I recent came across the Gaze of Two Minds invocation. And it started me thinking of all kinds of shenanigans you could pull.
Here is the full text of the invocation from the 2024 rules.
Gaze of Two Minds
Prerequisite: Level 5+ Warlock
You can use a Bonus Action to touch a willing creature and perceive through its senses until the end of your next turn. As long as the creature is on the same plane of existence as you, you can take a Bonus Action on subsequent turns to maintain this connection, extending the duration until the end of your next turn. The connection ends if you don’t maintain it in this way.
While perceiving through the other creature’s senses, you benefit from any special senses possessed by that creature, and you can cast spells as if you were in your space or the other creature’s space if the two of you are within 60 feet of each other.
So this made me think of a few things. The first is...
How long could Gaze of Two Minds be maintained? Presumably most warlocks would need to break the connection when they sleep. But what if the warlock was a Warforged? Warforge relevant traits are as follows (highlights mine):
Constructed Resilience
You were created to have remarkable fortitude, represented by the following benefits:
You have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned, and you have resistance to poison damage.
You don’t need to eat, drink, or breathe.
You are immune to disease.
You don’t need to sleep, and magic can’t put you to sleep.
Sentry’s Rest
When you take a long rest, you must spend at least six hours in an inactive, motionless state, rather than sleeping. In this state, you appear inert, but it doesn’t render you unconscious, and you can see and hear as normal.
This begs the question, can a Warforged spend a bonus action while in Sentry's Rest. Since they are not unconscious or incapacitated, and are still aware, can they keep the connection going?
Are there other species/race options that would allow a Warlock to maintain the connection over time without sleep?
I'm imagining a warlock who stays connected to another character, looking through their eyes, but that may be hundreds of miles away.
Seems valid to me. The rules on Long Rests say they're interrupted by doing any of the following:
Rolling Initiative
Casting a spell other than a cantrip
Taking any damage
1 hour of walking or other physical exertion
Using a bonus action to maintain a connection like this does not strike me as being any of those things. It seems like exactly the kind of advantage that Sentry's Rest is meant to enable.
As for who else can do that:
The Autognome species from Spelljammer: Adventures in Space has a similar Sentry's Rest feature that should allow the same thing.
The Reborn Lineage from Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft has a Deathless Nature feature that's pretty much the same as well.
Possibly Elves? The description of their Trance feature isn't as detailed as Sentry's Rest, but it does specifically say they retain consciousness during it, so I think it should work.
My next question is about spells. What are some of the best spells to cast through Gaze of Two Minds? Does shield Or mirror image work? What non-attack spells would be good?
I read about a trick where you cast invisibility on the target of Gaze of Two Minds. You can then cast pills through your invisible friend without them being revealed. What’s a good way to take advantage of this?
I also thought about the invocation Beast Speak which allows the warlock to speak with animals. They could then use Gaze of Two Minds through them. A squirrel casting fireball could be quite interesting if that works?
Shield and Mirror Image are both spells that target the caster themselves. While Gaze of Two Minds allows you to cast them "as if you were in the other creature's space", it doesn't allow you to change the target to something other than yourself, so there's not much use for that.
The invisibility thing is interesting. It's true that since you are still the one casting the spell, casting the spell from the Gaze of Two Minds target's position wouldn't cause them to lose their invisibility. However, because the spell is being cast "as if you were in their space", any visible effect or sound the spell makes would be coming from the invisible creature's location, and could give away their position even if they're still invisible.
Speak with Animals lets you talk to animals, but it doesn't give you control over them. However, you could use the Influence action to try to convince a squirrel to go to a specific place so that you can cast Fireball from there. Depending on the situation that might be easy or hard to do.
What about the new True Strike? Since you are "Casting the spell as if you were in their position", this would allow you to make a melee attack with your own weapon as if you are in their position.
As if is not the same as actually are. So your crossbow, sword or whatever is not there to shoot. That being said I could see an argument if you took the skeleton familiar and it had a weapon, or it was with a party member or pother weapon wielder. I suspect still no, but i can see the logic range of self is there, the target is the weapon in their hand, as part of casting the spell it shoots the arrow or whatever. For a similar reason I do not think this would extend the range of misty step. You actually aren't in that position, and the spell teleports your actual body 30 feet. Though I've seen arguments that go the other way, so right now its in GM call territory.
I think you misunderstood. It says in the spell description that "you can cast spells as if you were in your space or the other creature’s space". Therefore, it would treat this as though you were in their space with the weapon, since the attack is part of the spell itself.
I think you misunderstood. It says in the spell description that "you can cast spells as if you were in your space or the other creature’s space". Therefore, it would treat this as though you were in their space with the weapon, since the attack is part of the spell itself.
No, I do not misunderstand. I have a difference of opinion on that. You cast spells as if you are there, you are not actually there. The range is self, the target is the weapon used in the spell which is then used. That weapon is in your actual hand. Not your as if space. So even though you cast it 60 feet from you it impacts the weapon in your actual hand, which then can attack people within your actual reach/range. Like I said perhaps if there is a creature wielding a weapon in your as if space that can be the target which then attacks, but otherwise no.
As if and actually are are not the same thing. If I ate candy as if there were no tomorrow, there still will be a tomorrow. There are a few different ways to use the conjunction as if, none of them would imply you are actually there. The range is still self and the target is still the weapon used for the material component, and it is still in your hand. The sword is not there, so you can't attack with it from there.
I think you misunderstood. It says in the spell description that "you can cast spells as if you were in your space or the other creature’s space". Therefore, it would treat this as though you were in their space with the weapon, since the attack is part of the spell itself.
You can measure the range for the spell as if you were in the creature's space. What's the range for the spell? Self. That's the problem.
No, the attack is part of the spell, and you are treated as if you were in the creature's space during the spell.
The spell causes you to make a weapon attack but it follows all the rules of a weapon attack except as modified by the spell. True Strike changes the ability modifiers and, potentially, damage type. As such, the attack originates from your square and is not affected by abilities that affect spell attacks or spell casting.
I recent came across the Gaze of Two Minds invocation. And it started me thinking of all kinds of shenanigans you could pull.
Here is the full text of the invocation from the 2024 rules.
So this made me think of a few things. The first is...
How long could Gaze of Two Minds be maintained? Presumably most warlocks would need to break the connection when they sleep. But what if the warlock was a Warforged? Warforge relevant traits are as follows (highlights mine):
This begs the question, can a Warforged spend a bonus action while in Sentry's Rest. Since they are not unconscious or incapacitated, and are still aware, can they keep the connection going?
Are there other species/race options that would allow a Warlock to maintain the connection over time without sleep?
I'm imagining a warlock who stays connected to another character, looking through their eyes, but that may be hundreds of miles away.
Seems valid to me. The rules on Long Rests say they're interrupted by doing any of the following:
Using a bonus action to maintain a connection like this does not strike me as being any of those things. It seems like exactly the kind of advantage that Sentry's Rest is meant to enable.
As for who else can do that:
pronouns: he/she/they
I don't know, I'd likely say no as a GM. Inactive to me is not taking actions even bonus ones.
My next question is about spells. What are some of the best spells to cast through Gaze of Two Minds? Does shield Or mirror image work? What non-attack spells would be good?
I read about a trick where you cast invisibility on the target of Gaze of Two Minds. You can then cast pills through your invisible friend without them being revealed. What’s a good way to take advantage of this?
I also thought about the invocation Beast Speak which allows the warlock to speak with animals. They could then use Gaze of Two Minds through them. A squirrel casting fireball could be quite interesting if that works?
Shield and Mirror Image are both spells that target the caster themselves. While Gaze of Two Minds allows you to cast them "as if you were in the other creature's space", it doesn't allow you to change the target to something other than yourself, so there's not much use for that.
The invisibility thing is interesting. It's true that since you are still the one casting the spell, casting the spell from the Gaze of Two Minds target's position wouldn't cause them to lose their invisibility. However, because the spell is being cast "as if you were in their space", any visible effect or sound the spell makes would be coming from the invisible creature's location, and could give away their position even if they're still invisible.
Speak with Animals lets you talk to animals, but it doesn't give you control over them. However, you could use the Influence action to try to convince a squirrel to go to a specific place so that you can cast Fireball from there. Depending on the situation that might be easy or hard to do.
pronouns: he/she/they
What about the new True Strike? Since you are "Casting the spell as if you were in their position", this would allow you to make a melee attack with your own weapon as if you are in their position.
As if is not the same as actually are. So your crossbow, sword or whatever is not there to shoot. That being said I could see an argument if you took the skeleton familiar and it had a weapon, or it was with a party member or pother weapon wielder. I suspect still no, but i can see the logic range of self is there, the target is the weapon in their hand, as part of casting the spell it shoots the arrow or whatever. For a similar reason I do not think this would extend the range of misty step. You actually aren't in that position, and the spell teleports your actual body 30 feet. Though I've seen arguments that go the other way, so right now its in GM call territory.
I think you misunderstood. It says in the spell description that "you can cast spells as if you were in your space or the other creature’s space". Therefore, it would treat this as though you were in their space with the weapon, since the attack is part of the spell itself.
No, I do not misunderstand. I have a difference of opinion on that. You cast spells as if you are there, you are not actually there. The range is self, the target is the weapon used in the spell which is then used. That weapon is in your actual hand. Not your as if space. So even though you cast it 60 feet from you it impacts the weapon in your actual hand, which then can attack people within your actual reach/range. Like I said perhaps if there is a creature wielding a weapon in your as if space that can be the target which then attacks, but otherwise no.
As if and actually are are not the same thing. If I ate candy as if there were no tomorrow, there still will be a tomorrow. There are a few different ways to use the conjunction as if, none of them would imply you are actually there. The range is still self and the target is still the weapon used for the material component, and it is still in your hand. The sword is not there, so you can't attack with it from there.
You can measure the range for the spell as if you were in the creature's space. What's the range for the spell? Self. That's the problem.
How to add Tooltips.
My houserulings.
No, the attack is part of the spell, and you are treated as if you were in the creature's space during the spell.
The spell causes you to make a weapon attack but it follows all the rules of a weapon attack except as modified by the spell. True Strike changes the ability modifiers and, potentially, damage type. As such, the attack originates from your square and is not affected by abilities that affect spell attacks or spell casting.
How to add Tooltips.
My houserulings.