Fog Cloud vs Obscurring mist

[Chaosprism]

Fog Cloud
Conjuration (Creation)
Level: Drd 2, Sor/Wiz 2, Water 2
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft. level)
Effect: Fog spreads in 20-ft. radius, 20 ft. high
Duration: 10 min./level
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

A bank of fog billows out from the point you designate. The fog obscures all sight, including darkvision, beyond 5 feet. A creature within 5 feet has concealment (attacks have a 20% miss chance). Creatures farther away have total concealment (50% miss chance, and the attacker can’t use sight to locate the target).


The only 2 differences between this and obscurring mist ( a level 1 rather than level 2 spell) is that obscurring mist only appears around you. And it lasts 1 min/level.. not 10 /level


Another interesting point is that enemies within the cloud trying to fire RANGE missiles at targets outside the cloud (or vice versa) targets outside the cloud trying to fire at allies inside the cloud get 50% miss (total concealment)

This is something either of these doesnt take into account.

This should probably also take into account ray spells and other line of sight spells. They too would get 50% miss chances.. when aimed at targets obscured by these spells. (though i'm not sure if this is an actual PnP rule) it just seems reasonable.
for DDO if the "miss chance" fires the spell will fire directly ahead (of the caster) instead of at the target. Thats how I would implement it.


Even if it wont affect spell targetting, I still want to see obscurring mist/fog cloud usable against enemy missile fire, which is their intended use. (50% miss), I'd love to be able to simply cast fog cloud on a row of archers raining death on me,and know that 50% of their shots will now miss because they cant see much in the pea soup
I guess the later conjuration clouds (sleet storm, cloud kill, acid fog) will also likely cause this too.

[BlackSmith]

The archer AI needs work too. Implenting that miss chance for obsure effect doing spells should not be that hard (they got displacement implented near correctly) but the archers need to stop shooting after their target gets behind a corner or he runs out of sight.

[Shaell]

Don't start to talk about AI,
DDO needs quite some AI fix'ing
just to be working averagely good,
to reflect the D20 3.5 rules and normal behaviour!