Wall of force question

[Marios]

Hello people!

My wizard just acquired the Wall of Force spell and it occurred to me that several interesting things might happen after casting in a battlefield full of unsuspecting creatures.

The spell creates an invisible wall of pure force which would mean that creatures unable to see invisible objects would not be able to detect it, right? Thus, it might try to charge or cast a spell through it...

How would rule these cases? Would it stun someone trying to charge through for example (failing a fortitude save maybe)? Would the spell effect take place as if centered on the wall of force (and not expanding to the other side)?

Any other ideas?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

Marios

[Rynjin]

No to A (there are no rules for hitting a wall I believe), yes to B so long as the spell didn't do enough damage to bust through it, same as any other wall.

[Marios]

Rynjin wrote:

No to A (there are no rules for hitting a wall I believe), yes to B so long as the spell didn't do enough damage to bust through it, same as any other wall.

I would think that there are no rules for slamming against walls because it is perceived that nobody would do it. But in this case you can't see the wall and you may be running (or even charging!). So, would you'd rule that nothing happens, you just stop moving?

As for spells, I was mostly thinking of non-damaging spells... what would happen to a web, for example, or a grease? Maybe it would fail to cast, thereby alerting the caster that something is wrong?

[Stome]

Sadly no. RAW even bull rushing someone into a wall does no damage, the bull rush just stops. Or with shield slam they are knocked prone. Still no damage.

[Blakmane]

There's nothing RAW. In terms of houserules, you could always rule it as knocked prone and *maybe* minor damage (1d6) if had moved at speed into it. I wouldn't make it too brutal or your PCs will start trying to slam everything into walls.

[Marios]

Actually, I was not thinking in terms of damage, but more like a Fort save or knocked prone, or maybe, knocked prone and Fort save or stunned for 1 round. Remember that you're actually running against an invisible wall!

If you've ever read The Dome from Steven King you'd know what I mean... King has people bloody their noses just by walking against an invisible wall of force and no few died by crushing against it, albeit at car speeds.

Noone addressed my spell question though... no ideas at all as to what would happen when a spellcaster tried to target a spot beyond the wall of force?

[Grick]

Marios wrote:

what would happen when a spellcaster tried to target a spot beyond the wall of force?

Line of Effect

For many spells with a point of origin (grid intersection) I would treat it like a fireball bead, and have it trigger at the closest intersection along the wall. For targeted spells, it would fail, but I'm not sure how I would describe it, probably just "something's in the way". Just having it fail with no reason why seems like a poor trick to pull on a player.

[Rynjin]

Marios wrote:

Actually, I was not thinking in terms of damage, but more like a Fort save or knocked prone, or maybe, knocked prone and Fort save or stunned for 1 round. Remember that you're actually running against an invisible wall!

If you've ever read The Dome from Steven King you'd know what I mean... King has people bloody their noses just by walking against an invisible wall of force and no few died by crushing against it, albeit at car speeds.

But this is the rules forum, and there are no rules for taking damage by running into walls. I believe Awesome Blow does damage though, so that's an option.

Marios wrote:

Noone addressed my spell question though... no ideas at all as to what would happen when a spellcaster tried to target a spot beyond the wall of force?

I did. Spells like Lightning Bolt specifically call out that if it does enough damage to bust through the wall, it will push through, while Fireball would detonate prematurely. You wouldn't have line of effect for most spells, but I believe some only require line of sight, so those spells would work just fine.

[TwoWolves]

As noted, there are no rules for it. Should I decide there will be rules for it IMC, I'd look to spells like Telekinesis and other "throw someone around against their will" spells for inspiration.

[Marios]

Hmmm... I see your point... I should probably have posted this to the "advice" section of the forum, as I was looking for inspiration mostly rather than "rules", either as RAW or as RAI.

@Rynjin, my friend don't get me wrong, I meant the "what about non damaging spells" case, your clarification on spells that deal damage was excellent and right on the spot!

Thanks a lot people!

[DeltaOneG]

First off, I would have it be a reflex save (or acrobatics check) to not fall down when charging into a wall.

As far as spells, I could read it in a few ways, with different spells having different results. Easiest and most direct way of reading the wall of force and line of effect rules suggest that any spell effect would occur at the point where the wall of force blocks the line of effect.