What are the requirements for sustaining a zone?

Question

I am playing a new character that uses a lot of sustained zones, and I'd like to understand exactly how they work. In the compendium for "Sustained Durations" the only restriction it lists is:

The creature can sustain a particular effect only once per round and for no more than 5 minutes. During that time, the creature cannot take a short or an extended rest.

Other than the obvious requirement of being able to spend the required action (e.g. minor action for a sustain minor), are there other requirements? Do I need to be within some range of the zone? Do I need to have line of sight/effect to the zone?

Answer 1

It depends on whether you can move the zone.

The only requirements for sustaining a zone are that you 1) spend the required action every round (unless you use an ability to eliminate this requirement, such as Mordenkainen's Lucubration), and 2) you don't take a rest of any kind.

Note that there is 1 additional requirement for movable zones. From page 121 of the Rules Compendium:

Movable Zones: If the power used to create a zone allows it to be moved, it's a movable zone. At the end of the creator's turn, a movable zone ends if the creator doesn't have line of effect to at least 1 square of the zone or if the creator isn't within range (using the power's range) of at least 1 square of the zone. A zone can't be moved through blocking terrain.

If the zone cannot be moved then the line of effect & range limitations do not apply.