yeah - ok.. so the rules seem a little funky in terms of spotting an avalanche until its right on top of you. Maybe that is the intent.
from the CRB: The avalanche can be spotted from as far away as 1d10 × 500 feet by a character who makes a DC 20 Perception check, treating the avalanche as a Colossal creature.
Is this a straight DC 20 perception check with no modification for distance? Or is it a DC 4 check after you modify the "stealth" factor of the Colossal avalanche by -16 and then add the distance modifier. Even at 500 feet, the DC in this second case is 54 - 4 plus 50 for distance (500/10).
I don't see how its possible to perceive a start point more than 1,000 feet away (DC 104 anyone?) - although I understand the party sees it automatically after it travels half way from the start point.
Hearing the Avalanche at 500 feet is a bit easier because of the distance modifier change in the mountains to 1 per 20 feet. The modified DC -1 (the hearing perception check is base 15 ) becomes a 24 in that case (39 to hear it at 1,000 feet).
And then there is this:
Stealth and Detection in Mountains: As a guideline, the maximum distance in mountain terrain at which a Perception check for detecting the nearby presence of others can succeed is 4d10 × 10 feet. Certain peaks and ridgelines afford much better vantage points, of course, and twisting valleys and canyons have much shorter spotting distances. Because there's little vegetation to obstruct line of sight, the specifics on your map are your best guide for the range at which an encounter could begin. As in hills terrain, a ridge or peak provides enough cover to hide from anyone below the high point.
If The Avalanche is treated as a colossal Creature (an other): seems like the max distance it can be spotted in this interpretation is 400 feet, heard more easily. Sheesh -that one phrase "treating the avalanche as a Colossal creature" is really messing up my understanding.
Any help on calculating these DCs correctly would be appreciated.
|
KISS principle says that it's a DC 20 check to spot the avalanche d10 x 500 feet away and that the "treating the avalanche as a colossal creature" basically means "you can spot it farther away than normal because it's really big."
Doesn't make sense to call a DC 20 the "base Stealth" and then add modifiers for size and distance because that implies that the avalanche (1) is actively trying to be stealthy and (2) has a +10 stealth modifier.
Cool - I'm down with that - thanks for the back up