Ghost Sound Saves

[A_Gray_Phantom]

I'm reading the rules for the spell Ghost Sounds, and I'm a little puzzled. Usually you get a saving throw against an illusion when you "interact" with it. For a silent/minor/major/etc illusion interacting with it (to me) would mean touching the darn thing. But a Ghost Sound is just that, a sound. How do you interact with it?

To me this means you only get a saving throw to disbelieve if you interact with a Silent Image that Ghost Sound is enhancing.

Can anyone clarify this for me?

[liquidformat]

listening is interacting with something, listening gives you directional and distance ques that can be distorted by the environment.

For example if you hear a noise that sounds distant and in front of you in an area of dense undergrowth it should sound different than one in say a canyon. So if I am in said dense undergrowth and the noise sounds crisp, clear, and has a bit of an echo I would be suspect of it being illusory.

[denthor]

In my mind this works. My DM said we do not see it therefore it does not get a roll. Interested in others thoughts.

Party is running away. One person throws fog bank. 20 foot long, tall and wide.

I cast ghost sound 8 men in armor sound like they are coming forward. Is what I say.

Next round his goblins run into the fog bank. He did not even make them pause for a round. Never through that spell again.

[A_Gray_Phantom]

So, if I had an illusion of a dragon flying over a forest, everyone looking at it would get a saving throw?

[Erloas]

listening is interacting with something, listening gives you directional and distance ques that can be distorted by the environment.

For example if you hear a noise that sounds distant and in front of you in an area of dense undergrowth it should sound different than one in say a canyon. So if I am in said dense undergrowth and the noise sounds crisp, clear, and has a bit of an echo I would be suspect of it being illusory.It depends how closely you listen. If you hear what seems to be voices on the other side of a door and then just move to a different door and listen again it really isn't going to change anything. If you try to listen closely to make out what is being said, that would be different, and also depend on making a good enough perception roll to have had a real chance of making out what is being said (if the words were real).


In my mind this works. My DM said we do not see it therefore it does not get a roll. Interested in others thoughts.

Party is running away. One person throws fog bank. 20 foot long, tall and wide.

I cast ghost sound 8 men in armor sound like they are coming forward. Is what I say.

Next round his goblins run into the fog bank. He did not even make them pause for a round. Never through that spell again. I would say it depends on the exact circumstances. If you're simply 60ft ahead of them and they can see you and the surrounding area clearly then even if they can't see through the fog they'll know there was no other people around to potentially be there. Or if you're in the middle of their camp. If you happened to have slipped into another room or around a corner that they wouldn't have seen before then that should have worked. Although running headlong into a potential trap or bad situation (such as if you were just pretending to flee to ambush them) is not out of line with some enemies. Goblins tend to be a bit crazy and cruel so might run headlong into a bad situation, but they also tend to be wary, so it does depend on the group/setting.

Off hand it just seems like your DM didn't want it to work, not that it shouldn't have worked.

So, if I had an illusion of a dragon flying over a forest, everyone looking at it would get a saving throw?Yes, but only the first time they see it, unless something changes. How much would have to change is open to the DM, but something like shooting an arrow at it should generate another save, assuming the arrow has the possibility to hit if it had been a real dragon.

[Feantar]

I'd rule interaction is focusing on the illusion. Example:

Ghost Sound: While the characters are sneaking through a hallway, the sound of running footsteps coming towards them occurs(illusion). They quickly dash into the first door they can find and close it behind them. No save up to this point. The rogue puts his ear to the door to get a sense of direction and proximity regarding the footsteps. (will save) Something's iffy about the repetitive nature of the sound and he notices it's illusory.

In a similar veil for visual illusions, if a dragon pops up in front of you and prepares to breathe, you don't go "Hmm, the angle it is standing on is slightly off as the ground has a 3 degree downward slope, and shouldn't his claws be scraping against the pavement?". You go "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" and get out of the way. Once you begin engaging with it beyond your first impression, such as trying to find weak spots, etc, you notice something is off (if you notice it at all).

Edit: When it comes to other senses, a sense of touch is very easily seen as illusory (since our nerves misfire a lot - haven't you got the sense that your smartphone is buzzing while it isn't) by just examining the area. I think olfactory & gustatory illusions are extremely difficult to get a will save for, but I cannot put into words exactly why.