Spirit Guardians Math

[BaconAwesome]

I'm having trouble with this math - can someone walk me through it?

Without shenanigans, what's the farthest away that a speed 30 character can start, then successfully approach a cleric casting Spirit Guardians and still attack that round with a 5' range melee attack?

Put another way, how many 5' squares does my cleric need to kite to make sure a 30' movement opponent without tricks will fall just short of melee range?

Thanks!

[strangebloke]

I'm having trouble with this math - can someone walk me through it?

Without shenanigans, what's the farthest away that a speed 30 character can start, then successfully approach a cleric casting Spirit Guardians and still attack that round with a 5' range melee attack?

Put another way, how many 5' squares does my cleric need to kite to make sure a 30' movement opponent without tricks will fall just short of melee range?

Thanks!

Unless I've been ruling this wrong, it "halves the speed of a creature in the AOE", meaning if you normally have 30 feet you instead have 15 feet total while you're in the area. So if you start your turn in the outer edge, you can move out using 5 feet of movement, and then your total movement goes back up to 30 and you can move freely. But move ten feet and then enter the space your total movement goes down to 15, and you've already moved 10 feet so you can't get to the juicy cleric center.

But for clarity's sake I just rule it as difficult terrain, so progressing five feet in would be ten feet of movement. Seems more straightforward to me.

[Trandir]

It depends.
You woult have to put between you and an enemy:
4 squares (20 ft) on regular conditions
2 squares (10 ft) if he is prone
2 squares (10 ft) if you are in a difficult terrain
2 square (10 ft) if you are in a difficult terrain and he is prone
1 square (5 ft) if you are in a difficult terrain and he is prone and he gets up before moving

Not sure if the cases after the regular condition ones count as shenanigans. If yes consider only the first on both lists

Edit: I messed up a little so I corrected the errors.

[Tanarii]

Unless I've been ruling this wrong, it "halves the speed of a creature in the AOE", meaning if you normally have 30 feet you instead have 15 feet total while you're in the area. So if you start your turn in the outer edge, you can move out using 5 feet of movement, and then your total movement goes back up to 30 and you can move freely. But move ten feet and then enter the space your total movement goes down to 15, and you've already moved 10 feet so you can't get to the juicy cleric center.

But for clarity's sake I just rule it as difficult terrain, so progressing five feet in would be ten feet of movement. Seems more straightforward to me.Hmm, good point, good catch. Thinking about it, I usually either have the creature just have 1/2 speed for the round, or if it's really important treat it like difficult terrain. In other words, I'm both inconsistent and not following RAW


Looking at I closely, treating it as difficult terrain is more straightforward, but a totally different beast. RAW seems to be Eeach foot of movement in spirit guardians only cost 1 ft to move, but if you hit 1/2 your speed in total movement while inside the area, you have to stop moving.

If I'm reading that right, this means if you have 30 ft of movement, and move 14ft to exit the area, you can continue to move anther 16ft. If you have 30 ft of movement and move 14ft and enter the area, you move 1ft more then stop moving. I'm ignoring "squares" for mah demo here.
With squares it would be:
15 ft and last square exits area, can move 15 more ft.
15ft and last square enters area, stop moving.

Edit: lol rereading I just reiterated what you said in great detail

[ThePolarBear]

I'm having trouble with this math - can someone walk me through it?

Sure!


Without shenanigans, what's the farthest away that a speed 30 character can start, then successfully approach a cleric casting Spirit Guardians and still attack that round with a 5' range melee attack?

Without shenanigans:

at 5 ft away the creature would be able to attack the cleric. At 6 ft, the creature would be unable to.

Since 6ft is inside the area of Spirit Guardians, the creature would find themselves having just 15' speed.

This means that at most the creature can move 15' before stopping.

We want the creature to stop at 6' -> 6+15 = 21'.

The creature would need to be at least 21 feet away from the cleric.

Shenanigans can change the number considerably, however. Even a simple Dash action would put the aforementioned creature inside the range of a possible attack of opportunity, should the cleric elect to keep kiting without disengaging. Not really "the same turn", however. :D


Put another way, how many 5' squares does my cleric need to kite to make sure a 30' movement opponent without tricks will fall just short of melee range?

Putting it into squares:

while being adjacent (0 squares in between, 1 square away) the creature would be able to attack the cleric.

1 empty square in between the cleric and the creature is what is needed.

The creature would end up inside Spirit Guardians, having their speed halved. 15' speed means 3 squares of movement.

1+3 = 4 squares. You would need 4 empty squares in between your cleric and the creature to start with.


It depends.
If the enemy succeeds the save [...[

Spirit Guardian speed reduction is indipendent from the saving throw.


[...]
4 squares (20 ft) on regular conditions
2 squares (10 ft) if he is prone
2 squares (10 ft) if you are in a difficult terrain
1 square (5 ft) if you are in a difficult terrain and he is prone

Difficult terrain and being prone do not double the cost of movement. Each of the two situations only increase the cost of moving 1 foot by 1 foot. While this is usually not a concern, the case where both situations happen at the same time results in costing 3 feet, not 4. This makes the safe distance from a prone creature moving in difficult terrain at 2 empty squares in between, not just one.

5'x3 = 15', exactly as much speed such a creature inside Spirit Guardian would have assuming a base 30' speed.

[Trandir]

Difficult terrain and being prone do not double the cost of movement. Each of the two situations only increase the cost of moving 1 foot by 1 foot. While this is usually not a concern, the case where both situations happen at the same time results in costing 3 feet, not 4. This makes the safe distance from a prone creature moving in difficult terrain at 2 empty squares in between, not just one.

5'x3 = 15', exactly as much speed such a creature inside Spirit Guardian would have assuming a base 30' speed.

My bad, I thought that affected creatures meant that actually take the damage but it says nowhere in the spell that.

About the movement you are right again but in my head the creature before moving would get up wasting half their movement so form 15 ft woulg go down to 7,5 tf unsufficient to move even a single square of difficult terrain but it is not very common accourence

[MaxWilson]

Looking at I closely, treating it as difficult terrain is more straightforward, but a totally different beast. RAW seems to be Eeach foot of movement in spirit guardians only cost 1 ft to move, but if you hit 1/2 your speed in total movement while inside the area, you have to stop moving.

Another odd implication of RAW: it's easier to stand up in Spirit Guardians.

If I'm prone and Spirit Guardians has halved my speed to only 15', I can stand up by spending 7.5' of movement. Then I exit the Spirit Guardians with my other 7.5' of movement, at which point my speed goes to 30' so I can travel a total of 22.5' that turn.

If it weren't for Spirit Guardians I'd only get to stand up and walk 15'.

[ThePolarBear]

My bad, I thought that affected creatures meant that actually take the damage but it says nowhere in the spell that.

Even half damage would still be "taking damage" :p


About the movement you are right again but in my head the creature before moving would get up wasting half their movement so form 15 ft woulg go down to 7,5 tf unsufficient to move even a single square of difficult terrain but it is not very common accourence

I'll be honest: i didn't even consider "getting up" as an option :D