Simple Q&A D&D 4e Thread II: Electric Boogaloo

[Grey_Wolf_c]

A420

a) does ongoing damage hurt the PC at the start or end of there turn?

Start

b) do they make saving throws for effects at the start or end of there turn?

The general rule is end, although there are exceptions (warden, for example, does both start before ongoing damage happens, and again at turn end).

GW

[Ecoman]

Q421
Hi another question

What sort of action is a knowledge based check during a encounter

such as rolling on arcane to see what type of magic creature you are fighting

i guess its a minor? and if you fail how many rerolls can you attept in that encounter.

Thank you

[shamgar001]

A 421
According to PHB pg. 180, "No action required—either you know the answer or you don’t."

[Mandrake]

A 421 cont.

Which means no re-roll is available. You can't "start to know" something you don't know (just remember school ). DM can allow a re-roll if conditions changed, such as the creature turning visible, starting turn metal into rust or something similar. Though, to be honest, it's actually a new roll, but meh.

Hope it helped, cheers.

[Sipex]

Q422

Today a PC of mine just got hit by a prepared action, in the middle of his turn, which dazed him. He already spent his minor action and provoked the prepared action in the middle of a move.

I resolved this by letting him finish his move before ending his turn but I was wondering, how should I have handled this?

[Snowbody]

A422

RAW doesn't totally cover this, but we can infer some things.

Some results are obvious. If you are killed by an OA, or Immobilized or Stunned in the middle of your move, obviously you stop moving.

The rule for Slowed is:

If you’re slowed while moving, stop moving if you have already moved 2 or more squares.

This suggests that conditions are applied as if they'd been in effect since the beginning of the turn. In other words, after you're hit with a status effect, check whether the current action would have been legal if this status had been in effect since the start, and if it's not legal, it gets stopped. The only question is whether "the start" is the start of the whole turn or the start of the current action.

This has been discussed before:
http://rpg.stackexchange.com/questio...t-the-movement
http://rpg.stackexchange.com/questio...rtunity-attack

[Yakk]

A422: Generously, the restriction would occur at the moment the effect landed. So if dazed, you get one action after the daze, then your turn ends. If this provoked in the middle of the move, you'd have the choice to finish your move and then your turn, or end your move immediately and do 1 more action. If slowed, your speed is reduced to 2 after the slow, and you may be out of movement points. If stunned, you don't get to do any actions after being stunned. If immobilized, you don't get to move (without teleporting) after being immobilized.

[LaZodiac]

Q423: Would the Mage's 'Magic Missle' spell activate feats like White Lotus Enervation?

[Ashdate]

Q423: Would the Mage's 'Magic Missle' spell activate feats like White Lotus Enervation?

A 423: No. Magic Missile by RAW doesn't meet the requirements of a power that "hits" (as per the PHB g 276); it is an automatic effect as long as you can target the enemy with the power. Regardless, Magic Missile does not target any defenses, so White Lotus Enervation wouldn't have any effect. Is there a particular reason you're asking?

[LaZodiac]

Yha, I was wondering if I'd be able to use Magic Missle to just...blow up enemy defenses by 1 point automatically with Wizard's Fury. Minor action -1 to defenses seems cool. But ok, I understand.

[Ecoman]

Q424
Hi I know if a PC leaves combat without shifting provokes attack but does a PC not in combat running past a enemy provoke opportune attack?

ta

[Urpriest]

Q424
Hi I know if a PC leaves combat without shifting provokes attack but does a PC not in combat running past a enemy provoke opportune attack?

ta

A 424

If a PC is running past an armed enemy then they are already in combat.

[Ecoman]

So an enemy can hit you if you run stright past them?

[Badgerish]

correct.

If creature-A leaves creature-B's threatened squares without shifting, creature-B can make an opportunity attack vs creature-A.

You normally threaten the squares adjacent to you, but you don't if you are dazed/stunned/surprised.

[tcrudisi]

correct.

If creature-A leaves creature-B's threatened squares without shifting, creature-B can make an opportunity attack vs creature-A.

You normally threaten the squares adjacent to you, but you don't if you are dazed/stunned/surprised.

Note that if you consider the enemy "surprised", then they do not get an opportunity attack. So if the enemy had no idea they were there until they were running past, there would be no OA. This can be found in the Surprise Round rules.

And this is why I didn't answer in the first place: the answer is really complicated.

The players are running past an armed enemy. Well, more than a few factors go into this.

1) Would the enemy attack anyway? (If not, the no OA)
2) Was the enemy aware of their presence beforehand? (If not, then no OA.)
3) Even if he was aware of them, did he suspect that they intended on getting past him or attack him? (If not, then no OA.)
4) Was his weapon drawn? (If not, then no OA.)
5) Otherwise, he probably gets an OA.

[Xtomjames]

Okay, I have a question for you all. I'm playing a Warlock and I have the at will power "eldritch blast" in 4ed (I normally play 3.5). I was wondering if "Threatening Reach" applied to eldtritch blast, or if there was a way at low levels to make OAs at a distance with Eldritch Blast? (Level 7 specifically)

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Okay, I have a question for you all. I'm playing a Warlock and I have the at will power "eldritch blast" in 4ed (I normally play 3.5). I was wondering if "Threatening Reach" applied to eldtritch blast, or if there was a way at low levels to make OAs at a distance with Eldritch Blast? (Level 7 specifically)

No, threatening reach only applies when you have it as a property. PCs don't have it unless one of their powers explicitly mentions it (usually stances, feats and polymorphs, IIRC). Eldritch Blast is a ranged power to which the concept does not apply (threatening reach applies only to OA MBAs).

Your second question is not really a RAW question, but from what I remember, the warlock has no such power at low levels. You may want to check the druid's Fire Hawk At Will for an example of a power that does, and then check for similar ones in the Warlock repertoire.

Grey Wolf

[Xtomjames]

Ugh, I don't like 4th ed, why I joined I don't know. The changes to the rules for attacks of opportunity are just annoying. Same goes for the changes to undead. That said, would anything else work, are there no feats for rogues or other stealth classes that have ranged OA? (I should clarify I'm playing a rogue warlock hybrid). I was hoping to combine combat reflexes with long and short range OA.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Ugh, I don't like 4th ed, why I joined I don't know. The changes to the rules for attacks of opportunity are just annoying. Same goes for the changes to undead. That said, would anything else work, are there no feats for rogues or other stealth classes that have ranged OA? (I should clarify I'm playing a rogue warlock hybrid). I was hoping to combine combat reflexes with long and short range OA.

You should open a thread for this question: it is not a RAW question and cannot really be adequately explored in this thread.

GW

[shamgar001]

Q426 (I think?)

Does the Swordmage Aegis reaction apply to all targets I mark, or only the ones I mark with the Aegis power?

[Drglenn]

Q426 (I think?)

Does the Swordmage Aegis reaction apply to all targets I mark, or only the ones I mark with the Aegis power?

A426 just the Aegis power, though there are other powers that can mark an enemy as if by your Aegis power

[shamgar001]

Q427
Do you have to be actually wielding a weapon to use its power? I would assume that there's a rule somewhere that states that, but I can't seem to find it.

[Ashdate]

A427: As far as I can tell, by a strict RAW reading... no. At least, not if the "power" in question is activated (rather than a "property") Per the Rules Compendium (p 280):

Many magic items have a special property that is constantly active, or active in certain circumstances... Unless otherwise noted, a magic item's property remains active for a creature only while it wears the item or wields the item.

There is no such requirement to "wield" a weapon listed for an AEDU power for a weapon in either the PHB or the Rules Compendium that I can see.

That said, many weapons that have an AEDU power specify that the power is used through "this" weapon. For example, with a Duelist's Weapon:

"Power: Daily, minor action: You have combat advantage against the next creature you attack with this weapon on this turn."

That said, as a DM, if you tried to "activate" an AEDU power on a weapon you had in your backpack or on your belt or something, I would probably laugh at you until you got the hint that that's seriously trying to game the system.

[Badgerish]

Q428

I'm seeking clarification/opinion on "Evard's Dreadful Mist" - lvl 15 Wizard Daily Attack Power.

It starts with an area burst 2 attack that deals no damage and sets up a zone. Simple enough, but the 'effect' that sets up the zone says:

"Effect: The burst creates a zone of thick fog that blocks line of sight until the end of your next turn. You can use the Evard's Dreadful Mist Attack power, using a square within the zone as the origin square."

The zone can be sustained with a minor action.

"Evard's Dreadful Mist Attack power" is, itself a Daily power (black border, marked 'daily') that is triggered when a creature enters/starts it's turn in the zone. It's a burst 1 and deals decent damage.

so... how many times can "Evard's Dreadful Mist Attack power" be triggered?
A) once, as it's a daily attack power. Sustaining the primary power only sustains the zone
B) once per turn, as it's a daily attack power, but when you sustain the primary power you gain another (1) use of the attack power
C) as many times as it is triggered in the 1st round of use, sustaining the primary power only sustains the zone
D) as many times as it is triggered, sustaining the power keeps up the ability to trigger the attack power

It's a lvl 15 daily, it should be strong. If it only did flat damage or low-dice/no-Int damage then I would accept version D, but it's a full damage AoE each time...

[Ashdate]

Q428

I'm seeking clarification/opinion on "Evard's Dreadful Mist" - lvl 15 Wizard Daily Attack Power.

A428: the "secondary" power of Evard's Dreadful Mist Attack is a daily ability, and therefore can be used only once. Note that it is an opportunity action; it would be absurdly powerful if it were an "at-will" ability while Evard's Dreadful Mist was active (you would be able to activate it multiple times per turn!).

[shamgar001]

Q429

In DMG pg. 40:

When a power has an effect that occurs upon hitting a
target—or reducing a target to 0 hit points—the power
functions only when the target in question is a meaningful
threat.

Is "meaningful threat" ever defined in RAW? Is a PC targeting himself a meaningful threat to himself?

[obryn]

A429
Generally speaking, no.

A "meaningful threat" is kind of vaguely defined, so it requires DM judgment. But generally, a PC himself and his allies are not viable threats. Nor are innocuous townspeople, prisoners, or bags of rats.

-O

[Dimers]

Sorry if the answer to this is available on wizards.com ... I'm not a member, so I can't see details of the posts, just what Google headlines show me.

Q 430

The paragon path Psionic Incarnate, on Psi Power page 126, has as its capstone Daily power the ability to revv up an augmentable at-will power. But there's no requirement that you KNOW an augmentable at-will power to take the paragon path, and it doesn't give such a power to you. So what do you do about a character who doesn't know one?

[NecroRebel]

A 430

Technically, it doesn't specify that you have to use an augmentable at-will power that you know, so you just pick one (probably one of the L27 ones for maximum strength) and use it.

If your DM (rightfully) doesn't let that fly, you'd simply be unable to use that power.

[Kurald Galain]

Sorry if the answer to this is available on wizards.com ... I'm not a member, so I can't see details of the posts, just what Google headlines show me.

You should be able to read all of the WOTC forums without logging in, just like you can do here. For instance, this link.