Luvrnetic |
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Can hardly believe I'm the first one to ask this but I can't find anything about this rules question anywhere!
Immobile isn't a condition that is defined anywhere as far as I can tell and usually is further defined in whatever ability mentions it, but there's no such detailing in the Vanguard discipline Absolute Zero.
Absolute Zero reads:
One per day as a standard action, you can spend Entropy Points to become immobile for a number of rounds up to the number of Entropy Points spent. For the duration, you can’t be moved by any nonmagical effect and are immune to cold damage.
In addition, during this time, any creature that touches you, hits you with a melee attack with a natural weapon, or starts their turn within 20 feet of you takes 3d6 cold damage per Entropy Point spent. Any creature that takes this damage is affected as though by slow (no save) until the damage is healed. You can dismiss this effect at the end of your turn without taking an action.
Activating absolute zero automatically ends any living effigy discipline you have active.
There's also the Immobilize weapon property which reads:
The target must succeed at a Fortitude saving throw or be knocked prone and gain the pinned condition. The target can escape the pinned condition by succeeding at an Acrobatics check (DC = 20 + 1-1/2 × the weapon’s item level).
The pinned condition ends automatically if the weapon’s wielder either moves or attacks with the weapon again; the penalties from the pinned condition still apply to the target if the wielder uses the weapon to attack the pinned target.
So anyway, what does immobile actually mean in Absolute Zero?
Since it's not a game condition I assume we just go by the word definition means incapable of moving or being moved.
It doesn't say I can't take actions or that I'm flat footed (not that vanguards can be at that level) or that I'm pinned, helpless, etc, so as far as I can tell I just can't leave my square I start it in?
Am I right in ruling that I could potentially still be grabbing people with my whips and repositioning them into my Absolute Zero AoE and slowing them there? Because that's so great lol
This seems like something that needs an official ruling TBH.
Thanks for your help!
Kishmo |
You're right, Immobile isn't a defined condition. I think it's the next sentence that defines what it means, for purposes of this ability: "For the duration, you can’t be moved by any nonmagical effect". I don't think it's supposed to imply that you can't move any part of you, at all - if it were, they'd say you're Paralyzed or similar. So I'd assume you can still like, make attacks, move your limbs, etc - you're just rooted in place.
It probably also makes sense that you can't willingly change what square you're in, but technically the rules don't say that, so, shrug, up to the GM I guess?
Luvrnetic |
Just to update with some further thoughts.
Immobile means cannot be moved, but does this mean I can't move myself?
At first I thought so but this kinda falls apart when you consider the difference between "You cannot move" and "you cannot be moved"
It doesn't say I can't move myself just that other effects can't.
As written it feels like I could still make full attacks while at Absolute Zero I just couldn't leave my square.
Since the fire version of this ability gives Haste it makes sense that the cold version gives slowed/staggered so that you can still move around and stuff you just only get the one action so you feel much slower.
@Kishmo yeah your analysis seems right I just feel like it's still an interpretation that needs defining. Thanks!