Sunbeam - Always Full Damage vs. Weak Against Sunlight Undead?


Rules Questions


Sunbeam wrote:

For the duration of this spell, you can use a standard action to evoke a dazzling beam of intense light each round. You can call forth one beam per three caster levels (maximum six beams at 18th level). The spell ends when its duration runs out or your allotment of beams is exhausted.

Each creature in the beam is blinded and takes 4d6 points of damage. Any creatures to which sunlight is harmful or unnatural take double damage. A successful Reflex save negates the blindness and reduces the damage by half.

An undead creature caught within the beam takes 1d6 points of damage per caster level (maximum 20d6), or half damage if a Reflex save is successful. In addition, the beam results in the destruction of any undead creature specifically harmed by bright light if it fails its save.

The ultraviolet light generated by the spell deals damage to fungi, mold, oozes, and slimes just as if they were undead creatures.

So, vs. sunlight weak undead like vampires, this reads as a very bad spell. If such a creature saves, they still take full "normal" damage, yes? Failure is destruction.


That's not quite how I read it.

I read it as two categories:

1. Creatures that are not undead are blinded and take 4d6 or 8d6 if they are vulnerable to sunlight, half damage and not blind if they save.
2. Creatures that are undead or slimes (etc.) have two of their own sub-categories:
2a. Not vulnerable to sunlight: 1d6/level, half if they save.
2b. Vulnerable to sunlight: destroyed if they fail the save, half of 1d6/level if they make the save.


Failure = destroyed.

This also to trump improved evasion despite this being a reflex based spell so being a vampire rogue/monk won't help if you fail.

It also seems that vampires are subject to the 1d6/level clause and the double damage clause.


FWIW I read it the same as DM_Blake.
i.e. This is what happens.
If you are undead this happens instead.

If it is read as 'in addition to' undead would take 4d6+1d6/level (8d6+1d6/level if vulnerable etc.). There's no way to separate out the damage and the additional effect.


DM_Blake wrote:

That's not quite how I read it.

I read it as two categories:

1. Creatures that are not undead are blinded and take 4d6 or 8d6 if they are vulnerable to sunlight, half damage and not blind if they save.
2. Creatures that are undead or slimes (etc.) have two of their own sub-categories:
2a. Not vulnerable to sunlight: 1d6/level, half if they save.
2b. Vulnerable to sunlight: destroyed if they fail the save, half of 1d6/level if they make the save.

Reading it again I agree with you.


If you are a lich drow... are you destroyed by sunbeam?

Lich is not especially vulnerable to light but drow is...


From the lich template:

"A lich retains all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted here."

While that doesn't specifically include retaining the base creature's vulnerabilities, it's probably lumped in under "base creature's statistics".

Further, nothing in the lich's specific abilities, resistances, immunities, or any other features, says to remove or replace the base creature's vulnerabilities, nor does the lich template grant any resistance or immunity to light that would conflict or override the drow's vulnerability.

End result: there is no RAW reason to remove that vulnerability from a drow lich.

However, the vulnerability arguably comes from the fleshy bits of the drow - specifically the eyeballs themselves, and/or the optical nerves and brain. Liches don't really have this stuff anymore, so I can easily see a justifiable GM fiat to remove this vulnerability even though the RAW doesn't call for it.

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