Warlock and Detect Magic

[Evar Nettlespar]

A warlock uses her Detect Magic ability at will, as per the spell. How is that resolved in terms of activation? Do I have to activate seperately each time, or is it considered to be on constantly, as per the Persistant Spell feat (which incidently uses Detect Magic as the example in it's description.) It seems to me that it would make more sense, and easier to resolve for the DM if it were always considered "on".

DM: "You travel overland for three days. The weather is harsh and you find that-"
Player: "Whoa, whoa, whoa.... Excuse me, but do I detect magic (14400 rds per day * 3 days = 43200) any time during those 43,200 opportunities?

Seems kinda silly to me and not to mention unrealistic, as it doesn't incorporate sleep or other times when concentration may waver, but you catch my meaning I hope. Is it unreasonable to assume that a class feature which is used "at will" to be constantly on?

 

[talmar]

Detect Magic has a concentration up to 1min/level time limit. I'm playing a warlock with that ability and we rule that the invocation is as the spell. So after a few minutes or broken concentration I have to use another standard action to "reactive" my detect magic.

 

[Evar Nettlespar]

But why would the Persistant Spell waive the duration of said spell and the "at will" portion of the class feature not?

 

[dcollins]

"At will" simply means "times per day: unlimited". From the SRD under "Monsters: Types, Subtypes & Special Abilities":

A spell-like ability usually has a limit on how often it can be used. A spell-like ability that can be used at will has no use limit. Using a spell-like ability is a standard action unless noted otherwise, and doing so while threatened provokes attacks of opportunity. It is possible to make a Concentration check to use a spell-like ability defensively and avoid provoking an attack of opportunity, just as when casting a spell. A spell-like ability can be disrupted just as a spell can be. Spell-like abilities cannot be used to counterspell, nor can they be counterspelled.

 

[XCorvis]

I hate it when players do that. "I crawl along the floor on my hands and knees, searching every inch of the 100' corridor for traps." Great. 8 hours later...

Yes, I agree with you - "at will" is not "always on." The invisible stalker's invisibility is always on, and it is specified explicity.

I have a warlock in my game. Basically, we assume that his detect magic is off unless he specifies that it is on. If he tried keep it on constantly, I would have him become disoriented and ill, like wearing someone else's eyeglasses. The mental stress of using it for 8 hours straight would probably exhaust him.

 

[Dimwhit]

One more for the 'must use a standard action to activate' crowd. Any invocation but be activated with a standard action, even those with a 24 hour duration.

 

[wuyanei]

By default, the ability is off and requires a standard action to activate. However, if a player wants to activate the ability first thing in the morning and keep it on as long as he is awake, I'd allow it unless he does anything that breaks his concentration. I'd just use a Spot check (with suitable modifiers related to the strength of the aura -- +1 bonus to the check per CL worth of aura strength, I'd guess) to resolve whether he notices a particular aura or not.

I'd also impose a -4 penalty (or worse) on all OTHER skill checks made as reactions, such as all Listen checks and Spot checks relating to anything NOT related to magical auras. Maintaining concentration in NOT an easy thing to do.

 

[Evar Nettlespar]

I wasn't trying to be one of those "hated" players seeking to abuse a cool ability at the expense of game flow. Quite the opposite, in fact. I do however, want to use my ability to the upmost, and my perceptions as such were that my warlock had a "sixth sense" in relation to magic. It just seemed more in tune that the DM would just tell me when I seen magic, as per the description in Persistant Spell, rather then me asking "Do I detect magic?" as a response to every room, person and item description. That, to me, gets more tedious then the simple knowledge that something/one radiates magic, with concentration once discovered to determine strength and school. But, ultimately, it's covered in RAW, as dcollins pointed out, so discussion is moot. It also helps validate the necessity of Persistant Spell feat, in any event.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

The problem, of course, is that if anyone in your party is wearing a magic item, the answer to "Do I see magic?" will always be "Yes."

You'll need to pause and concentrate for a few rounds in order to discern each individual aura's strength and location.

 

[Evar Nettlespar]

True, I never thought of that.