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So, here's something that is coming up in our WotR campaign. We have a Life Oracle with the Life Link revelation, who also has the Mythic Ability of DR 5/Epic.
Would the DR apply vs. the damage being received from the Life Link? My assumption is No, however in the write up of Life Link, it merely says "Each round at the start of your turn, if the bonded creature is wounded for 5 or more hit points below its maximum hit points, it heals 5 hit points and you take 5 hit points of damage."
This is vague enough to warrant inquiry and discussion I think. If DR does apply, it would make the Oracle able to heal 5 HP/round to every bonded ally with no ill effect. That seems a bit uber to me, but opinions may vary and I'm not sure if the designers considered this as a possibility.
As far as I can tell, DR applies as normal. Whatever the damage is that translates to the oracle remains the same kind of damage, so epic damage would still overcome the oracle's DR even if it came through life link.
So, here's something that is coming up in our WotR campaign. We have a Life Oracle with the Life Link revelation, who also has the Mythic Ability of DR 5/Epic.
Would the DR apply vs. the damage being received from the Life Link? My assumption is No, however in the write up of Life Link, it merely says "Each round at the start of your turn, if the bonded creature is wounded for 5 or more hit points below its maximum hit points, it heals 5 hit points and you take 5 hit points of damage."
This is vague enough to warrant inquiry and discussion I think. If DR does apply, it would make the Oracle able to heal 5 HP/round to every bonded ally with no ill effect. That seems a bit uber to me, but opinions may vary and I'm not sure if the designers considered this as a possibility.
It is untyped damage and so DR should apply. However, the Lifelink ability is the source of the damage and it is all dealt simultaneously so I would say DR only applies once to the total not individually to each bond.
Edit:
As far as I can tell, DR applies as normal. Whatever the damage is that translates to the oracle remains the same kind of damage, so epic damage would still overcome the oracle's DR even if it came through life link.
Where do you get that? I'm not seeing it in the text.
Life Link is direct damage to your life force. There is NOTHING that blocks it.
I would say no, the DR would not apply. Unless specifically stated otherwise by an ability (and that's probably not going to happen), Damage Reduction applies only to Slashing, Piercing, and Bludgeoning damage. The damage an Oracle would take from their Life Link ability is not one of those types of damage, so DR does not affect it.
That is false. DR blocks all "normal" physical damage. Damage Reduction
I agree with OldSkoolRPG that if DR applies it only applies once.
Life Link is direct damage to your life force. There is NOTHING that blocks it.
There is nothing in the text that indicates this is the case. As far as I can tell it is untyped damage.
DR does not apply to life link damage. Your oracle just looses that many hit points.
It is damage syphoned magically from you to your target it isn't weapon damage, a blow or a normal attack.
DR does not apply to life link damage. Your oracle just looses that many hit points.
It is damage syphoned magically from you to your target it isn't weapon damage, a blow or a normal attack.
I could be convinced of that. Especially since Life Link is a supernatural ability.
DR does not apply to life link damage. Your oracle just looses that many hit points.
It is damage syphoned magically from you to your target it isn't weapon damage, a blow or a normal attack.
First, as I have stated 3 times now the damage in the ability is just untyped damage.
Second, damage reduction isn't limited to weapon damage, blows and normal attacks. If it was then it would not need to specify that spells, spell-like abilities and energy attacks bypass damage reduction. Notice that means that supernatural abilities (like Life Link) and Extraordinary abilities do not automatically bypass damage reduction.
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You see the confusion. Normally I would say the DR does not apply since it is not effective vs. Spells or spell-like abilities. However, Life Link is a Supernatural ability, not a SPA.
I can see both opinions that 1.) DR only applies once vs. all the damage or 2.) DR does not apply because you are willingly sacrificing the HP and giving them to another.
Fortunately, I'm not the DM this time so it'll be up to him to decide for the campaign.
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The numerical part of a creature's damage reduction (or DR) is the amount of damage the creature ignores from normal attacks. Usually, a certain type of weapon can overcome this reduction (see Overcoming DR). This information is separated from the damage reduction number by a slash. For example, DR 5/magic means that a creature takes 5 less points of damage from all weapons that are not magic. If a dash follows the slash, then the damage reduction is effective against any attack that does not ignore damage reduction.
Whenever damage reduction completely negates the damage from an attack, it also negates most special effects that accompany the attack, such as injury poison, a monk's stunning, and injury-based disease. Damage Reduction does not negate touch attacks, energy damage dealt along with an attack, or energy drains. Nor does it affect poisons or diseases delivered by inhalation, ingestion, or contact.
Attacks that deal no damage because of the target's damage reduction do not disrupt spells.
Spells, spell-like abilities, and energy attacks (even non-magical fire) ignore damage reduction.
Sometimes damage reduction represents instant healing. Sometimes it represents the creature's tough hide or body. In either case, other characters can see that conventional attacks won't work.
If a creature has damage reduction from more than one source, the two forms of damage reduction do not stack. Instead, the creature gets the benefit of the best damage reduction in a given situation.
Life Link damage is not damage from a normal attack. You directly take 5 hit points of damage. DR would not apply. While Life Link is not "Spells, spell-like abilities, or energy attack" it is not physical damage from an attack that DR would apply to.
From the Universal Monster Rules:
"Damage Reduction (Ex or Su) A creature with this special quality ignores damage from most weapons and natural attacks. Wounds heal immediately, or the weapon bounces off harmlessly (in either case, the opponent knows the attack was ineffective). The creature takes normal damage from energy attacks (even nonmagical ones), spells, spell-like abilities, and supernatural abilities. A certain kind of weapon can sometimes damage the creature normally, as noted below."
I'd call it damage from a supernatural ability, so it doesn't apply to DR.
Hahahaha, so two different explanations of DR--one from CRB and one from the Bestiary.
It's probably an errata worthy issue. I'm not sure if the Universal Monster Rules version of DR is even strictly legal for this situation. But it does show that there is an intent for DR to not reduce those sources.
There is no difference in legitimacy between bestiary rules and the CRB. There is also no conflict, the bestiary rules are just more detailed.
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **...
If the references to weapons and normal attacks was intended to be exhaustive then they would not need to specify that spells, spell like abilities and energy attacks are not reduced by damage reduction.
Anyway all of that was hashed out repeatedly in the thread about whether DR reduces damage from falling or damage from an avalanche.
While most of the time DR is applied to attacks it is also effective against damage from other sources.
