DFRPG Spell Charts

[sjmdw45]

Originally Posted by Balor Patch

Dehydrate and Frostbite are Regular spells not Melee and, this is what makes them awesome, don't do Damage -- they do Injury. So hitting the skull isn't a thing but neither is Diffuse.

You don't get a damage multiplier for skull injury, but the spell says you can choose which body part to injure:

"Cast from a distance, it affects the whole victim; cast by touch, harm is limited to the part touched. Armor doesn’t protect!"

Frostbite and Dehydrate both have this language. It's unclear what mechanics are involved in touching an opponent while casting a regular spell, but it's clear at least that you can disable a limb or extremity by injuring it, and of course major injury to the skull imposes a -10 penalty on knockdown rolls.

If the GM rules that an attack/defense roll is required, Scouts and Martial Artists will have an advantage over wizards with these two spells. Edit: on second thought, I guess it's not much of an advantage, because the wizard could just cast a spell like Agonize, Tickle, or Sleep that also disables the enemy on a failed HT quick contest--the only advantage the scout hypothetically gains is that Dehydrate/Frostbite is cheaper and potentially knocks them unconscious for longer.

The Sound Jet synergy is still pretty awesome, and Invisibility also pays greater dividends for a warrior than a wizard. (Instead of just a runaround attack, you'll get a true rear attack, with all of your Extra Attacks.)