...blow open an obstruction blocking a pipe. I have a sewer pipe that goblins stopped up with rocks and something like cement. Can't open it by hand, but the sewer dungeon has pickaxes in one spot players can pick up and I'm thinking of having a spell scroll they could find that would also do the trick.
Any ideas? New DM here so nothing is coming immediately to mind other than explosive runes, which would kill whoever read it.
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Go really over the top...give them a small black opal that has a magical transmutation aura about it, you speak a command word and the opal turns into a spinning orb of death...its a one shot sphere of annihilation that lasts for 1 minute before consuming itself.
Or a little less dangerous for the party, how about a Ring of the Ram and just let them blow chunks out of the blockage?
A little bit homebrew: The Sewer-workers Gauntlets, a pair of stiff leather gloves that allow the wearer to use the level 2 School of Transmutation power "Minor Alchemy", this would allow them to work chunks of the blockage away and force a way through.
Spell scrolls options from Xanathars Guide to Everything: Transmute Rock or Erupting Earth (although needs a bit of DM leeway so the eruption is from the barricade not he ground)
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Any spell caster can cast a spell from a scroll as long as that spell appears on that class’s spell list. Spells on the list and “spells known” are completely different things.
Disintegrate is your real Cadillac option for unblocking sewer pipes, though. You could probably do the job cheaper.
Personally, I'd do something like Acid Splash or Acid Arrow, to dissolve the "something like cement" holding the rock together. Stone Shape would be another obvious one. The thing about Shatter or Thunderwave would be damaging the pipe as well as the obstruction, but I suppose that's someone else's problem.
The one thing I'd advise the OP not to do is give the players both pickaxes AND the option of a disintegrate scroll (or whatever). It's inevitable that they'll just use the pickaxes on the blockage and then save the scroll for the boss fight.
All stars fade. Some stars forever fall. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Homebrew (Mostly Outdated):Magic Items,Monsters,Spells,Subclasses ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If there was no light, people wouldn't fear the dark.
Personally, I'd do something like Acid Splash or Acid Arrow, to dissolve the "something like cement" holding the rock together.
That would probably damage the structural integrity of the pipe, though. You'd have to consider the kind of earth the pipe is running through and how losing a supportive structure in it would affect the surroundings. For example, if the pipe is running through sandy soil, it will probably "flow" into the pipe and block it all over again after a short time.
The spell "pipebomb" might clear any obstruction in a pipe. No but seriously, if a spell doesn't come to mind you could easily work in some explosive powder. From there make someone have to roll to properly use the powder around the rocks, light the powder up, etc. Could make for an overall fun experience of mishap. Maybe the overdo and send the rocks flying out of the other end of the pipe? Maybe they nat 1 it and the rocks come back at them instead?
The rules for damaging objects amount to 'objects have hp and AC and possibly a damage threshold where they ignore hits smaller than that, and the DM may give the object resistance, vulnerability, or just declare certain attacks ineffective'. There are no lower level spells (below stone shape) that are specifically effective for this purpose, but there are plenty of lower level spells that might be useful if you decide they should be.
You could always go with a Bag of Beans. Basically, they're magic beans that when planted in the ground can have any affect you want. There's a table of suggestions that you can roll for or you can make something up on your own. The more chaotic the better. The fun thing about the bag of beans is that even if you get what you want, it comes with consequences.
...blow open an obstruction blocking a pipe. I have a sewer pipe that goblins stopped up with rocks and something like cement. Can't open it by hand, but the sewer dungeon has pickaxes in one spot players can pick up and I'm thinking of having a spell scroll they could find that would also do the trick.
Any ideas? New DM here so nothing is coming immediately to mind other than explosive runes, which would kill whoever read it.
Shatter
Spellcasters can only cast spells that they know.
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If there was no light, people wouldn't fear the dark.
Magical Item options:
Go really over the top...give them a small black opal that has a magical transmutation aura about it, you speak a command word and the opal turns into a spinning orb of death...its a one shot sphere of annihilation that lasts for 1 minute before consuming itself.
Or a little less dangerous for the party, how about a Ring of the Ram and just let them blow chunks out of the blockage?
A little bit homebrew: The Sewer-workers Gauntlets, a pair of stiff leather gloves that allow the wearer to use the level 2 School of Transmutation power "Minor Alchemy", this would allow them to work chunks of the blockage away and force a way through.
Spell scrolls options from Xanathars Guide to Everything: Transmute Rock or Erupting Earth (although needs a bit of DM leeway so the eruption is from the barricade not he ground)
Any spell caster can cast a spell from a scroll as long as that spell appears on that class’s spell list. Spells on the list and “spells known” are completely different things.
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Disintegrate
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Disintegrate is your real Cadillac option for unblocking sewer pipes, though. You could probably do the job cheaper.
Personally, I'd do something like Acid Splash or Acid Arrow, to dissolve the "something like cement" holding the rock together. Stone Shape would be another obvious one. The thing about Shatter or Thunderwave would be damaging the pipe as well as the obstruction, but I suppose that's someone else's problem.
The one thing I'd advise the OP not to do is give the players both pickaxes AND the option of a disintegrate scroll (or whatever). It's inevitable that they'll just use the pickaxes on the blockage and then save the scroll for the boss fight.
Yeah, but if you’re gonna do something, do it stile.... 😎
Otherwise you could just spend a day throwing Acid Splash on them.
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You could always summon a Rust Monster
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Grease could be, let's say, interesting.
That's a great idea. Do they use it for this purpose, which would be ideal, or save for a different emergency?
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Mold Earth
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If there was no light, people wouldn't fear the dark.
Stone Shape is literally made for this scenario.
You could perhaps stretch knock for this. Or a small keg of TNT.
Stone to mud.
That would probably damage the structural integrity of the pipe, though. You'd have to consider the kind of earth the pipe is running through and how losing a supportive structure in it would affect the surroundings. For example, if the pipe is running through sandy soil, it will probably "flow" into the pipe and block it all over again after a short time.
The spell "pipebomb" might clear any obstruction in a pipe. No but seriously, if a spell doesn't come to mind you could easily work in some explosive powder. From there make someone have to roll to properly use the powder around the rocks, light the powder up, etc. Could make for an overall fun experience of mishap. Maybe the overdo and send the rocks flying out of the other end of the pipe? Maybe they nat 1 it and the rocks come back at them instead?
Full of rice, beans, and bad ideas.
4th level stone shape
The rules for damaging objects amount to 'objects have hp and AC and possibly a damage threshold where they ignore hits smaller than that, and the DM may give the object resistance, vulnerability, or just declare certain attacks ineffective'. There are no lower level spells (below stone shape) that are specifically effective for this purpose, but there are plenty of lower level spells that might be useful if you decide they should be.
You could always go with a Bag of Beans. Basically, they're magic beans that when planted in the ground can have any affect you want. There's a table of suggestions that you can roll for or you can make something up on your own. The more chaotic the better. The fun thing about the bag of beans is that even if you get what you want, it comes with consequences.
https://www.dndbeyond.com/magic-items/bag-of-beans