Let's say I have stone skin and protection from arrows. I am hit with a non magic arrow. I know only 10 points of damage are prevented, but which spell subtracts the prevented damage from its total? Or do both?
If it were up to me, I would rule that protection from arrows acts first.
Because first you have this magical shield against ranged attacks, and only after that you'd have your reinforced skin
But thats only my opinion
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"If a creature has damage reduction from more than one source, the two forms of damage reduction do not stack. Instead, the creature gets the benefit of the best damage reduction in a given situation."
This is the rule for DR stacking.
Both have the same value, both absorb the same total damage until level ten, stone skin will run out first but stone skin will apply to more ranged and non-ranged attack so I would say overall protection from arrows is the better spell for the given situation because you don't have to burn a higher value resource.
My question is not about stacking DR or the relative merits of either spell however.
If it were up to me, I would rule that protection from arrows acts first.
Because first you have this magical shield against ranged attacks, and only after that you'd have your reinforced skin
But thats only my opinion
If protection from arrows were described, even in the flavor text, as a shield or aura this would be a good point. But it isn't.
I tend to allow the person protected to choose which it applies to first. It's simple and makes me look like a far more generous GM than I am!
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"Instead, the creature gets the benefit of the best damage reduction in a given situation."
When best is not a flat number 10>5 then the only guidance the rules give us is which is better subjectively hence the phrase, "for a given situation". This means it is either the player or gm's call based on which Dr provides more advantages in the situation. Once decided then you subtract the 10 from that spell.
I gave the rule and a reasonable rationale to get to a final answer. The rules comes from a paragraph about DR stacking. Said rule states "for a given situation" so respectful your question does have to do with Dr stacking and the merits of both spells but I could have illustrated that more clearly.
As a gm I assume the player can decide which is more advantageous for themselves so I let them the way dragonhunterq does.
Huh, "best" being a non numeric term. If we take "best" to mean strongest, which it would when numeric value is the difference, then stone skin would seem to be spell that would lose value first. If "best" defaults to the better tactical choice, then it will likely be protection from arrows that loses value first, in most cases.
I can follow the reasoning, not sure I like it, but I do see the logic.
Thanks, at least I have one context to work from.
