Mage's Disjunction and Prismatic Wall / Sphere

[Samuel Penn]

A Prismatic Wall/Sphere is destroyed by a Mage's Disjunction. However, is a person behind/within the Prismatic defence protected from the Disjunction?

Disjunction states that it has a chance to take down Anti-magic field, and if it doesn't then items within are not disjoined. Which implies that if does take it down, then items within are disjoined.

So does the same apply to a Prismatic Sphere? If a disjunction is targeted outside the sphere (I would say it can't be targeted inside the sphere, from the outside), then the sphere will go down. But what happens to things inside the sphere? The behaviour of Anti-magic field would suggest to me that things within/behind the Prismatic Sphere/Wall will not be protected.

At a lower level, what would a Wall of Force? Does that block the effects of a Disjunction, even though it itself is destroyed?

Thanks.

[Adjoint]

If not used against a single item, Mage's Disjunction is an area of effect (burst) spell. I believe that most burst work in such a way, that if they destroy a barrier they continue as normal. Which means that when Mage's Disjunction destroys a magical barier, it can affect the area behind as normal.

[blahpers]

Adjoint wrote:

If not used against a single item, Mage's Disjunction is an area of effect (burst) spell. I believe that most burst work in such a way, that if they destroy a barrier they continue as normal. Which means that when Mage's Disjunction destroys a magical barier, it can affect the area behind as normal.

As far as I know, fireball and not much else has that language. Burst effects in general do not. They only affect objects/creatures/whatever to which they have line of effect from the burst origin.

[Samuel Penn]

That was the point of contention. The description of Anti-Magic Field implies it only blocks things if it doesn't go down, maybe it's meant as an exception to the normal state of affairs, but it's not clear. To me, it seems natural that if a barrier is destroyed by some burst then it doesn't protect anything behind it. The barrier is no longer there to break line of effect.

[Ryze Kuja]

Prismatic Sphere wrote:

Prismatic Sphere

School abjuration; Level sorcerer/wizard 9; Domain artifice 9, protection 9, sun 9

CASTING

Components: V

EFFECT

Range 10 ft.
Effect 10-ft.-radius sphere centered on you

DESCRIPTION

This spell functions like prismatic wall, except you conjure up an immobile, opaque globe of shimmering, multicolored light that surrounds you and protects you from all forms of attack. The sphere flashes in all colors of the visible spectrum.

The sphere’s blindness effect on creatures with less than 8 HD lasts 2d4 x 10 minutes.

You can pass into and out of the prismatic sphere and remain near it without harm. When you’re inside it, however, the sphere blocks any attempt to project something through the sphere (including spells). Other creatures that attempt to attack you or pass through suffer the effects of each color, one at a time.

Typically, only the upper hemisphere of the globe exists, since you are at the center of the sphere, so the lower half is usually occluded by the floor surface you are standing on.

The colors of the sphere have the same effects as the colors of a prismatic wall.

Prismatic sphere can be made permanent with a permanency spell.

Mage's Disjunction wrote:

Mage’s Disjunction

School abjuration; Level sorcerer/wizard 9; Domain magic 9; Elemental School void 9

CASTING

Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V

EFFECT

Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Area all magical effects and magic items within a 40-ft.-radius burst, or one magic item (see text)
Duration 1 minute/level
Saving Throw Will negates (object); Spell Resistance no

DESCRIPTION

All magical effects and magic items within the radius of the spell, except for those that you carry or touch, are disjoined. That is, spells and spell-like effects are unraveled and destroyed completely (ending the effect as a dispel magic spell does), and each permanent magic item must make a successful Will save or be turned into a normal item for the duration of this spell. An item in a creature’s possession uses its own Will save bonus or its possessor’s Will save bonus, whichever is higher. If an item’s saving throw results in a natural 1 on the die, the item is destroyed instead of being suppressed.

You also have a 1% chance per caster level of destroying an antimagic field. If the antimagic field survives the disjunction, no items within it are disjoined.

You can also use this spell to target a single item. The item gets a Will save at a -5 penalty to avoid being permanently destroyed. Even artifacts are subject to mage’s disjunction, though there is only a 1% chance per caster level of actually affecting such powerful items. If successful, the artifact’s power unravels, and it is destroyed (with no save). If an artifact is destroyed, you must make a DC 25 Will save or permanently lose all spellcasting abilities. These abilities cannot be recovered by mortal magic, not even miracle or wish. Destroying artifacts is a dangerous business, and it is 95% likely to attract the attention of some powerful being who has an interest in or connection with the device.

If you place the Prismatic Sphere (10ft radius) and then cast a Mage's Disjunction (40ft radius) right next to the Prismatic Sphere, the Prismatic Sphere would be entirely engulfed by the burst, but the burst would not penetrate it.

MD= Mage's Disjunction epicenter
PS= Prismatic Sphere
PC= Character

|------------MD---PS---PC----|

If the PC is standing on the other side of the Prismatic Sphere, the Prismatic Sphere wouldn't "block" the PC from the Mage's Disjunction burst. The only way to be safe from the Mage's Disjunction would be to physically be inside the Prismatic Sphere when it goes off.

The same would happen with an Anti-magic Field that wasn't destroyed by the Mage's Disjunction.

[Kayerloth]

A burst would not have a LoE to the PC through an existing Sphere. So no it doesn't matter if it 'engulfs' the entire Sphere if a line from the point of origin passes through the Sphere the Disjunction would not effect the PC. But that brings us back to what happens if the Sphere is brought down or more specifically if the 6th layer has been removed. I don't think RAW answers the question. Personally I'd say if the 'barrier' was destroyed then the effects of what destroyed the barrier would continue on.

As an aside Lightning Bolt has the same language --> The line will continue past the barrier if the barrier is destroyed.

[blahpers]

Ryze Kuja wrote:

If the PC is standing on the other side of the Prismatic Sphere, the Prismatic Sphere wouldn't "block" the PC from the Mage's Disjunction burst. The only way to be safe from the Mage's Disjunction would be to physically be inside the Prismatic Sphere when it goes off.

This is incorrect. Bursts do not turn corners (spreads, however, do) and do not affect creatures with total cover form the burst's point of origin. There would be a "shadow" of non-disjoined area behind the prismatic sphere. Assuming the violet wall is still up, it'd be hard to argue that a creature behind it didn't have total cover.