Rogue hiding where there isn't anywhere to hide

[Kichwas]

Can a Rogue without "Hide in plain sight" hide in a location with no hiding spots?

For example, say the rogue is in an unfurnashed lit hallway with no cracks, crevaces, or other features. Just smooth stone walls.

A group of people enter the hallway and look down it.

Could the rogue have hidden from them before they got there?

If they all have their backs to her, can she hide and then when they turn around they won't automatically see her?


If she can, where is she hiding?

If the hallway is unlit, but the viewers have darkvision, does that change anything?


The answers to this all seem obvious to me, in fact I can't find a reference to 'Hide in Plain Sight' barring the Shadowdancer... But I've been in a number of 3E games that use it and that allow Rogues to hide just about anywhere anytime. Popular house rule? Or...?

 

[LokiDR]

I would call that task "nearly impossible", requiring 10+ ranks in hide and rolled at -20.

 

[0-hr]

You can't hide when being observed, or when there is nowhere to hide.

A lot of rogues play Hide like the old D&D cartoon, but that's just wrong (on many levels).

 

[Shallown]

I'm pretty sure you can't "hide" unless you have 50% cover or concealment. It says it somewhere in the skill description. "hide in plain sight" negates that need. My GM allowed a cloak of elven kind to lose its bonus in exchange for the ability to hide in plain sight.

just an idea

 

[Darklone]

Had a rogue hide in front of a plain stone wall by using a blanket painted like that stone wall...

Old trick, but usable against someone who's not too close and does not see you moving.

Otherwise: No chance.

 

[Tom Cashel]

I have to agree with the "no chancers." Even the Shadowdancer ability requires a shadow of some kind, doesn't it?

 

[Deset Gled]

In the corridor case, I could imagine the rouge pulling something like Spiderman, and brace his body between the walls up against the ceiling, and just hoping no one looks up.

Of course, this assumes the walls are close enough together, and would probably also require a jump check. It would also require some fast thinking by the player.

 

[Darklone]

Well, if noone looks up, you can easily hide there. The question was, what happens if you try to hide there and someone looks up, right?

 

[dcollins]

For example, say the rogue is in an unfurnashed lit hallway with no cracks, crevaces, or other features. Just smooth stone walls.

A group of people enter the hallway and look down it.

The poster has correctly identified a bit of a blind spot in the core rules. The example in question is not "hiding in plain sight" because no one is looking there at the time of the hiding. But, there is no core rule that requires a hider to have any kind of cover or concealment when hiding.

So, frankly, this problem is really not covered in the core rules. You could resort to calling it "hiding in plain sight", but that clashes with the rule that says you then can duck around a corner to attempt to hide anew (again, with no stated requirement of cover in the new around-the-corner spot).

 

[0-hr]

From the SRD, under HIDE:

the character can attempt a Hide check if the character can get
to a hiding place of some kind.