Patching AoE spells so they don't suck

[Drakill Tannan]

Seeing a bug prevents them from working properly, and it won't be fixed by the DMs for some random reason (jk, i know you'd do it if you could...), how about we patch a quick fix so they become usefull again?

For example, reduce the duration of entagle to 5 rounds, but make the effect to be being entangled for 1d4+1 rounds.

Stinking cloud dazes people for 3 rounds, but also lasts only 3 rounds.

etc.

thoughts?

[DollarPhil]

I don't get it. You mean that they only trigger once?  Most of them work alright even so, with the only noticeable issue being Grease doesn't knock anything down. Maybe that could be added to it, as a reduced AoE Gust of Wind effect?

[Drakill Tannan]

Most AoEs don't work well, they trigger on all the creatures in the area they are cast on, but don't trigger on creatures walking inside the area, or remaining inside, wich means it's like throwing a fireball with the engangle/daze/whatever effect, not an actual cloud effect.

If you throw an entangle in front of your enemies, it does nothing, even if they walk over it, if it was cast before they were on the area, it doesn't do anything

In the same way, if they got entangled the first round, they don't make subsequent saves for the next rounds, as they should, rather, once the effect has triggered once, it doesn't trigger again.

What i propose is treating them as fireballs with varied effects, entangle effectively becoming a fireball that entangles instead of doing damage, stkinking cloud a fireball that dazes, etc. It's not ideal, because this spells are supposes to work as traps, but it's a huge improvement.

[Buns in the Oven]

I thought that this was a feature so you don't get horribly stomped with a level 1 spell such as entangle <_<

Or even more stomped via something as bad as Evards.

Or cloud of bewilderment.

[DollarPhil]

These spells are still good at making an area a pain to enter, especially on quests like Sewer Goblins 2 or Wild Orcs where the mobs keep charging you.

If you throw an entangle in front of your enemies, it does nothing, even if they walk over it, if it was cast before they were on the area, it doesn't do anything

Nope. You must just have bad luck or a lousy DC, unless it's specific to Entangle. If you walk into the AoE it does indeed trigger. Having a DM quest boss sit in its own Evard's laughing at you and waiting for you to blunder in gives you a unique perspective on that :P.