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How a ****ing cantrip exterminates an entire school of magic. NO MORE OF THAT!
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<blockquote data-quote="Empirate" data-source="post: 5713226" data-attributes="member: 78958"><p>The thing is, Detect Magic is so necessary that making it a non-cantrip <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /><img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /><img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /><img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" />s with the whole party. It was a 1st level spell in AD&D, and that was a pain. Except for high-level play, you were almost always forced to fill a goodly amount of your first-level slots with Detect Magic. You hated that, but you needed the spell. In low-level play, this sucked majorly. In my book, it's a good thing that Detect Magic is a mere cantrip now. It also seems to make sense that the detection of magic in its most general form would be a cantrip known to everybody who can cast spells at all.</p><p></p><p>Now on to what the spell does: first of all, you only get a general idea that "something's magical". After concentrating for a few rounds, you can ascertain the number, location and strength of magical auras. But standing still and concentrating real hard will certainly give away that you're doing a detection sweep of the area. Anybody invisible or magically disguised should take their cue from that and move about a little - this is quite often a very good option, since it's rather easy to leave a 60' cone. Even a Silent Image can often be moved from the area of detection, since its own area is quite large. Other illusion spells are either not practically affected, like Mirror Image (you can't at the same time concentrate on Detect Magic, and do something with your newfound knowledge of which one is the real caster), or Simulacrum (for reasons already spelled out upthread).</p><p></p><p>Most of the time, the only real knowledge you gain from Detect Magic is the fact that, yes, there is an illusion spell working on the subject - if you manage to study them for the full three rounds and make you Spellcraft check. Now this might or might not be useful to you, since it doesn't tell you what illusion is being employed. Or, in the case of magical disguises, what the disguised person really looks like (maybe it's actually a Warforged with laser cannons for arms? Or maybe only the eye color is changed?). Occasionally, it will be obvious what's up once you know an illusion is being employed. At other times, it will keep you guessing (magically shrouded alignment? Magic item being concealed? Disguise? Not a real person at all?), merely providing a hint that guessing might be in order at all.</p><p></p><p>While the overall utility of Detect Magic is immense, it's far from a direct counter to the illusion school of magic. In fact, it may help from time to time (which is as it should be in my book), but it takes a lot of setup and just the right circumstances to work. What's more, it's easily foiled by counter-countermeasures like Nondetection or a simple <a href="http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0202.html" target="_blank">lead sheet</a>. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Empirate, post: 5713226, member: 78958"] The thing is, Detect Magic is so necessary that making it a non-cantrip :):):):)s with the whole party. It was a 1st level spell in AD&D, and that was a pain. Except for high-level play, you were almost always forced to fill a goodly amount of your first-level slots with Detect Magic. You hated that, but you needed the spell. In low-level play, this sucked majorly. In my book, it's a good thing that Detect Magic is a mere cantrip now. It also seems to make sense that the detection of magic in its most general form would be a cantrip known to everybody who can cast spells at all. Now on to what the spell does: first of all, you only get a general idea that "something's magical". After concentrating for a few rounds, you can ascertain the number, location and strength of magical auras. But standing still and concentrating real hard will certainly give away that you're doing a detection sweep of the area. Anybody invisible or magically disguised should take their cue from that and move about a little - this is quite often a very good option, since it's rather easy to leave a 60' cone. Even a Silent Image can often be moved from the area of detection, since its own area is quite large. Other illusion spells are either not practically affected, like Mirror Image (you can't at the same time concentrate on Detect Magic, and do something with your newfound knowledge of which one is the real caster), or Simulacrum (for reasons already spelled out upthread). Most of the time, the only real knowledge you gain from Detect Magic is the fact that, yes, there is an illusion spell working on the subject - if you manage to study them for the full three rounds and make you Spellcraft check. Now this might or might not be useful to you, since it doesn't tell you what illusion is being employed. Or, in the case of magical disguises, what the disguised person really looks like (maybe it's actually a Warforged with laser cannons for arms? Or maybe only the eye color is changed?). Occasionally, it will be obvious what's up once you know an illusion is being employed. At other times, it will keep you guessing (magically shrouded alignment? Magic item being concealed? Disguise? Not a real person at all?), merely providing a hint that guessing might be in order at all. While the overall utility of Detect Magic is immense, it's far from a direct counter to the illusion school of magic. In fact, it may help from time to time (which is as it should be in my book), but it takes a lot of setup and just the right circumstances to work. What's more, it's easily foiled by counter-countermeasures like Nondetection or a simple [URL="http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0202.html"]lead sheet[/URL]. :-) [/QUOTE]
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