You can see and hear a particular creature you choose that is on the same plane of existence as you. The target must make a Wisdom saving throw, which is modified by how well you know the target and the sort of physical connection you have to it. If a target knows you're casting this spell, it can fail the saving throw voluntarily if it wants to be observed.
Knowledge |
Save Modifier |
---|---|
Secondhand (you have heard of the target) | +5 |
Firsthand (you have met the target) | 0 |
Familiar (you know the target well) | -5 |
Connection | Save Modifier |
---|---|
Likeness or picture | -2 |
Possession or garment | -4 |
Body part, lock of hair, bit of nail, or the like | -10 |
On a successful save, the target isn't affected, and you can't use this spell against it again for 24 hours.
On a failed save, the spell creates an invisible sensor within 10 feet of the target. You can see and hear through the sensor as if you were there. The sensor moves with the target, remaining within 10 feet of it for the duration. A creature that can see invisible objects sees the sensor as a luminous orb about the size of your fist.
Instead of targeting a creature, you can choose a location you have seen before as the target of this spell. When you do, the sensor appears at that location and doesn't move.
* - (a focus worth at least 1,000 gp, such as a crystal ball, a silver mirror, or a font filled with holy water)
why is this spell so complicated can someone please help me understand it?
It's a spell used to spy on someone. If you are more familiar with the target, or if you have a personal possession of the target, it becomes easier to spy on them. For instance, if you know the target well and have their lock of hair, their wisdom saving throw modifier becomes MUCH lower. Let's say their wisdom saving throw modifier is +4. Then the target will roll 1d20+4 (wisdom save) - 5 (because you know the target well) - 10 (because you have a lock of hair of the target). So whatever they roll for their wisdom save, the DM subtracts 15 from it, making it very low and more likely to fail the save DC, which will cause them to be spied upon.
The spell is slightly unclear on whether or not the target knows they're being spied on, but when I DM, and a player gets scryed upon, I like to say something like "The hair goes up on the back of your neck." If they succeed on the saving throw, then I give them more details like "You feel as though an alien presence tried to enter your mind and see through your eyes and hear through your ears." Then the target is more likely to realize someone just tried to scry on them.
What are peoples thoughts on scrying a henchman that got snuffed? His boss is wondering where he is and wanted to peek and see what the hold up could be. Personally I am going to make it just a view of the corpse but I wanted to hear some thoughts before I make it an in game house rule.
I would think the spell automatically fails do to not having a valid target. The spell targets a creature (something living with hp) or a location. A corpse is not a creature, as it's dead it would be classified as an object. Just my opinion.
^ agreed this is the way we have always handled it in my group.
If someone succeeds on the saving throw against being spied on, are they aware that someone cast something on them? And if so are they specifically aware it was a Scrying spell?
The target isn't affected which also means they don't know of the failed attempt. However, it's not uncommon to house rule that the target becomes aware of the attempt.
The spell creates an invisible sensor. It does not affect the target creature, so they would not be aware of you fail. If you succeed, they can use truesight or something similar to see the sensor. No need to invent new rules regarding detecting it.
Do the connection modifiers stack? So for example if you had a likeness, a bit of clothing, and some hair, would the modifier be -16 or would it just take the -10?
Why does this spell not have the tag SCRYING?
Why doesn't this spell have the Scrying tag? That should be fixed please.
I would say you could scry dead bodies, since the spell also allows you to scry on a location. Why couldnt a dead body be a "location". Locations are inanimate.
It says a location you've been to before. So you would have to have been by the person after they died to scry a corpse by your logic.
does an object already exist that may be enchanted, or have a spell cast upon it, which "activates" scrying, in some sense?
i'm trying to create an object my PC's find that when touched, activates scrying. the "story" is that the object has been created or modified so that some bad guys use it to communicate with each other over relatively short distances. the PC's find it, they will pick it up, and i'll ask them to roll a save. if they fail, this will allow the bad guy to find out about them, hear them, etc. scrying, seems like a good place to start as it relates to how this might unfold. but i'm wondering if there's already something established that can be fitted for this situation.
I searched for a while and didn't find anything. It sounds like what you're looking for is like if you had Crystal Balls that were paired to each other like Sending Stones, but the strange part is that they aren't triggered voluntarily. Sounds interesting ... good luck.
You can have the big bad cast Glyph of Warding. Either on a box that your object is inside or set the item on the Glyph. That could trigger scrying I would think.
I would think his body would be just an object/location at that point which does fall under the parameters of the spell. So therefore, they could/should be able to easily scry on the body as it has no way to make a saving throw.
I would think his body would be just an object/location at that point which does fall under the parameters of the spell. So therefore, they could/should be able to easily scry on the body as it has no way to make a saving throw.
I tend to be forgiving when this spell is cast as it is 5th level. I allow creature, object or location known to you. Previous editions allowed some minor divination magic to be used in conjunction, such as message and darkvision. That way the human caster doesn't just see darkness & hear snoring for 10 mins, burning a 5th level spell slot in the process.
WoC seem to have been a bit vague and limiting in the spell description, Given lower level divination spells have better options q.v. sending, arcane eye etc. this feels like it should be a bit more versatile if only to keep the game narrative flowing and given the shorter duration should really be a candidate for ritual casting to at least give chance of gaining useful information.
I have some green Hags using scrying on an NPC that is with the party. The party is suspicious of the npc, but are keeping him close by. They haven't found the scrying orb yet. What can the Hags see through the scrying orb around the NPC? They tried to distract him while they searched a chest, but the Hags still saw everything, right?