|
I'm wondering if magic can be mixed with science. Lets say you can write runes and write a rune where next person who walks on it activates it so electrical attack happens but then lets saay this rune is in a hall way and the hallway is partly covered in water. Does walking over the rune cause the electric attack to happen and can it also use the water to spread out and hit all those who are standing in the water? How would this break down damage wise if it does spread out so it can hit everyone?
For the electrical attack in the water I would say that the water increases the save DC for the effect. It wouldn't effect the damage and wouldn't really increase the area dramatically (maybe 5-10ft at most). The fire effect is MUCH easier to adjudicate. Simply have the oil catch on fire and then apply standard rules for mundane fire.
Lets expand on those scenarios a bit for greater clarification.
You have a segment hallway that is 15 wide by 50 long, this section has several inches of slow flowing water passing through it (perhaps this part of the dungeon is very close to an aquifer or something), in the center of the floor there is a magical trap which, under normal conditions, casts Shocking Grasp on whomever triggers it. This trap would effect it's 5ft space and have a save DC of oh lets say 15.
People come tromping along in a single file line and the individual in the lead activates the trap, why? Cause they're stupid and not checking :P I personally would increase the DC of the trap by no more then 5 because he's standing at it's source. The person behind him would get a save at the normal DC and the 3rd individual would get a save at minus the modifier for the first person. The damage would be the same for each one.
The lightning trap, as I said, is a complex issue which relies heavily on GM adjudication and not actual rules.
Firetrap is easier, exact same situation except there is a fire trap, which does the same thing (5ft space AoE, DC15 Ref for half) except the floor is coated with a layer of oil. Well oil is flammable when the trap goes off the oil catches fire. Person 1 takes the full effects of the trap while those not in that space are unaffected. The rate of the spread of the fire is up to you, I'd spread it by 5ft a round including into spaces which have already been extinguished so long as the oil is still there.
I believe mundane fire is 1d6 damage with a DC15 to extinguish. Of course extinguishing this fire would be challenging as you can't really roll around on the ground or run somewhere safe to beat it out with a blanket.
Along the same vein I always like to have creatures that are immune to fire have a big barrel of oil in their lair somewhere, always fun to set the floor on fire when pesky adventures arrive.
Flaming skeletons standing in front of big pots of oil can turn a small room into a blood bath in no time!