D&D 5E Toll the Chest

[Maxperson]

You can cast Toll the Dead on anything. it just does nothing if it is an invalid target.

This is how I would deal with it:

Casts Toll the Dead on a chest. [fake roll] "Your spell has no effect on the chest."
Casts Toll the Dead on a Mimic. [hidden save succeeds] "Your spell has no effect on the chest."
Casts Toll the Dead on a Mimic. [hidden save fails] "the chest squeals in pain, roll for initiative."
Shoots an arrow at a mimic. [attack roll hits] "the chest squeals in pain, roll for initiative."

The only thing is, unless the caster is invisible or hidden, the Mimic can see PC/party and is aware of the danger that the PC/party poses to it. As soon as casting begins, it's initiative and not a surprise round. The Mimic could win initiative and if within 15 feet of a PC, attack first.

 

[Maxperson]

Good point.
Draw hint of teeth on chest. Fill chest with oil.
Await firebolt!

Make sure it's painted balsa wood, too. An oak chest might not burn fast enough.

 

[Maxperson]

And next time have a room full of various chests and tables so that they don’t know which one to target.

 

[Reynard]

This thread is a good example of why people should stop using mimics, and instead embrace the inspiration for mimics. That is, mimics were a strange and scary surprise for players that were completely in context for the goal at the time (looting the dungeon). Mimics are, at this point, a tired meme. Instead, we should be surprising and terrifying our players with completely new gotcha monsters. Carnivorous coins. Gems that hatch rot grubs. Potions that are really oozes. Like that.

 

[kolya]

The player characters are using past experiences or knowledge, previous encounters with mimics or stories of encounters with mimics, to be suspicious of the situation. They then use the tools they have, like a spell that will hurt a creature, to test if their suspicions are valid.

As a DM, the only reason I see to say no the players is that I feel grumpy that my trap didn't catch them. That doesn't seem like a fair reason to say no from my perspective.

 

[Umbran]

The only thing is, unless the caster is invisible or hidden, the Mimic can see PC/party and is aware of the danger that the PC/party poses to it.

A standard mimic has an intelligence of 5. It isn't all that bright.

It has also taken a form specifically intended to attract people. The entire point of that form is to get people to come and interact with it. So, I dunno if it really should freak out like that just because people entered the room. It expects people to enter the room.

 

[Maxperson]

A standard mimic has an intelligence of 5. It isn't all that bright.

It has also taken a form specifically intended to attract people. The entire point of that form is to get people to come and interact with it. So, I dunno if it really should freak out like that just because people entered the room. It expects people to enter the room.

That's a good point. I almost never use them in order for them to be a surprise when I do. They were average intelligence in 3e and I haven't even looked at the 5e version yet. Not until right before I posted that anyway. Didn't check the stats.

 

[J.Quondam]

A single chest sitting in the middle of a large chamber bare of anything else is highly suspicious. Launching a fireball into the room would have been completely justified, even if overly cautious about any number of potentially unseen or hidden surprises.

Aha! This explains why, whenever I move, the last box remaining in my apartment always ends up torched in the time it takes me to get back from the moving van to fetch it.
Rascally adventurers just recklessly attacking lone containers for fear of mimics!

 

[Maxperson]

Aha! This explains why, whenever I move, the last box remaining in my apartment always ends up torched in the time it takes me to get back from the moving van to fetch it.
Rascally adventurers just recklessly attacking lone containers for fear of mimics!

I lost a bunch of my 1e/2e stuff in a move. This would also explain that loss.

 

[Umbran]

Aha! This explains why, whenever I move, the last box remaining in my apartment always ends up torched in the time it takes me to get back from the moving van to fetch it.
Rascally adventurers just recklessly attacking lone containers for fear of mimics!

Rascally adventurers in your home means that you are a monster, you know....