D&D 5E Using COMMAND to break a caster's concentration?

[R_J_K75]

Unlike, say, charm person there is no indication the spell changes their mental state. Not in the fluff, not in the examples.

Going from an offensive combative mind set to groveling certainly seems like an extreme and quick change in mental state to me.

Sleep, panic and so on are not actions.

If one is limiting the spell to only physical actions I think this greatly reduces the spells power.

 

[el-remmen]

But once the Dm use a cheap move, he legitimate it for all future player to use it.
If the Dm is bugged by heat metal, he gonna be more bugged by command used as a concentration breaker game after game after game.

I'm not bugged by Heat Metal. I was playing the role of a desperate opponent trying to break the spell before she dies. (EDIT TO ADD: She was across the room and had no missile weapon. She had already ordered her minions to focus on caster, so the command was a hail mary. If she had been able to just deal damage it would have been the better choice, she just couldn't get there).

Doesn't seem cheap to me at all. It is called being creative.

 

[Krachek]

I'm not bugged by Heat Metal. I was playing the role of desperate opponent trying to break the spell before she dies. (EDIT TO ADD: She was across the room and had no missile weapon. She had already ordered her minions to focus on caster, so the command was a hail mary. If she had been able to just deal damage it would have been the better choice, she just couldn't get there).

Doesn't seem cheap to me at all. It is called being creative.

So if a player use command to break concentration you will now allow its creativity?
From now until the end of time!

 

[doctorbadwolf]

if you could panic on demand you could stop being panicked anytime you wish, which obviously isn't true

I, and a lot of other people, can panic on demand. It definitely doesn’t mean we can stop on demand. At all. I know various things I can do to lower my heart rate and slow my breathing, and a few tricks to make my brain hyper focus on something harmless and calming, and I can often use those things to shorten a panic attack, but I can’t simply end it.

But enter a heightened mental state on command, sure! I don’t recommend trying, but you probably could too, if you have any sort of anxiety disorder.

All I have to do is focus on the thought of panic, the feeling of rising tension with no climax, recall the feel of a hard and fast heart beat, and bam! Might take me half an hour or more to come down again.

 

[Oofta]

Going from an offensive combative mind set to groveling certainly seems like an extreme and quick change in mental state to me.

If one is limiting the spell to only physical actions I think this greatly reduces the spells power.

Grovelling just means they're prone. Just like someone told to sleep would close their eyes, possibly snore. You can grovel without believing.

But again, that's just how I would rule.

 

[el-remmen]

So if a player use command to break concentration you will now allow its creativity?
From now until the end of time!

Sure. I am a little confused by what you are objecting to. The target gets a save and the command either has to be worded in a way that the target will give up concentrating on spell, or force them to do something that would allow for concentration check (which is essentially a second save). The same holds for a PC trying it on an opponent.

 

[Oofta]

I, and a lot of other people, can panic on demand. It definitely doesn’t mean we can stop on demand. At all. I know various things I can do to lower my heart rate and slow my breathing, and a few tricks to make my brain hyper focus on something harmless and calming, and I can often use those things to shorten a panic attack, but I can’t simply end it.

But enter a heightened mental state on command, sure! I don’t recommend trying, but you probably could too, if you have any sort of anxiety disorder.

All I have to do is focus on the thought of panic, the feeling of rising tension with no climax, recall the feel of a hard and fast heart beat, and bam! Might take me half an hour or more to come down again.

Even if you can, I doubt you could panic in six seconds.

But even if you can, I don't think it's relevant. Panic is not listed as something that causes you to lose concentration.

 

[Stalker0]

If the Dm is bugged by heat metal, he gonna be more bugged by command used as a concentration breaker game after game after game.

What makes heat metal so strong is it basically doesn't have a save. It does in certain circumstances, but a lot of times I would rather they make their save and take the damage and disadvantage than drop the object....but either way I'm golden. Its one of the few DoT spells actually worth a darn in the game.

Command as a concentration breaker would certainly be useful, but with a save like anything else, is it the best thing you could throw down? In many cases I'd say the answer is no.

 

[el-remmen]

What makes heat metal so strong is it basically doesn't have a save. It does in certain circumstances, but a lot of times I would rather they make their save and take the damage and disadvantage than drop the object....but either way I'm golden. Its one of the few DoT spells actually worth a darn in the game.

You can't drop armor that is being worn, save or not - which is the best opponents to cast it against.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Even if you can, I doubt you could panic in six seconds.

But even if you can, I don't think it's relevant. Panic is not listed as something that causes you to lose concentration.

Under duress, in a fight? Any adrenaline spike is a half step away from panic for basically any person with vaguely normal brain chemistry.

It doesn’t have to be listed. You seem to be arguing that it doesn’t make sense to rule that it can work, which is at least a valid stance, because it’s a DM call to determine what does or doesn’t break concentration.