two questions..harpy/bards and liches

[mseds99]

hi all,

two questions for the smart folks in the forum...

1) If a lich jumps into the sea and has heavy armor, they obviously sink pretty rapidly to the bottom (middle of the moonsea in FRCS). The question is, is the lich ok down there or does the pressue of the water squash it like a grape? I figured he had no air in his lungs and doesn't have to breath, so he would be ok, but my player disagreed. Any scuba ex[perts out there?

2) A harpy/bard is singing their captivating/inspiring song. The bard/harpy is hit by a melee or ranged attack. Does the bard.harpy have to make a concentration check to continue the singing? What's the dc?

thanks a bunch
mseds99

 

[AuraSeer]

The 'right' answer to #1 is, "Don't try to apply nonmagical physics to a magical world." If you bring strict physics into it, then undead don't exist, and the lich vanishes in a puff of logic.

Seriously though. The main problem with diving to great depths is that there are air spaces in your body. Your lungs are the most obvious, but there are also your ears, your sinuses, etc. If you dive very deep very fast, those air spaces can get squashed flat, which is not a nice experience.

A lich doesn't need air in his lungs, so that's not a problem. His eardrums probably rotted away with his skin, so that's fine. His sinuses would probably fill with water, since he's not bothering to keep water out of his nasal cavity; the pressure would equalize and keep his skull from getting crushed.

Human divers can also experience things like the bends, and nitrogen narcosis, both of which are caused by dissolved gases in the bloodstream. A creature with no blood needn't worry.

So, it looks like a lich would be perfectly fine at the bottom of the sea. It's basically just bones and beef jerky, neither of which is particularly susceptible to squashing. The flesh would rot away more quickly underwater, but anyone who wanted to be pretty would avoid becoming a lich in the first place.

 

[Umbran]

I agree with AuraSeer - Being underwater, in and of itself, is no real impediment to a lich. The creatures down there, however, might cause him some consternation.

In any case, if the water crushed the lich's body, destroying it, he'd simply reform near his phylactery.

As for bards and harpies...

The harpy song is listed in the MM as a Supernatural ability. Supernatural abilities do not require concentration, cannot be disrupted, and don't provoke AoO (PHB, pg 126). So, hitting a harpy in melee will in no way stop the song.

The bard's Inspire Courage ability is also a Supernatural ability, so again, hitting him in melee doesn't do anything to stop it. The bard's Fascinate and Suggestion abilities are Spell-like, and may be disrupted and could require concentration checks.

 

[mseds99]

thanks a bunch...

 

[Ferret]

Can a druid become a Lich?

 

[Westwind]

Although you could argue that the platemail rusted, making it tough to move.

What's the strength of a lich anyways?

 

[Umbran]

A quick look at the MM could answer a lot fo your questions, folks.

A lich has the same strength as the character had before becoming a lich.

In order to become a lich, the character must be able to create a phylactery - this requires the character to have the Craft Wondrous Item feat, and be a Wizard, Sorcerer, or Cleric of 11th level or higher.