• dejected_warp_core@lemmy.world
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    14 hours ago

    That’s how I run my table. I am a merciful god, but also a petty god if you reach for the heavens a little too hard. D&D magic already screws with thermodynamics to the point where free energy just exists, so I try to draw a line just short of where anyone figures that part out.

    In the back of my mind, I’m always asking the question: “Why wasn’t this loophole exploited in the world already?” That usually prompts a suitable response.

    you’re basically doing fantasy electrical engineering with vibes and a screwdriver; ask yourself, what could go wrong?

    Exactly. In the situation that OP raises, I ask myself: “Does Newton or Gandalf win this argument?”

    • PM_Your_Nudes_Please@lemmy.world
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      5 hours ago

      In the situation that OP raises, I ask myself: “Does Newton or Gandalf win this argument?”

      Exactly. Does the bullet remain moving at the speed it already was? Or does the conservation of momentum require that it slows as it grows larger (and heavier)? If so, it would basically be useless as a weapon, because a handheld firearm couldn’t exert enough force to actually fire a cannonball any effective distance; At most, it can only exert as much force as the recoil exerts on the character. And a 12 lb cannonball would get rolled across the floor by the recoil, but not fired across the room.

      I’d probably rule it’s somewhere in between, because “rule of cool” is just plain fun and that’s why we’re all playing the game. Having it be a full blown “it fires cannonballs at full speed across the room” weapon is obviously super broken. But maybe I rule that the bullets aren’t near the ring long enough to fully regrow, but it gets a +2 modifier to damage because you’re effectively firing rifle sized rounds with a handgun.

      Or maybe I rule that they slow down as they grow, but the spell takes some time to wear off, which limits the maximum range and effectively makes it a devastating close-up weapon, but relatively useless at longer distances.

      The point is that the players worked for it, and get some sort of payoff. Even if it’s not a complete game-breaking reward.