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Special Weather |
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As with other types
of severe precipitation discussed above,
a lightning storm presents no special hazard to
characters who take
simple precautions. However, the word
"simple" in this
context is an expression of complexity and no
necessarily a measure
of difficulty. For instance, it may not be at
all easy for a character
to find somewhere to hole up during a
lightning storm
if he's in the middle of a flat, featureless plain that
extends hundreds
of yards, or miles, in every direction.
The most important precaution to take against being struck by
lightning in the
outdoors is to get rid of, and get away from, any
metal armor, weapons,
and equipment. If time permits, it is a
good idea to scatter
individual pieces of metal (the parts of a suit
of armor, for instance)
over an AREA of at least several yards in diameter
to minimize the
possibility of lightning hitting the armor and
gear. Heaping everything
up in a pile for easier access later is
asking for trouble,
especially if the top of the pile is higher than
any surrounding
terrain.
Second, if solid cover is not available, get as low as possible,
either by dropping
flat on the ground or lying in a ditch or depression.
Lightning is not
immediately absorbed into the ground after
it hits; the electrical
force may travel some distance (up to several
hundred yards, if
the stroke is very powerful) along the ground
before dissapating,
and slong its route it will seek out gullies, ruts,
and other such low
spots. Thus, someone lying in a ditch is not
entirely safe, but
this course of action is still better than presenting
oneself as a TARGET
above ground level. (Contrary to popular
belief, lightning
does not travel from the clouds to the ground but
rather in the opposite
direction; even so, we tend to speak of lightning
"hitting the ground"
because of the visual impression created
when a strike occurs.)
Even an apparently safe place, such as a rock overhang, is not
necessarily the
best place to be. If lightning strikes on a ridge
above the overhang,
it may travel downward into the enclosure
as described above.
Still, an alcove of this sort is much more
preferable than
a more exposed position.
Taking cover under
a lone tree is not a good course of action at
all; if the tree
is taller than the surrounding terrain, it is a prime target
for lightning -
and even if the electrical force of the lightning
stroke does not
travel down through the tree, a character is still
vulnerable to damage
from falling debris (at the DM’s discretion)
if the tree is hit.
Standing beneath
a thick cover of trees of equal height is perhaps
the best precaution
one can take against lightning in the
outdoors when no
better cover is available. Of course, if an enclosed
structure is within
running distance, that is the place to
head for. If lightning
hits the structure, the electrical charge will
ground itself through
the roof and walls. A structure with an
earthen floor is
the safest of all, since the ground provides additional
insulation against
any electricity that may leak through the
structure.
The chance of a character
being struck by lightning is a very
small one, even
considering the possibility of normal foolish behavior,
such as standing
out in the open while wearing a suit of
plate mail. In contrast,
abnormal foolish behavior is rushing to the
only tall tree in
sight, climbing to the top, and thrusting your sword
toward the heavens.
The suggestions that follow do not take abnormal
behavior into account;
the Dungeon Master is free to arbitrate
such occurrences,
and it is strongly recommended that if a
character voluntarily
and knowingly engages in such behavior,
he be given exactly
what he appears to want -the jolt to end all
dolts.
Below, in order from
least dangerous to most dangerous, are
the general circumstances
in which a character could conceivably
be struck by lightning.
The list is not exhaustive, and the
Dungeon Master may
extrapolate from it to account for circumstances
that are not specifically
mentioned. The exact chance of
lightning hitting
a character is left up to the Dungeon Master, but
this list does offer
relative rankings, using 1 to represent the
smallest chance.
In all cases except the last, this list assumes
that the character
has divested himself of armor and other large
items of metal and
has taken the best available opportunity to
protect himself.
1: Inside a solid,
nonmetallic structure and not touching the
structure itself.
(If someone is sitting or leaning against the side of
the structure, treat
this as a relative chance of 10.)
5: Protected beneath
or within a natural shelter that is not the
highest point on
nonfeatureless terrain, or a shelter that is expansive
enough to absorb
the force of the lightning (under a large
rock overhang; beneath
a thick grove of equally tall trees).
15: Partially protected
on featureless terrain (lying in a ditch in
the middle of a
field, or at the bottom of a gently sloping hill).
30: Scantily protected
beneath a large object in the middle of
otherwise featureless
terrain (standing or lying under a big tree in
a field).
50: Unprotected
on featureless terrain (standing, sitting or lying
in the middle of
a field).
100: Unprotected,
and asking for it, on featureless terrain
(standing fully
armored in the middle of a field).
The damage that
can be suffered from a lightning strike extends
through a wide range
of possibilities. A character who has
taken no precautions
to prevent injury will be killed on a 4 in 6
chance, and if he
doesn’t die outright he will lose 40-90% of his
maximum total hit
points (which may still result in death if the
character was not
at or near full hit points to begin with). A character
who has taken the
best precautions available to him and
still gets hit will
be killed on a 2 in 6 chance, and otherwise will
lose 10-60% of his
current hit points. As with the rules concerning
the chance of being
hit, the DM is free to adjust
these figures in
any way he sees fit.
