If I use wall of stone (and they fail their save of course) I can easily sculpt a 10X10X10 enclosure (One block on one side, 2 thins on the sides, one final block at the end). I can then place a fifth panel above lying across the top. Then, on top of that panel, I can stack up to 5 10X10X10 right over the 'hole'. This would weigh 839,965 (give or take) pounds assuming it was made of granite. Now, technically, the fifth panel would 'block' that weight from falling normally, but at that weight would it just... snap and drop all that weight on the poor fellow entrapped in the hole underneath? I mean, it WOULD be stable... for all of 0.5 seconds... but that's TECHNICALLY still stable and that's the best kind of stable.
I don't think stable means what you think it means. Also according to the rules, since its falling 10 feet it does 1d6 damage regardless of how much it weighs.
I would suspect that this counts as an unusual situation. Plus, even if it only does 1d6 for the fall, whatever's trapped under it has literally hundreds of thousands of pounds on top of it. I would think that would do some damage even if it's not 'fall' damage.
Edit: It was pointed out that I could also stack the 10X20 panels on top of each other and then knock them over. Even if I deal no damage from weight I could deal potentially up to 200d6 from the fall damage assuming I hit the foe with the final block. I could also put two blocks on each side for 'support' because there isn't much difference between 200 and 160 at this scale. It would be the king of all fly swatters for certain!
"The wall can have any shape you desire, [but that]... It must, however, merge with and be solidly supported by existing stone."
Perhaps this is contradictory but I think the intention is to produce solid sections of wall and not structures designed to fail.
Also a reading of "Alternatively, you can create 10-foot-by-20-foot panels that are only 3 inches thick" may indicate that all the panels either need to be thick or thin. Check with your DM.
Any time you're calculating what something would weigh or how fast something would go using real world physics, you're going outside the scope of the game. The stone panels might not weigh any more than pumice. There's no reason for the stone to stay stone once the spell's stability requirements are no longer met - maybe it crumbles to sand or dust as it falls.
It's fun to use spells creatively and I wouldn't stop every single attempt to use WoS to make a trap or deal damage, but if the player is expecting some kind of one-shot BBEG killer that becomes the new default solution to every problem... that's gonna be a no.
Any time you're calculating what something would weigh or how fast something would go using real world physics, you're going outside the scope of the game. The stone panels might not weigh any more than pumice. There's no reason for the stone to stay stone once the spell's stability requirements are no longer met - maybe it crumbles to sand or dust as it falls.
It's fun to use spells creatively and I wouldn't stop every single attempt to use WoS to make a trap or deal damage, but if the player is expecting some kind of one-shot BBEG killer that becomes the new default solution to every problem... that's gonna be a no.
That's a great conjecture which I think could certainly be relevant for the ten minutes that concentration is required.
The description goes on to say: "If you maintain your concentration on this spell for its whole duration, the wall becomes permanent and can't be dispelled."
In this case, you might, at the very least, be able to set things up for some pretty epic property destruction. You conjure, at a 120 ft distance from you, a tall, near-vertical wall of stone angled, so that when it eventually fails, it crushes that evil temple. I'd interpret that the stone mentioned would have properties typically associated with stone. The spell talks about its potential use as a bridge or ramp.
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I have a question regarding Wall of Stone.
If I use wall of stone (and they fail their save of course) I can easily sculpt a 10X10X10 enclosure (One block on one side, 2 thins on the sides, one final block at the end). I can then place a fifth panel above lying across the top. Then, on top of that panel, I can stack up to 5 10X10X10 right over the 'hole'. This would weigh 839,965 (give or take) pounds assuming it was made of granite. Now, technically, the fifth panel would 'block' that weight from falling normally, but at that weight would it just... snap and drop all that weight on the poor fellow entrapped in the hole underneath? I mean, it WOULD be stable... for all of 0.5 seconds... but that's TECHNICALLY still stable and that's the best kind of stable.
I don't think stable means what you think it means. Also according to the rules, since its falling 10 feet it does 1d6 damage regardless of how much it weighs.
My homebrew subclasses (full list here)
(Artificer) Swordmage | Glasswright | (Barbarian) Path of the Savage Embrace
(Bard) College of Dance | (Fighter) Warlord | Cannoneer
(Monk) Way of the Elements | (Ranger) Blade Dancer
(Rogue) DaggerMaster | Inquisitor | (Sorcerer) Riftwalker | Spellfist
(Warlock) The Swarm
I would suspect that this counts as an unusual situation. Plus, even if it only does 1d6 for the fall, whatever's trapped under it has literally hundreds of thousands of pounds on top of it. I would think that would do some damage even if it's not 'fall' damage.
Edit: It was pointed out that I could also stack the 10X20 panels on top of each other and then knock them over. Even if I deal no damage from weight I could deal potentially up to 200d6 from the fall damage assuming I hit the foe with the final block. I could also put two blocks on each side for 'support' because there isn't much difference between 200 and 160 at this scale. It would be the king of all fly swatters for certain!
Wall of stone says that:
"The wall can have any shape you desire, [but that]... It must, however, merge with and be solidly supported by existing stone."
Perhaps this is contradictory but I think the intention is to produce solid sections of wall and not structures designed to fail.
Also a reading of "Alternatively, you can create 10-foot-by-20-foot panels that are only 3 inches thick" may indicate that all the panels either need to be thick or thin. Check with your DM.
Any time you're calculating what something would weigh or how fast something would go using real world physics, you're going outside the scope of the game. The stone panels might not weigh any more than pumice. There's no reason for the stone to stay stone once the spell's stability requirements are no longer met - maybe it crumbles to sand or dust as it falls.
It's fun to use spells creatively and I wouldn't stop every single attempt to use WoS to make a trap or deal damage, but if the player is expecting some kind of one-shot BBEG killer that becomes the new default solution to every problem... that's gonna be a no.
My homebrew subclasses (full list here)
(Artificer) Swordmage | Glasswright | (Barbarian) Path of the Savage Embrace
(Bard) College of Dance | (Fighter) Warlord | Cannoneer
(Monk) Way of the Elements | (Ranger) Blade Dancer
(Rogue) DaggerMaster | Inquisitor | (Sorcerer) Riftwalker | Spellfist
(Warlock) The Swarm
That's a great conjecture which I think could certainly be relevant for the ten minutes that concentration is required.
The description goes on to say: "If you maintain your concentration on this spell for its whole duration, the wall becomes permanent and can't be dispelled."
In this case, you might, at the very least, be able to set things up for some pretty epic property destruction. You conjure, at a 120 ft distance from you, a tall, near-vertical wall of stone angled, so that when it eventually fails, it crushes that evil temple. I'd interpret that the stone mentioned would have properties typically associated with stone. The spell talks about its potential use as a bridge or ramp.