I have a BBEG in my campaign that has access to Possession. After looking at Possession, I noticed that the wording is that the possessor "can't be targeted by any attack, spell, or other effect, except ones that turn undead". Thinking back to how targeting works for AOEs, I remembered that they don't usually target creatures and mainly only target points in space. By this logic, could a fireball damage a ghost that is possessing a creature?
Something about your phrasing of the questions makes me want to assure you're clear that in possession the ghost can't be attacked by things with corporeal affects on the prime material world (like fire or magical fire), but the body it is possessing sure can. In the instance of fireball it seems pretty clear to me that the fireball would damage the body possessed, and if that body is reduced to 0, the ghost is dispelled from the burnt body and will then be subject to whatever attacks the caster's allies may have available.
Not RAW, but possible DM "I'll allow it" would be if the fireball brings the possessed body to 0, "left over damage" could them be applied to the ghost*; but that's DM's allowance more than the way the possession mechanic actually works. The way the mechanic is written it seems clear that the ghost doesn't manifest near the former possessed body till after the fireball does its blast. But the idea of the ghost taking some damage as its host becomes toast and the ghost is compelled to pop out of the toastered host has a neat cinematic riff to it.
*For instance, under this allowance say a ghost possesses a host with 10hp, and the host is caught in a fireball that does 32 damage. Host gets cooked to 0 and 22 fire damage would go to the ghost, if the DM is cool with the idea of going beyond the rules of the possession mechanic.
I have a BBEG in my campaign that has access to Possession. After looking at Possession, I noticed that the wording is that the possessor "can't be targeted by any attack, spell, or other effect, except ones that turn undead". Thinking back to how targeting works for AOEs, I remembered that they don't usually target creatures and mainly only target points in space. By this logic, could a fireball damage a ghost that is possessing a creature?
Something about your phrasing of the questions makes me want to assure you're clear that in possession the ghost can't be attacked by things with corporeal affects on the prime material world (like fire or magical fire), but the body it is possessing sure can. In the instance of fireball it seems pretty clear to me that the fireball would damage the body possessed, and if that body is reduced to 0, the ghost is dispelled from the burnt body and will then be subject to whatever attacks the caster's allies may have available.
Not RAW, but possible DM "I'll allow it" would be if the fireball brings the possessed body to 0, "left over damage" could them be applied to the ghost*; but that's DM's allowance more than the way the possession mechanic actually works. The way the mechanic is written it seems clear that the ghost doesn't manifest near the former possessed body till after the fireball does its blast. But the idea of the ghost taking some damage as its host becomes toast and the ghost is compelled to pop out of the toastered host has a neat cinematic riff to it.
*For instance, under this allowance say a ghost possesses a host with 10hp, and the host is caught in a fireball that does 32 damage. Host gets cooked to 0 and 22 fire damage would go to the ghost, if the DM is cool with the idea of going beyond the rules of the possession mechanic.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
No, i'd say the host prevent the effect from affecting it.