I am having trouble deciding what happens when someone who has a ring of free action is instantly petrified.
Ring of Free Action states...While you wear this ring, difficult terrain doesn't cost you extra movement. In addition, magic can neither reduce your speed nor cause you to be paralyzed or restrained.
The Petrification Condition:
You are transformed into stone
Description
- A petrified creature is transformed, along with any nonmagical objects it is wearing or carrying, into a solid inanimate substance (usually stone). Its weight increases by a factor of ten, and it ceases aging.
- The creature is incapacitated, can't move or speak, and is unaware of its surroundings.
- Attack rolls against the creature have advantage.
- The creature automatically fails Strength and Dexterity saving throws.
- The creature has resistance to all damage.
- The creature is immune to poison and disease, although a poison or disease already in its system is suspended, not neutralized.
Rule | PHB 291
The petrification that I am talking about is basically a random condition affecting the player. Basically if I use certain abilities I have a chance to gain a random condition, petrification being one of them. I initially thought that the ring would protect me, but after some research it only prevents petrification if the process needs me to be restrained or paralyzed first.
But magic can neither reduce my speed. So wouldn't getting petrified reduce my speed? So wouldn't this then prevent getting petrified. Or would I still have all non movement related effects not occur. Again if thats true would be seriously weird.
Scenario 1 Magic can not reduce my speed there for petrification can't occur cause part of that condition will reduce my speed in various ways.
Scenario 2 Only the movement affects would be negated from being petrified so you would still have the following RAW - Turned to stone - Weight 10 times your weight - Incapacitated so no actions or reactions even though the name of the ring indicates i still have free action (I would negate this since i can still move normally) - Attack rolls against you have advantage (again this is due to not being able to move so I would negate it) - Automatically fail Str or Dex Saves (same thing again due to not being able to move, so i would negate it too) - Resistant to all damage - Immune to poison or disease
Scenario 3 Taking into consideration results of still being able to move ane negating those effects I would end up with - Turned to stone - Weight 10 times my weight - Resistant to all damage - Immune to poison or disease - But I can still move normally and anything that is related to reduced speed wouldn't apply
Scenario 4 - Doesn't prevent petrification or any movement affects from petrification
My gut says just to go with Scenario 1 as its the easiest to manage. Scenario 2 just seems too weird as I don't think its intended like this at all, rules as intended vs rules as written kind of deal. Scenario 3 would be kinda interesting though and probably what I would use as a DM if I wanted to be cruel...lol.
The ring prevents your speed from being reduced by magic, not from conditions.
Petrification seems like a big oversight if it was meant to prevent it (they did mention paralyzed and restrained specifically implying conditions were not covered by the previous statements).
So not only should you get petrified as normal, but effects that restrain you as you slowly turn to stone are only partially/temporarily ignored (restraint of partial Petrification ignored, but the full petrification still eventually happens as normal).
I’d rule the ring does not interact with petrification. That’s an entirely different condition. The ring only stops paralyzed or restrained. Any other conditions are fair game. You get petrified, you are now a statue. You have a nice ring someone could chisel off your hand, but otherwise, that’s it. If you want to start arguing the ring interrupts petrification because that impacts movement speed, then you also could say you can not die, since that also drops your speed to 0.
I should have added in a Scenario 4. Doesn't work at all against petrification even though magic can not reduce your speed. Being dead usually occurs from losing health. Petrification has to happen using magic. But I do see your point.
My confusion arrises from spells or creature abilities that restrain you first then petrify you (usually a saving throw is involved). In those cases it does prevent petrification, but its due to having paralyzed or restrained negated.
Also I was arguing that magic can neither reduce your speed or be affected by the 2 conditions of paralyze and restrained. I guess I am trying to ration out this part of it. The whole movement thing.
EDIT: Added in Scenario 4...doesn't prevent petrification or movement effects from petrification.
EDIT2: I also saw a reference from Jeremy Crawford that states having your movement reduced to zero is not the same as having no movement. So its pretty convlusive that this ring will not prevent petrification...bleh. Could have sworn there was a magic item that prevented petrify tho...just got to find it. I am assuming greater restoration won't restore your gear from being turned to stone either.
While the ring of free action prevent speed reduction it has no effect on conditions that says you can't move. The ring wearer should be petrified and unanle to muve.
Having the petrified condition does not cause any of the situations where the ring of free action would come into effect. If there were a magic effect that restrained you AND petrified you, for example, then you wouldn't be restrained, but you would still be petrified.
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Hi,
I am having trouble deciding what happens when someone who has a ring of free action is instantly petrified.
Ring of Free Action states...While you wear this ring, difficult terrain doesn't cost you extra movement. In addition, magic can neither reduce your speed nor cause you to be paralyzed or restrained.
The Petrification Condition:
But magic can neither reduce my speed. So wouldn't getting petrified reduce my speed? So wouldn't this then prevent getting petrified. Or would I still have all non movement related effects not occur. Again if thats true would be seriously weird.
Magic can not reduce my speed there for petrification can't occur cause part of that condition will reduce my speed in various ways.
Scenario 2
Only the movement affects would be negated from being petrified so you would still have the following RAW
- Turned to stone
- Weight 10 times your weight
- Incapacitated so no actions or reactions even though the name of the ring indicates i still have free action (I would negate this since i can still move normally)
- Attack rolls against you have advantage (again this is due to not being able to move so I would negate it)
- Automatically fail Str or Dex Saves (same thing again due to not being able to move, so i would negate it too)
- Resistant to all damage
- Immune to poison or disease
Scenario 3
Taking into consideration results of still being able to move ane negating those effects I would end up with
- Turned to stone
- Weight 10 times my weight
- Resistant to all damage
- Immune to poison or disease
- But I can still move normally and anything that is related to reduced speed wouldn't apply
- Doesn't prevent petrification or any movement affects from petrification
My gut says just to go with Scenario 1 as its the easiest to manage. Scenario 2 just seems too weird as I don't think its intended like this at all, rules as intended vs rules as written kind of deal. Scenario 3 would be kinda interesting though and probably what I would use as a DM if I wanted to be cruel...lol.
The ring prevents your speed from being reduced by magic, not from conditions.
Petrification seems like a big oversight if it was meant to prevent it (they did mention paralyzed and restrained specifically implying conditions were not covered by the previous statements).
So not only should you get petrified as normal, but effects that restrain you as you slowly turn to stone are only partially/temporarily ignored (restraint of partial Petrification ignored, but the full petrification still eventually happens as normal).
I’d rule the ring does not interact with petrification. That’s an entirely different condition. The ring only stops paralyzed or restrained. Any other conditions are fair game. You get petrified, you are now a statue. You have a nice ring someone could chisel off your hand, but otherwise, that’s it.
If you want to start arguing the ring interrupts petrification because that impacts movement speed, then you also could say you can not die, since that also drops your speed to 0.
I should have added in a Scenario 4. Doesn't work at all against petrification even though magic can not reduce your speed. Being dead usually occurs from losing health. Petrification has to happen using magic. But I do see your point.
My confusion arrises from spells or creature abilities that restrain you first then petrify you (usually a saving throw is involved). In those cases it does prevent petrification, but its due to having paralyzed or restrained negated.
Also I was arguing that magic can neither reduce your speed or be affected by the 2 conditions of paralyze and restrained. I guess I am trying to ration out this part of it. The whole movement thing.
EDIT: Added in Scenario 4...doesn't prevent petrification or movement effects from petrification.
EDIT2: I also saw a reference from Jeremy Crawford that states having your movement reduced to zero is not the same as having no movement. So its pretty convlusive that this ring will not prevent petrification...bleh. Could have sworn there was a magic item that prevented petrify tho...just got to find it. I am assuming greater restoration won't restore your gear from being turned to stone either.
While the ring of free action prevent speed reduction it has no effect on conditions that says you can't move. The ring wearer should be petrified and unanle to muve.
Having the petrified condition does not cause any of the situations where the ring of free action would come into effect. If there were a magic effect that restrained you AND petrified you, for example, then you wouldn't be restrained, but you would still be petrified.
"Not all those who wander are lost"