Question about ability score drain and damage...

[Doom]

If a creature is immune to ability score damage, would it also be immune to ability score drain? Is this different between 3.0 and 3.5?

[Winnah]

They are different effects. Most creatures immune to one (typically by not having a Constitution score) are immune to both, there are a few exceptions though.

I am unsure if there is a difference between 3.0 and 3.5

[Doom]

If the exceptions aren't specifically stated, does that mean the immunity carries over to both?

[Winnah]

It depends. If the immunity is a function of creature type or non-ability, it should be explicitly stated somewhere, probably in the back of the Monster Manual.

If the immunity is from a spell like Death Ward, then things get tricky. Such a spell will not protect you from ability damage or drain caused by poison, but it will protect you from damage or drain caused by a spell or undead creature.

I think there are a few options that provide immunity or resistance to Ability Damage, but not Drain, such as Strongheart Vest from MoI, but such options are usually pretty specific about how they function.

The Undead Type lists undead as being immune to Ability Drain but not Ability Damage. However, most (all?) undead lack a constitution score, which gives them immunity to both Damage and Drain.

For what it is worth, it is probably easier to assume that creatures immune to Ability Damage are also immune to Ability Drain. There are only a few edge cases where this is not the case, so it is not worth getting pedantic over.

[K]

It's a safe bet to assume that anything immune to ability damage was probably intended to also be immune to ability drain. It seems that many designers forget that the two abilities are not the same because there are many oversights where some monsters should be immune to both.

[The Adventurer's Almanac]

Man, this thread reminds me of how much I miss ability damage in 5e. Disadvantage can blow me good and hard.