Color spray (or, for the Brits, colour spray)

[hong]

I've seen pictures of beholders where their central eye is swivelling in a socket, so it's certainly feasible for the eye to point in a different direction to the mouth.

In any case, you are thinking too hard about fantasy. Stop thinking.

 

[robberbaron]

For me the important word is 'spray'. It implies that the spell is cast in a direction rather than in an area.

Then again, in your typical fantasy realm there is plenty of shiny stuff for the spray of colours to reflect into the eyes of someone facing away from the caster so maybe that doesn't matter.

 

[mikebr99]

How is that any different than color spray? The wizard fires it. It has a point of origin (the wizard). The beholder's anti-magic ray is a cone which affects only those in the cone. If the beholder turns around (perhaps to bite someone flanking it), those on the other side of the beholder are no longer affected by the anti-magic ray. Hence, beholders have facing. It's actually very important to that creature.

Ergo - facing *does* exist in D&D.

Shooting "something" in a specific direction exists in d&d... not facing. The Beholder chooses where he shoots each of his eyes every round, and it can be different the next round. But there isn't a "back" to this monster or any target for that matter, at least there aren't any penalties for the Beholder to have the big eye facing away from some fighter or Rogue. You can't "backstabb" it... as long as you don't have cover or concealment and are in it's range of sight... It can see you effectively... 360 degrees, in 3 dimensions...

Mike

 

[Angerland]

seems pretty simple to me. unless you are sightless, that is, you do not have the ability to see at all, and you are in the area of affect you are affected, looking at the caster or not.

 

[Bagpuss]

Descriptive text (like the name) has no effect how the spell actually works in play.

 

[frankthedm]

Colour spray affects anything in it's area using eyes to see. You don't get to have facing when it becomes convienent.

If the beholder turns around (perhaps to bite someone flanking it), those on the other side of the beholder are no longer affected by the anti-magic ray. Hence, beholders have facing. It's actually very important to that creature.

Actually, the antimagic field [cone] can go any direction. Not just towards the critter the beholder bites. That is one of the casualties of the game not having facing in the base ruleset.

As it happens the eye rays themselves help your argument more than the central eye. Only 3 of those eyes can be fired in a single 90 degree arc, the same 6 directions of the aerial movement rules. Up, Down, Forward, backward, left and right. Those rules are the closest one comes to facing before Unearthed Arcana's variant.

And here is how I believe how a medium beholder's firing arcs work on the grid system



I’ve noticed players are happy they don’t have to worry about facing until the gaze attackers show up. In 3e one is assumed to be looking for threats from all directions, claiming their dexterity and dodge bonuses from all foes. Because of this Gaze attacks are very potent. You are looking in every direction, so is the medusa.

 

[Kahuna Burger]

Descriptive text (like the name) has no effect how the spell actually works in play.

It would be nice if descriptive text was unambiguously seperated from mechanical text. I agree with you in this case, that failing text describing it as a gaze type effect the "spray" bit is pure flavor, but I've had disagreements in the past over whether something was descriptive or mechanical and thus cannot fully endorse your stance.

 

[Nail]

Right, Beholders don't exist.

What is the "facing" on a beholder, by RAW?

Answer: It doesn't have any.

Go ahead, read the description, page 27 MM 3.5e.

 

[3d6]

I'm curious to know how others interpret this spell.

Given the line "Sightless creatures are not affected by color spray." I've always ruled that color spray doesn't affect people who aren't facing you - typically allies.

That is, if you come up behind the party fighter, who's facing off against 3 bugbears, and you cast color spray - centered on the fighter, it doesn't affect him. But it does affect the 3 bugbears, since they are facing you.


Anyone else interpret it that way?

If I walk up on the other side of the bugbears from the fighter, do I get a +4 bonus on my attack roll and ignore their Dexterity bonus to AC because I'm effectively invisible and flanking? I would think I'd get total concealment from a "sightless" creature. Does their shield bonus apply?

 

[Henry]

If the beholder turns around (perhaps to bite someone flanking it),

Someone might correct me, but this seems to be the false statement in question. A beholder can indeed bite someone in a different direction from which way the Anti-magic eye is facing. Might make about as much sense as "the hole closes by muscular action," but it's there.


For that matter, it's an aberration -- nothing says its mouth is even on the same side of its head as the eye in every instance.