I've allowed it only when enemies are unconscious, willing or immobilized. There isn't anything in the spell stopping you from moving earth on top of or underneath people but there's also no described penalty for a creature having things moved on top of them with it so I interpret it as a creature in the space can choose if they get buried or not without a save.
The spell specifies that it has to be "loose dirt", so i think you can drop a bunch of dirt on them but they can brush it off and walk out of the pile since nothing is compressing the dirt over them.
So essentially you're just using the function of the spell that creates an area of difficult terrain.
I mean given the text of the spell it's pretty simple no they can't. If you want to give points for creativity make it a 2 round grapple based on the caster rolling a spell to hit with a strength save at the end of the mobs turn = to the casters spell save dc. I am all for creativity - but creativity in the context of the rules.
You choose a portion of dirt or stone that you can see within range and that fits within a 5-foot cube. You manipulate it in one of the following ways:If you target an area of loose earth, you can instantaneously excavate it, move it along the ground, and deposit it up to 5 feet away. This movement doesn’t have enough force to cause damage. You cause shapes, colors, or both to appear on the dirt or stone, spelling out words, creating images, or shaping patterns. The changes last for 1 hour .If the dirt or stone you target is on the ground, you cause it to become difficult terrain. Alternatively, you can cause the ground to become normal terrain if it is already difficult terrain. This change lasts for 1 hour.If you cast this spell multiple times, you can have no more than two of its non-instantaneous effects active at a time, and you can dismiss such an effect as an action.
For this specific case, the above posters give good advice. The new DMG has a great bit of advice about this type of player going forward l.
It notes the rules rely on a good-faith interpretation. It in a section on rules-lawyers types who look for exploits, and basically is saying, feel free to shut that down. It actually specifically brings up the peasant rail gun as something to not allow. But in general, you’re allowed to say “No, that’s silly.”
So my player loves finding loopholes and he just tried saying he can encase someone in dirt, using mold Earth. Is this legal? Please answer!
I've allowed it only when enemies are unconscious, willing or immobilized. There isn't anything in the spell stopping you from moving earth on top of or underneath people but there's also no described penalty for a creature having things moved on top of them with it so I interpret it as a creature in the space can choose if they get buried or not without a save.
The spell specifies that it has to be "loose dirt", so i think you can drop a bunch of dirt on them but they can brush it off and walk out of the pile since nothing is compressing the dirt over them.
So essentially you're just using the function of the spell that creates an area of difficult terrain.
I mean given the text of the spell it's pretty simple no they can't. If you want to give points for creativity make it a 2 round grapple based on the caster rolling a spell to hit with a strength save at the end of the mobs turn = to the casters spell save dc. I am all for creativity - but creativity in the context of the rules.
You choose a portion of dirt or stone that you can see within range and that fits within a 5-foot cube. You manipulate it in one of the following ways:If you target an area of loose earth, you can instantaneously excavate it, move it along the ground, and deposit it up to 5 feet away. This movement doesn’t have enough force to cause damage. You cause shapes, colors, or both to appear on the dirt or stone, spelling out words, creating images, or shaping patterns. The changes last for 1 hour .If the dirt or stone you target is on the ground, you cause it to become difficult terrain. Alternatively, you can cause the ground to become normal terrain if it is already difficult terrain. This change lasts for 1 hour.If you cast this spell multiple times, you can have no more than two of its non-instantaneous effects active at a time, and you can dismiss such an effect as an action.
For this specific case, the above posters give good advice.
The new DMG has a great bit of advice about this type of player going forward l.
It notes the rules rely on a good-faith interpretation.
It in a section on rules-lawyers types who look for exploits, and basically is saying, feel free to shut that down. It actually specifically brings up the peasant rail gun as something to not allow. But in general, you’re allowed to say “No, that’s silly.”
THe only way i can see it working is if the target is incapacitated and thrown into an open grave and still thats an awful lot of dirt
Have a talk with them. it can be funny once or twice to try stuff like this but constantly? That's purposefully fun-wrecking.
Agreed. Keep in mind the guidance that the new DMG gives about players exploiting the rules, which luckily was included in the free rules
Nothing in the spells prevents it or cause other effect if you do.