Do 14th level and higher rangers with the Vanish feature leave fingerprints? if they walk on sand or gravel do they create footsteps in their wake, or even displace it at all? If they are bleeding severely will they leave a trail of blood, and if not then how? do they leave fingerprints? If such a ranger would be in a modern magic/ urban arcana setting would they be able to be tracked by GPS signals? Will their ambient body temperature heat up their surroundings, thus allowing something with really precise infrared vision to follow them that way? If you are forced to break an cobwebs to enter a cave or forced to break a bunch of branches traversing a bunch of bushes, would that constiute deliberately leaving a trail? If i am traveling either by mount or by mechanized vehicle would such benefits apply to them as well, or would it only apply when traveling by foot? Could the benefits of the feature even be applied to the group you are traveling with, since otherwise a creature could thus track those people and thus by extension track you should they know that you are traveling with them?
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i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
I'd say "yes" to your suggestions about leaving fingerprints, footprints, breaking webs and branches, all of it. I will pass on the modern use interpretation as I don't think that is implied by the PHB. But yes, I think it is more of a mental and awareness thing than a purely dexterity based thing. If they do walk across sand, through webs, or touch something, they know how to cover it up, undo it, or blend it into the rest of the surrounding area. They "can't be tracked" not because they don't effect the environment, but because they are so aware of the environment and their effect on it they can kind of blend it all together.
They "can't be tracked" not because they don't effect the environment, but because they are so aware of the environment and their effect on it they can kind of blend it all together.
if that was how the ability worked, it would require conscious effort on the part of the ranger to cover their tracks, it would be an active ability that might even slow down your movement pace as you do so, but the peculiar wording of the feature kind of indicates that the ranger has to make an active effort if he or she wants to be followed, like tying bits of cloth to brances or like actively making markings on the terrain, that not being trackable is your natural state and that merely walking around leaving footsteps is not enough. And also it kinda does not make sense that "you know ways to cover up your tracks as you go" is something you do not gain until 14th level, especially when earlier features from the ranger indicate some supernatural connection with the land around them. I donno i just kinda assumed footsteps were somehow magically erased after you or that you never make footsteps to begin with
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i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
They "can't be tracked" not because they don't effect the environment, but because they are so aware of the environment and their effect on it they can kind of blend it all together.
if that was how the ability worked, it would require conscious effort on the part of the ranger to cover their tracks, it would be an active ability that might even slow down your movement pace as you do so, but the peculiar wording of the feature kind of indicates that the ranger has to make an active effort if he or she wants to be followed, like tying bits of cloth to brances or like actively making markings on the terrain, that not being trackable is your natural state and that merely walking around leaving footsteps is not enough. And also it kinda does not make sense that "you know ways to cover up your tracks as you go" is something you do not gain until 14th level, especially when earlier features from the ranger indicate some supernatural connection with the land around them. I donno i just kinda assumed footsteps were somehow magically erased after you or that you never make footsteps to begin with
Maybe. As a level 14 ability wouldn't it kind of fall under the same amount of "active" intent as the rogue's Reliable Talent? Like, everything you said about conscious and an effort, but at a level that basically takes no time or intent from a game mechanic perspective.
I don't see it as magical in my mind for two reasons. 1. Magic means can still track you. 2. It feels more like Hide in Plain Sight to me, as in, non magical. Of course, with Tasha's, everything is @#$%ing magical, so maybe it is now.
The ability does what it says it does. Which means that there is no way on Bahamut's Green Toril that anybody can track you using nonmagical means, unless you want them to. You can attribute it to magic, or you can say they've become so used to covering their tracks that it's become second-nature to them, but you only leave a trail when you want to leave a trail.
How this works in-universe is up to each table. Personally, I'd rule it as magic just for the sake of simplicity. In a modern setting, this would mean you cannot be tracked or scanned by technology (unless that technology is itself powered by magic.) That being said, I think the benefit extends to you and only to you. There is no way to cover the tracks of your mount or your allies. What this does in practice, however, is when the raiding party finds your group, they won't be expecting you to be among their ranks and might come unprepared to deal with you. If it's a mount, they might think it's wild or escaped and won't know to think it has a rider.
That's my interpretation of it.
For bonus points, grab yourself an Amulet of Proof Against Detection and Location, or take Nondetection when you get access to 3rd-level spells at 9th-level, and now you can't be tracked by magical or nonmagical means. Throw on the limited invisibility of Nature's Veil and the stealth boost of Pass Without Trace, and you're really a ghost. Caution: this might cause your Rogue buddy to feel inadequate.
My interpretation is that you leave no trace of your passage, so no blood trail, fingerprints, heat trail, or footprints, even in snow. As for the cobwebs/bushes blocking a narrow path, when considered together with the level 8 ability, I would say that you do not have to break them to get through as long as they aren't magical. Now if you broke through a door, it would be obvious someone went through, but there's no way to trace you up to or away from the door.
However, if you're carrying something like GPS that tells people where you are right now (or where you've been if the current location is being recorded somewhere) or if people can see you and give reports of your location, the ability does nothing against those. In a fantasy setting, this would be akin to crossing an open plain in the dark while carrying a torch.
I would say the ability only applies to yourself and not to any companions or mounts, but pass without trace has a similar effect and applies to the whole group.
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Do 14th level and higher rangers with the Vanish feature leave fingerprints? if they walk on sand or gravel do they create footsteps in their wake, or even displace it at all? If they are bleeding severely will they leave a trail of blood, and if not then how? do they leave fingerprints? If such a ranger would be in a modern magic/ urban arcana setting would they be able to be tracked by GPS signals? Will their ambient body temperature heat up their surroundings, thus allowing something with really precise infrared vision to follow them that way? If you are forced to break an cobwebs to enter a cave or forced to break a bunch of branches traversing a bunch of bushes, would that constiute deliberately leaving a trail? If i am traveling either by mount or by mechanized vehicle would such benefits apply to them as well, or would it only apply when traveling by foot? Could the benefits of the feature even be applied to the group you are traveling with, since otherwise a creature could thus track those people and thus by extension track you should they know that you are traveling with them?
i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
What a great post!
I'd say "yes" to your suggestions about leaving fingerprints, footprints, breaking webs and branches, all of it. I will pass on the modern use interpretation as I don't think that is implied by the PHB. But yes, I think it is more of a mental and awareness thing than a purely dexterity based thing. If they do walk across sand, through webs, or touch something, they know how to cover it up, undo it, or blend it into the rest of the surrounding area. They "can't be tracked" not because they don't effect the environment, but because they are so aware of the environment and their effect on it they can kind of blend it all together.
if that was how the ability worked, it would require conscious effort on the part of the ranger to cover their tracks, it would be an active ability that might even slow down your movement pace as you do so, but the peculiar wording of the feature kind of indicates that the ranger has to make an active effort if he or she wants to be followed, like tying bits of cloth to brances or like actively making markings on the terrain, that not being trackable is your natural state and that merely walking around leaving footsteps is not enough. And also it kinda does not make sense that "you know ways to cover up your tracks as you go" is something you do not gain until 14th level, especially when earlier features from the ranger indicate some supernatural connection with the land around them. I donno i just kinda assumed footsteps were somehow magically erased after you or that you never make footsteps to begin with
i am soup, with too many ideas (all of them very spicy) who has made sufficient homebrew material and character to last an thousand human lifetimes
Maybe. As a level 14 ability wouldn't it kind of fall under the same amount of "active" intent as the rogue's Reliable Talent? Like, everything you said about conscious and an effort, but at a level that basically takes no time or intent from a game mechanic perspective.
I don't see it as magical in my mind for two reasons. 1. Magic means can still track you. 2. It feels more like Hide in Plain Sight to me, as in, non magical. Of course, with Tasha's, everything is @#$%ing magical, so maybe it is now.
The ability does what it says it does. Which means that there is no way on Bahamut's Green Toril that anybody can track you using nonmagical means, unless you want them to. You can attribute it to magic, or you can say they've become so used to covering their tracks that it's become second-nature to them, but you only leave a trail when you want to leave a trail.
How this works in-universe is up to each table. Personally, I'd rule it as magic just for the sake of simplicity. In a modern setting, this would mean you cannot be tracked or scanned by technology (unless that technology is itself powered by magic.) That being said, I think the benefit extends to you and only to you. There is no way to cover the tracks of your mount or your allies. What this does in practice, however, is when the raiding party finds your group, they won't be expecting you to be among their ranks and might come unprepared to deal with you. If it's a mount, they might think it's wild or escaped and won't know to think it has a rider.
That's my interpretation of it.
For bonus points, grab yourself an Amulet of Proof Against Detection and Location, or take Nondetection when you get access to 3rd-level spells at 9th-level, and now you can't be tracked by magical or nonmagical means. Throw on the limited invisibility of Nature's Veil and the stealth boost of Pass Without Trace, and you're really a ghost. Caution: this might cause your Rogue buddy to feel inadequate.
My interpretation is that you leave no trace of your passage, so no blood trail, fingerprints, heat trail, or footprints, even in snow. As for the cobwebs/bushes blocking a narrow path, when considered together with the level 8 ability, I would say that you do not have to break them to get through as long as they aren't magical. Now if you broke through a door, it would be obvious someone went through, but there's no way to trace you up to or away from the door.
However, if you're carrying something like GPS that tells people where you are right now (or where you've been if the current location is being recorded somewhere) or if people can see you and give reports of your location, the ability does nothing against those. In a fantasy setting, this would be akin to crossing an open plain in the dark while carrying a torch.
I would say the ability only applies to yourself and not to any companions or mounts, but pass without trace has a similar effect and applies to the whole group.