How Charm Person and Monster work?

[sfedi]

How does it work, or how do you handle it in your tables?

I´m sure the charmed creature doesn´t attack the charmer, but what about it´s allies? What about the charmer allies?

 

[frankthedm]

How does it work, or how do you handle it in your tables?

I´m sure the charmed creature doesn´t attack the charmer, but what about it´s allies? What about the charmer allies?

Depends on the being. It is friendly, that only gets "Wishes you well" with possible actions of "Chat, advise, offer limited help, advocate". Which IMHO is weak-sauce since older editions would have put the attitude at Helpful’s “Will take risks to help you” with possible actions of ”Protect, back up, heal, aid”

Charm Person
Enchantment (Charm) [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Brd 1, Sor/Wiz 1
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: One humanoid creature
Duration: 1 hour/level
Saving Throw: Will negates
Spell Resistance: Yes

This charm makes a humanoid creature regard you as its trusted friend and ally (treat the target’s attitude as friendly). If the creature is currently being threatened or attacked by you or your allies, however, it receives a +5 bonus on its saving throw.

The spell does not enable you to control the charmed person as if it were an automaton, but it perceives your words and actions in the most favorable way. You can try to give the subject orders, but you must win an opposed Charisma check to convince it to do anything it wouldn’t ordinarily do. (Retries are not allowed.) An affected creature never obeys suicidal or obviously harmful orders, but it might be convinced that something very dangerous is worth doing. Any act by you or your apparent allies that threatens the charmed person breaks the spell. You must speak the person’s language to communicate your commands, or else be good at pantomiming.

 

[Victim]

I don't think being charmed voids, existing relationships, so the charmed character is unlikely to attack his previous allies. Unless maybe he doesn't like them either, which can be entirely reasonable for certain types of characters and villains. Generally I think that a charmed person tries to pause the conflict and uses nonlethal means.

 

[evilbob]

The way I understand it, the creature charmed would be "friendly" toward the charmer; that would include not attacking them, yes. However, as mentioned, this does not invalidate their opinion of anyone else.

This means, among other things, that they would probably still attack your friends and would not attack their friends. However, an opposed charisma check is all that is required to get them to do something they would not normally do. Generally, unless the creature has been raging against your pals for a few rounds or is just hard-core CE, getting them not to attack your friends probably doesn't require a check, but getting them to attack their allies probably does.

Also, note that casting this in-battle means they get a +5 to their save, which is why it seems so powerful - they have to fail their save and then you need to spend an action convincing it to "change sides" in order to get them to start attacking their friends. Also note, however, that all you have to do is keep yourself and anyone it thinks is your friend from threatening it to keep it controlled for the duration.

 

[phindar]

I relate Charm spells to getting someone drunk, although the effect is particular to you. Its the, "Hey, man, you're all right," spell.