When you cast this spell, you can assume the form of a Small air, earth, fire, or water elemental. The abilities you gain depend upon the type of elemental into which you change. Elemental abilities based on size, such as burn, vortex, and whirlwind, use the size of the elemental you transform into to determine their effect.
Air elemental: If the form you take is that of a Small air elemental, you gain a +2 size bonus to your Dexterity and a +2 natural armor bonus. You also gain fly 60 feet (perfect), darkvision 60 feet, and the ability to create a whirlwind.
Earth elemental: If the form you take is that of a Small earth elemental, you gain a +2 size bonus to your Strength and a +4 natural armor bonus. You also gain darkvision 60 feet, and the ability to earth glide.
Fire elemental: If the form you take is that of a Small fire elemental, you gain a +2 size bonus to your Dexterity and a +2 natural armor bonus. You gain darkvision 60 feet, resist fire 20, vulnerability to cold, and the burn ability.
Water elemental: If the form you take is that of a Small water elemental, you gain a +2 size bonus to your Constitution and a +4 natural armor bonus. You also gain swim 60 feet, darkvision 60 feet, the ability to create a vortex, and the ability to breathe water.
This spell functions as elemental body I, except that it also allows you to assume the form of a Medium air, earth, fire, or water elemental. The abilities you gain depend upon the elemental.
Air elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +4 size bonus to your Dexterity and a +3 natural armor bonus.
Earth elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +4 size bonus to your Strength and a +5 natural armor bonus.
Fire elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +4 size bonus to your Dexterity and a +3 natural armor bonus.
Water elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +4 size bonus to your Constitution and a +5 natural armor bonus.
This spell functions as elemental body II, except that it also allows you to assume the form of a Large air, earth, fire, or water elemental. The abilities you gain depend upon the type of elemental into which you change. You are also immune to bleed damage, critical hits, and sneak attacks while in elemental form.
Air elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +2 size bonus to your Strength, +4 size bonus to your Dexterity, and a +4 natural armor bonus.
Earth elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +6 size bonus to your Strength, a –2 penalty on your Dexterity, a +2 size bonus to your Constitution, and a +6 natural armor bonus.
Fire elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +4 size bonus to your Dexterity, a +2 size bonus to your Constitution, and a +4 natural armor bonus.
Water elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +2 size bonus to your Strength, a –2 penalty on your Dexterity, a +6 size bonus to your Constitution, and a +6 natural armor bonus.
This spell functions as elemental body III, except that it also allows you to assume the form of a Huge air, earth, fire, or water elemental. The abilities you gain depend upon the type of elemental into which you change. You are also immune to bleed damage, critical hits, and sneak attacks while in elemental form and gain DR 5/—.
Air elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +4 size bonus to your Strength, +6 size bonus to your Dexterity, and a +4 natural armor bonus. You also gain fly 120 feet (perfect).
Earth elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +8 size bonus to your Strength, a –2 penalty on your Dexterity, a +4 size bonus to your Constitution, and a +6 natural armor bonus.
Fire elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +6 size bonus to your Dexterity, a +4 size bonus to your Constitution, and a +4 natural armor bonus.
Water elemental: As elemental body I except that you gain a +4 size bonus to your Strength, a –2 penalty on your Dexterity, a +8 size bonus to your Constitution, and a +6 natural armor bonus. You also gain swim 120 feet.
The language of the Elemental Body I spell states ‘The abilities you gain depend upon the type of elemental into which you change’.
Elemental Body spells II, III, and IV say ‘As elemental body I except’.
I’ve played my druids as once I have access to the higher level versions of the spell through wildshape, the first sentences of the higher level spells to apply to all sizes and the individual type descriptions are for the new sizes available.
But I heard an argument this weekend that I can also apply the abilities of the individual elementals on any size of elemental.
Example: a small air elemental with a fly speed of 120’
If I accept this interpretation of the ‘as elemental I except’ clause, does that mean I can become a medium earth elemental with a +8 size bonus to strength, a -2 penalty to dexterity, and a +4 size bonus to constitution?
Or is only the huge air elemental shape capable of flying at a speed 120ft.?
I'd treat it as the abilities increase but the size bonuses are determined by the form you take.
That said, you only get the maximum abilities of the form you choose, so your fly speed tops out at 100' for a small air elemental.
That's the way I've been doing it, Hawktitan.
The wording doesn't help when I used that argument on Saturday.
It states 'as elemental body I', which implies 'if you take the form of a small --- elemental'.
Also, all of the air elementals in the Bestiary only have a fly speed of 100 ft., so why does the IV spell give you a fly speed of 120 ft.?
(which I didn't notice until you mentioned it)
Bad wording of the spell? I don't have a good answer for that, I'd play it safe and use the lesser of the two - the form or the spell description.
If none of them have a speed of 120 then it is a typo.
By my reading your physical stats go by the size of the elemental you change into so I agree with Hawkitan.
The spell has exactly the effect that it says you do. So EF1 small elementals and the related abilities. EF2 medium elementals and their abilities etc. You can use EF2-4 to assume the form of a small elemental from EF1, but you would use the small elemental's stats. You can't mix and match because it doesn't say that you can.
Also the elemental form spells seems to differ from the other 'form' spells in that it gives you fixed abilities rather than abilities of the base form up to a certain maximum. From that it would appear that EF4 does in fact give your huge air elemental 120' fly speed. compare to beast shape
Dragonhunterq-
from the Polymorph rules:
Polymorph: A polymorph spell transforms your physical body to take on the shape of another creature. While these spells make you appear to be the creature, granting you a +10 bonus on Disguise skill checks, they do not grant you all of the abilities and powers of the creature. Each polymorph spell allows you to assume the form of a creature of a specific type, granting you a number of bonuses to your ability scores and a bonus to your natural armor. In addition, each polymorph spell can grant you a number of other benefits, including movement types, resistances, and senses. If the form you choose grants these benefits, or a greater ability of the same type, you gain the listed benefit. If the form grants a lesser ability of the same type, you gain the lesser ability instead. Your base speed changes to match that of the form you assume. If the form grants a swim or burrow speed, you maintain the ability to breathe if you are swimming or burrowing. The DC for any of these abilities equals your DC for the polymorph spell used to change you into that form.
The bolded is the standard polymorph spell rule.
Elemental Body is a polymorph spell and uses this rule.
The spell may grant up to 120 ft., but the form limits you to 100 ft.
Cornelius,
You could be right, but I always understood that specific trumps general. And that is simply not what the spell says it does. It is worded very differently from the other polymorph spells.
Plant form/Beast Form etc. all state that you can take any plant/animal/etc. form and if the form you take has that ability you get it.
Elemental form doesn't grant you the ability to just take any elemental form you want, it gives specific forms with specific abilities.