MNblockhead
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A player in my current campaign is playing a Ghostwise Halfling and wants to know if the person being communicated with would know from whom the telepathic messages are coming from and can you changes the "sound" and volume of the telepathic voice transmitted? E.g. can you telepathically yell or whisper? Can you attempt to disguise your telepathic voice to make the person you are communicating with not know it is you? E.g. use a woman's voice if the character is male, etc.
I am inclined to rule that Silent Speech works like telepathy spell, except that it is limited to 30 feet and can only transmitted speech (not images and sounds). But I would rule that the target does not recognize the user of deep speech unless they "recognize" the voice. In other words, unlike the much more powerful telepathy spell or monster ability (as described in the MM), Silent Speech works just like speech, except it take place in your head. It seems like the Ghostwise Halfling should be allowed to make a performance and deception check to attempt to trick the person into thinking the speech is from someone else, or just hide that fact that it is from the halfling.
Do you agree?
The Ghostwise Halfling Silent Speech ability reads as follows:
The telepathy spell in the PHB reads:
The telepathy description in the Monster Manual reads:
I am inclined to rule that Silent Speech works like telepathy spell, except that it is limited to 30 feet and can only transmitted speech (not images and sounds). But I would rule that the target does not recognize the user of deep speech unless they "recognize" the voice. In other words, unlike the much more powerful telepathy spell or monster ability (as described in the MM), Silent Speech works just like speech, except it take place in your head. It seems like the Ghostwise Halfling should be allowed to make a performance and deception check to attempt to trick the person into thinking the speech is from someone else, or just hide that fact that it is from the halfling.
Do you agree?
The Ghostwise Halfling Silent Speech ability reads as follows:
Silent Speech
You can speak telepathically to any creature within 30 feet of you. The creature understands you only if the two of you share a language. You can speak telepathically in this way to one creature at a time.
The telepathy spell in the PHB reads:
[emphasis mine]You create a telepathic link between yourself and a willing creature with which you are familiar. The creature can be anywhere on the same plane of existence as you. The spell ends if you or the target are no longer on the same plane.
Until the spell ends, you and the target can instantaneously share words, images, sounds, and other sensory messages with one another through the link, and the target recognizes you as the creature it is communicating with. The spell enables a creature with an Intelligence score of at least 1 to understand the meaning of your words and take in the scope of any sensory messages you send to it.
The telepathy description in the Monster Manual reads:
Telepathy
Telepathy is a magical ability that allows a monster to communicate mentally with another creature within a specified range. The contacted creature doesn’t need to share a language with the monster to communicate in this way with it, but it must be able to understand at least one language. A creature without telepathy can receive and respond to telepathic messages but can’t initiate or terminate a telepathic conversation.
A telepathic monster doesn’t need to see a contacted creature and can end the telepathic contact at any time. The contact is broken as soon as the two creatures are no longer within range of each other or if the telepathic monster contacts a different creature within range. A telepathic monster can initiate or terminate a telepathic conversation without using an action, but while the monster is incapacitated, it can’t initiate telepathic contact, and any current contact is terminated.
A creature within the area of an antimagic field or in any other location where magic doesn’t function can’t send or receive telepathic messages.