The curious incident of the gnome balloon

So tonight my group created a new tactic - the gnome balloon.

Basically the gnome sorcerer casts levitate on himself, ties himself to the barbarian, levitates ~20 feet up into the air and then lets himself be pulled around by the barbarian as rains fire down from above.

By doing this he:
a) doesn't have to spend any actions moving
b) can move far further than he would normally
c) is out of the range of most melee attacks

I can't see any reason in the rules as to why the gnome couldn't do this (there's an external force being exerted on him that doesn't interfere with the levitate), and given he's a tiny gnome being pulled by a usually enraged, enlarged half-orc barbarian, I don't feel like he'd significantly slow the barbarian down.

My main question is - is there something in the rules that I'm missing, any reason why they couldn't do this?

I really like the idea, and the mental image is a lot of fun, though I've already started trying to counter the strategy (in the initial fight there were archers that started targeting the floating gnome, but then he used invisibility and just started summoning celestial cheetahs).

Secondary question - can you think of ways to make the tactic less powerful (particularly once he's used invisibility)?
Considerations:
- the rope can be cut easily, which would leave the gnome hanging in the air (with the potential to be pulled down by an enemy).
- most intelligent enemies would still know where the gnome is based on the rope that disappears at one end, but that doesn't necessarily mean they can hit it.
- in certain areas (low ceilings) the tactic won't work.

Edit: By no means do I want to gut the tactic - I realise it requires preparation on the part of the group and uses 40% of the sorcerer's 5 level 2 spells per day, so it's not a cheap manoeuvre to use.

I don't know of any reasons, and even if there were I would fudge them: such inventiveness on the part of the pcs should be rewarded to an extent.

Regards countering it, how about a hidden pit? The barbarian falls in, the gnome is left bobbing at floor level, an easy target even if he goes invisible, while the barbarian can rage all he wants at the bottom of the pit. Some encounters would use that as a standard tactic, so you don't even have to look like you're deliberately trying to foil their tactic. Alternatively, you could rule that being tugged about Willy-nilly means a concentration check whenever casting spells.

Forests. "Ow! Ow! Slow down please Mr Barbarian."

Flying enemies, especially with grab or similar.

Lightning storms, natural or druid-called seem like they would render the tactic dangerously useless.

But mostly the problem should be that a ceiling lower than 20' isn't low, it's normal.

celestial cheetahs

Cheetahs never win.

More seriously, at a minimum I'd be having him make concentration checks because he's being towed along at the end of a rope that may or may not be attached exactly to his center of buoyancy (where ever that is). He's probably bobbing along like a fishing bobber in a swift stream.

Depending on how the barbarian moved that turn, it might be anywhere from vigorous motion (DC10+spell level) to extremely violent motion (DC20+spell level). I'd also throw in some of the mounted combat rules (not that the gnome is mounted) such as the one about if you make a ranged attack while your mount is double-moving, that attack happens at the mid-point of the mount's move.

ReddestBaron wrote:

celestial cheetahs

More seriously, at a minimum I'd be having him make concentration checks because he's being towed along at the end of a rope that may or may not be attached exactly to his center of buoyancy (where ever that is). He's probably bobbing along like a fishing bobber in a swift stream.

Depending on how the barbarian moved that turn, it might be anywhere from vigorous motion (DC10+spell level) to extremely violent motion (DC20+spell level). I'd also throw in some of the mounted combat rules (not that the gnome is mounted) such as the one about if you make a ranged attack while your mount is double-moving, that attack happens at the mid-point of the mount's move.

Thanks SlimGauge, conceiving of it as similar to a mounted situation makes a lot of sense.

Tactics? Try setting fire to the rope.

Disarm maneuver (admittedly, difficult to pull off against a barbarian, but still). Now the gnome is being dragged away at the end of a rope by a cackling villain.

(NOTE: The cackling is optional, but if I were GMing, there would be cackling).

If the barbarian were to happen to fail a save against some kind of panic effect, he'd go careening off the battlefield, dragging the gnome behind him. It's a twofer of PC neutralizing!

Also, having a gnome tied to him should probably impose some circumstance penalty on the barbarian's attacks, AC, CMB, and CMD. It doesn't have to be huge, but -1 or -2 to reflect the fact that he has a gnome balloon tied round his waist. I haven't tried this as a live-fire exercise, but I'm fairly sure that would make swinging a greatsword (or whatever) somewhat more difficult.

This, btw, is a hilarious tactic which I plan to use as soon as possible.

Oh, and don't forget opponents will use this tactic as well. I think that goblins, with their fascination for all things fire, would be excellent candidates.

I'm with both Slim Gauge and quibblemuch on this: small hindrances that reflect the reality of the tether. Great stuff all around.