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The antimagic field spell says that summoned creatures will temporally vanish until the creature is out of the antimagic field, but would an elemental native to the current plane vanish?

As an example, the UA Mystic can get psionic disciplines that create elementals.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ While the question is a dupe, note that the answer on that question does not cover what is asked here. \$\endgroup\$
    – Szega
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 8:48
  • \$\begingroup\$ I don't see how this is a duplicate at all. This is asking about things not summoned by magic and one answer (Which I like) is very different. \$\endgroup\$
    – SeriousBri
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 10:58
  • \$\begingroup\$ While this question could be within the scope of the other one, the one answer to that question doesn't address the case under discussion here. Posting any if the answers here as answers to the general question would be inappropriate because, well, they aren't. So it's functionally not a dupe. \$\endgroup\$
    – Mark Wells
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 14:07
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    \$\begingroup\$ @MarkWells Identical questions are still identical. This is a subset of that one and I'll probably move my answer into that so that it can be complete. In the comments to one of the answers there, this scenario is brought up and had the answerer addressed it, then we'd have both a duplicate question and answer. But a question not having a complete answer doesn't mean that it's not a duplicate- it means we need a better answer. \$\endgroup\$
    – NotArch
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 14:14

2 Answers 2

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No, they will stay

As you've said, antimagic field (PHB, 213) only affects creatures summoned or created by magic:

Creatures and Objects. A creature or object summoned or created by magic temporarily winks out of existence in the sphere. Such a creature instantly reappears once the space the creature occupied is no longer within the sphere.

Your run-of-the-mill elemental creature type is just a creature in the same way a humanoid, fiend, fey, construct are all just creatures. They would remain while inside an antimagic field.

But what if the creature type is created by magic?

As Gandalfmeansme points out, the physical form for elementals is created by the power of magic. What that means, we don't really know - but in general neither AMF or monster descriptions discuss how they'd interact with standard creatures types.

I've generally assumed creatures to be creatures unless brought in via other means like conjuring and that they just act as creatures. And while AMF is a high level spell, giving it the abilities of banishment seems a bridge too far for me on standard creature types.

Otherwise, we've got to create a system of what creature types are created by magic and how they'd interact. No such description is currently available, which suggests that AMF isn't supposed to interact directly with standard creature types.

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    \$\begingroup\$ The "or created" seems like a pretty big loophole here. Do we know whether elementals are, in general, created by magic? \$\endgroup\$
    – Mark Wells
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 1:25
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MarkWells As this answer states, the sage advice on this is that if the spells duration is instanteneous the creature will stay, if the spell has a duration the creature will vanish. \$\endgroup\$
    – eirikdaude
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 7:41
  • \$\begingroup\$ @eirikdaude That's not quite what Antimagic Field says, but even then, we know very little about the magic that might be involved in creating elementals. \$\endgroup\$
    – Mark Wells
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 14:02
  • \$\begingroup\$ Per the Sage Advice Compendium (see "Is the breath weapon of a dragon magical?"), I'm pretty sure actual elementals are focused into their forms by "the background magic" of the universe, not the kind of magic that is considered by game mechanics. \$\endgroup\$
    – V2Blast
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 19:42
  • \$\begingroup\$ @V2Blast Yeah, I saw several tweets/SA compendium bits that I considered referencing, but I'm doing my darndest not to use those anymore :) I think my answer does well "enough" covering the issue of magic formation and the vast increase spell power it would give if it did. \$\endgroup\$
    – NotArch
    Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 19:53
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They will remain, but have no defined physical form

Elementals aren't inherently the product of magic: they exist before a spell is cast, and presumably will exist after its effects fade. However, the embodied form of an element we think of is different from the natural form of elementals. Note the following statement on elementals on page 123 of the Monster Manual (bold added)

On its home plane, an elemental is a bodiless life force. Its dim consciousness manifests as a physical shape only when focused by the power of magic.

Although the existence of elementals is not inherently magical, the familiar form they take on that turns them into creatures whose stat blocks are listed in various books are exclusively the product of some magic or another.

On its own native plane, an elemental isn't a creature summoned by magic. However, the rules on antimagic field state (bold added):

A creature or object summoned or created by magic temporarily winks out of existence in the sphere. Such a creature instantly reappears once the space the creature occupied is no longer within the sphere.

The spirit of the elemental is not created by magic, but the physical form that makes it a defined creature (e.g. an Earth Elemental, an Invisible Stalker, etc.) is created by magic. Thus, that familiar creature will cease to exist in its current form while it is within the antimagic field. Once the field has moved away or ended, the elemental's disembodied spirit will once again form into a physical creature.

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