Mirror Image ... most confusing.

[Lucius Foxhound]

The spell that confuses me most is Mirror Image (how appropriate, I guess). Here are my questions:

1. If a fighter/Wizard casts Mirror Image on himself and then rushes into Melee and hits someone, on their turn, will they know which image is the real one?

2. I always assumed that each round, the images switch around and you can't figure out which is the one you hit. However reading the spell, it says:

"While moving, the character can merge with and split off from figments so that enemies who have learned which image is real are again confounded."

Does this mean the Wizard has to use up some movement to make the images switch around? Or does this mean that if the Wizard is immobile, the images don't switch around?

3. If you've got 8 figments ... and each figment needs to be within 5 feet of another, can you spread them out to 40 feet and use them as say a major image of yourself?

Thanks!

 

[IceBear]

Yeah, this spell bothers me too. I had been (mistakenly) using the old form of the spell in which I didn't care about the placement of the images, I just rolled a miss chance for eveyone (ie, 5 images, 1 in 6 chance that someone would target the correct image). Unfortunately, as someone pointed out, if all the images are in one square (as this essentially is) if you close your eyes and attack your chances of hitting will actually go up

I'm not sure how I will handle it now.

Edit: Hehehehe - I do know that if a harm spell hits a mirror image it is lost (at least that was the concensus)

IceBear

 

[Hypersmurf]

1. If a fighter/Wizard casts Mirror Image on himself and then rushes into Melee and hits someone, on their turn, will they know which image is the real one?

2. I always assumed that each round, the images switch around and you can't figure out which is the one you hit. However reading the spell, it says:

"While moving, the character can merge with and split off from figments so that enemies who have learned which image is real are again confounded."

Does this mean the Wizard has to use up some movement to make the images switch around? Or does this mean that if the Wizard is immobile, the images don't switch around?

My take on this is that the figments randomise during the wizard's action. If he hits you, it generally occurs during his action, so the shuffling won't let you know which one is real by the time you respond.

However, if during your action, you successfully choose the real caster with an attack, until the caster's next action, people know which image is real. You don't need to roll a miss chance with the rest of your iterative attacks, your allies can target the same image you chose... until the caster's action, when the images shuffle again.

I would also rule that if the caster hit someone with an AoO, that would identify him, since it's not his action and the images aren't shuffling.

However, if a DM told me that my MI'd mage could only shuffle the images with a move action or a 5' step, I wouldn't argue, though, because that's the most literal interpretation of the wording.

3. If you've got 8 figments ... and each figment needs to be within 5 feet of another, can you spread them out to 40 feet and use them as say a major image of yourself?

My interpretation is that you don't have conscious control over the actions of the images - they move fairly randomly. Through Brownian Motion, they might occasionally end up in a 40' line, although that would be uncommon, since any image moving the wrong way would shorten the reach of the line. I would guess they would commonly fit in a 15-20' diameter cluster.

-Hyp.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Edit: Hehehehe - I do know that if a harm spell hits a mirror image it is lost (at least that was the concensus)

The Harm is irrelevant - the touch attack would dispel the image

-Hyp.

 

[IceBear]

The Harm is irrelevant - the touch attack would dispel the image

-Hyp.

Yes, yes, but the harm is discharged too so I guess it's not "broken" afterall

IceBear

 

[Berk]

I've always house ruled mirror image. The images always get hit first but they only have the casters touch AC. Hit an image it goes away and there is now 1 less image.

As for the major image part, no you couldn't. You could use them as a silent image of yourself. But then again these are my own personal house rules for mirror image.

Characters can disbelieve it if they choose to (it is Illusion (figment) after all) but yet they never try to. True seeing sees through it as does scent and blindsight and tremorsense and abilities to the like.

 

[AuraSeer]

The close-your-eyes-and-swing method seems downright silly to me. To get around that, I rule that the images are "in and around" the same square. The figure on the map marks the center of the effect, but all the images are in constant motion around that point.

Even if you close your eyes and swing, you don't know whether you're targetting the caster or a figment, because they're all different distances from you. You still suffer a 1-in-6 (or whatever) random selection from the possible targets, in addition to your 50% miss chance for not being able to see.

 

[IceBear]

Yeah, that's the way I'm going to play it too AuraSeer. Just less problematic that way.

IceBear

 

[Hypersmurf]

Characters can disbelieve it if they choose to (it is Illusion (figment) after all)

Untrue.

The only illusions that can be disbelieved are those with "Will disbelief" in the Saving Throw entry of their stat block.

-Hyp.

 

[IceBear]

waves his "What Hypersmurf said flag around"

IceBear