[3.5] Animated carriages and the like

[Uncle Pine]

Let's say you're a archivist/artificer/bard/cleric/erudite with lots of free time and you want to cast Animate Objects (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/animateObjects.htm) on a carriage with people inside. Or a tavern, if your CL is high enough. Or just a plain barrel with a drunk person inside of it. Or... well, you got the idea.

Shortly, I was looking for a RAW rule about animating objects with creatures inside of them but I couldn't find anything useful.
Anyway, while I think that any unwilling creature struck inside an animated object would be treated as grappled, I'm not sure about willing creatures. Are they expelled from the animated object if it isn't at least two size categories bigger because the rule of thumb says so (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/movementPositionAndDistance.htm)? Can they be treated as load and carried around by the animated object if it has enough Str? Does the multiverse suddenly collapse?

I understand that someone could argue that this situation is really similar to the astral construct power armor dilemma I was asking about in another thread (which would make this thread irrilevant). In fact, they do are similar but definitely different at the same time as with animate object you're not creating a new creature out of the blue to contain an existing creature but instead turning an object who already contained one or more creatures into a creature itself.

[Red Bear]

Let's say you're a archivist/artificer/bard/cleric/erudite with lots of free time and you want to cast Animate Objects (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/animateObjects.htm) on a carriage with people inside. Or a tavern, if your CL is high enough. Or just a plain barrel with a drunk person inside of it. Or... well, you got the idea.

Shortly, I was looking for a RAW rule about animating objects with creatures inside of them but I couldn't find anything useful.
Anyway, while I think that any unwilling creature struck inside an animated object would be treated as grappled, I'm not sure about willing creatures. Are they expelled from the animated object if it isn't at least two size categories bigger because the rule of thumb says so (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/movementPositionAndDistance.htm)? Can they be treated as load and carried around by the animated object if it has enough Str? Does the multiverse suddenly collapse?

I understand that someone could argue that this situation is really similar to the astral construct power armor dilemma I was asking about in another thread (which would make this thread irrilevant). In fact, they do are similar but definitely different at the same time as with animate object you're not creating a new creature out of the blue to contain an existing creature but instead turning an object who already contained one or more creatures into a creature itself.

mmm... maybe something similar to the "swallow whole" thing?

[TETanglebrooke]

If it happened in a game I was running I would say the people would be safe. The dude in the barrel might get crushed if the barrel tries to move though, there isn't much excess room there.

[Uncle Pine]

So no RAW on this one? Well, that's bad... *archives the issue in the RAI realm*
Anyway, I noticed that the Apparatus of the Crab, while not being an "animated object" as those described in the MMI, it's a Large magical barrel created using animate object and TWO Medium characters can fit inside of it.

[Bickerstaff]

So no RAW on this one? Well, that's bad... *archives the issue in the RAI realm*
Anyway, I noticed that the Apparatus of the Crab, while not being an "animated object" as those described in the MMI, it's a Large magical barrel created using animate object and TWO Medium characters can fit inside of it.

Well, it's a barrel specifically made for that purpose, and it happens to be Large (which is between 8-16ft, IIRC). Most normal barrels aren't Large, and would probably fall into the Small category.

[Uncle Pine]

Well, it's a barrel specifically made for that purpose, and it happens to be Large (which is between 8-16ft, IIRC). Most normal barrels aren't Large, and would probably fall into the Small category.

I actually mentioned the Apparatus of the Crab because it's a Large object in which two Medium characters can fit in, not because it's a giant lobster-like barrel.
By the way, you're right: a standard wine barrel is about 119 liters (which roughly translates to 0.1 m^3) and thus it's probably a Small object.