D&D 5E Sleet Storm vs. Magic Flames

[CydKnight]

There isn't really a 'magical flame' definition beyond fire originating from a spell. There's fire damage, but that is independent of originating from a spell or not. A fireball and a torch both do fire damage. I'd think Sleet Storm would extinguish flames from a magical effect but not suppress the effect itself. Incendiary Cloud lasts for a minute but is an 8th level spell - I would say that Sleet Storm would suppress items bursting into flames but would not moderate the fire damage that spell does itself. Likewise a fire elemental would not be extinguished though the combustion it causes on successful hits would be.

Interesting interpretation. The fire then is only an effect of the magic but not itself magical anymore than ordinary mechanically or naturally occurring fire.?

 

[Rya.Reisender]

If you don't think magical fire to be different from normal fire, that would make a big difference though. For example if you used "Produce Flame" then the fire in your hand would be doused, because only the origin is magical, the fire itself is a normal flame the sleet storm refers to. But usually magical effects are treated differently, so that's what I was thinking that magical flames might not be doused.

Also, [not in front of my books] I think Sleet Storm makes everything difficult terrain? Doesn't that require some sort of special casting check? And it hinders visibility, so what are you casting at?

There's no rule that makes spellcasting harder in difficult terrain. Also, seeing the target is only required by a few spells. As long as the target isn't hidden, you know its location, so you can target it, even if blind.

 

[Barolo]

There's no rule that makes spellcasting harder in difficult terrain. Also, seeing the target is only required by a few spells. As long as the target isn't hidden, you know its location, so you can target it, even if blind.

Indeed. Nevertheless, sleet storm actually provokes a save on spellcasters inside its area to avoid breaking concentration on whatever spells they might be keeping up.

 

[steeldragons]

Indeed. Nevertheless, sleet storm actually provokes a save on spellcasters inside its area to avoid breaking concentration on whatever spells they might be keeping up.

I knew there was something.

So that would take out Flaming Sphere and Wall of Fire then, right? On a failed save, that is. They're both concentration spells [?I think?].

 

[jaelis]

Yes, they are concentration. But sleet storm will affect that if the caster is in the AoE, not the fire. So it's a different sort of thing.

 

[cbwjm]

I wouldn't affect instant spell effects like fire bolt or fireball, however, I might allow it to affect continuous magical fire effects like continual flame and wall of fire, especially if my players are confronted by magical flame and are trying to find a way around it. I'd simply look at dispel magic to determine if it is cancelled. If the slot level of sleet storm is equal to the slot level of the magical fire then it is automatically cancelled. If the magical fire is cast at a higher slot level, then the caster has to roll for it. I'd probably only allow a single check.