I had a question about how damage resistance or vulnerability work with each other in the unlikely case a creature is subject to both. For example, if a caster were to cast Resist Elements (fire) on an ice mephit (vulnerable to fire). Would you increase any fire damage incurred by 50% before or after applying the Damage Resistance 10 from the Resist Elements spell?
I had a question about how damage resistance or vulnerability work with each other in the unlikely case a creature is subject to both. For example, if a caster were to cast Resist Elements (fire) on an ice mephit (vulnerable to fire). Would you increase any fire damage incurred by 50% before or after applying the Damage Resistance 10 from the Resist Elements spell?
I would rule that the Damage from Resist Elements would Be taken off first. And My reasoning is below:
Vulnerabilities on Page 305 of the Bestiary States that "A Creature with Vulnerabilities takes Half Again as much damage (50%) from a specific type of damage....."
Resist Energy the Spell on page 334 of the PFCR Reads that "...,meaning that each time the creature is Subjected to such damage (weather natural or magical source), that damage is reduced by 10 before being applied to the Creatures Hit points."
Im a magic player / TO / Judge and Looking at the Wording makes all the Difference in Magic. I read the "half Again" as a being applied a 2nd time, BUT from the same source so it would NOT get resist energy twice.
Thats how i would rule it as a DM
I could be wrong, but I don't recall any rule about which order to apply modifiers.
Of course, if everything is adding/subtracting, then the order doesn't matter (commutative property). Likewise if everything is multiplying/dividing. But in cases like the OP where you have one of each, order does matter.
We could go back to our mathematical order of operations. You know, PEMDAS: (), then ^, then * and /, then + and -. Hard to argue with that.
Me, I prefer external/internal first. Sice the mephit in the example has innate (internal) vulnerability, and an external source of magic that gives it a resistance, I see that external spell as interacting with the incoming fire first, reducing the damage by 10 before it ever really touches the mephit's skin. Whatever fire is left is what actually burns the mephit, and that's when the vulnerability kicks in and adds the +50% to this reduced damage.
So for me, I would do that first and after that, if (in some other example I can't think of right now) I still had to resolve order of external or order of internal modifiers, then I would fall back on PEMDAS.
|
I thought it was... Sean? that clarified it, but I don't know where to even start looking for the post so don't take my word on it. I believe it goes like this:
1. Any saving throw that reduces the damage
2. Any protection spell that reduces the damage
3. Any resist spell that reduces the damage
4. Any vulnerability that increases the damage
5. Take damage
Basically what my fellow Blake said, external -> internal.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I thought it was... Sean? that clarified it, but I don't know where to even start looking for the post so don't take my word on it. I believe it goes like this:
1. Any saving throw that reduces the damage
2. Any protection spell that reduces the damage
3. Any resist spell that reduces the damage
4. Any vulnerability that increases the damage
5. Take damageBasically what my fellow Blake said, external -> internal.
I agree to this with one caveat:
1. Any spell resistance that negates the effect
2. Any saving throw that reduces the damage
3. Any protection spell that reduces the damage
4. Any resist spell that reduces the damage
5. Any vulnerability that increases the damage
6. Take damage