Handling Invisible Characters.

[Ysgarran]

The DMG gives rules for spotting invisible characters. I don't particularly like those rules. I don't have the book in front of me but if I remember correctly it basically gives a DC of 20 (or so) to notice an invisible creature.

How do you handle this?

1. Make the invisibility perfect? i.e. There is no way to make a Spot check to notice the invisible creature/character.
2. Bumb the DC Higher?
3. Play the rules as written?
4. Give a circumstance bonus to those who can hide?

thanks for your thoughts on this,
Ysgarran.

p.s.
Can someone post the reference in the DMG?

 

[hong]

DMG, p.78. Basically it's a Spot check at DC 20 to notice "something's there". Think of the predator.

If the invisible creature is holding still, the check becomes DC 30. If it's actually inanimate, or if it's an unliving creature holding still, it becomes DC 40.

It's practically impossible to pinpoint an invisible creature's exact space via Spot (+20 DC to manage this).

 

[kreynolds]

3. Play the rules as written?
4. Give a circumstance bonus to those who can hide?

Both. If an invisibile creature is actively hiding or just holding still, etc, it's worse. The rules as written aren't that bad. Just remember the penalties for spotting, and it really ain't that bad at all: -1 per 10 feet of distance; spotter distracted -5.

 

[Thanee]

Yes, invisibility is perfect, which means the invisible subject cannot be seen.

However, it is very possible to spot the presence of the invisible subject and even pinpoint its location, without actually seeing it.

Spot check against 20 to notice something is there. Like seeing invisible footsteps or some other motion of anything being moved by the invisible subject.

Listen checks as indicated in the DMG. If you have a decent Listen score, and the subject is not only trying to hide/avoid you, then it's very possible to pinpoint its location.

Creative use of random stuff (like flour or water) can also be used to pinpoint an invisible subject, once aware of its presence. How this works out is very situational, of course, and can hardly be written as strict rules.

Remember, that items (or whatever) the invisible subject picks up (or becomes ahold of in any other way, like water being splashed over it) do not become invisible, unless stashed away in a pocket or otherwise hidden beneath already invisible matter.

A single arrow hit, for example, would allow to easily pinpoint the invisible subject, since you will see the arrow sticking from the wound floating in the air.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Ysgarran]

Thanks for the input.

Lets take a more concrete example, an invisible Rogue with a hide skill of 15 is actively hiding in a room full of furniture (i.e. plenty of things to hide behind) and is holding still. The party walks into the room is about 20 feet from the Rogue.

Would you roll the rogue's hide skill (let's say he rolled 20, which is a DC of 35) and modify it by a circumstance bonus?

Or woud you just take the higher of the two DCs? Lets say the Rogue rolled a 1 on his hide skill (a DC of 16). Instead of a DC 16 it would be a 32 because he is invisible, not moving and 20 feet away.

This is what happened this weekend at GenCon when I was running an event. The party walked into the room, made a spot check of 35 (a very good roll). I told them that they spotted a flicker. They just let loose with two Glitterdust spells that covered the whole room. A very smart move on their part.

later,
Ysgarran.

edit: minor spelling errors.

 

[KarinsDad]

Thanks for the input.

Lets take a more concrete example, an invisible Rogue with a hide skill of 15 is actively hiding in a room full of furniture (i.e. plenty of things to hide behind) and is holding still. The party walks into the room is about 20 feet from the Rogue.

Would you roll the rogue's hide skill (let's say he rolled 20, which is a DC of 35) and modify it by a circumstance bonus?

I would take:

DC for Hiding +5 for being Invisible, minimum DC 30 for Invisibility Holding Still.

In your example here, DC 40.

Invisibility should seriously help (i.e. +5 to DC) a hiding character, but the worst hider in the world would still get DC 30 as per the DMG if he wasn't trying to move.

If he is hiding and trying to slowly move, I would still make it +5, minimum DC 20.

Modified, of course, by range.