AD&D map of Phlan and its slums

[mattekure]

Its a bit condescending to claim that "most young DM's" cant tell the difference between a 20' radius and a 20' diameter. Thats certainly not been my experience with younger players and DM's.

The spells are defined differently. in 2e, the volume of the spell was specified and it was explicitly stated that the fireball will conform to and fill the area up to its volume. So the spread of your fireball depends hugely on factors of the space such as ceiling height.

In 5e, the spell just specifies the 20' radius from a point. There are no rules for modifying the affected area due to the shape of the location where it is cast.

[Paxx]

Its a bit condescending to claim that "most young DM's" cant tell the difference between a 20' radius and a 20' diameter. Thats certainly not been my experience with younger players and DM's.

The spells are defined differently. in 2e, the volume of the spell was specified and it was explicitly stated that the fireball will conform to and fill the area up to its volume. So the spread of your fireball depends hugely on factors of the space such as ceiling height.

In 5e, the spell just specifies the 20' radius from a point. There are no rules for modifying the affected area due to the shape of the location where it is cast.

Don't say I'm condescending just because your experience and my experience have been different Everybody is so quick to judge every little word and are so offended if every phrase isn't perfectly worded. I'm tired of it.
Please don't reply to anymore of my forums if you're going to be like that.

[LordEntrails]

Chill out folks.

As for the fireball, look at how it was defined back in the OD&D days, Homes to be specific, it has a different range and area of effect depending upon if you were inside or outside.

But yes, 5E is a much different game than 2E. Hence why it is a different edition. One could say it has 'matured', just like we all should be on these forums.

[celestian]

I don't know how to reply to a reply,LOL but this is for Mr. Bill, I just read both the 2e and 5e versions of the Fireball spell and they are two total different spells. One is a powerful incineration spell that covers a 20' radius, 33,000 cubic feet, roughly = to - quantity: 33 - 10'x10'x10' cubes. Besides causing damage to creatures, the
fireball ignites all combustible materials within its burst radius, and the heat of the
fireball melts soft metals such as gold, copper, silver, etc. Exposed items require saving
throws vs. magical fire to determine if they are affected, but items in the possession of a
creature that rolls a successful saving throw are unaffected by the fireball.
I got tired of typing.
The other is a " blossom"
A bright streak flashes from your pointing finger to a
point you choose within range and then blossoms with
a low roar into an explosion of flame. Each creature
in a 20-foot-radius sphere centered on that point must
make a Dexterity saving throw. The fire spreads around corners. It ignites flammable
objects in the area that aren't being worn or carried.

What do you think, does the same 33,000 cubic still apply? 2e was a game where wizards were powerful and feared, now they're no more than glorified fairies. Now that's just one old DM's opinion.

I think there might be some confusion in my response. If the poster was asking if they needed to calculate cubic feet (not square feet) then that's not what I caught. There definitely a cubic space used for fireballs in AD&D if that's the case. I don't play the later versions all that much but as I understood it all used a base X feet size tho I don't think (at least 5e) uses cubic feet calculations.

I don't calculate it in my games even tho I do play AD&D. Dealing with math like that is a bit more than I want in my games.