Warlock ability - Awakened Mind

[Spike440]

After a great first outing (for me and the players) with LMOP, I'm about to start HotDQ. One of my players is rolling up a Warlock (Great Old One Patrol, Dendar the Night Serpent) and I need some help with one specific query.

At first level, the Warlock has the Awakened Mind ability: "You can telepathically speak to any creature you can see within 30 feet of you. You don't need to share a language with the creature for it to understand your telepathic utterances, but the creature must be able to understand at least one language."

The player wants to use this ability to, if occasion suits, telepathically impersonate someone. The description doesn't make it clear what voice the target hears. Can my player try to impersonate someone or is his telepathic voice fixed? Should I make him roll a deception check if he takes this course of action.

Help appreciated, thanks.

[Gastronomie]

I would say Deception check every time he does it. Bestow advantage or disadvantage, and change the DC, depending on the situation.

[NNescio]

I'll second Gastronomie's suggestion.

[Callin]

I also have a question. It says communicate telepathically. So I can exchange thoughts or ideas with my mind.

Does this mean I can read surface thoughts? I would think so. Due to definitions and synonyms of the words and what we percieve of them.

[Spike440]

Does this mean I can read surface thoughts? I would think so. Due to definitions and synonyms of the words and what we percieve of them.

That's not my reading of it. I think it's one-way communication.

Thanks all for the help.

[JellyPooga]

Does this mean I can read surface thoughts?

That's the purview of the Detect Thoughts spell. Awakened Mind lets you beam your own thoughts into someone else's head for communication purposes, but not the other way around. Think of it as a silent, always-on, short-ranged Message spell that the target cannot reply to and requires LoS.

Having used it in a game myself, it's not that great an ability. Entertaining and situationally handy, but not exactly a regular show-stopper.

[Plaguescarred]

The player wants to use this ability to, if occasion suits, telepathically impersonate someone. The description doesn't make it clear what voice the target hears. Can my player try to impersonate someone or is his telepathic voice fixed?It'd be up to DM. Personally i'd look at the Telepathy spell for insight, which specify that the target recognizes you as the creature it is communicating with. Afterall it's not just words-of-mouth but mind induced, which could leave a psychic imprint not easily falsifyable so a Deception vs Insight could be used.


That's not my reading of it. I think it's one-way communication.Its one-way communication as per this Sage Advice; http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/sageadvice_july2015

Does the warlock’s Awakened Mind feature allow two-way telepathic communication? The feature is intended to provide one-way communication. The warlock can use the feature to speak telepathically to a creature, but the feature doesn’t give that creature the ability to telepathically reply. In contrast, the telepathy ability that some monsters have (MM, 9) does make two-way communication possible

[Plaguescarred]

Here's Jeremy Crawford on this; http://www.sageadvice.eu/2016/05/03/would-my-voice-from-awakened-mind-sound-like-me/


@Uldaka Would my voice from Awakened Mind always sound like me?
@JeremyECrawford You sound like yourself when speaking via telepathy, although as DM, I allow attempts at telepathic deception.

[Spike440]

Really helpful. Thanks very much.

[Plaguescarred]

You're welcome bud!