Quote from Dr_Frederick >>

I knew that the Styx wipes the memories of larvae and petitioners on the Lower Planes, but I always wondered why Upper Plane petitioners were similarly forgetful.

According to the Manual of the Planes, their memories fade over the centuries, not right away. Eventually they either merge with the plane or become angelic beings. That's why there's a limit to how long after death resurrection spells work.

This spell should be available for wizards.

https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/tcoe/wizard#AdditionalWizardSpells

Quote from SCIFIWIZARDMAN >>

This spell is awesome, but every time I've tried to use it in a campaign it's resulted in the DM's face blanching as they realize they didn't anticipate me being able to talk to the corpses decorating the room, and either had nothing prepared at all or were scared of me learning secrets that I'm not "supposed" to learn until later. So I always either happen to cast the spell on a 6-INT moron, or I just get told "the spell doesn't work".

Not even the same DMs. Three different campaigns, three different DMs, three different characters, all the same general result. I probably just have terrible luck, I'm sure most DMs out their are cool with improvising when someone uses this spell, but I advise anyone who wants to take Speak With Dead to clear it with their DM first to make sure there aren't any issues with it.

 That's pretty sad. Weaksauce, really.  

I love when players are clever. I'd say it's not on the players to clear it with their DM, it's on the DM to become better DMs. 

The DM challenges the players with monsters and secrets and plots.

The challenge FOR the DM is when the players think of somethng they missed. That's the FUN part.

I swear a lot of these whiny DMs are like the slow kid on the playground whining that the other kids should let him catch them in tag.  "No Fair! You're all faster than me!!"

Is there a way to protect a corpse from ever being the target of this spell? I think in earlier editions, once it was targeted by this spell, it was never able to be targeted again. Now it apparently is 10 days. 

Gentle Repose won't work because Speak with Dead doesn't make the corpse undead (which would be prevented by Gentle Repose). If it did make the corpse undead, even temporarily, it would say so. 

How is this not a ritual

I like some of the watsonian interpretations of this spell's explanation.

Here's my take on it: When a beast gets Awakened, it gains a soul like a humanoid has but there is nothing corporeal about it that changes. When an Awakened beast dies, its soul and animating spirit separate from the body. Likewise, a living humanoid has a body with a soul and animating spirit. Without an inhabiting soul, a living humanoid may as well be a very advanced primate, totally morally agnostic and operating solely by survival instinct.

So when Speak With Dead connects to a humanoid corpse, the corpse ought to respond like an Awakened primate would, smart enough to speak one or more languages and not overtly hostile or deceptive unless it has a reason to be, but otherwise probably responds as a sociopath would.

I have the same question.  When we played in our home-brew game, I let the whole party hear the questions and answers.  One of the players asked if they could all hear the answers and our most experienced player with a couple of decades of D&D had no idea.  I like your thought regarding the vocal component and it seemed most natural at the time to allow the whole party to hear.

'Available For: BARD CLERIC KNOWLEDGE DOMAIN THE UNDYING THE UNDEAD'...

and yet a sorcerer used it in HAT.

Can the corpse avoid speaking common and instead only use its most used language or other language it knew in life? Even if the caster is commanding it to communicate?

Quote from Saghel >>

Can the corpse avoid speaking common and instead only use its most used language or other language it knew in life? Even if the caster is commanding it to communicate?

Yeah, there's nothing about the spell that says the dead person is required to actually be helpful to you. It has to answer your questions, but it doesn't say the answers have to be in a language you understand.

what the hell is an animating spirit

He did not cast the Spell.

He used the coin

A magic Item

Quote from JollyJonah >>

'Available For: BARD CLERIC KNOWLEDGE DOMAIN THE UNDYING THE UNDEAD'...

and yet a sorcerer used it in HAT.

He did not cast the Spell.

He used the coin

A magic Item

Does anyone know what sourcebook this is in? I'd like to buy it, since I'm playing a bard, but im not seeing it in my list