I'm a dragonborn who wants use the rod of rulership to command a group of human guards. It has been brought up to me that since the human guards don't have a dragonborn leader, that i would be at a disadvantage in commanding them with the rod of rulership because as it says "can not be commanded to do something contrary to its nature" so it is asssumed being that a dragonborn would be an unnatural leader to these guards....... I don't agree, am I wrong? I would think not natural would be telling them to fly or turn invisible?
No, ordering a creature that can't fly to fly is impossible order to obey, not merely against its nature. Against its nature means e.g. ordering a pacifist to commit violence or ordering a vegan to eat meat.
It absolutely *does not* include something as inoccuous as an order that contradicts reality, because all orders contradict reality. The guards don't have a dragonborn commander, but literally anyone other than their commander using that rod would suffer an identical situation, nerfing the rod into uselessness. What if you used the rod on someone with no commander, like a civilian? Your DM is trying to make the rod racist, I suspect, in a way that it is not.
I think the whole point of something that creates a charmed condition is that it triggers suspension of disbelief for minor details that don't overly conflict with an affected individual. Simply put, it muddles the mind of the target against realizing the illogical details that might be involved. I don't think being a Dragonborn commander is a realistic obstacle unless, everyone here just hates Dragonborns or some other serious conflict.
As far as what is contrary to a creatures nature, that is quite debatable. If you order the guards to take care of "ruffians" that are actually 2 assassins lurking outside of town, that may work. If you name Sammy and Danny the towns twin farm boys as the ruffians, that might break the grip of being charmed.
If the guards really hate dragonborn, then it would be contrary to its nature to obey. Doing an evil thing as a good character or a good thing as an evil character, would be contrary to its nature. A loving mother couldn't be commanded to kill her child. Soldiers and guards are not going against their nature to obey an order from their "trusted leader", which is how they would see your characters. Unless, they hate dragonborn on a fundamental level that hating dragonborn defines them as people.
I'm a dragonborn who wants use the rod of rulership to command a group of human guards. It has been brought up to me that since the human guards don't have a dragonborn leader, that i would be at a disadvantage in commanding them with the rod of rulership because as it says "can not be commanded to do something contrary to its nature" so it is asssumed being that a dragonborn would be an unnatural leader to these guards....... I don't agree, am I wrong? I would think not natural would be telling them to fly or turn invisible?
No, ordering a creature that can't fly to fly is impossible order to obey, not merely against its nature. Against its nature means e.g. ordering a pacifist to commit violence or ordering a vegan to eat meat.
It absolutely *does not* include something as inoccuous as an order that contradicts reality, because all orders contradict reality. The guards don't have a dragonborn commander, but literally anyone other than their commander using that rod would suffer an identical situation, nerfing the rod into uselessness. What if you used the rod on someone with no commander, like a civilian? Your DM is trying to make the rod racist, I suspect, in a way that it is not.
I think the whole point of something that creates a charmed condition is that it triggers suspension of disbelief for minor details that don't overly conflict with an affected individual. Simply put, it muddles the mind of the target against realizing the illogical details that might be involved. I don't think being a Dragonborn commander is a realistic obstacle unless, everyone here just hates Dragonborns or some other serious conflict.
As far as what is contrary to a creatures nature, that is quite debatable. If you order the guards to take care of "ruffians" that are actually 2 assassins lurking outside of town, that may work. If you name Sammy and Danny the towns twin farm boys as the ruffians, that might break the grip of being charmed.
If the guards really hate dragonborn, then it would be contrary to its nature to obey. Doing an evil thing as a good character or a good thing as an evil character, would be contrary to its nature. A loving mother couldn't be commanded to kill her child. Soldiers and guards are not going against their nature to obey an order from their "trusted leader", which is how they would see your characters. Unless, they hate dragonborn on a fundamental level that hating dragonborn defines them as people.
Yeah, unless this is a group dedicated to beating up dragonborn, it shouldn't be a problem. Dragonborn are just another kind of people after all.
Your DM better get used to this item being nuts.