"Gust of Wind" Spell & Ship-to-Ship Combat


Rules Questions


Could a "Gust of Wind" be cast to give a Sailing Ship an acceleration/speed boost in Ship-to-Ship Combat?

:Byronus

Sovereign Court

It is a one round line effect, so I'm guessing it to small an area of effect to have any impact. Here's a list over spells and effects that affects naval combat:

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/gamemastering/other-rules/ship-combat/spell-effects -in-naval-combat

Though you can always use it in a sneaky imaginative way and then it is the GM's decision

Sczarni

It makes sense that it would, so long as the Wind were sufficient enough to actually increase it's speed.

If we're talking RAI here, the winds must be faster than the currently present winds to start.

Then there is also the factor of where that wind is coming from. If it's from off or outside the ship, that should be fine. If it is coming from the person casting it, then that would potentially be a problem. The winds have to be pretty extreme in order to further push the ship to go faster.
For Evidence, watch Episode 165 of Mythbusters, "Blow your own Sail".
Essentially the "Fan" in this case would actually cause the ship to slow down and eventually go backwards unless he was pushing out an excessive amount. I suppose different positioning of the person projecting the wind would help too. Then again, that person isn't a set of curved swirling blades pulling air from his backside and projecting it forward in a circular motion.


Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber

Amazingly enough in just over a page of spell descriptions and how they affect a ship in the Skull & Shackles Player's Guide, there is no mention of Gust of Wind. It is most likely that with a 1 round duration there is no significant benefit to using it to propel a ship.

I would probably not have it give much of an affect other than maybe faster acceleration for that one round. Conversely, a well placed one off the stern could hamper the pursuit of another ship.

Again, Skull & Shackles introduces a new, unique way to simplify the ship to ship aspect of combat until you are ready for boarding actions. In this case, it would not prove a factor one way or another to have the spell.


I believe that there are several systems for ship combat. The best of which is reputed to be Fire as She Bears from Frog God Games. That set of rules covers all sorts of spell interactions, including Gust of Wind.


Thanks for the help, everyone.

I actually had the "Spell Effects in Naval Combat" opened in a tab, and didn't read it before starting this thread. :)

:Byronus


Gust of Wind does not push back on the caster, so it would be a source of momentum. I would divide the speed of the gust (50 mph) by the proportion of sail covered (5'x5') vs. total sail (how much you got?) to get the average wind speed and go from there. Just be sure to make sure the sail does not rip due to the high speed wind. Add 7500 gp, and you can make it permanent for a constant wind source. Control by placing a sail in front or not.

It might be better against another ship as you could use it to counter their wind temporarily, leaving their ship uncontrolled for a round while you maneuver about. You could also blow crosswise to try to capsize the ship. [Spell sais it can "heel over a small boat".]

Spell Effects in Naval Combat does mention some wind effects, but mostly as being anchored to the ship or not when cast.

/cevah

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