How do you handle Gray Ooze damage to objects?

[Parzival]

The Gray Ooze entries in Moldvay, Mentzer and Allston are less than specific on this point, so it’s up to DM interpretation.

Since normal metal items (and presumably leather and wood items*) are destroyed “in 1 round,” does this mean there is a chance to interrupt the destruction?

Example: A fighter strikes a Gray Ooze with his sword. Since the sword will be destroyed “in 1 round,” does that mean it’s still around until the end of the next round, or is gone before that round begins, or only until the Melee phase, or is instantly gone? Could another character assist the fighter by immediately dousing the sword with water to wash away the acid before the round ends?
— Borden the Bludgeon smacks the ooze with his sword. Initiative passes now to Hoopy Hairnose, the halfling, who pours his waterskin over the sword, washing it off. Since the round hasn’t ended, does the sword survive?
(Will water wash away the acid?)

What about magical items, which are destroyed “in one turn.” Does that mean the item can be washed or wiped clean in that ten minute period, and be perfectly functional?

For that matter, if a blow kills an ooze, is the weapon still destroyed, or does the dead ooze no longer corrode anything?

As I said, wide open to interpretation.

*I note that AD&D, at least, states that oozes do not effect wood. I’m not sure what OD&D said on this, or if a Gray Ooze was an OD&D monster; I suspect it was, as it’s in S&W (which says it does NOT affect wood).

[captainjapan]

Hoopy Hairnose is using his turn to perform a different, non-combat, task than that which was stated. A saving throw can now be made for the weapon. Failing the throw, the weapon corrodes through and becomes useless, beginning the next melee round.

[Parzival]

Well, this came up recently, and I pretty much ignored it all, and had the ooze destroy the dagger that struck it virtually instantly. That may have been because I was annoyed that the ooze failed to hit his target (a fighter dolled up in brand new banded mail— oh, how I wanted to “erase” that suit and leave the fighter standing in his skivvies...). So I splooshed the dagger instead. And that was all I got, ‘cause the party wised up, retreated, and pelted the thing with rocks and arrows from a safe distance.
*grumble grumble grumble*

And here I had worried that a pack of 1st levels couldn’t handle the thing. Bah.

[Deleted]

Splash effects like this could always be a good application of the "missed missiles" grid, if you wanted to let the dice fairly adjudicate where it splashed and not arbitrarily hit the player's equipment next time.

[Parzival]

Feb 5, 2021 12:06:07 GMT -6 @ampleframework said:

Splash effects like this could always be a good application of the "missed missiles" grid, if you wanted to let the dice fairly adjudicate where it splashed and not arbitrarily hit the player's equipment next time.

Sorry, I wasn’t clear. I used “splooshed” as a made up word for dissolving the dagger. The dagger was actually used to stab the ooze, the only handheld weapon to strike it. So it did contact the ooze due to direct PC action, not a ruling on my part, and not the result of a splash.

though I like the idea of a potential splash effect from an ooze/slime/acid attack...

[Deleted]

Actually, come to think of it, I just had a major brain fart. I thought I remembered there being a chart in B/X for throwing oil or something and missing, but that's something I yanked from Basic Fantasy RPG and inserted into my custom B/X ref sheets because I liked it. I dunno. Your mileage may vary but I lean into the "let the dice decide" thing these days. I don't personally enjoy taking hard-earned things away from players, especially when they play smart, but if the Holy Dice determine that something is to be lost, so be it, and that little chart I mentioned is sometimes useful in that endeavor. 

Anyway - on the main topic - a Grey Ooze's acid eats away such materials in one full round, meaning if the Initiative rolls back over to the Ooze before an appropriate action is taken to save the item, it's eaten away (if hit). If the player whose item was hit or a buddy of that player does something appropriate with the equipment they have available, or maybe a spell, that might plausibly prevent this, I would definitely allow the item to be salvaged. After all, they used up their resources, including their turn in Initiative, to accomplish this. That's enough of a sacrifice IMO.

[Parzival]

No one thought to try and wash it off, so it ended up being a moot point. And the dwarf who wielded the dagger in the fight did so expecting it to be destroyed; it didn’t occur to him that it might be preserved. So while I should have offered time to save it, instead it served as a reminder of how deadly the foe was, prompting the missile attacks which finished the ooze off before it could strike again. Bit of a wimpy ooze, as it turned out. 3HD only gave it 18 HP, which is above average. 2 sling stones and 3 arrows (on top of the dagger strike) were more than enough to end its threat. They got worse treatment from some fire beetles than the ooze!