How does Elemental Affinity work with spells like Ice Knife?

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According to the PHB Errata:




Elemental Affinity (p. 102). The damage bonus applies to one damage roll of a spell, not multiple rolls.




And there's the ice knife spell (XGE, p. 157):




You create a shard of ice and fling it at one creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against the target. On a hit, the target takes 1d10 piercing damage. Hit or miss, the shard then explodes. The target and each creature within 5 feet of it must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d6 cold damage.




If a Draconic Bloodline sorcerer with White Dragon Ancestry casts ice knife, how does Elemental Affinity's damage bonus work?



Does the damage bonus apply only to the explosion afterwards? Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage of the Charisma modifier?










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    According to the PHB Errata:




    Elemental Affinity (p. 102). The damage bonus applies to one damage roll of a spell, not multiple rolls.




    And there's the ice knife spell (XGE, p. 157):




    You create a shard of ice and fling it at one creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against the target. On a hit, the target takes 1d10 piercing damage. Hit or miss, the shard then explodes. The target and each creature within 5 feet of it must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d6 cold damage.




    If a Draconic Bloodline sorcerer with White Dragon Ancestry casts ice knife, how does Elemental Affinity's damage bonus work?



    Does the damage bonus apply only to the explosion afterwards? Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage of the Charisma modifier?










    share|improve this question









    New contributor




    Breeg is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.





















      up vote
      3
      down vote

      favorite









      up vote
      3
      down vote

      favorite











      According to the PHB Errata:




      Elemental Affinity (p. 102). The damage bonus applies to one damage roll of a spell, not multiple rolls.




      And there's the ice knife spell (XGE, p. 157):




      You create a shard of ice and fling it at one creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against the target. On a hit, the target takes 1d10 piercing damage. Hit or miss, the shard then explodes. The target and each creature within 5 feet of it must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d6 cold damage.




      If a Draconic Bloodline sorcerer with White Dragon Ancestry casts ice knife, how does Elemental Affinity's damage bonus work?



      Does the damage bonus apply only to the explosion afterwards? Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage of the Charisma modifier?










      share|improve this question









      New contributor




      Breeg is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.











      According to the PHB Errata:




      Elemental Affinity (p. 102). The damage bonus applies to one damage roll of a spell, not multiple rolls.




      And there's the ice knife spell (XGE, p. 157):




      You create a shard of ice and fling it at one creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against the target. On a hit, the target takes 1d10 piercing damage. Hit or miss, the shard then explodes. The target and each creature within 5 feet of it must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d6 cold damage.




      If a Draconic Bloodline sorcerer with White Dragon Ancestry casts ice knife, how does Elemental Affinity's damage bonus work?



      Does the damage bonus apply only to the explosion afterwards? Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage of the Charisma modifier?







      dnd-5e spells class-feature damage sorcerer






      share|improve this question









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      Breeg is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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      V2Blast

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          2 Answers
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          up vote
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          down vote



          accepted










          You pick which (one) damage roll it applies to, but the wording suggests it'd apply to the "elemental" cold damage



          The Draconic Bloodline sorcerer's Elemental Affinity feature says (post-errata):




          Starting at 6th level, when you cast a spell that deals damage of the type associated with your draconic ancestry, you can add your Charisma modifier to one damage roll of that spell.




          The feature doesn't say how the damage roll it's applied to is chosen, so it's up to the caster. That said, the way Elemental Affinity is phrased suggests that it's meant to provide a boost to the damage of that element type.



          The ice knife spell deals only (1d10) piercing damage on initial hit. It's only the subsequent explosion of ice that deals the (2d6) cold damage. As such, it seems likely that the feature is intended to boost that cold damage, given that the feature only activates because you're dealing the cold damage.



          If, however, you cast a spell that dealt the damage type associated with your dragon ancestor on multiple instances - such as a concentration spell like call lightning, assuming your dragon ancestor is blue/bronze (associated with lightning damage) - then you'd get to choose which single damage roll you'd add your Charisma mod to. You wouldn't get the Charisma mod bonus every time you dealt damage with that casting of the spell; you'd get it just once per casting, but you could choose which damage roll to boost.






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          • 1




            You should address the last part of the Q too: "Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage"
            – Szega
            1 hour ago

















          up vote
          0
          down vote













          To address your last question, the relevant rule from the Basic Rules is under “Damage Rolls”, in the “Damage and Healing” section of Chapter 9: Combat:




          If a spell or other effect deals damage to more than one target at the same time, roll the damage once for all of them. For example, when a wizard casts fireball or a cleric casts flame strike, the spell's damage is rolled once for all creatures caught in the blast.




          So in the case of Ice Knife, if you choose to apply the bonus to the 2d6 cold damage roll, the extra damage will apply to all creatures in range.



          Note that you add the modifier to the roll before halving the damage, if the creature succeeds on their saving throw or has resistance.






          share|improve this answer




















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            2 Answers
            2






            active

            oldest

            votes








            2 Answers
            2






            active

            oldest

            votes









            active

            oldest

            votes






            active

            oldest

            votes








            up vote
            2
            down vote



            accepted










            You pick which (one) damage roll it applies to, but the wording suggests it'd apply to the "elemental" cold damage



            The Draconic Bloodline sorcerer's Elemental Affinity feature says (post-errata):




            Starting at 6th level, when you cast a spell that deals damage of the type associated with your draconic ancestry, you can add your Charisma modifier to one damage roll of that spell.




            The feature doesn't say how the damage roll it's applied to is chosen, so it's up to the caster. That said, the way Elemental Affinity is phrased suggests that it's meant to provide a boost to the damage of that element type.



            The ice knife spell deals only (1d10) piercing damage on initial hit. It's only the subsequent explosion of ice that deals the (2d6) cold damage. As such, it seems likely that the feature is intended to boost that cold damage, given that the feature only activates because you're dealing the cold damage.



            If, however, you cast a spell that dealt the damage type associated with your dragon ancestor on multiple instances - such as a concentration spell like call lightning, assuming your dragon ancestor is blue/bronze (associated with lightning damage) - then you'd get to choose which single damage roll you'd add your Charisma mod to. You wouldn't get the Charisma mod bonus every time you dealt damage with that casting of the spell; you'd get it just once per casting, but you could choose which damage roll to boost.






            share|improve this answer
















            • 1




              You should address the last part of the Q too: "Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage"
              – Szega
              1 hour ago














            up vote
            2
            down vote



            accepted










            You pick which (one) damage roll it applies to, but the wording suggests it'd apply to the "elemental" cold damage



            The Draconic Bloodline sorcerer's Elemental Affinity feature says (post-errata):




            Starting at 6th level, when you cast a spell that deals damage of the type associated with your draconic ancestry, you can add your Charisma modifier to one damage roll of that spell.




            The feature doesn't say how the damage roll it's applied to is chosen, so it's up to the caster. That said, the way Elemental Affinity is phrased suggests that it's meant to provide a boost to the damage of that element type.



            The ice knife spell deals only (1d10) piercing damage on initial hit. It's only the subsequent explosion of ice that deals the (2d6) cold damage. As such, it seems likely that the feature is intended to boost that cold damage, given that the feature only activates because you're dealing the cold damage.



            If, however, you cast a spell that dealt the damage type associated with your dragon ancestor on multiple instances - such as a concentration spell like call lightning, assuming your dragon ancestor is blue/bronze (associated with lightning damage) - then you'd get to choose which single damage roll you'd add your Charisma mod to. You wouldn't get the Charisma mod bonus every time you dealt damage with that casting of the spell; you'd get it just once per casting, but you could choose which damage roll to boost.






            share|improve this answer
















            • 1




              You should address the last part of the Q too: "Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage"
              – Szega
              1 hour ago












            up vote
            2
            down vote



            accepted







            up vote
            2
            down vote



            accepted






            You pick which (one) damage roll it applies to, but the wording suggests it'd apply to the "elemental" cold damage



            The Draconic Bloodline sorcerer's Elemental Affinity feature says (post-errata):




            Starting at 6th level, when you cast a spell that deals damage of the type associated with your draconic ancestry, you can add your Charisma modifier to one damage roll of that spell.




            The feature doesn't say how the damage roll it's applied to is chosen, so it's up to the caster. That said, the way Elemental Affinity is phrased suggests that it's meant to provide a boost to the damage of that element type.



            The ice knife spell deals only (1d10) piercing damage on initial hit. It's only the subsequent explosion of ice that deals the (2d6) cold damage. As such, it seems likely that the feature is intended to boost that cold damage, given that the feature only activates because you're dealing the cold damage.



            If, however, you cast a spell that dealt the damage type associated with your dragon ancestor on multiple instances - such as a concentration spell like call lightning, assuming your dragon ancestor is blue/bronze (associated with lightning damage) - then you'd get to choose which single damage roll you'd add your Charisma mod to. You wouldn't get the Charisma mod bonus every time you dealt damage with that casting of the spell; you'd get it just once per casting, but you could choose which damage roll to boost.






            share|improve this answer












            You pick which (one) damage roll it applies to, but the wording suggests it'd apply to the "elemental" cold damage



            The Draconic Bloodline sorcerer's Elemental Affinity feature says (post-errata):




            Starting at 6th level, when you cast a spell that deals damage of the type associated with your draconic ancestry, you can add your Charisma modifier to one damage roll of that spell.




            The feature doesn't say how the damage roll it's applied to is chosen, so it's up to the caster. That said, the way Elemental Affinity is phrased suggests that it's meant to provide a boost to the damage of that element type.



            The ice knife spell deals only (1d10) piercing damage on initial hit. It's only the subsequent explosion of ice that deals the (2d6) cold damage. As such, it seems likely that the feature is intended to boost that cold damage, given that the feature only activates because you're dealing the cold damage.



            If, however, you cast a spell that dealt the damage type associated with your dragon ancestor on multiple instances - such as a concentration spell like call lightning, assuming your dragon ancestor is blue/bronze (associated with lightning damage) - then you'd get to choose which single damage roll you'd add your Charisma mod to. You wouldn't get the Charisma mod bonus every time you dealt damage with that casting of the spell; you'd get it just once per casting, but you could choose which damage roll to boost.







            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered 1 hour ago









            V2Blast

            17.2k245108




            17.2k245108







            • 1




              You should address the last part of the Q too: "Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage"
              – Szega
              1 hour ago












            • 1




              You should address the last part of the Q too: "Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage"
              – Szega
              1 hour ago







            1




            1




            You should address the last part of the Q too: "Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage"
            – Szega
            1 hour ago




            You should address the last part of the Q too: "Do all enemies caught by the cold damage take the additional damage"
            – Szega
            1 hour ago












            up vote
            0
            down vote













            To address your last question, the relevant rule from the Basic Rules is under “Damage Rolls”, in the “Damage and Healing” section of Chapter 9: Combat:




            If a spell or other effect deals damage to more than one target at the same time, roll the damage once for all of them. For example, when a wizard casts fireball or a cleric casts flame strike, the spell's damage is rolled once for all creatures caught in the blast.




            So in the case of Ice Knife, if you choose to apply the bonus to the 2d6 cold damage roll, the extra damage will apply to all creatures in range.



            Note that you add the modifier to the roll before halving the damage, if the creature succeeds on their saving throw or has resistance.






            share|improve this answer
























              up vote
              0
              down vote













              To address your last question, the relevant rule from the Basic Rules is under “Damage Rolls”, in the “Damage and Healing” section of Chapter 9: Combat:




              If a spell or other effect deals damage to more than one target at the same time, roll the damage once for all of them. For example, when a wizard casts fireball or a cleric casts flame strike, the spell's damage is rolled once for all creatures caught in the blast.




              So in the case of Ice Knife, if you choose to apply the bonus to the 2d6 cold damage roll, the extra damage will apply to all creatures in range.



              Note that you add the modifier to the roll before halving the damage, if the creature succeeds on their saving throw or has resistance.






              share|improve this answer






















                up vote
                0
                down vote










                up vote
                0
                down vote









                To address your last question, the relevant rule from the Basic Rules is under “Damage Rolls”, in the “Damage and Healing” section of Chapter 9: Combat:




                If a spell or other effect deals damage to more than one target at the same time, roll the damage once for all of them. For example, when a wizard casts fireball or a cleric casts flame strike, the spell's damage is rolled once for all creatures caught in the blast.




                So in the case of Ice Knife, if you choose to apply the bonus to the 2d6 cold damage roll, the extra damage will apply to all creatures in range.



                Note that you add the modifier to the roll before halving the damage, if the creature succeeds on their saving throw or has resistance.






                share|improve this answer












                To address your last question, the relevant rule from the Basic Rules is under “Damage Rolls”, in the “Damage and Healing” section of Chapter 9: Combat:




                If a spell or other effect deals damage to more than one target at the same time, roll the damage once for all of them. For example, when a wizard casts fireball or a cleric casts flame strike, the spell's damage is rolled once for all creatures caught in the blast.




                So in the case of Ice Knife, if you choose to apply the bonus to the 2d6 cold damage roll, the extra damage will apply to all creatures in range.



                Note that you add the modifier to the roll before halving the damage, if the creature succeeds on their saving throw or has resistance.







                share|improve this answer












                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer










                answered 10 mins ago









                Guybrush McKenzie

                654110




                654110




















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