Innate spellcasting v. anti-magic effects

[stewstew5]

The Yuan-Ti Pureblood race has a feature called innate spellcasting. This allows them to cast Poison Spray, and Animal Friendship as a cantrip on snakes. My question is, since these are clearly just supposed to be biological functions of the venomous, snake-like yuan ti, so how would anti magic effects affect the Yuan-Ti's ability to cast these, or the lasting effects of them (such as being poisoned or the snake being charmed)

[Fable Wright]

They cast the spells in order to cause the effects, regardless of intent or reading. They'd be affected by AMF normally.

[Unoriginal]

The Yuan-Ti Pureblood race has a feature called innate spellcasting. This allows them to cast Poison Spray, and Animal Friendship as a cantrip on snakes. My question is, since these are clearly just supposed to be biological functions of the venomous, snake-like yuan ti, so how would anti magic effects affect the Yuan-Ti's ability to cast these, or the lasting effects of them (such as being poisoned or the snake being charmed)

You are incorrect. Those are not "just supposed to be biological functions".

They are spells. Innate spells true, but still spells. Because Yuan-ti have innate spell magic, same as the Forest Gnomes, or the High Elves, or the Firebolgs, or the Tieflings.

If the writers wanted to make those non-spells, they could easily have done so.

Yes, anti-magic effects affect those spells, just like any spells.

[DMThac0]

Is it a spell? Yes/No

Basilisks can turn a creature to stone with a gaze, it's not a spell, AMF doesn't work.

A race of basilisk herders has the innate ability to cast Flesh to Stone, it's a spell, AMF would work.

It really is a matter of using the words as they are meant rather than trying to "read into" what it could or couldn't mean. Much of the language is pretty cut and dry in terms of what interacts with what.

[ThePolarBear]

Is it a spell? Yes/No

Basilisks can turn a creature to stone with a gaze, it's not a spell, AMF doesn't work.

A race of basilisk herders has the innate ability to cast Flesh to Stone, it's a spell, AMF would work.

It really is a matter of using the words as they are meant rather than trying to "read into" what it could or couldn't mean. Much of the language is pretty cut and dry in terms of what interacts with what.

The "Is it a spell? Yes/No" part is ok for things like Counterspell or Dispel that strictly affect only spells, not for Antimagic Field that explicitly works on all magical effects.
A basilisk's gaze is still a magical ability and would be suppressed and rendered unusable by an AMF.

[Unoriginal]

The "Is it a spell? Yes/No" part is ok for things like Counterspell or Dispel that strictly affect only spells, not for Antimagic Field that explicitly works on all magical effects.
A basilisk's gaze is still a magical ability and would be suppressed and rendered unusable by an AMF.

You're correct. The basilisk's Petrifying Gaze is explicitly called magical in its text, meaning that AMF would suppress it.

[stewstew5]

You're correct. The basilisk's Petrifying Gaze is explicitly called magical in its text, meaning that AMF would suppress it.

Something about that doesn't sit right with me. I feel like supernatural abilities of animals shouldn't be suppressible by anti-magic effects. It seems like you should be able to outright dispel an angel or god in that way

[KorvinStarmast]

Something about that doesn't sit right with me. I feel like supernatural abilities of animals shouldn't be suppressible by anti-magic effects. It seems like you should be able to outright dispel an angel or god in that way
Where in 5e did you find the Su feature? Wait, you didn't. That's a 3.xe thing. I understand where you are coming from, but the test of 'is it magical' from a Crawford tweet a while back covers this really well. It's also posted on the WoTC home site.

[thereaper]

AMF specifically states that it severs an area's connection to the Weave. Within that space, all magic is impossible. That means no wizards casting fireball, no drow casting their racial spells, no skeletons walking around, no nothing.