Jowgen
2015-09-27, 04:53 PM
The DFA breath effect slow breath's description of the slowed condition:
slowed creature can take a single move action or standard action each turn, but not both (nor can it take full-round actions). [...] A slowed creature moves at half its normal speed (round down to the next 5-foot increment), which affects the creature’s jumping distance as normal for decreased speed.
The DFA Chilling Fog invocation creates Solid Fog as the spell + 2d6 cold damage at start of creature's round. Solid Fog states:
solid fog is so thick that any creature attempting to move through it progresses at a speed of 5 feet, regardless of its normal speed
I personally subscribe to the Skip-supported (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20040720a) reading that solid fog reduces the creatures movement speed to 5 ft, rather than limiting movement to 5 ft per round. As per the movement-penalty stacking rules, anything that reduces movement further makes it so that the creature has to use the Full-round-action-to-move-5 ft rule. Or, as Skip put it:
The creature cannot run, charge, or take a 5-foot step, but it usually can move twice during its turn, covering 5 feet each time. If a creature moving through solid fog encounters anything else that reduces its movement (such as difficult terrain), it is reduced to using a full-round action to move 5 feet (see Part Two).
Now, what happens when a creature is both within a DFA's chilling fog and is then hit by it's Slow Breath?
Option 1: The creature's speed falls to 0The Specific text of the Slow spell, halves to 2.5 and then rounds down to the next 5-ft increment: 0. This relies on the notions that a) 0 ft is a legal increment of 5 ft, and b) that the specific text of the slow spell trumps the general minimum movement rule, which would otherwise allow moving 5 ft as a Full-round action (which may not even be applicable, as it doesn't work in situations where movement is impossible, which a 0 ft movement speed may qualify as). The creature is just too slow to overcome the solid-fogs impedance.
Option 2: The creature's speed remains 5 Slow can not reduce the creature's speed further, as a) 0 ft isn't a legal increment to 5 ft, or b) solid fog's "regardless of normal movement" 5 ft speed over-rides slow's speed stipulation. This relies on a different reading of the term "increment" and/or some sort of logic explaining why solid fog would take precedence. The creature can only be slowed down so far.
Option 3: The creature's speed is 0 but it can still move The Minimum Movement rule applies in the fashion that Skip explained. Slow qualifies as a further movement limiter atop solid fog, meaning the creature has to use a full-round action to move 5 ft. The creature can still move, but it takes forever (min 4 rounds).
I personally favor option 3, but it comes with some questions/issues. The creature can not take full-round actions due to being slowed, preventing it from full-round moving 5 ft. I believe it could get around that by using the "Start/Complete Full-Round Action" rule (?), but that leads to the question: would it provoke an AoO on the first go when it starts the action, on the second go before making the actual movment, or both?
Please let me know what you think :smallsmile:
slowed creature can take a single move action or standard action each turn, but not both (nor can it take full-round actions). [...] A slowed creature moves at half its normal speed (round down to the next 5-foot increment), which affects the creature’s jumping distance as normal for decreased speed.
The DFA Chilling Fog invocation creates Solid Fog as the spell + 2d6 cold damage at start of creature's round. Solid Fog states:
solid fog is so thick that any creature attempting to move through it progresses at a speed of 5 feet, regardless of its normal speed
I personally subscribe to the Skip-supported (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20040720a) reading that solid fog reduces the creatures movement speed to 5 ft, rather than limiting movement to 5 ft per round. As per the movement-penalty stacking rules, anything that reduces movement further makes it so that the creature has to use the Full-round-action-to-move-5 ft rule. Or, as Skip put it:
The creature cannot run, charge, or take a 5-foot step, but it usually can move twice during its turn, covering 5 feet each time. If a creature moving through solid fog encounters anything else that reduces its movement (such as difficult terrain), it is reduced to using a full-round action to move 5 feet (see Part Two).
Now, what happens when a creature is both within a DFA's chilling fog and is then hit by it's Slow Breath?
Option 1: The creature's speed falls to 0The Specific text of the Slow spell, halves to 2.5 and then rounds down to the next 5-ft increment: 0. This relies on the notions that a) 0 ft is a legal increment of 5 ft, and b) that the specific text of the slow spell trumps the general minimum movement rule, which would otherwise allow moving 5 ft as a Full-round action (which may not even be applicable, as it doesn't work in situations where movement is impossible, which a 0 ft movement speed may qualify as). The creature is just too slow to overcome the solid-fogs impedance.
Option 2: The creature's speed remains 5 Slow can not reduce the creature's speed further, as a) 0 ft isn't a legal increment to 5 ft, or b) solid fog's "regardless of normal movement" 5 ft speed over-rides slow's speed stipulation. This relies on a different reading of the term "increment" and/or some sort of logic explaining why solid fog would take precedence. The creature can only be slowed down so far.
Option 3: The creature's speed is 0 but it can still move The Minimum Movement rule applies in the fashion that Skip explained. Slow qualifies as a further movement limiter atop solid fog, meaning the creature has to use a full-round action to move 5 ft. The creature can still move, but it takes forever (min 4 rounds).
I personally favor option 3, but it comes with some questions/issues. The creature can not take full-round actions due to being slowed, preventing it from full-round moving 5 ft. I believe it could get around that by using the "Start/Complete Full-Round Action" rule (?), but that leads to the question: would it provoke an AoO on the first go when it starts the action, on the second go before making the actual movment, or both?
Please let me know what you think :smallsmile: