Walking a Wall of Fire

[Koewn]

Has there ever been discussion on what happens if you walk along the "burning line" of a Wall of Fire?

I'd tossed down a couple short ones last weekend in a dungeon, catching opponents in them, and occasionally the only way out was "down the line". Due to space limitations, they could extract themselves in one movement.

The "2d6 when passing through the wall" bit doesn't really expand on if you're entering multiple spaces in the wall on your movement. You're still "passing through", you're just passing through a lot more of it.

Starting your turn "in the wall" to get damaged is how we went, and feels the most DnDish, really. Just wondering if there had been other interpretations.

Thanks!

Koewn

 

[Fieari]

I'd interpret it as 2d6 damage per 5' square, as a DM. But the RAW does suggest that no matter how long you stay in the fire, you only take 2d6 damage... that just seems silly to me though. If passing through 5' laterally through the fire deals 2d6, then moving along it should do the same.

 

[Hypersmurf]

A similar question comes up with Blade Barrier and Flaming Sphere.

In the case of Wall of Fire, straddling the wall means that you're guaranteed to be within 10 feet of the 'hot' side, so you will certainly take the 2d4 on the caster's turn each round you remain in that position.

At the point you pass through the wall, you'd also take the 2d6+X.

-Hyp.

 

[Infiniti2000]

The real oddity in this is that for an area spell (in this case a wall of fire is an area effect): "Regardless of the shape of the area, you select the point where the spell originates, but otherwise you don’t control which creatures or objects the spell affects. The point of origin of a spell is always a grid intersection."

That seems like you can't put the wall up in the middle of a line of squares, so you'd never run down the line, you'd be on one side or the other or pass through it quickly. If you don't pass through it, though, you never take damage (unless you stop on the hot side). So, even if the wall were erected in the middle of a 5ft-wide corridor, you could squeeze down one side or the other (if you're medium or smaller). If you have enough movement, you can make it past before you even get hurt, regardless of which side you are on.

 

[Hypersmurf]

That seems like you can't put the wall up in the middle of a line of squares, so you'd never run down the line, you'd be on one side or the other or pass through it quickly. If you don't pass through it, though, you never take damage (unless you stop on the hot side). So, even if the wall were erected in the middle of a 5ft-wide corridor, you could squeeze down one side or the other (if you're medium or smaller). If you have enough movement, you can make it past before you even get hurt, regardless of which side you are on.

Let's say we have a thirty-foot-long, five-foot-wide corridor. The spell stretches from the grid intersection at the near right-hand corner of the first square, to the grid intersection at the far left-hand corner of the last square.

Thus, all six squares of the corridor have the wall crossing through them obliquely. If you walk down the corridor, in each of the six squares, you're straddling the wall...

-Hyp.

 

[Koewn]

Thus, all six squares of the corridor have the wall crossing through them obliquely. If you walk down the corridor, in each of the six squares, you're straddling the wall...

-Hyp.

Well, that's the way we've always played it, athough without that actual explanation. (we played as if the wall was 5 ft thick)

Add on to that how cones/spheres are figured as well - on the edges of the effect, the spell doesn't have enough of a percentage of the 5 ft square covered, so it doesn't "apply" in that square. You'd figure with a long enough corridor, the first few squares of the endpoints wouldn't have enough "percentage of spell" in them to apply, and you'd only be straddling the wall in the middle of the length of the wall.

Assuming you were that anal about it, of course.

 

[mvincent]

Let's say we have a thirty-foot-long, five-foot-wide corridor. The spell stretches from the grid intersection at the near right-hand corner of the first square, to the grid intersection at the far left-hand corner of the last square.

Thus, all six squares of the corridor have the wall crossing through them obliquely. If you walk down the corridor, in each of the six squares, you're straddling the wall...

Excellent example. I agree that in such cases they would take damage with each 5' moved (since they are effectively moving through the wall each time).

However, it seems the squeezing rules could be used by them to minimize this damage:
"You can squeeze through or into a space that is at least half as wide as your normal space."

 

[Plane Sailing]

I'd tossed down a couple short ones last weekend in a dungeon, catching opponents in them, and occasionally the only way out was "down the line". Due to space limitations, they could extract themselves in one movement.

I last used it in a dungeon full of ghouls. Dozens and dozens of them in long 5ft corridors.

Not many people had noticed the rather delicious 'double damage to undead' from wall of fire. 4d6+20 damage to every ghoul = lots of toasty ghoul remains. Nice.

It also worked as a brilliant spell when we were facing a rank of archers.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Excellent example. I agree that in such cases they would take damage with each 5' moved (since they are effectively moving through the wall each time).

Well, now, I don't know that I ever said that!

I'd think that for the duration of their movement, they are 'a character passing through the wall', and thus damage applies only once. It's only if they cease to be 'a character passing through the wall' and then become 'a character passing through the wall' once more that I'd apply a second instance of damage.

(This point was argued extensively in the 'Blade Barrier Slalom' thread a while back, where a summoned air elemental dragged someone back and forth through a Blade Barrier multiple times in one round...)

-Hyp.