Topic: Lightning and water question

[Dreven1]

Does anyone have any good rules regarding casting lightning or shock spells in water?

How far does it travel?
How much less or more powerful can it be in water?
If an electrical device, such as a staff, was discharged in water, would the caster also get shocked via the wooden shaft touching the water?

The more specific the rules or experience, the better!

Thanks!!!

[jdale]

This article in the Guild Companion should be helpful for you: http://www.guildcompanion.com/scrolls/2000/sep/seaspells.html

It was part of a theme issue about the ocean: http://www.guildcompanion.com/scrolls/2000/sep/

[eskla]

This article suggests the effects would be nominal.  https://www.reddit.com/r/theydidthemath/comments/2hktp1/request_while_swimming_in_a_large_body_of_water/

[Dreven1]

Excellent articles and rules.  I am making my own subset now.  Thanks!!!

[Cory Magel]

I'm no physicist, but I imagine the dissipation of electricity would vary greatly depending on the size of the body of water?
i.e. if you're in a large puddle you're in trouble, but as the body of water grows it would dissipate quicker.
A pond you might still get notice more impact, but once you get to a lake it'd probably be fairly weak.

[Peter R]

Depth seems to be a major factor.

http://sciencenetlinks.com/science-news/science-updates/zapping-fish/

[jdale]

Depth seems to be a major factor.

That's more in regards to a spell cast in air against a target in water, not really for a spell cast in the water.

Also, I presume lightning bolt spells provide some means of guiding the lightning to the target. Otherwise, when casting in air, the lightning bolt would go straight down from your magician's hand and strike the ground, leaving your target laughing at you. So to some extent that will trump physics considerations. Perhaps could be relevant for a spell that creates semi-natural lightning, like the 35th level spell Thunderstorm on Weather Ways, if the targets go for cover underwater.

[Peter R]

Depth seems to be a major factor.

That's more in regards to a spell cast in air against a target in water, not really for a spell cast in the water.

Also, I presume lightning bolt spells provide some means of guiding the lightning to the target. Otherwise, when casting in air, the lightning bolt would go straight down from your magician's hand and strike the ground, leaving your target laughing at you. So to some extent that will trump physics considerations. Perhaps could be relevant for a spell that creates semi-natural lightning, like the 35th level spell Thunderstorm on Weather Ways, if the targets go for cover underwater.

In the case of the target stood in water then there would be zero effect. The damage is done by the passage of the charge though the body from point of contact to point of earthing. That routing would still happen.

[Cory Magel]

I think the real factor is volume of water. Not merely width or depth. However there are obvious correlations to things like tub, pool, pond, lake, etc in that regard. Also, detailed rules on what happened would obviously not really be all that relevant the target of a lighting spell standing in water, but rather potentially others in contract with that body of water. Multiple people can be impacted due to a charge coming in contact with a body of water.

[Jengada]

This is one of those where I just say "it's magic". Otherwise, you have to go into all kinds of stuff about why the caster isn't fried as badly as the target. If you want it to be useless in water, make it useless in water. If you want it to work the same, go for it. Any answer is legitimate, it's your world.
Otherwise, my next question as a player will be, how does my invisibility spell work in water? I mean, water and air have different indices of refraction. My Leap spell (drag?) Sound spells (sound travels differently in water)? And how did the caster manage any verbal components, if they can't talk underwater?
I'm as willing to speculate as anyone else, but there's really no "right" answer when magic.

[Peter R]

I was going to ask how effective do you want this to be? If your players are trying to game the system and trying to get a free lightning ball spell then you could treat it like chain lightning but with -20 per 1ft each additional target is away from the previous target.

If you want to reward their creativity then you could give a free A electrical crit to the closest targets.

You could give every close combatant an RR and on failures give them an A crit.

[Cory Magel]

If you want to reward their creativity then you could give a free A electrical crit to the closest targets.

Or use it against them eventually.