Using Detect Evil/Good

[EtherHulkRending]

you keep forgetting the most interesting application of the spell, tracking the lingering aura. When the BBEG walks through town, kills someone, and the PC's get sent to investigate but have no ranger to find his tracks, you pop the detect evil up and keep popping it to follow his lingering aura.

Works wonders for paladins/holy liberators/sacred exorcists who detect evil at will.


Is it an abuse of the spell? yes
is it time consuming? yes
does it work ? yes

 

[shilsen]

Once more, with feeling...

Detect Evil does not determine alignment!

The spell detects evil aruas, not alignment. Evil auras are exuded by undead, outsiders, clerics, blackguards, certain spells and magic items....and creatures that have the Evil subtype.

And assuming D&D has to emulate a medieval morality is dancing down a line that I don't wanna tread on.

Nice font. Totally wrong point, but nice font

 

[I'm A Banana]

AND evil creatures.
An evil creature has an evil aura.

No matter how many times you say it, you're still wrong.

Only outsiders have alignment subtypes. That would make either the 'evil creatures' or the 'evil outsiders' line on the table for detect evil redundant.

Where does it say an evil creature produces an evil aura? Or that a creature with an evil alignment becomes an evil creature? It is far, far from as clear-cut as you're presenting it. I could be missing this, but I don't think it does say that an alignment produces an aura, or that 'evil creature' means 'creature with an evil alingment'...the word "alignment" is never mentioned in the spell, and it doesn't track the alignment of a creature any more than it tracks the alignment of an evil object or spell...it doesn't matter if the evil outsider is redeemed and is Lawful Good, he still *detects* as evil, because alignment isn't what's measured, it's 'evil aura.'

And even if I *am* dead wrong in my interpretation, if it's causing a problem that it's detecting alingment, then simply getting rid of that aspect of the spell fixes the problem wholesale, ne? Detect Evil is much ado about nada, even if the rules do say that it detects evil components of a creature's alingment (which is far from proven...simply saying I'm wrong doesn't help your case at all. )

 

[Gothmog]

Where does it say an evil creature produces an evil aura? Or that a creature with an evil alignment becomes an evil creature? It is far, far from as clear-cut as you're presenting it. I could be missing this, but I don't think it does say that an alignment produces an aura, or that 'evil creature' means 'creature with an evil alingment'...the word "alignment" is never mentioned in the spell, and it doesn't track the alignment of a creature any more than it tracks the alignment of an evil object or spell...it doesn't matter if the evil outsider is redeemed and is Lawful Good, he still *detects* as evil, because alignment isn't what's measured, it's 'evil aura.'

And even if I *am* dead wrong in my interpretation, if it's causing a problem that it's detecting alingment, then simply getting rid of that aspect of the spell fixes the problem wholesale, ne? Detect Evil is much ado about nada, even if the rules do say that it detects evil components of a creature's alingment (which is far from proven...simply saying I'm wrong doesn't help your case at all. )

I have you agree with you KM, I have read the Detect Evil description many times, and I don't see anywhere it states it would detect a character with a Neutral Evil alignment as a "evil creature". The description in the PHB is way too vague to make a case for or against this, so I just houserule it and say it ONLY detects creatures with an evil subtype (demons, devils, undead, some elementals and faeries), and the rare cleric of an evil deity. I think the ability is more interesting this way, and much less prone to player abuse. I don't understand the stong resistance some people seem to have to interpreting things as you see fit or rewriting things for your game- it is YOUR game afterall.

 

[Hand of Evil]

 

[DMScott]

My interpretation, which I believe is faithful to the rules:

1st round: is there evil in the spell's area of effect? Yes/no answer, based on alignment. Anyone or thing who's of evil alignment gets detected.

2nd round: number of sources of evil that were in the spell's area of effect in round 1 and are still there in round 2.

3rd round: power and location of each source of evil that's been in the spell's AE for all three rounds, with power determined by the chart in the PHB.

Some points about this interpretation:

- This makes Detect Evil at best difficult to use if the people are moving in and out of the area of effect (as in many "civilized" situations). If the caster changes the area of effect, they start back at round 1.

- Anybody with an evil alignment is detected. Neutral clerics of an evil deity are not detected; they trigger a "no" in round 1 if they're the only one in the AE. An evil cleric of a neutral deity would be detected, though in step 3 they'd just use the "creature" line.

- In my campaign, killing somebody who's of evil alignment is not an evil act. However, it may not be a good act depending on circumstances, and it is almost never a lawful act absent some proof of an imminent threat to law and order or a past unpunished crime. So Paladins usually don't go around lopping off heads every time they detect evil.

If my players want to detect evil all the time and refuse to deal with anyone who detects as evil, that's fine by me as DM - there are lots of evil people that have nothing to do with whatever mission the group is on. Human societies tend to average out to a neutral alignment, and given that good folks can be found that implies there are also normal, functioning members of society who are of evil alignment to balance things out. A group that cuts themselves off from all interaction with those who detect as evil will have to go about things differently than one that's willing to hold their noses and get things done.

In the end, I feel if knowing who the evil guys are completely spoils a plot, the DM didn't have a sufficiently interesting plot in the first place. Just like with invisibility, teleport, and all manner of divinations, a DM should build the world assuming everyone is aware such magics exist and society has adapted accordingly.

 

[Planesdragon]

I was wondering how other people use the Detect Evil/Good spells or abilities in their campaigns.

Simple, really.

• Detect Spells now only detect a creature with the "Good" or "Evil" kind, unless said creature has something else that gives them an aura (such as being a cleric of an evil god.)
• Worshipper alignment and religion alignment are no longer linked. I had a player play a Lawful-Evil Paladin of the Light, and it was a great session until his job took him away. (Best roleplaying EVER between him and the CG Paladin of the Light.)

So, "Detect Evil" will let you find creatures who drip evil, but not every creature who drips evil is someone that should be killed.

I'm finding that it creates complications to play it exactly as written in the rules. ... I'm feeling like things should not be quite so black and white, that there are some beings like demons that are truly "evil", but most creatures have a blend of good and evil, regardless of their official alignment,

If it bothers you, then don't allow it. You might want to lift my rules from above.

You could ALSO just expand what "evil" means. If a merchant plotting to cheat a customer "detects" as evil as one who wants to poison the entire town, the party will be wind up being chased by high-level multiclassed ranger/paladins soon enough.

and there is the issue of what is evil to one person, may not be evil to another.

Don't go there. D&D assumes aboslute morality--what is evil is evil is evil, and what is good is good is good. Things that you aren't sure of should be "neutral", or whatever your own personal belief of the matter is.

If you want relative morality, toss out alingment; using AL for relative morality is as bad as using it to define alliegances.

 

[shilsen]

Where does it say an evil creature produces an evil aura? Or that a creature with an evil alignment becomes an evil creature? It is far, far from as clear-cut as you're presenting it. I could be missing this, but I don't think it does say that an alignment produces an aura, or that 'evil creature' means 'creature with an evil alingment'...the word "alignment" is never mentioned in the spell, and it doesn't track the alignment of a creature any more than it tracks the alignment of an evil object or spell...it doesn't matter if the evil outsider is redeemed and is Lawful Good, he still *detects* as evil, because alignment isn't what's measured, it's 'evil aura.'

From the FAQ available on the Wizards site:

Q: The detect evil spell lets you detect the aura of evil creatures but not characters. Are characters counted as creatures with their level as their Hit Dice?
A: The terms creature and character are interchangeable. Any subject with an evil alignment has an evil aura.

And even if I *am* dead wrong in my interpretation, if it's causing a problem that it's detecting alingment, then simply getting rid of that aspect of the spell fixes the problem wholesale, ne? Detect Evil is much ado about nada, even if the rules do say that it detects evil components of a creature's alingment (which is far from proven...simply saying I'm wrong doesn't help your case at all. )

That's my point. The fact that it detects alignment does not cause a problem, unless the DM chooses to let it.

 

[baradtgnome]

Detect Evil, as written in 3.5E, does not fit our campaign. Most of our issues have been detailed in the above threads. As DM, I just didn't want the fight for Good against Evil to be that black and white. So we discussed as a group and house ruled "detect evil" to our new custom form. Works well for us. Doesn't detect 'ordinary' evil creatures/characters - more focused on outsiders and divine powered creatures. Rule 0.

 

[I'm A Banana]

G'ha, that FAQ has been the bane of my existence recently...first it directly counteracts the wording of the Rope Trick spell and claims that bags of holdling do nothing to it....then it punches holes in by book-valid interpretation...

Oh, and just so you know:

Neutral clerics of an evil deity

These can't exist. The wording is vague, but in general a cleric must be within one step of their deity's alignment AND "a cleric may not be neutral unless his deity's alignment is also neutral." So all evil gods have evil clerics, and all good gods have good clerics, and neutral clerics only exist for neutral deities. Though you could be Good or Evil and worship a Neutral deity (IMHO, a crazy crazy rule, but thereyago)...