Charm Person

[A4GraphPaper]

How do you use this spell on people without them noticing that you're casting a spell on them (which many characters would take as threatening)? It has verbal components and only works at close range so how would you even begin to say... use it on a lord to get them on your side?

Also (more importantly) how do you determine how good a character is at pantomiming? :smalltongue:

[SamBurke]

Technically, OOC, they don't know a thing, even if you fail. Now, of course, a brutally evil (but slightly role-play leaning) GM would point out that you're making spellcaster-y noises/gestures, and people notice.

Tell everyone you're casting Create Water and they just messed it up. Create Water into the nearest container. Or, use any other cantrip. (Arcane Mark might be useful, for example.)

[WinWin]

If they were specifically observing the caster, then they could make a Spellcraft check.

Pantomime should be covered by Perform.

[Douglas]

Technically, OOC, they don't know a thing, even if you fail.
If the target succeeds on his save, he automatically knows that something hostile happened, and if his spellcraft is good enough he can identify exactly what.

[Gamer Girl]

You could always use the feat silent spell.

Or use a magic item that can create the charm person effect.

And close is not 'that close'. It's not so hard to get within 50 feet of a target, you don't need to walk up and be 5 feet away. The average lord will be in places were you could do it. Take a courtyard or hall, for example.

Or you could sneak over and charm him when he is more 'alone' too.

[SuperFerret]

Some spells seem like they'd be a lot more subtle than the "wave my hands around and chant" type.

Somatic could be a pat on the back or a handshake and the vocal could be as simple as "Hey there, friend."

[FMArthur]

The Sleight of Hand use in Races of Stone more than covers this if you can make your skill check good. Fatespinner (CArc) has basically free entry requirements (a few ranks in profession: gambler, I believe) and gets you Sleight of Hand as a class skill.

Basically you can make a Sleight of Hand check versus observers' Spot checks to cast unnoticed whenever you like, somehow disguising your verbal and somatic components as you cast to fool people into thinking you are doing something else. For example, covering your mouth to cough is pretty much a universally applicable way to cover your spellcasting in this way, although you'll have to come up with other things before people pick up patterns or spread the word when you fail.

Charm Person works fine with just that, but if you combine this Sleight of Hand usage with Invisible Spell (+0 metamagic from Cityscape), your spellcasting can be stupidly difficult to detect, even on insanely conspicuous spells.