[RPG] Can the Meld Into Stone spell be cast on someone else

dnd-5espellstargeting

I've been puzzled by the usefulness of the spell Meld Into Stone, to a point where I've wondered if it can be cast on someone else other than the caster. The description for the spell seems to conflict with its range. The description states:

You step into a stone object or surface large enough to fully contain your body, melding yourself and all the equipment you carry with the stone for the duration. Using your movement, you step into the stone at a point you can touch. Nothing of your presence remains visible or otherwise detectable by nonmagical senses. (my emphasis)

So on one hand, given all the references to "you" and "your", it seems that the spell is only for the caster. But on the other hand, spells that only affect the caster typically have a range of "Self" whereas Meld into Stone has a range of "Touch". It could be argued that the touch refers to the stone being touched, but could it also mean a target we touch? Can Meld into Stone be cast on someone else other than the caster?

Best Answer

No. Meld into stone targets the stone, and allows the caster to meld into it.

The range of the meld into stone spell is listed as "Touch".

The description states, in part:

You step into a stone object or surface large enough to fully contain your body, melding yourself and all the equipment you carry with the stone for the duration. Using your movement, you step into the stone at a point you can touch. Nothing of your presence remains visible or otherwise detectable by nonmagical senses.

As you can see, the entire spell description (which continues beyond this) repeatedly refers to "you", not "a creature" or "another creature". It unambiguously targets a stone object or surface and affects the caster; at no point can another creature be targeted by the spell.

This is supported by this unofficial tweet from January 2018 by rules designer Jeremy Crawford:

Hey! Question can you target an enemy with the spell Meld into Stone? Example: pushing them into a wall of a dungeon. If so how would you rule it?

Meld into Stone affects only the caster and the stone the caster touches. If a spell allows you to target others, it defines for you whom you can target.

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