user2754

-1. instead of talking about why you haven't taken static, reliable variables into account, instead, it is better to take static, reliable variables into account.

@TonDay Experience. If you have spent time learning about the common styles of game, and can infer things about which style this character is in from the question ('old school') the likelihood of being able to Intimidate the character's way out of an encounter can be computed, albeit with considerable margin of error. 5e has a very limited number of feat options, and enemies generally conform to specific types. The amount of comparison to consider most reasonable choices is not impossible at all.

I have downvoted this answer because it is mostly a list of options, rather than a which is better. Little attempt is made to analyze the options and it ends with a platitude. Suggesting that for example 'Lightly Armoured' is a good feat choice for survival (it lowers your AC without magic armour) in order to 'save' a 1st level spell slot (at level 12 a Wizard has 16 spell slots, and 1st level ones are the least useful by far) is a very poor attempt to answer this question.

If you already know how the improvised weapon rules work, why are you stating that there are no rules for improvised ranged weapons? You've literally said that they can only be thrown. This answer as it stands is factually incorrect and misleading - please fix these issues.

If you want to punitively punish something, why is your answer saying you like it and talking about it like it's a minor thing to apply disadvantage. That is just confusing for any reader who does not already know the math behind disadvantage.

-1, the improvised weapon rules explicitly state that in general you should treat an improvised weapon as the weapon it is most similar to. Disadvantage is incredibly punitive - if you like clever, as a GM, making it so the archer hits about half as much means he should likely switch to almost any other option, or simply 'buy a backpack full of arrows' (most games don't even track ammunition, making ice arrows probably a roleplaying choice on his part). Disadvantage = -5. Negates high rolls nearly always. Immense debuff. Not trivial.

-1. Doesn't answer the question. Hugely misleading about conclusion while trying to educate audience (only aware of that intent via comments, after reading it just thought this person didn't bother to read).

@linksassin These comments and your question combined make a very confusing summary. May I suggest that in future when writing questions that you simply lay out the situation and your goals without intentionally omitting information or your understanding of game concepts. I still, for example, have completely no idea why you think that your players would need to be informed beforehand about how to defeat prismatic wall to 'defeat' it, or why you seem fixated on the spell-based disarming approach instead of any of the other methods that exist to remove it.

@linksassin if you don't allow knowledge checks to grant specific information at the listed DCs in your game, you need to notate that in your question, as that is a house rule that DEEPLY changes how the game works and any and all answers will likely be answering a completely different question than you think you are asking

@linksassin I genuinely have no idea what you're talking about. You don't use knowledge skill rolls in your game? Or that's not.. enough information? Your players don't like poke things with poles or toss rocks at it if they don't know what the big glowy wall does? I've made some assumptions in my answer that have in general been true for any group or game i've ever even seen or heard of as regards interaction/induction/following basic game rules but your comments are indicating they might not be true for your group?

@linksassin that's not really the question you're asking, though. 'How do I inform my players of common dnd workarounds or expert player tactics without simply telling them' is not the same as 'I want to ensure my players defeat X spell'. In general, people figure out these tactics by either seeing other people use them or being confronted with a problem they need to actually solve - the latter of which you are removing by 'pre-solving' the problem for them. Perhaps your players want their problems pre-solved - but again, this is a different question to ask.

Just going to say this analysis and explanation is world-class, and i'm considering adding it to my 'difference between swearing as exclamation and attack on an individual or group' resources. Clearly and concisely delineates the differences and places them into context. If there's a wiki for this site, it has my vote to go into it.

@HeyICanChan Yes. Because the GM has intentionally trapped the wizard player in a scenario where they've 'already shown' the wizard can't use that spell to get out of it. Which implies an extremely high degree of railroading, and is a classic sign of 'gotcha!' GMing. The possibility of that occurring accidentally is so minuscule as to be completely ignored.

@fectin - Energy Immunity (Acid) + Water Breathing = breathe water-based acid? Be a high level wizard, fill your home with acid, cast Extended/Persistent versions of those two spells on yourself every day. Alternatively, cast it on some sharks, fill a pit of acid with them, drop adventurers into it.

@SevenSidedDie - When writing the spell, the authors intended it to allow characters to go on underwater adventures in flooded ruins, or under the sea. Not to hide in water tanks from enraged populace. From many descriptions of the authors of the PHB, however, especially the test games they ran, their intention was not to be literalist and harshly proscriptive about interesting uses of abilities. They'd say it was purely up to the GM, with the intimation that the GM should say 'yes' if it was interesting and story-appropriate, and 'no' if the player was simply trying for advantage.

@DanB - Within the rules, casters can already win the game, hard, without even particularly trying. Allowing cool things, especially things like this that are storybook and nowhere near as powerful as a third level spell use normally is (note invisibility is 2nd - this guy is instead making a hide check that could backfire on him hard), does not add to the power of casters at all.

Yes, a bunch, but most of them are TO or highly dubious, so should therefore be disregarded for practical optimization.

Favoured in Guild + Primary Contact (both from Cityscape) allows you to enter Sublime Chord at level 10 by granting you an extra skill rank (not bonus - rank). That's what I assumed was occurring here. If you're a straight up bard caster, it's not even overpowered. If you're not using sublime chord for cheese, it just makes you a sorcerer with bard spells.

MrLemon - Not at level 19. And specifically, not many that are better than Fatespinner 5. Probably only one or two, speaking realistically.

it's completely irrational, no thought involved

The shape just makes me panic, adrenaline, whole nine yards.

I'm not scared of getting bit though

by some stupid huge margin

and the most aggressive

of all poisonous to humans spiders we have both the largest number of species and the highest %

we have the most horrifying kind though

most spiders in general are harmless to humans

like, 'inside sealed environments in a lab' everywhere

And there's these big ones that are hunters so they go everywhere

We have.. lots of spiders.

Kinda.

sometimes you get a sensation of disembodiment, mostly it's just lots and lots of jarring, imperfect, fucking itself over emotions.

funnily enough I actually have arachnophobia

this was after I learned to defeat everything with a context

My nightmares don't have relatable forms or shapes, and are formed of stark, horrible, contextless emotions.

managed to snag a chilli, sharp knife, cutting board, bread, salami, and make tea without waking housemate.

tea + makings of sandwich, did not anger the gazebo

further success

success

brb checking tea availability

That's to date, yeah?

why do you have more than one?

yep

@JonathanHobbs - I understand your concerns, and after reviewing the culture here, agree that I was in the wrong with that comment. Moving forward, I will refrain in future from that sort of comment or communication.

I speak fluent Urban Professional. Just not for fun, in my time off.

I'll probably just avoid talking here except on technical matters from now on.

And i'm not treating it in that fashion, which is the problem, not my use of hyperbole.

Exactly.

This site has a specific meta which means that the people who end up regularly in the chat rooms for it have a cultural basis which is probably causing a cultural clash.