Magic Stone - Thrown vs Sling

[Escribblings]

You touch one to three pebbles and imbue them with magic. You or someone else can make a ranged spell attack with one of the pebbles by throwing it or hurling it with a sling. If thrown, it has a range of 60 feet. If someone else attacks with the pebble, that attacker adds your spellcasting ability modifier, not the attacker’s, to the attack roll. On a hit, the target takes bludgeoning damage equal to 1d6 + your spellcasting ability modifier. Hit or miss, the spell then ends on the stone. If you cast this spell again, the spell ends early on any pebbles still affected by it.


Range 30/120

Why would you be able to throw the stone further by hand than with a sling?

It doesn't make sense. Should it have said 30/60 for thrown so disadvantage is applied after 30'?

Or should it have upped the sling base range to 60'?

[Ruslan]

Why would you be able to throw the stone further by hand than with a sling?

When you remove the stone from a warm human(oid) hand and put it in the cold unfeeling sling, some of its magic goes away.

[Notafish]

That is weird. Maybe the text means that the thrown weapon's maximum range is 60? An improvised thrown weapon has 20/60. Perhaps magic stones don't differentiate between "normal" and long range, meaning that a sling with a magic stone could be aimed at a target within 120 feet without penalty.

[hymer]

I'm assuming that from 1-30' you can use a sling or throw it as you like. 31-60 you should use it thrown to avoid disadvantage. You can make 61-120, but it has to be with the sling and with disadvantage.
It doesn't make much sense, but at least it's pretty straightforward. I assume simplicity is the aim, rather than coming up with specific rules about using magic stone for slings.

[Slipperychicken]

Maybe it doesn't take the long range disadvantage because it's like a spell attack?

[Knaight]

It's probably just a case of not thinking to check the sling stats when writing the spell - or of them being lowered after the spell was finalized. If you want to patch it, there's a few good ways to do so, my personal favorite being just changing the range of the sling to 60/240. It's not like a 60' shot is actually that hard to make with a sling for a competent slinger, and 240 feet is still well within the range where you're shooting for accuracy and not distance.

[Millstone85]

That is weird. Maybe the text means that the thrown weapon's maximum range is 60? An improvised thrown weapon has 20/60. Perhaps magic stones don't differentiate between "normal" and long range, meaning that a sling with a magic stone could be aimed at a target within 120 feet without penalty.I like that ruling.

[Lombra]

Because, wait for it:
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it's magic.

[EvilAnagram]

I don't believe the RAW reading of the spell allows the magic attack to occur if used with a sling. It specifies that, if thrown, you make a magic attack. If you use a sling, it's just a normal rock. This is especially true because slings use bullets, which are carefully shaped to be aerodynamic, not rocks you find on the ground.

As for why you can throw the stone further than a sling under normal circumstances, it's because you cast a magic spell. It's also because WotC doesn't understand what the effective ranges of ancient missile weapons were, but mostly magic.

[Millstone85]

I don't believe the RAW reading of the spell allows the magic attack to occur if used with a sling.
You or someone else can make a ranged spell attack with one of the pebbles by throwing it or hurling it with a sling.How would you reach that conclusion? :smallconfused:

[Slipperychicken]

How would you reach that conclusion? :smallconfused:

It's written in the spell. OP even quoted the relevant text.

"You or someone else can make a ranged spell attack with one of the pebbles by throwing it or hurling it with a sling"

I strongly encourage all posters to carefully read through any relevant rules before posting about them

[Millstone85]

It's written in the spell. OP even quoted the relevant text.

"You or someone else can make a ranged spell attack with one of the pebbles by throwing it or hurling it with a sling"

I strongly encourage all posters to read any relevant rules before posting.And I strongly encourage you to read my posts before you answer them.

I too quoted that exact line.

[EvilAnagram]

How would you reach that conclusion? :smallconfused:

You know what, I totally misread that. Good call.