Please help w/'Clair' spell

[Vahktang]

Specifically, Clairvoyance.
Go read the spell, pg 209-210 of the Players, I'll wait.
Thanks.
Now, how exactly are you able to see in 'naturally pitch black'?
The spell does not allow funky powers to work through it.
But, if you cast the spells to the ocean's depth or the bottom of a mine, you can still see normally in a 10' radius? Somehow? Just because?
Is it some special Spell effect that I sould use as written?

"Forget it, Vahktang. It's D & D."

Or is there something else?

Thanks.

 

[Infiniti2000]

Is the SRD version the same? I hope so, 'cause that's what I'm using for clairaudience/clairvoyance.

Now, how exactly are you able to see in 'naturally pitch black'?

If you're looking for a physics-based explanation, forget it. It's magic. You just see in a 10ft-radius from the sensor's location. You see in normal vision, i.e. color (as per the caster). You don't see as per darkvision or anything weird. The only time you don't get at least 10ft, is when you place the sensor in a magically dark area.

There's really nothing more to it.

 

[JimAde]

But does "magically or supernaturally enhanced senses" include darkvision for your dwarven wizard? It's listed as en (Ex) ability in the Dwarf entry in the SRD...

 

[Infiniti2000]

But does "magically or supernaturally enhanced senses" include darkvision for your dwarven wizard? It's listed as en (Ex) ability in the Dwarf entry in the SRD...

There's a specific limitation. If it's dark you see 10ft. A dwarf (e.g.) doesn't use darkvision all the time and the spell is specifically limited, regardless of sight, so I wouldn't say it allows you to use darkvision through the sensor, nor can a dragon use blindsense (or 120ft darkvision), nor can something else use blindsight (as Ex).

 

[Nail]

......and puttting aside, for a moment, that "magical darkness" doesn't really exist in 3.5e. It's called "shadowy illumination".

 

[Infiniti2000]

I wasn't gonna go down that road, Nail.

 

[Joshua Randall]

Asking why clairvoyance lets you see 10' in pitch darkness is like asking why bless is a 50' burst (instead of 60', or a cone, or something else). It just... does.

I think, from a game balance point of view, the reason that clairvoyance lets you see in the dark is because most of the time you'll be using it to look around corners or past doors in dungeon settings, most of which are dark. It would be pretty lame to have a spell designed to let you see at a distance that didn't let you actually see anything. Hence the free see-in-the-dark aspect of the spell.