limits of hypnotism

[Ettina]

If I use hypnotism on a friendly character (or charm person + hypnotism) what exactly can I suggest to them? Specifically, can I tell them how to think or feel, or just what to do?
I'm asking because I'm making a character modeled after Overly Attached Girlfriend, and I'm pretty sure she'll ask the target to love her.

[Uncle Pine]

Fanatic means that the creature will give life to serve you. Possible actions include fighting to the death against overwhelming odds or throwing oneself in front of onrushing dragon. Any NPC whose attitude is fanatic gains a +2 morale bonus to Strength and Constitution scores, a +1 morale bonus on Will saves, and a -1 penalty to AC whenever fighting for the character or his or her cause.

[Ettina]

I know what fanatic does. But that still doesn't answer my question.

[Segev]

The spell specifies that you can make a single request, which must be brief and reasonable.


While the subject is fascinated by this spell, it reacts as though it were two steps more friendly in attitude. This allows you to make a single request of the affected creature (provided you can communicate with it). The request must be brief and reasonable. Even after the spell ends, the creature retains its new attitude toward you, but only with respect to that particular request.

This is not expressly connected to hypnotism, so lacks the force of rules, but we can take a little bit more guidance at least from suggestion:


The suggestion must be worded in such a manner as to make the activity sound reasonable. Asking the creature to do some obviously harmful act automatically negates the effect of the spell.

This seems to suggest (pun intended) that obviously harmful acts are NOT reasonable.

That said, with charm person + hypnotism, you have them at a Fanatic level of cooperativeness, so what sounds "reasonable" may be drastically different.

I think, therefore, the governing rule is that it must be brief and reasonable-to-a-fanatic. The more specific, the better. It should probably have relatively short-term resolvability, and should not be inherently open-ended. "Become my hireling" might, for instance, get them really eager to throw over their current job to get hired by you, and even make them eager to prove themselves "worthy" of the job, but once they have it, they will begin to compare it to what they could have elsewhere and to whether they're really LIKING the job or not. You have a big aid in getting them to sign on, and a leg up in that they expect to like the job, but you'll still have to be a boss that keeps his employees happy.

"Help me break out of this prison," on the other hand, is probably totally fine. It's got a definite end point and is something totally reasonable for a Fanatic to help the object of their Fanaticism to do.

"Give me that item" would also be totally reasonable.

The tricky bit is whether "obviously harmful" orders - to themselves or loved ones - are "reasonable." According to the "Fanatic" level of helpfulness, it would seem they would be, but the more harmful to themselves and/or their loved ones an act is, the more specific and less ongoing I would suggest it needs to be.