Surfaces

A Fire surface.

Surfaces are a type of area.

Overview

A surface is a flat layer of some type of substance that covers the ground, and has a unique effect when a creature steps on it. Many abilities and magical effects can create a surface, and they can sometimes be removed or converted into different surfaces with other elements or substances. The effects of surfaces can be avoided with abilities such as Fly.

The party can Dip their weapons into Fire and Hellfire surfaces to receive  Dipped in Fire, and Simple Toxin surfaces to receive  Dipped in Poison.

Ice, Lava and Web surfaces also impose  Difficult Terrain, which doubles the cost of moving while on the surface.

Types of surfaces

Surface	Effects
Acid	Acid -  Armour Class reduced by 2
Alcohol	Turns into a Fire surface if exposed to Fire damage, or Ice surface if exposed to Cold
Ash
Blood	Turns into Ice surface if exposed to Cold damage
Black Tentacles	Black Tentacles - Take 3d6⁠⁠Bludgeoning damage per turn.  Difficult Terrain
Caustic Brine	Caustic Brine - Take 1d4⁠⁠Acid damage per turn.
Electrified Water	Electrocuted - Take 1d4⁠⁠Lightning damage per turn.
Fire	Burning - Take 1d4⁠⁠Fire damage per turn.  Dippable: 1d4 Fire
Grease	Prone  Difficult Terrain
Hellfire	Roiling Hellfire - Take 6d6⁠⁠Fire damage per turn.  Dippable: 1d4 Fire
Holy Fire	Holy Fire - Take 1d4⁠⁠Radiant damage per turn.
Ice	Turns into Water surface if exposed to Fire damage  Prone  Difficult Terrain
Lava	Melting - Take 10d6⁠⁠Fire damage per turn.  Difficult Terrain
Mind Flayer Blood	Turns into Ice surface if exposed to Cold damage
Mud	Difficult Terrain
Mysterious Liquid	Explodes when lit by Fire damage, creating a Fire surface
Oil	Explodes when lit by Fire damage, creating a Fire surface
Plant Growth	Plant Growth - Quarters movement speed.
Purple Worm Poison	Purple Worm Toxin - Take 1d10⁠⁠Poison damage per turn.
Serpent Venom	Serpent Fang Toxin - Take 1d6⁠⁠Poison damage per turn.
Sewage	Prone  Difficult Terrain
Shadow-Cursed Vines	Shadow-Cursed Vines - Can't move and takes 1d4⁠⁠Necrotic per turn.  Difficult Terrain: Vines
Simple Toxin	Deals 1d4⁠⁠Poison damage each round.  Dippable: 1d4 Poison
Smokepowder	Explodes when lit by Fire damage, creating a Fire surface and dealing 2d6⁠⁠Fire + 2d6⁠⁠Force damage
Spikes	Takes 2d4⁠⁠Piercing for every ⁠1.5 m / 5 ft travelled.  Difficult Terrain
Twisting Vines	Entangled  Difficult Terrain
Unstable Blood	Explodes when lit by Fire damage, creating a Fire surface
Water	Turns into Electrified water surface if exposed to Lightning damage Turns into Ice surface if exposed to Cold damage Turns into Steam Cloud if exposed to Fire damage  Dippable: Removes dipped fire or poison damage from other surfaces
Web	Enwebbed  Difficult Terrain
Wyvern Poison	Wyvern Toxin - Take 1d8⁠⁠Poison per turn.

Bugs

• If a creature is already on the surface, creating a new surface does not affect the creature. For example, if throwing water on a creature and casting  Evard's Black Tentacles, the creature is not affected by the tentacles, unless it moves around on its turn. This includes blood, which means if using an  Arrow of Acid on creature, this creature does not have the  Acid condition, because the weapon damage made it spill blood first and then the Acid surface is created.^[verify]

See Also

• Clouds