Noob questions (sorry) - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Noob questions (sorry)

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
hants
Jul 16, 2009 5:52:12 Hi. I've been a long term D&D player, but I've missed 3 and 3.5 all together. Love the look and feel of 4th ed (I try to fondly remember the good old times and embrace change), but I've only tried out a couple of short adventures. I have a couple of (possibly stupid) questions.

1) Can a player make ranged attacks into combat - ie if a player and an ememy are adjacent and actively fighting one another? What if they're adjacent but aren't engaged in combat with one another?

2) Does a player's area attacks (of any type) inflict damage on his or her own allies, is this something that can be determined by the player at will?

Thanks, and sorry if the answers are obvious!
#2
slobo777a
Jul 16, 2009 5:57:07
Hi. I've been a long term D&D player, but I've missed 3 and 3.5 all together. Love the look and feel of 4th ed (I try to fondly remember the good old times and embrace change), but I've only tried out a couple of short adventures. I have a couple of (possibly stupid) questions.

1) Can a player make ranged attacks into combat - ie if a player and an ememy are adjacent and actively fighting one another? What if they're adjacent but aren't engaged in combat with one another?

2) Does a player's area attacks (of any type) inflict damage on his or her own allies, is this something that can be determined by the player at will?

Thanks, and sorry if the answers are obvious!

1) Yes. Much less restrictions on this than there used to be.

2) Yes and no. Read the power descriptions carefully. Some mention "enemies within burst", some mention "any creature within burst" or similar. The former are selective, but the latter will affect your allies too.
#3
hants
Jul 16, 2009 5:59:16 Thanks for the quick reply. Can you tell me where the rule for (1) is? I think I probabaly just missed it!
#4
slobo777a
Jul 16, 2009 6:31:21 Mostly this is simpler because it is an absent rule. There is no explicit ruling about "firing into melee". Whether or not an opponent is fighting, and who they are fighting are simply not considerations.

Cover, page 280 PHB, specifically that allies do not grant cover, is as much as you get in writing.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 hants Jul 16, 2009 5:52:12	Hi. I've been a long term D&D player, but I've missed 3 and 3.5 all together. Love the look and feel of 4th ed (I try to fondly remember the good old times and embrace change), but I've only tried out a couple of short adventures. I have a couple of (possibly stupid) questions. 1) Can a player make ranged attacks into combat - ie if a player and an ememy are adjacent and actively fighting one another? What if they're adjacent but aren't engaged in combat with one another? 2) Does a player's area attacks (of any type) inflict damage on his or her own allies, is this something that can be determined by the player at will? Thanks, and sorry if the answers are obvious!
#2 slobo777a Jul 16, 2009 5:57:07	Hi. I've been a long term D&D player, but I've missed 3 and 3.5 all together. Love the look and feel of 4th ed (I try to fondly remember the good old times and embrace change), but I've only tried out a couple of short adventures. I have a couple of (possibly stupid) questions. 1) Can a player make ranged attacks into combat - ie if a player and an ememy are adjacent and actively fighting one another? What if they're adjacent but aren't engaged in combat with one another? 2) Does a player's area attacks (of any type) inflict damage on his or her own allies, is this something that can be determined by the player at will? Thanks, and sorry if the answers are obvious! 1) Yes. Much less restrictions on this than there used to be. 2) Yes and no. Read the power descriptions carefully. Some mention "enemies within burst", some mention "any creature within burst" or similar. The former are selective, but the latter will affect your allies too.
#3 hants Jul 16, 2009 5:59:16	Thanks for the quick reply. Can you tell me where the rule for (1) is? I think I probabaly just missed it!
#4 slobo777a Jul 16, 2009 6:31:21	Mostly this is simpler because it is an absent rule. There is no explicit ruling about "firing into melee". Whether or not an opponent is fighting, and who they are fighting are simply not considerations. Cover, page 280 PHB, specifically that allies do not grant cover, is as much as you get in writing.