if you make your Archer invisible does he lose his ranged attack since everything on him also becomes invisible he theoretically should not be able to sight down his bow since he cant see it. Also the fighter with his axe tries to hit an opponent unaware of his presence, does he go at a minus since he cant see his weapon ie. strike might be a little long or a little short cuz he cant really set his reach point without seeing his distance to target or is this over thinking things?
if you make your Archer invisible does he lose his ranged attack since everything on him also becomes invisible he theoretically should not be able to sight down his bow since he cant see it. Also the fighter with his axe tries to hit an opponent unaware of his presence, does he go at a minus since he cant see his weapon ie. strike might be a little long or a little short cuz he cant really set his reach point without seeing his distance to target or is this over thinking things?
Since your retinas are invisible and can't receive light, you become blind until the spell ends.
OR
you could just go with "Hey, it's magic" and let the spell just work as it was intended.
you Are invisible to everyone who perceives you unless that have an ability (like truesight) that allows them to, or they don’t rely on sight at all (like creatures with blindsight). Its not just opponents and enemies, but you can still see and perform normal activities including attacking without penalty. Some invisibility spells and abilities end when you do certain things though, like attacking.
This sounds more like a vindictive granting of a Wish. XD (...and if someone didn't have a really good reason to with for invisibility, they'd deserve it.)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Human. Male. Possibly. Don't be a divider. My characters' backgrounds are written like instruction manuals rather than stories. My opinion and preferences don't mean you're wrong. I am 99.7603% convinced that the digital dice are messing with me. I roll high when nobody's looking and low when anyone else can see.🎲 “It's a bit early to be thinking about an epitaph. No?” will be my epitaph.
"A creature you touch becomes invisible until the spell ends."
This is a reference to the game mechanic invisible condition not a reference of what is actually happening. What is actually happening is an illusion made to make people think you are not there, this is not the same thing as actual invisibility which involves making you impervious to any form of sight based on light. This is why the spell is illusion not alteration. When discussing a spell one must factor everything about the spell including the school of magic and what that means.
Your enemies are just tricked into thinking you are not there.
It's an Illusion spell, not Alteration.
The in-universe explanation for why you can't be seen really doesn't matter; whether you want to think of it as everyone's senses being fooled or the magic actually changing your body so light goes through it, the spell doesn't exclude the target from its effects. RAW, the target is invisible to everyone.
I don't think it's worth splitting hairs as to what that would imply in combat, since the advantages of being invisible are still going to outweigh the minor inconvenience of not being able to see your own weapon (and old school bows didn't have sights anyways.)
This is a reference to the game mechanic invisible condition not a reference of what is actually happening. What is actually happening is an illusion made to make people think you are not there, this is not the same thing as actual invisibility which involves making you impervious to any form of sight based on light. This is why the spell is illusion not alteration. When discussing a spell one must factor everything about the spell including the school of magic and what that means.
Or you could just take the spell at its word when it says you become invisible.
I'm well aware it's a game. Just repeating "it's a game" doesn't help when you're trying to discuss how something works in the game world. "It just happens" is a boring answer and not helpful.
The OP was wanting to discuss the physical aspects of it. I answered in respect of that. They know its a game. I know its a game. The OP still wanted to know anyway, and I still wanted to answer. Please don't try to shut down conversations on the premise of "it's a game!" because it's not helpful and doesn't mean we still cannot discuss things.
This is the rules and game mechanics subforum, so I think in-depth discussions of game mechanics are absolutely appropriate here.
I take your point that invisibility is an illusion spell rather than alteration and your argument makes sense that as such, it would seem that rather than making the target invisible, it just plays tricks upon those who look at the illusion of invisibility. This is a reasonable conclusion and explanation so long as it doesn't contradict--
The description of the spell says that it makes the target invisible.
As for the nature of invisibility and potentially different varieties, objective invisibility (invisible stalker or poltergeist maybe?) vs subjective invisibility is not discussed in detail anywhere in the rules as far as I know. I still think it is fair game for discussion, but I think that sits in more the realm of the DM and the way magic works in the world in which that particular game takes place. Whether someone is truly invisible or everyone just thinks they are, it kind of doesn't matter because the result is the same.
My opinion is that when a spell turns someone invisible, they are objectively invisible.
Whether someone is truly invisible or everyone just thinks they are, it kind of doesn't matter because the result is the same.
This is just my opinion, but this is the most important part of this discussion. The mechanics of the spell are quiet clear, how you rationalize the spell is up to you.
RAW doesn't say you can't do a ranged attack. In fact, RAW says "Attack rolls against the creature have disadvantage, and the creature's attack rolls have advantage."
Now, if you want to argue "But he can't see his own sword how can he hit anything?" is kind of interesting from a "How would this really work" perspective. But to the game, nothing prevents you from doing attacks. It does the opposite; it makes you real good at attacking, because the defender doesn't know it is coming.
So...while the academics of how the spell might work is interesting, the game rules aren't terribly concerned with it.
if you make your Archer invisible does he lose his ranged attack since everything on him also becomes invisible he theoretically should not be able to sight down his bow since he cant see it. Also the fighter with his axe tries to hit an opponent unaware of his presence, does he go at a minus since he cant see his weapon ie. strike might be a little long or a little short cuz he cant really set his reach point without seeing his distance to target or is this over thinking things?
Since your retinas are invisible and can't receive light, you become blind until the spell ends.
OR
you could just go with "Hey, it's magic" and let the spell just work as it was intended.
She/Her College Student Player and Dungeon Master
It’s an illusion and the target of the spell knows that it’s an illusion so he can see through it.
Professional computer geek
Thanks guys, wish they would have just said invisible to your opponents or enemies could have clarified it right out of the gate.
you Are invisible to everyone who perceives you unless that have an ability (like truesight) that allows them to, or they don’t rely on sight at all (like creatures with blindsight). Its not just opponents and enemies, but you can still see and perform normal activities including attacking without penalty. Some invisibility spells and abilities end when you do certain things though, like attacking.
You are thinking too hard about game mechanics.
You are not actually invisible.
Your enemies are just tricked into thinking you are not there.
It's an Illusion spell, not Alteration.
My Homebrew: Races | Subclasses | Backgrounds | Spells | Magic Items | Feats
Need help with Homebrew? Check out this FAQ/Guide thread by IamSposta
See My Youtube Videos for Tips & Tricks using D&D Beyond
"A creature you touch becomes invisible until the spell ends."
"Not all those who wander are lost"
This sounds more like a vindictive granting of a Wish. XD (...and if someone didn't have a really good reason to with for invisibility, they'd deserve it.)
Human. Male. Possibly. Don't be a divider.
My characters' backgrounds are written like instruction manuals rather than stories. My opinion and preferences don't mean you're wrong.
I am 99.7603% convinced that the digital dice are messing with me. I roll high when nobody's looking and low when anyone else can see.🎲
“It's a bit early to be thinking about an epitaph. No?” will be my epitaph.
This is a reference to the game mechanic invisible condition not a reference of what is actually happening. What is actually happening is an illusion made to make people think you are not there, this is not the same thing as actual invisibility which involves making you impervious to any form of sight based on light. This is why the spell is illusion not alteration. When discussing a spell one must factor everything about the spell including the school of magic and what that means.
My Homebrew: Races | Subclasses | Backgrounds | Spells | Magic Items | Feats
Need help with Homebrew? Check out this FAQ/Guide thread by IamSposta
See My Youtube Videos for Tips & Tricks using D&D Beyond
The in-universe explanation for why you can't be seen really doesn't matter; whether you want to think of it as everyone's senses being fooled or the magic actually changing your body so light goes through it, the spell doesn't exclude the target from its effects. RAW, the target is invisible to everyone.
I don't think it's worth splitting hairs as to what that would imply in combat, since the advantages of being invisible are still going to outweigh the minor inconvenience of not being able to see your own weapon (and old school bows didn't have sights anyways.)
THIS. Remember what the "G" in RPG stands for, and don't worry too much about the theoretical physics involved. That way lies madness :)
Or you could just take the spell at its word when it says you become invisible.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
Watch Crits for Breakfast, an adults-only RP-Heavy Roll20 Livestream at twitch.tv/afterdisbooty
And now you too can play with the amazing art and assets we use in Roll20 for our campaign at Hazel's Emporium
I'm well aware it's a game. Just repeating "it's a game" doesn't help when you're trying to discuss how something works in the game world. "It just happens" is a boring answer and not helpful.
The OP was wanting to discuss the physical aspects of it. I answered in respect of that. They know its a game. I know its a game. The OP still wanted to know anyway, and I still wanted to answer. Please don't try to shut down conversations on the premise of "it's a game!" because it's not helpful and doesn't mean we still cannot discuss things.
My Homebrew: Races | Subclasses | Backgrounds | Spells | Magic Items | Feats
Need help with Homebrew? Check out this FAQ/Guide thread by IamSposta
See My Youtube Videos for Tips & Tricks using D&D Beyond
As for the nature of invisibility and potentially different varieties, objective invisibility (invisible stalker or poltergeist maybe?) vs subjective invisibility is not discussed in detail anywhere in the rules as far as I know. I still think it is fair game for discussion, but I think that sits in more the realm of the DM and the way magic works in the world in which that particular game takes place. Whether someone is truly invisible or everyone just thinks they are, it kind of doesn't matter because the result is the same.
My opinion is that when a spell turns someone invisible, they are objectively invisible.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
This is just my opinion, but this is the most important part of this discussion. The mechanics of the spell are quiet clear, how you rationalize the spell is up to you.
She/Her College Student Player and Dungeon Master
RAW doesn't say you can't do a ranged attack. In fact, RAW says "Attack rolls against the creature have disadvantage, and the creature's attack rolls have advantage."
Now, if you want to argue "But he can't see his own sword how can he hit anything?" is kind of interesting from a "How would this really work" perspective. But to the game, nothing prevents you from doing attacks. It does the opposite; it makes you real good at attacking, because the defender doesn't know it is coming.
So...while the academics of how the spell might work is interesting, the game rules aren't terribly concerned with it.