Illumination range of dancing lights

[daimaru]

"Kitsune with a Charisma score of 11 or higher gain the following spell-like ability: 3/day—dancing lights."

"Depending on the version selected, you create up to four lights that resemble lanterns or torches (and cast that amount of light), ...."

"A torch sheds normal light in a 20-foot radius and increasing the light level by one step for an additional 20 feet beyond that area (darkness becomes dim light and dim light becomes normal light)."

So my question is this. In the real world, four times the illumination will light up four times the area, meaning twice the distance. This would give normal light in a 40 foot radius if four torches were lit by the dancing lights spell. Does it work this way in Pathfinder?

[daimaru]

daimaru wrote:

"Kitsune with a Charisma score of 11 or higher gain the following spell-like ability: 3/day—dancing lights."

"Depending on the version selected, you create up to four lights that resemble lanterns or torches (and cast that amount of light), ...."

"A torch sheds normal light in a 20-foot radius and increasing the light level by one step for an additional 20 feet beyond that area (darkness becomes dim light and dim light becomes normal light)."

So my question is this. In the real world, four times the illumination will light up four times the area, meaning twice the distance. This would give normal light in a 40 foot radius if four torches were lit by the dancing lights spell. Does it work this way in Pathfinder?

Never mind, found this.

"Dancing lights (torches) 20 ft. (each) 40 ft. (each) 1 min."

So 4 torches would give you an 80 ft. radius.

[DankeSean]

daimaru wrote:

daimaru wrote:

"Kitsune with a Charisma score of 11 or higher gain the following spell-like ability: 3/day—dancing lights."

"Depending on the version selected, you create up to four lights that resemble lanterns or torches (and cast that amount of light), ...."

"A torch sheds normal light in a 20-foot radius and increasing the light level by one step for an additional 20 feet beyond that area (darkness becomes dim light and dim light becomes normal light)."

So my question is this. In the real world, four times the illumination will light up four times the area, meaning twice the distance. This would give normal light in a 40 foot radius if four torches were lit by the dancing lights spell. Does it work this way in Pathfinder?

Never mind, found this.

"Dancing lights (torches) 20 ft. (each) 40 ft. (each) 1 min."

So 4 torches would give you an 80 ft. radius.

Not exactly. Dancing lights 'must stay within a 10-foot-radius area in relation to each other'. So imagine the largest configuration you can manage with it, having them each occupy a square of a ten foot cube. Each of those squares now provides normal illumination in a 20 foot radius. So it would be a 50 foot radius of normal light: 20 feet from each end of the cube, plus the ten feet the cube of lights occupies.

[daimaru]

DankeSean wrote:

daimaru wrote:

Not exactly. Dancing lights 'must stay within a 10-foot-radius area in relation to each other'. So imagine the largest configuration you can manage with it, having them each occupy a square of a ten foot cube. Each of those squares now provides normal illumination in a 20 foot radius. So it would be a 50 foot radius of normal light: 20 feet from each end of the cube, plus the ten feet the cube of lights occupies.

OK, they could mean a 20' radius from each light. (Probably do). That would be more reasonable than an 80' radius. But a 10' radius would be a 20' fat cross (kinda, sorta, a circle), and then 20' from each corner of that. So, 30' from the center of the spell. If you plot it out on graph paper you get a lumpy sort of circle with a 30' radius, 60' across.

Anyway, 20' from each torch would probably be better for game play; another example where physics would slow things down. You'd need a 30' radius for two torches, 35' for three, and 40' for four. And they'd say so, rather than expecting DMs to have physics minors. :)

Everyone agree?

[CraziFuzzy]

The interesting thing is, since a torch emits 'normal light' out 20ft, and then another 20ft of 'increase brightness one step'. So, if you started in total darkness, then a single one would emit a 20ft radius of normal light, and then from 20 to 40 ft, it would be dim light. If you plot out overlaying circles of the dancing lights arranged in a circle 10 ft from each other, you'll see that the way they overlap, and if the outer ring of one light 'increases the brightness' of the neighbor's outer ring, then it brings most of it's 'dim light' outer area up to 'normal light'. Drawn out, and approximating radii, from the center of a 10ft cluster of dancing lights, you have approximately 40ft of normal light, and another 5ft of dim light.

Danging Lights pattern: dancing_lights.png