[RPG] What happens when Water Breathing is dispelled underwater

dnd-3.5epathfinder-1espells

Suppose someone has the Water Breathing spell cast on them and goes underwater. What happens if Water Breathing gets dispelled, in either D&D 3.5e or Pathfinder?

  1. Would he drown without being able to hold his breath since he was using Water Breathing to breathe?

  2. Would he be able to take a breath and then try to go back to the surface to get some air?

In the wording of the spell it only says this:

The transmuted creatures can breathe water freely. Divide the duration evenly among all the creatures you touch.

The spell does not make creatures unable to breathe air.

So how would you handle this situation?

Best Answer

I'm neither biologist, swim instructor, nor magician, but according to the rules, a creature who's ability to breathe underwater is negated while that creature is underwater should be allowed to hold his breath instead of immediately starting to drown.

From the SRD:

Drowning
Any character can hold her breath for a number of rounds equal to twice her Constitution score. After this period of time, the character must make a DC 10 Constitution check every round in order to continue holding her breath. Each round, the DC increases by 1. See also: Swim skill description.

When the character finally fails her Constitution check, she begins to drown. In the first round, she falls unconscious (0 hp). In the following round, she drops to -1 hit points and is dying. In the third round, she drowns.

A killer DM might rule that a creature who is unexpectedly put in a situation wherein the creature must breathe water starts to drown immediately as the creature's had no chance to hold its breath, but that's more an issue with the DM than the rules. If you've such a DM, I recommend purchasing a portable hole (DMG 264) (20,000 gp; 0 lbs.), filling it with water, and bull rushing foes into it while yelling, "Surprise!"