Deathwatch usage?

[Wolfspirit]

Yoinked from the SRD:

Deathwatch
Necromancy
Level: Clr 1
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Area: Quarter circle emanating from the character to the extreme of the range
Duration: 10 minutes/level
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
The character can determine the condition of creatures near death within the spell’s range. The character instantly knows whether each creature within the area is dead, fragile (alive and wounded, with 3 or fewer hit points left), fighting off death (alive with 4 or more hit points), undead, or neither alive nor dead (as a construct). This spell foils any spell or ability that allows creatures to feign death.

Well, it appears that the "using the foul powers of unlife" has been dropped from the spell description, cleaning it up a bit. However, does anyone know if this spell would allow you to detect invisible creatures, or hidden ones? Also, would you be able to get an accurate count of the number of creatures in a range?

There seems to be a lot of things that you can do with this spell, especially for level one. I'd like to see what other people think before I make more use of it. (It's allready been a "Detect Undead" and "Detect invisible creature" rolled into one for me so far, at 10 minutes per level.

 

[Zulkir of Dartmouth]

Seems like the spell would detect anything living in its range as long as it was fighting off death, 4hp or less. But if it was full health than no you would not be able to detect it.
I would use the rules similar to the Detect Magic spell. So the more rounds of concentration the more info the spell would give.

 

[Zulkir of Dartmouth]

Yeah I just saw the "(alive with 4 or more hit points)," SO I would have to say you could detect anyone, b/c it would seem the spell thinks everyone is fighting off death.

DAMN!

That is a good spell. Why is it 1st level?

 

[Chun-tzu]

No, you shouldn't be able to use this spell to detect invisible or hidden creatures. The spell description says you know whether creatures fall into any of those categories (dead, fragile, and so on). It assumes that you can actually detect them, though.

It does not say anywhere that you can see invisible creatures with this spell. It says that you can determine their condition.

Even if you did decide that you could sense the condition of invisible creatures (and that would be wrong), then all the spell would tell you is "there's an invisible creature somewhere within 25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels that is wounded (or dead, or fragile, or whatever)." It wouldn't tell you where it was, or let you see them, or attack them without penalties.

 

[Wolfspirit]

No, I don't think that you should be able to "see" the invisible or hidden creatures, it's just that as stated it seems like you could know that they're there. The way I read it is that you know the condition of all the creatures in range, and unless there's a whole lot of creatures, it ought to clue you in that there's something you can't see if you suddenly pick up an undead vibe in an empty room. It does seem like its a bit out of the idea of the spell, though

 

[Artoomis]

Using this spell to get a "creature count" within its range is clever and certainly an acceptable use of the spell.

It's only useful in certain circumstances, and I guessing would probably not be prepared most of the time. Seems just fine to me.

 

[Sejs]

it's the "Who on the battlefield needs my help first?" and "What the heck IS that guy in the platemail? A knight? A vampire? A golem? What?" spell.

*nod*

^_^