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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jon Gilliam" data-source="post: 8038673" data-attributes="member: 6920404">No, this isn't a house rule - it's an interpretation of RAW based on the text of the rulebooks and what the designers have to say about it.  You haven't added any argument from a source here - you've just decided to resolve your cognitive dissonance by arguing your case by simply reasserting it.  Surprise is determined via Stealth versus passive Perception, in a procedure described mechanically in the PHB, and determining surprise in any other way is a house rule.  Disguises are therefore not relevant to surprise unless the DM decides they're relevant to being hidden, and anything other than that is also a house rule.  Both of those things are well supported by the source material, and I've provided detailed references to all of them above.<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Can I initiate surprise by deceiving an adjacent opponent into believing I'm actually an ally and then suddenly attacking?  Not unless you are also hidden, since surprise requires hiding.  Even if your opponent believes you are an ally, they still remain alert for signs of danger, and unless the DM decides they would be sufficiently visually or mentally distracted, the movement of your attack would be noticed as you began it.  The initiative roll would determine who acts first, but if your opponent who had been successfully deceived previously (Insight vs Deception check) wins initiative, they may choose to do nothing to counter your attack on their turn if they momentarily believe the initiation of your action is due to something else other than commencing an attack.  If the DM decides all of your opponents for the coming combat are somehow sufficiently distracted by your deception that they wouldn't notice an attack coming, and if the DM decides that all circumstances are otherwise also appropriate for hiding, only then could you attempt to hide in plain sight to them and initiate surprise (and only as long as all of the other members of your side of the combat are also able to hide, in plain sight via distracted opponents or otherwise).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Can I initiate surprise by deceiving an adjacent opponent into believing I'm actually an ally and concealing my dagger thrust as I attack?   No, because you would have to be hidden to initiate surprise, and if you were able to conceal your attack this way for surprise purposes, you would in effect be hiding in plain sight, which is a special ability of 10th level rangers.  Per the rules, most creatures stay alert for signs of danger all around, and without any special ability or trait indicating otherwise, any concealment of your thrust during attack is included in your bonuses and modifiers on your to hit roll.  Note that even the Assassin rogue archetype's "Assassinate" ability doesn't automatically assume you have surprised a creature (since it provides an additional benefit if that is the case), and it doesn't require a Stealth check.  Similarly, the rogue's "Sneak Attack" ability doesn't presume you have surprised the target, only that you have advantage on the attack roll.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Can a ranger with the Hide in Plain Sight ability attack at advantage using the Unseen Attackers and Targets rule? Yes. Rangers with this ability are in plain sight, but they are hidden and may not be seen because their presence may not be perceived. Camouflage disrupts the visual processing of the eye, in effect giving the ranger a very limited kind of invisibility. When using this ability, opponents with passive Perceptions lower than the ranger's Stealth check not only do not notice their presence and position, they cannot see them without actively searching.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Can my character who is not a ranger hide in plain sight by camouflaging themselves?   Maybe, since there is the ranger's ability, Hide in Plain Sight, as precedence, although doing so would not provide the other bonuses associated with the ranger ability and would carry all the limitations.   The DM would decide if this is possible given the circumstances, how long it might take to set up the camouflage, and what penalty to the Stealth check might apply given the character's amateurish attempt and the difficulty of remaining motionless.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Can my character hide for surprise by disguising themselves as a rock? Yes, but only under similar prescriptions as if you tried to hide in plain sight by camouflaging yourself, and the DM decides whether this is possible given the circumstances.  The DM could optionally consider the results of some skill check in crafting the disguise (maybe a Nature check would be appropriate) when deciding if the circumstances were appropriate for hiding.  If the disguise were poorly enough constructed, it might alert opponents to your position rather than distracting them from your presence.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Can I hide in a crowd of people and then initiate surprise by attacking opponents even if they would see me approach from the crowd?  The DM would decide based on the circumstances.  The DM can choose to allow a character to continue to be hidden as they approach a creature if circumstances would have that creature being distracted, as by a crowd (PHB p. 177, Hiding side box).</li> </ul></blockquote>

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