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Wall of Force discusses what happens when it goes through a creature's space:

If the wall cuts through a creature’s space when it appears, the creature is pushed to one side of the wall (your choice which side).

...and I assume similar logic can be applied to small/medium sized objects such as chairs that can be moved.

But what about objects that are not a creature, or a single creature, and aren't particularly mobile?

For example:

a) An enemy is hanging from a rope. Mage casts a horizontal Wall of Force that "cuts" through the rope.

b) A Chain Devil has grappled the fighter from 10' away with its Chain attack that has 10' reach. Mage casts Wall of Force between them as part of a hemisphere, hoping to cut the chain and trap the devil.

If the object was a stone wall, I think most would agree that the stone wall stops the Wall of Force as the panels wouldn't be contiguous or the sphere wouldn't be able to expand in a direct line from its point of origin.

Does something as thing as a rope or chain have a similar effect?

Could the area of a Wall of Force be greatly reduced just by having streamers hanging from the ceiling, or standing in a forest with a bunch of tall trees?

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You'll have to ask your DM

The rules for wall of force don't specify what happens if it bisects an object; only how it influences creatures. When the rules on something aren't clear, it is up to the DM how to adjudicate the situation.

After all, the foundational rule for D&D is as follows:

  1. The DM describes the environment.

  2. The players describe what they want to do.

  3. The DM narrates the results of the adventurers’ actions.

If a player describes an action that doesn't have established rules (in this case, casting wall of force to bisect an object), it is up to the DM to narrate the results.

Past editions

One thing of note is that in past editions, the spell would fail if an object were in the way. Here is the relevant line from AD&D 2e:

The wall of force must be continuous and unbroken when formed; if its surface is broken by any object or creature, the spell fails

...and from 3.xe:

If [the wall's] surface is broken by any object or creature, the spell fails.

The 5e version of the spell, however, lacks this clause. That being said, a DM could rule this way, in which case the streamer technique could definitely work.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ I am the DM. :-) I'm looking for more specific responses though. Eg. "there's nothing RAW, but here are some relevant references from past editions or other answers or Crawford tweets" \$\endgroup\$
    – M. Vienneau
    Commented Oct 29, 2020 at 20:39
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    \$\begingroup\$ @M.Vienneau Okay; I'll add some more context, but just so you know; idea generation stuff is out-of-scope for this site. I try to avoid making recommendations that aren't back by experience or evidence. That being said, I can add some stuff. \$\endgroup\$
    – David Coffron
    Commented Oct 29, 2020 at 20:41
  • \$\begingroup\$ To be fair, I was also checking if there was anything obvious that I missed, because the question seems like one that would come up. So you did reassure me that I wasn't just thinking strangely about a question with an obvious answer. \$\endgroup\$
    – M. Vienneau
    Commented Oct 30, 2020 at 1:24

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