Fireball and catching creatures on fire

[Kershek]

Does Fireball catch creatures on fire and make them take 1d6 damage the following round from burning?

According to the spell:

The fireball sets fire to combustibles and damages objects in the area. It can melt metals with a low melting point, such as lead, gold, copper, silver or bronze.

This would lead me to believe that items on your person would catch on fire if you got hit with a Fireball. Therefore, you take fire damage the following round.

However, the D&D FAQ seems to contradict this in a ruling on the Pyro feat from Song & Silence:

The Pyro feat from Song and Silence seems to say that the
feat gives you +1 point of damage per die of damage you
inflict with any spell that has the fire descriptor. At least
that's what my players think. Is this true? Can a fireball
cast by a 6th-level character with the Pyro feat deal 6d6+6
points of damage? Will Aganazar's scorcher also deal the
extra point per die? There are so many; the list could go on
and on. Some other spells my players are asking about are
burning hands, fire shield, wall of fire, and flame arrow.
The Pyro feat lets you deal extra damage when you set
something on fire (such as when you use alchemist's fire). See
Catching On Fire in Chapter 3 of the DUNGEON MASTER's
Guide. Most fire spells don't set anything on fire, and even
fewer set creatures on fire.
As noted in the DUNGEON MASTER's Guide, no spell with an
instantaneous duration sets a creature on fire, so the Pyro feat
won't grant you any extra damage from Aganazar's scorcher,
burning hands, or fireball.
The flames from the warm version of the fire shield spell do
not set creatures or objects on fire.

I also thought that Burning hands did extra fire damage the following round.

So which is it?

 

[Shayuri]

Nope!

DMG be keerect.

A fireball or burning hands or scorcher can ignite unattended items (or melt metal of unattended items, etc). They however do NOT ignite a character, or any of the character's items.

So if you pop a fireball in a library, you get lots of burning shelves and books.

If you pop a wizard with a fireball, his scrolls don't burn. Unless he rolls a 1 on his save.

Weird, yes, but true!

 

[Kershek]

Where exactly does the DMG mention that a fireball sets fire to unattended items only?

 

[Shayuri]

Hee hee. You seem to be in a very challenging mood.

The part where it says unattended items always fail their saving throws is what I'm basing this on.

Furthermore, the bit you quoted specifically mentioned that instant-duration fire spells don't ignite *creatures*. This, in conjunction with the Fireball description and the note that unattended items fail their saves automatically led me to the conclusion that a fireball or other instant-duration fire spell could ignite flammable unattended items easily, but would only ignite items on a creature or character if that creature or character really flubbed a save (this being the rule that items generally aren't damaged from spells unless your save is a 1).

Anyway, I freely confess that's an interpretation of an interaction between several rules that don't QUITE explicitly give an answer one way or the other. Feel free to disagree if you like.

 

[dcollins]

DMG p. 86, "Catching on Fire" sidebar (bottom of page): "Spells such as fireball or flame strike don't normally set a character on fire, since the heat and flame from these come and go in a flash."

 

[Kershek]

DMG p. 86, "Catching on Fire" sidebar (bottom of page): "Spells such as fireball or flame strike don't normally set a character on fire, since the heat and flame from these come and go in a flash."

This is great, but are you saying that a 'combustible item' like the cloak you're wearing (which fireball explicitly states that it affects) that has caught on fire isn't making you take secondary fire damage the next round?

This is the question that needs answered

 

[kreynolds]

This is great, but are you saying that a 'combustible item' like the cloak you're wearing (which fireball explicitly states that it affects) that has caught on fire isn't making you take secondary fire damage the next round?

Your cloak would only catch fire if, and that's a big if, you rolled a 1 on your reflex save and it's the next item in line to be effected.

EDIT: This might help. See page 150, Table 10-1, PH.

This is the question that needs answered

It has been.

 

[reapersaurus]

DMG p. 86, "Catching on Fire" sidebar (bottom of page): "Spells such as fireball or flame strike don't normally set a character on fire, since the heat and flame from these come and go in a flash."

So why do they do any fire damage at all?
A wave of flame I can't picture hurting that much UNLESS it catches you on fire.

It's the poke-your-hand-thru-a-flame effect.

How DOES a fireball do damage if it goes past you "in a flash"?

 

[Caliban]

So why do they do any fire damage at all?
A wave of flame I can't picture hurting that much UNLESS it catches you on fire.

It's the poke-your-hand-thru-a-flame effect.

How DOES a fireball do damage if it goes past you "in a flash"?

Magic?

 

[dcollins]

This is great, but are you saying that a 'combustible item' like the cloak you're wearing (which fireball explicitly states that it affects) that has caught on fire isn't making you take secondary fire damage the next round?

Yes. Feel free to read the referenced DMG p. 86. The entire issue of characters catching on fire explicitly includes "their clothes, hair, or equipment".