrSpunj]

I hit the players with a EBT, then a swarm of bats, just as your DM did. Crazy. I ruled that the Bat swarm took damage from the EVT, however. It was still around long enough to knock out the Rgr/Wiz/Arcane Archer PC.

(You readin' this thread, DrSpunj? )

Was I summoned?

Yeah, this was kind of hard to forget. Very low (essentially no) chance to escape given my BAB is less than a fighter's because of the Wizard & AA levels, and that my Strength is only fair because of the high Dex for Archery. Didn't do much that combat except get squished every round and throw my blood around. Not much fun! :\

But I still don't think it should be drastically changed. I'd buy your switch for the tentacles being Medium instead of Large (thereby reducing the grapple bonus by 4), but I would have been just as hosed being affected by Confusion, Resilient Sphere, Enervation, Phantasmal Killer, etc. My good save bonuses aren't all that different from my Grapple check; the EBT's Grapple check is just very tough to beat if the DM rolls anything above poor because of the bonuses Nail outlined so well earlier in the thread. I waited round after to round to roll well while he rolled poorly, as that was the only chance I had of ending the grapple.

The big difference is the other spells mentioned above don't have the potential to affect such a large number of targets and don't control the battlefield for 7+ rounds preventing your comrades from helping you in anyway if they didn't bother memorizing Dispel Magic (or roll poorly on the dispel check ).

Thanks.

DrSpunj

 

[MoonZar]

Do Evard's Tentacles need a melee touch attack first? Or, do they skip that step and move directly to the opposed check.

My DM think's Evard's is extremely overpowered. What do you all think?

Sorry if this has been asked before, I don't have a search function. Thanks.

Hello, this a touch attack.

Of course this powerful, this a fifth level spell and this not the most powerful of them.

We have a discussion about Quill Blast who's fifth level if you want to see it hehehe this much more deadly

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=130951

Enjoy

 

[helium3]

+16? *scratches head*

+4 for Str 19, +4 for large. I only get +8, where are you getting the extra +8 from?

Also, a rogue that is grappled can make an escape artist check to escape the grapple. So rogues aren't totally hosed.

For grappling, the check is BAB + STRMOD +/- SIZEMOD.

For EBT, the grapple modifier is CL + 4 + 4.

So, it's the equivalent of a large sized fighter with the improved grapple feat being able to grapple everything in a 20' radius without needing to make a touch attack.

I love it too, but I'm inclined to think that it's a wee bit over-powered. Of course, it's the only spell I know of that actually makes my players whine when an opponent uses it, so I may keep it as for that reason alone.

Reasonable nerfs I can think of might be to decrease the CL to 1/2 CL or to require that the caster concentrate on the spell to keep it in effect, with the effect lasting three rounds after concentration is lost and with max duration being 1 round/CL.

 

[Caliban]

How many rogues have greater than a +16 on their Escape artist check? IME, not many.

Some do. My 10th level rogue has a +23 escape artist check. He fears being grappled or otherwise trapped by spells.

 

[Trellian]

Of course, it's the only spell I know of that actually makes my players whine when an opponent uses it, so I may keep it as for that reason alone.

They don't whine when you throw confusion at them? Mine did.. now all they do is throw dice at me. Good thing I'm wearing my DM's helmet.

 

[KarinsDad]

I'm not sure how much clearer you can get than: "Every creature within the area of the spell must make a grapple check, opposed by the grapple check of the tentacles."

The opposite interpretation seems to hinge on "[t]he tentacles continue to crush the opponent until the spell ends or the opponent escapes." That says nothing about the opponent no longer being subject to the spell. Folks seem to be reading it as if it said, "the tentacles continue to attempt grapple checks against characters until the spell ends or the opponent escapes," and that's an entirely different sentence entirely. (Tom said and opined redundantly.)

Actually, there is another sentence in that spell description that could imply that you might no longer be grappled:

"Even creatures who aren’t grappling with the tentacles may move through the area at only half normal speed."

If it constantly grapples, you would be hard pressed to move through and not be grappling.


And then there is:

"Any creature that enters the area of the spell is immediately attacked by the tentacles."

which could imply (depending on your definition of "enters") that the moment you escape, you are ok. But, if you move 5 foot, you are "immediately" attacked again.


Due to the power of the spell, I would rule that you get grappled if you are in the area of effect every round on the spell caster's turn and immediately if you enter from outside.

That way, you could grapple an escape as a standard action and still move (for most characters) 10 or 15 feet (i.e. half normal speed). Course, you might still be in it, but ...