D&D General Trickster cleric duplicity

[wicked cool]

What exactly can I do with duplicity ability and or whats reasonable to ask from the dm on this

How have you used it?

Can the duplicate do its own thing? Meaning if I’m running away can I have pretend it’s sitting a table or have it’s arms crossed like a guard?

 

[UngeheuerLich]

What exactly can I do with duplicity ability and or whats reasonable to ask from the dm on this

How have you used it?

Can the duplicate do its own thing? Meaning if I’m running away can I have pretend it’s sitting a table or have it’s arms crossed like a guard?

It says it mimicks your actions. So I'd say it is very limited in what it can do. Otherwise it would be way too strong actually.

 

[bloodtide]

You can do the Ye Old Loki Thing: Hide and then move the image over to be next to a cliff or trap. Then have dumb foes fall for it.

If your hidden, you can move it around and distract foes.....even better if you make the illusion 'look for something".

It can provide that "look there he is" bit.....where people see the illusion and run after it.....but around the corner it's gone....then they have to search for it.

I can make you look like your not alone.

 

[aco175]

It looks like you get advantage on attacks, and if you are part rogue you would get sneak attack.

 

[wicked cool]

So if you were with a rogue would that rogue get a sneak attack?

 

[Sorinth]

The main use case is to cast spells, especially touch spells while staying far back in a safer location.

 

[wicked cool]

So you can cast a spell through the duplicate?

 

[EzekielRaiden]

So if you were with a rogue would that rogue get a sneak attack?

No. The text says you have advantage. If it applied to allies, it would be worded to refer to you and your allies, e.g. "When both you and your illusion, or one or more of your allies and your illusion, are within 5 feet of a creature that can see the illusion, you and any such allies have advantage against that creature, given..." etc. As it is not worded so, we can pretty reasonably conclude it's done.

As for what exactly the illusion does, that seems to be up to GM interpretation. It "mimics your gestures", but you can also order it to move--it would be pretty useless as an illusion if that order didn't include illusory running that you, yourself, didn't have to do. That implies the illusion can do things you aren't personally doing/saying--but it specifies nothing further, meaning it's up to GM adjudication.

In my group, Hussar has been a pretty open-minded GM (as he is with most things!) with our Trickery Cleric. It hasn't been insanely powerful, but it has proven useful. Usually, enemies interact with the illusion soon enough to reveal its nature--but then that creates the new opportunity, of swapping places with it seamlessly so now they ignore you and go after your illusion. Overall, it's not the most useful thing ever made, but it has clear uses, especially when a fight breaks out in a large room where we might move around inside it, but we aren't moving away from it.