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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ZuulMoG" data-source="post: 2336351" data-attributes="member: 32135">Magic Missile and You: or, You'll Put Your Eye Out, Kid!!Sorry to diverge, but it needs to be said...Agreed. No, they are 'selecting an indistinguishable target'.  Not at all the same thing.Untrue.  The MM caster picks a particular (or if he's smart and 9th level, five particular) image(s), (one of) which might be the real mage. Now, the player doesn't have to say, 'the odd-numbered images counting from left to right', because not even the DM knows which image is the real caster, hitting the real caster is still a random function, because the images are constantly shifting positions in such a way that the caster's location is unremarkable.  All the player needs to say is '5 of the images eat magic missiles', and hope the dice are with him.Um, that's EXACTLY what it means.  Select = pick, at least in English it does.Yes, 'what they think is the the MI user', IE one of the many images, which may or may not actually BE the MI user.  What all of this boils down to is, the FAQ is wrong... about Magic Missile. Magic missile doesn't 'fizzle' for an invalid target, it fizzles for anything the caster believes is an invalid target.  You can't aim Magic Missile at a rope that is hanging your friend (why I don't know, but it's a gay limitation of Magic Missile that it has to target one or more creatures, not objects).  If your mage believes he is targeting a creature, then that missile leaps from your mage's finger, streaks unerringly to its target, and transfers its energy to the target.  If that target happens to be a displaced creature's image, a mirror image, a rope you've been snookered into thinking is a snake, or pretty much anything else under the sun except a creature, well, that's just too darn bad, no effect, sit down, shut up. Magic missile, in fact, CAN target objects.  Objects affected by the Animate Objects spell are treated as constructs, which are creatures, most of which (golems being notable exceptions) ARE affected my Magic Missile. So why can't you target Magic Missile at an object that's NOT animated?  Isn't a non-moving target EASIER to hit?  Well, way back in the olden days of D&D, someone realized that if they didn't ram all sorts of fiat into the spell, it was an IK at 1st level.  One MM in each eye, and your foe is blind, or two foes are blind and one gets -2 to hit with missiles if your 9th level.  The only reason the rules say you can't target anything but a non-specific location on a creature is because they wanted to keep this spell a 1st level spell. The only useful solution is to allow the caster of MM to target any discrete object in range, but no particular part of that object.  You can target the rope your compatriot is dangling from, but not at the spot where the ranger nicked it already.  You can target those pesky archers (or their bows) on the ridge, but not their eyes or bow strings.  You can target that giant that's been earnestly striving to render you into gruel with his greatclub, but not the knuckles of his fingers so he'll drop the club.  Of course, this means MM is virtually useless against monsters like hydras or beholders (from behind, below, or above, natch), where aiming at a location is neccessary, but that's as it should be.</blockquote>

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