Mirror Image - How does it work??

[weckar]

This spell creates a number of illusory doubles of you that inhabit your square. These doubles make it difficult for enemies to precisely locate and attack you.

When mirror image is cast, 1d4 images plus one image per three caster levels (maximum eight images total) are created. These images remain in your space and move with you, mimicking your movements, sounds, and actions exactly. Whenever you are attacked or are the target of a spell that requires an attack roll, there is a possibility that the attack targets one of your images instead. If the attack is a hit, roll randomly to see whether the selected target is real or a figment. If it is a figment, the figment is destroyed. If the attack misses by 5 or less, one of your figments is destroyed by the near miss. Area spells affect you normally and do not destroy any of your figments. Spells and effects that do not require an attack roll affect you normally and do not destroy any of your figments. Spells that require a touch attack are harmlessly discharged if used to destroy a figment.

An attacker must be able to see the figments to be fooled. If you are invisible or the attacker is blind, the spell has no effect (although the normal miss chances still apply).
Emphasis mine.

So, in practical terms: images that occupy the exact same physical space as the caster. And somehow, if they are hit, the caster isn't. HOW DOES THIS WORK??

[eggynack]

In the same exact physical space, and in the same square, are two different things. The different images are in different places within the square.

[cakellene]

A 25 square foot area is fairly big area. Plenty of room for you and half a dozen false targets to draw fire away from you.

[Maginomicon]

Are we talking about the same mirror image (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/mirrorImage.htm)?

That version of mirror image says they stay within 5 ft of you or another copy, meaning you can have them spread out but they must remain in a contiguous cluster with you. That is, you can spread yourself out in a line or a blob of multiple squares.

[Kelb_Panthera]

I didn't know PF nerfed mirror image.

The simplified version is that mirror image makes 1d4+1/3cl false targets that occupy your space on the battle grid. When you're struck in combat determine randomly which of the available targets in the square was struck. If it was you, take damage normally. If it was an image, remove that image and take no damage.

The 3.5 version was better. You and your images occupied separate, consecutive spaces and the enemy had to pick one rather than just roll and hope he gets lucky. Much better control and you could fake out dimmer foes into believing you have them outnumbered.

[Khanjar]

Speaking of how Mirror Image works, what about someone casting a spell with the target line "one living creature"?

Assume for the sake of argument the targetted person with mirror image active isn't a construct or undead, etc. Does Mirror Image interfere with the targeting (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicOverview/spellDescriptions.htm#targetorTargets) of those kinds of spells? It seems to imply that the caster has to select the target, but there are multiple copies meaning they have to pick the correct target, don't they? It seems to me that this would mean you roll randomly to determine whether the caster has selected a "real target" or an image. And if an image is targeted, does it get destroyed by that kind of spell (say hold monster)? It's hostile but doesn't do damage like an attack would.

[cakellene]

Speaking of how Mirror Image works, what about someone casting a spell with the target line "one living creature"?

Assume for the sake of argument the targetted person with mirror image active isn't a construct or undead, etc. Does Mirror Image interfere with the targeting (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicOverview/spellDescriptions.htm#targetorTargets) of those kinds of spells? It seems to imply that the caster has to select the target, but there are multiple copies meaning they have to pick the correct target, don't they? It seems to me that this would mean you roll randomly to determine whether the caster has selected a "real target" or an image. And if an image is targeted, does it get destroyed by that kind of spell (say hold monster)? It's hostile but doesn't do damage like an attack would.

Would probably depend if it requires an attack roll or not.

[IAmTehDave]

Would probably depend if it requires an attack roll or not.

AFAIK, If the target is "one living creature" it normally doesn't require an attack roll.

If it does, then you have to aim, and it might hit a mirror image, only to fizzle because the image is not a valid target.

If it doesn't, then you just hit the real target, because the images aren't valid targets. (The spell won't let itself be cast at them)

[Khanjar]

The targeting overview for magic isn't terribly clear about whether a spell "knows" which targets are real. It seems to me that if the caster is fooled (i.e. doesn't know which image is the real target) the targeted spell has a very real chance of fizzling and failing.

edit: Take the example of magic missle. It NEVER misses it's target, but I'm pretty sure it would have a chance to connect with some images and destroy them if someone wasn't sure which image was actually the target.

[Ninjaxenomorph]

No, magic missile was specified in a FAQ to hit the original target, so unless something requires an attack roll, the spell would target you. You also can't use it to get rid of images.

[Khanjar]

Hmmmm, eratta or that Wizard's FAQ on their website?

Hit it with a stick, well you gotta figure out which one to hit! Hit it with a spell, don't even worry about it guy! These spells are just fire and forget!

Why do mundanes always get the shaft? I think I smell a house-rule coming on ...

[Thurbane]

Mirror Image is a headache spell, plain and simple. Headache as a player and a DM. Unfortunately it is also probably by far and away one of the best low level defensive spells in the game, so it gets used a lot.

Way we have usually played it as simplified it down to a simple random roll - i.e. if you are attacked when you have 3 images up, roll 1d4. 1 it goes for you, 2-4 it's an image.

Trying to track which squares images are in etc. leads to madness. Well, slight exaggeration.

Oh, didnt realize this as PF, who seem to have simplified it somewhat

[Karnith]

Hmmmm, eratta or that Wizard's FAQ on their website?
We're dealing with Pathfinder, so neither. (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/m/mirror-image) Well, technically PF FAQ is errata, but semantics

[KillianHawkeye]

If you cast a targeted spell at an invalid target, the spell simply fails. It doesn't matter if you're trying to cast hold person on an illusory double or cast it on an ogre, it just fails because you aimed it wrong.

[Thurbane]

We're dealing with Pathfinder, so neither. (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/m/mirror-image) Well, technically PF FAQ is errata, but semantics
This is why it's so tremendously helpful for readers if posters put PF or 3.5 tags in front of their topic title. I didn't notice it was PF at first either.

[Karnith]

This is why it's so tremendously helpful for readers if posters put PF or 3.5 tags in front of their topic title. I didn't notice it was PF at first either.
I originally made a long post about how the 3.5 rules and FAQ actually specified the opposite of what Ninjaxenomorph said, re-read the thread, realized that I was talking about a different game, and hastily changed my post to reflect the PF rules.

So, yeah, I know what you mean.

[Crake]

My groups have always run it as if you cast a hostile targeted spell at an image, it fizzles, basically anything that would normally dispel an invisibility, if it's targeted at an image, will fizzle it. And yes, we allow magic missile to drop multiple images at once.