Save vs Scry

[0-hr]

Tonight we tried to locate some friends using scry. The spell description says that they get a save and that the scry fails if they make the save. The thing is, they wanted to be scryed upon. Could they choose to fail this save?

If so, do you know that you had to make a save (or can you choose to fail a save without even having known that you were required to make one)?

The DM figured the subject could automatically fail the save if they wished, but only if they knew about the attempt.

If you know about the attempt, then things like Detect Scrying (and that INT check to see the sensor) aren't all that useful. But if you don't know about the attempt, then how can you choose to give up your saving throw?

 

[Doctor Bomb]

That's a grey-area type problem. My personal opinion would be that if they were trying to be found or trying to find their friends, then they would automatically fail the save.
If they were trying to hide from ANYONE, then they would not want to be automatically found, and so would have to make a save.

Of course, since they wouldn't know of the rest of the party trying to scry them, the DM can always make those rolls for them.

 

[dcollins]

I'm going to have to take a poke at 3.5 here and point out that the saving throw for this spell doesn't really make much sense (3.0 doesn't have it). Under the "Succeeding at a Saving Throw" rule, anyone that makes a save againt Scrying now gets a tingle alerting them that someone used magic on them. Then you've got the problem mentioned in this thread.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

That's probably not a huge problem, alerting them and all and preventing Teleport ambushes.

This is especially true for the regular (not Greater) Scrying spell, which can't even be used to ruin plots. (What are the chances the villains are talking about how they're going to kill the heroes or run drugs or whatever during the 11 minutes the spell is active anyway?)

 

[strongbow]

If you want to Scry on your friends, send them a message with a Sending spell telling them that you are going to start Scrying on them. One hour later, they will know to fail their save. With Greater Scrying you can get faster results of course. When I have had to find some friends in this way, that is what I have done.