[RPG] Does breaking the actual glyph trigger the effect of a Glyph of Warding

dnd-5espellstraps

The Glyph of Warding spell description (PHB p.245) states that:

If you choose a surface, the glyph can cover an area of the surface no larger than 10 feet in diameter. If you choose an object, that object must remain in its place; if the object is moved more than 10 feet from where you cast this spell, the glyph is broken, and the spell ends without being triggered.

The glyph is nearly invisible and requires a successful Intelligence (Investigation) check against your spell save DC to be found. You decide what triggers the glyph when you cast the spell.

There is nothing in the spell description that says what happens if someone physically breaks the glyph, say by snapping the object in half or scratching the surface the glyph is on when that event is not covered by the caster's definition of the trigger. Is the effect triggered or does the magic end without being triggered? Or something else?

While my feeling is that the spirit of the spell is that the effect is released as if it was triggered (otherwise it is too easy to disable and is inconsistent with fantasy tropes about magical Symbols), I want to know if there is there anything official written that answers the question: does breaking the actual glyph trigger the effect of a Glyph of Warding?

Specifically, I am looking for official "default behaviour" when the triggers on the glyph itself do not include breaking the glyph.

As an extreme example to test answers by, what if the object was totally disintegrated? "The glyph is nearly invisible" which means it is just visible, so if the object it was inscribed on has totally gone what happens to the glyph?

Best Answer

The spell does say what happens.

...if the object is moved more than 10 feet from where you cast this spell, the glyph is broken, and the spell ends without being triggered...

I would apply this to breaking the object in half or scratching the glyph. As for it it being too easy to disable, keep in mind the glyph is nearly invisible. You're not going to spot it just walking past. You have to be looking for it, or at least investigating the area. It's not going to be easily found.

There's also the idea that you can set one of the triggers to be if the glyph is tampered with so it does go off if someone tries to disable the glyph.