Awaken: I have questions

[Azreal]

So I have three questions about awaken.

1.) If awakened animals have offspring are the offspring awakened as well?

2.) Can awakened animals gain class levels?

More of an opinion that's gonna vary from DM to DM
3.) How would awakened animals look upon the one who Awakened them?

[Minescratcher]

So I have three questions about awaken.

1.) If awakened animals have offspring are the offspring awakened as well?

2.) Can awakened animals gain class levels?
I don't think there's a RAW answer to either of these. Personally i would rule Yes to both, but with huge restrictions on class levels.


More of an opinion that's gonna vary from DM to DM
3.) How would awakened animals look upon the one who Awakened them?
Friendly for 30 days, then it depends on how you treat it.

The awakened beast or plant is charmed by you for 30 days or until you or your companions do anything harmful to it. When the charmed condition ends, the awakened creature chooses whether to remain friendly to you, based on how you treated it while it was charmed.

[JackPhoenix]

So I have three questions about awaken.

1.) If awakened animals have offspring are the offspring awakened as well?

2.) Can awakened animals gain class levels?

More of an opinion that's gonna vary from DM to DM
3.) How would awakened animals look upon the one who Awakened them?

1) I'll paraphrase... someone, I'm not sure who to credit: If fireballed creatures survive and have offspring, are the offspring born on fire? If the spell had any effect on the offspring, it would be mentioned in the description

2) "A DM could use the NPC guidelines in the DMG to add a class or new traits to an awakened tree or beast." (http://www.sageadvice.eu/2015/12/24/could-an-awaken-tree-or-beast-learn-a-class-like-in-eberron/)

3) was already answered

[tieren]

I would not have awakened offspring.

I believe the intent of the spell is to magically imbue one creature with human like abilities, not to create new races of intelligent animals.

If you have awakened dogs start breeding awakened puppies, before long you are going to have the valley of the intelligent dog things.

[lonewulf]

I would not have awakened offspring.

I believe the intent of the spell is to magically imbue one creature with human like abilities, not to create new races of intelligent animals.

If you have awakened dogs start breeding awakened puppies, before long you are going to have the valley of the intelligent dog things.

And "intelligent dog" scenarios have NEVER been pleasant, lol.

[RickAllison]

1) RAW, no. Personally, I would treat it as a recessive genetic trait and have the Awakened animal have their alleles overwritten to a double recessive while most animals have double dominants. And some (offspring of other Awakened) are heterozygous. This would result in two Awakened always producing Awakened, one with a normal animal producing half of the offspring as normal, and two normal animals with the heterozygous gene having one in four be Awakened. Keeps it rare, but possible.

2) Any NPC can gain class levels if the DM allows it.

3) Made to like the person for thirty days, then based on treatment.

[Minescratcher]

And "intelligent dog" scenarios have NEVER been pleasant, lol.

No good DM should ever turn down a free plot hook. :smallwink:

[lonewulf]

No good DM should ever turn down a free plot hook. :smallwink:

"Unpleasant" = The BEST

[Mellack]

I prefer that awakened creatures do not have awakened offspring. I think that is better for the plot, as they have to find or become high enough level to awaken their children. Great plot hook to have to adventure so that your kids are not going to be literally dumb animals forever.

[Maxilian]

Well i would only make their Offspring come as Awakened if BOTH parents are, if only one is, they will be mere animals

[Azreal]

Well i would only make their Offspring come as Awakened if BOTH parents are, if only one is, they will be mere animals

Well the reason I asked is because while we were traveling across an ocean, I awakened a bunch of rats to help me keep an eye on suspicious party members/npcs for me, however I realized they are rats and well kind of prolific hence my questions so I can guess what my DM might end up doing with that. He's the type to think up stuff about details like that.

That being said they've been treated rather well except for one party member killing two of them because she caught them spying..

[Tanarii]

Interestingly, the Awaken spell never specifies that the creature is friendly to the caster directly. It just says its charmed for 30 days.

Although it's strongly implied by the 'remain friendly' clause, obviously. It's kind of hard for something to remain friendly if it wasn't in the first place. :smallwink:

[Krivelios]

And "intelligent dog" scenarios have NEVER been pleasant, lol.

I just remembered the 2e elven dog cooshee, way stronger than my character back there... :smallsmile:

[Logosloki]

How much melodrama do you want? An awakened animal giving birth to a non-awakened animal would be heartwrenching in the hands of a good DM.

If both partners are awakened then yes, If one of the partners is not then no (and holy mother of pearl are you playing a doozy of a game).

Gaining Class levels is the purvey of the DM. I would have no qualms adding class levels to an awakened animal for an NPC or Monster, though would be more likely to use an NPC template. And if a player is playing an awakened animal then yes, they will still be getting class levels.

If a player awakens an animal, and you let it join the party then it depends on how much book keeping you want. You could have the newly awakened animal act more like a non-combat retainer if you want some light fluff floating about for a player (not too much book keeping), let the awakened animal gain NPC archetypes (you're allowing combat but putting a lid on power), or you could go the whole way and let the animal be treated like a normal player (pass on as much of the book keeping to the player).