Negative Energy Resistance


Rules Questions

Liberty's Edge

How would the resistance 5 to negative energy damage from the Aasimar alternate racial trait "Deathless Spirit" interact with the Str damage from a shadow's touch attack?

The 1d6 Str damage that the shadow's touch does is a negative energy effect, and it is called damage. I couldn't find anywhere in the Energy Resistance rules where it specifies hit point damage. It just says damage.


RAW it would seem to apply.

Based on various FAQs which do not allow things like sneak attack to add on to ability damage I'd personally rule that resistances apply to damage, not ability damage. If you were immune to negative energy effects that would be different.

While this is not really a rules answer: I've never seen nor heard of anyone applying DR to normal ability damage, nor would I do so. So resistances also would not apply to damage caused by effects of their type.


Damage and Ability Damage are not overlapping terms, so no. If you were immune to negative energy effects, like most Undead, you'd be fine. But not energy resistance.


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As above, there are different types of "damage". Resistance applies to hit point damage (and for negative energy this would probably most commonly be from channel negative energy). A barbarian's DR/- doesn't prevent ability damage either.

If it prevents ability damage, it would say it does in the write up.

Sovereign Court

It really isn't all that great unless you are in a particular campaign where you think you are likely to get hit with lots negative channeling clerics.

I took it just cause it fits my theme. But I don't expect it to make all that much difference to my characters.


Some choices are sub optimal, doesn't mean they shouldn't exist or don't have their place. It just means you don't take them unless you have a reason (even if it is flavor).

Sovereign Court

Keep in mind you also get +2 to a bunch of saves and don't lose hitpoints for negative levels.

I took it for my life oracle of Sarenrae and so far it has come in handy more than the traditional asimaar resistances would have. But yeah, mainly I took it for flavor. :)


There's negative energy resistance? I know another thread that's been talking about how to safely handle a vicious weapon's 1d6 blowback. Resisting 5 damage of that sounds like something you'd sell (hopefully IC only) relatives for.


Sadly Vicious is not negative energy.


Vicious wrote:
When a vicious weapon strikes an opponent, it creates a flash of disruptive energy that resonates between the opponent and the wielder. This energy deals an extra 2d6 points of damage to the opponent and 1d6 points of damage to the wielder.

To back up the above post.

Ennervate is used to create the weapon, but that doesn't translate into the extra damage being negative energy.


Skylancer4 wrote:
As above, there are different types of "damage". Resistance applies to hit point damage

Actually energy resistance specifies it applies to 'damage', not a specific type of damage:

Bestiary wrote:
Resistance (Ex) A creature with this special quality ignores some damage of the indicated type each time it takes damage of that kind (commonly acid, cold, electricity, or fire). The entry indicates the amount and type of damage ignored.

Personally I think it should only apply to hit-point damage, and if this were the homebrew forum I'd suggest changing it to exclude ability damage. I'd make it something like

My house rule wrote:
Resistance (Ex) A creature with this special quality ignores some hit-point damage of the indicated type each time it takes hit-point damage of that kind (commonly acid, cold, electricity, or fire). The entry indicates the amount and type of damage ignored.

But we aren't in the homebrew forum, so we have to go with what it actually does.


Unnecessary, since "damage" and "ability damage" are entirely independent things. Ability damage is no more a subset of damage than ability drain is.

Since we have to go by what it actually does, we can safely note that Negative Energy Resistance does not stop the ability damage of a Shadow.


137ben wrote:
Skylancer4 wrote:
As above, there are different types of "damage". Resistance applies to hit point damage

Actually energy resistance specifies it applies to 'damage', not a specific type of damage:

Bestiary wrote:
Resistance (Ex) A creature with this special quality ignores some damage of the indicated type each time it takes damage of that kind (commonly acid, cold, electricity, or fire). The entry indicates the amount and type of damage ignored.

Personally I think it should only apply to hit-point damage, and if this were the homebrew forum I'd suggest changing it to exclude ability damage. I'd make it something like

My house rule wrote:
Resistance (Ex) A creature with this special quality ignores some hit-point damage of the indicated type each time it takes hit-point damage of that kind (commonly acid, cold, electricity, or fire). The entry indicates the amount and type of damage ignored.
But we aren't in the homebrew forum, so we have to go with what it actually does.

Over complicating the issue and completely irrelevant as the weapon doesn't state it is a particular energy type, so for resistance to work a creature would need a "blanket" energy resistance to ALL energy.

Functionally and mechanically resistance stops hit point damage. As I can't think of any other effect that in the whole game that is stopped by resistance. Not saying there might not be something in the future, but there isn't anything now.

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