How Glitterdust works on other creatures when cast during the Time Stop?
On one hand it has duration, and has the targeting descriptor "Area", but on the other it affects creatures and objects in that area.
'While the time stop is in effect, other creatures are invulnerable to your attacks and spells; you cannot target such creatures with any attack or spell. A spell that affects an area and has a duration longer than the remaining duration of the time stop have their normal effects on other creatures once the time stop ends.'
Glitterdust does nothing until the time stop ends, everything's 'invulnerable' to it (so it doesn't reveal invisible creatures until then) but when the time stop does end, all the usual effects of glitterdust will apply.
@avr That's how it would make the most sense to me, but I have doubts. I thought that Glitterdust only affects the creatures on the round that it is cast, and the duration is only the duration of how much the shiny covering last. I've never seen it played as dust that hangs in the air and can affect creatures that appear in the area after the spell was cast.
That's a point. I was thinking of it as an explosion of dust which doesn't settle until the time stop ends but if you see the explosion happening and ending while time stop is up then all targets are immune.
Both would be reasonable interpretations.
I would probably take the more conservative approach, since Time Stop is incredibly powerful already, and say it doesn't work. But I'm not sure that one interpretation has more support than the other.
I'm a fan of "everything gets covered in glitter, but they don't have to roll v Blind since the explosion already happened"
There was at least one lengthy thread about glitterdust's ongoing nature back in the day and I don't recall whether it ever resolved to anybody's satisfaction. Lemme see what I can dig up.
Edit: Found the thread I was thinking of, wherein I interpret it, convince myself I'm wrong, then convince myself I'm wrong about being wrong. -_-
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So it seems that the correct reading of Glitterdust is as if instead of the line
"Area creatures and objects within 10-ft.-radius spread"
it had
"Targets creatures and objects within 10-ft.-radius spread"
At least, if it were written like that, it would be clearer, and would actually fit the interpretation that it covers the targets only during the initial spread, then sticks to them for the duration, and does not affect targets who pass through that area later. And in this case, it would mean that if cast during the Timee Stop, it doesn't affect the enemies at all, as during the initial burst they were invulnerable, and after that there's nothing that could affect them.