Specifically for a Huge Air Elemental. This came up in a game I was running and I quickly adjudicated it as "equal to the slam damage" until I could find a clear answer.
Now the full ability's text can be found here, but I wanted to focus mostly on this passage and the "format" at the end.
A creature that comes in contact with the whirlwind must succeed at a Reflex save (DC 10 + 1/2 the monster’s HD + the monster’s Strength modifier) or take damage as if it were hit by the whirlwind creature’s slam attack. It must also succeed on a second Reflex save or be picked up bodily and held suspended in the powerful winds, automatically taking the indicated damage each round. A creature that can fly is allowed a Reflex save each round on its turn to escape the whirlwind. The creature still takes damage that round but can leave if the save is successful.
...
Format: whirlwind (3/day, 10–30 ft. high, 1d6+6 damage, DC 15); Location: Special Attacks.
The problem I'm having is the format does not seem to be followed as specified. From the Air Elemental in question:
Special Attacks whirlwind (DC 21, 10-50 ft.)
Now, I seem to recall finding a table of some kind that gave Whirlwind damage by size. Something like 1d6+Str per size category or something similar, but I cannot for the life of me find the darn thing.
It DOES say that the creature held in the whirlwind takes slam damage upon initially being snatched up, but it seems to me that it would be clearer to say "It must also succeed on a second Reflex save or be picked up bodily and held suspended in the powerful winds, automatically taking slam damage each round" if that's what it meant.
I could continue to rule as-is, but it's bugging me that I can't scrounge up a clear answer from the stuff I have on hand and I was hoping someone else would know for sure.
Calling N. E. Boddy.
Is there an N. E. Boddy in the house?
Give this one more bump before I let it die and just assume Slam damage.
Bumpedibumo.
I think it just means the damage you would normally take for being hit by a slam of the same creature. Should work elsewise?
Well, in the passage you quoted:
A creature that comes in contact with the whirlwind must succeed at a Reflex save (DC 10 + 1/2 the monster’s HD + the monster’s Strength modifier) or take damage as if it were hit by the whirlwind creature’s slam attack.
So I'd say that overrides the format issue.
Yeah, it just seems worded oddly if that were the case.
The difference between 2d6 and 2d6+6 is fairly significant and I didn't want people to start eating 1.5x more damage than they should have.
But I can't find anything else anywhere, so that must be it.