Dust of Disappearance

[LokiDR]

Blindsight would work, through any means you got it, because it would fall under "Other factors, such as sound and smell, also allow possible detection."

Glitterdust, besides being obviously magic and supposedly on the same par as see invis, creates small lights that attach to the person. If the person carries a lantern, are you able to see the lantern or the light? No. The fact that glitterdust outlines the person is magic, the lights don't go invisible when they are "carried" by the invisible person. If invisiblity purge doesn't work, glitterdust certainly shouldn't.

 

[Petrosian]

In my games, DETECTION by magical means is countered... so spells like detect invisibility, invisibility purge, true seeing etc all fail because they deal with the invisibility directly.

Spells like giteerdust and faerie fire still work because they are not dealing with th invisibility at all, they just illuminate the target. You are still invisible, the glitterdust and faerie fire are not invisible.

Other such examples would be if you were hit by something that stuck to you, perhaps a tanglefoot bag.

Blindsight would work, through any means you got it, because it would fall under "Other factors, such as sound and smell, also allow possible detection."

Glitterdust, besides being obviously magic and supposedly on the same par as see invis, creates small lights that attach to the person. If the person carries a lantern, are you able to see the lantern or the light? No. The fact that glitterdust outlines the person is magic, the lights don't go invisible when they are "carried" by the invisible person. If invisiblity purge doesn't work, glitterdust certainly shouldn't.

 

[LokiDR]

In my games, DETECTION by magical means is countered... so spells like detect invisibility, invisibility purge, true seeing etc all fail because they deal with the invisibility directly.

Spells like giteerdust and faerie fire still work because they are not dealing with th invisibility at all, they just illuminate the target. You are still invisible, the glitterdust and faerie fire are not invisible.

Other such examples would be if you were hit by something that stuck to you, perhaps a tanglefoot bag.

This use of glitterdust is dectection. Your argument is sound only if you believe a object picked up by an invis person is not invisible. That leads to problems like seemingly empty clothes walking around. The tanglefoot bag shouldn't work any better than a towel. Worse, since you can see the towel deflect if you hold on to it.

Faerie fire may be a different case, since it creates a glow that can be seen. The person isn't carrying anything.

A cloud of glittering golden particles covers everyone and everything in the area, blinding creatures and visibly outlining invisible things. Blindness lasts for the duration of the spell. All within the area are covered by the dust, which cannot be removed and continues to sparkle until it fades.

You create those particles. On a second reading, it seems that the spells lists the particles glowing and still visible. I would have to say that the glitter would be seen.

Ok, so I lied. The light can be seen.

 

[Victim]

Actually, invisibility magic doesn't prevent light sources from working. If you have a tiny sparks stuck to you, they'll glow and reveal your position.

So I'd say that glitterdust works against DoD.

I'd also say that True Seeing works as well. True Seeing sees through all illusionary type effects, while the dust prevents detection by all magical effects. Irresistable force versus immoveable objects. I think to think that defensive powers should more easily counter the offensive, so I say True Seeing works.

However, I hate Dust of Disappearence, so I might be biased.

 

[LokiDR]

Dust of Disappearence does seem badly writen. They should have just said "improved invis, not detectable by any strictly anti-invis spell" Technically, I don't think that true seeing would get throught the dust, but that seems lame. I would say that you see the magic.

 

[Mark Chance]

The real answer....

Glitterdust will reveal someone made invisible via dust of disappearance. Invisibility via the dust cannot be detected by magical means. Glitterdust does not detect invisibility. It effectively negates it by "visibly outlining invisible things." IOW, it is the glittering particles created by glitterdust that are visible, not the invisible creature itself.

 

[Kyramus]

From the SRD

Dust of Disappearance

This dust looks just like dust of appearance and is typically stored in the same manner. A creature or object touched by it becomes invisible (as improved invisibility). Normal vision can’t see dusted creatures or objects, nor can they be detected by magical means, including see invisibility or invisibility purge. Dust of appearance, however, does reveal people and objects made invisible by dust of disappearance. Other factors, such as sound and smell, also allow possible detection.

The improved invisibility bestowed by the dust lasts for 2d10 minutes (1d10+10 if sprinkled carefully upon an object).

Caster Level: 7th; Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous Item, improved invisibility; Market Price: 3,500 gp; Weight: -.
-----------------

I'm of the school that a higher level spell can detect an invisible person.

See invisibility just by it's name should be able to detect invisibility. But because improved invisibility is a higher level spell, then in my game, I allow people to see improved invis with see invis.

True seeing from the srd states "The character confers on the subject the ability to see all things as they actually are. The subject sees through normal and magical darkness, notices secret doors hidden by magic, sees the exact locations of creatures or objects under blur or displacement effects, sees invisible creatures or objects normally, sees through illusions, and sees the true form of polymorphed, changed, or transmuted things. Further, the subject can focus her vision to see into the Ethereal Plane. The range of true seeing conferred is 120 feet."

Meaning, They can see things as THEY are. A person coated with a dust of disappearance would probably look like a guy with sparkling dust all over him while everyone else don't see him.


Also True seeing is a CL5 or Wiz 6 spell. Higher than improved invis.

Glitterdust is a level 2 spell and it is not a detection spell but a conjuration spell. That's a plausible way to detect invisibility. It doesn't cancel the dust of disappearance but adds a coat on the invis person and we see an outline.

By the same token, lock the doors and flood the room and you can see the invisible person (watch The Shadow, with one of the baldwins. he was trapped and was going to get drowned but we still see where he is walking around in until he removed his cloak).

 

[Dr_Rictus]

Your argument is sound only if you believe a object picked up by an invis person is not invisible.

Actually, if you checked the description of the Invisibility special ability in the DMG, you would find that objects picked up by an invisible person are, in fact, not invisible, unless they are then concealed on his person.