Suggestion: go to sleep, ignore pain and sounds/external stimuli

[That House]

This isn’t a suggestion for what you should do with your day. (Though it sounds pretty fun and healthy actually).

I’m asking about the combat viability of the 5e Suggestion spell used this way. It’s essentially save-or-die, as you can just execute them while they’re asleep. Does this work? (As far as I can tell, it should).

It also turns Mass Suggestion into an encounter-ending spell... if it works.

So, whaddya think? Viable?

Also, if there’s a more lethal use of Suggestion, please provide it. :smallamused:

[Derpy]

Away from book, but as I recall suggestion is not command; you can suggest the target attempt to sleep, at the earliest possible time, but cannot make them fall asleep at will.

Also, ignoring pain IRL is not healthy, we feel pain for a reason.

[NaughtyTiger]

If I cannot fall asleep at will, sleep through stabbing pain and loud noises, then the suggestion is not a "course of action [that] sound[s] reasonable"

you can suggest: you need your sleep, go to your room and lay down, don't worry about the noise out here.

"Asking the creature to stab itself, throw itself onto a spear, immolate itself, or do some other obviously harmful act ends the spell."
ignoring pain is obviously harmful

[That House]

Away from book, but as I recall suggestion is not command; you can suggest the target attempt to sleep, at the earliest possible time, but cannot make them fall asleep at will.

Also, ignoring pain IRL is not healthy, we feel pain for a reason.

But could I say “you must be tired, try to get some sleep right now?”

[Frozenstep]

But could I say “you must be tired, try to get some sleep right now?”

Doing that if there's people trying to kill you sounds a little too insane. At best I'd say the target would decide running and trying to get rest later when they think they're safe is what you'd get.

But I did like an idea I heard somewhere else. "You're looking pretty tired, you should fight while laying down so you can rest your legs!"

[sophontteks]

- Suggestion has to sound reasonable. As written in the OP, it doesn't sound reasonable. Its also not a suggestion. This is a command.
- You can make A suggestion. You've listed three suggestions. Its hard enough to try to sleep.
- The target carries out the suggestion to the best of their ability, but most people can't do the listed things at-will or at all.
- The moment the suggestion appears immediately harmful, it ends. They may go to a safe place to sleep, if its reasonable. They will not sleep in the middle of a fight. That is obviously harmful. Ignoring pain is doomed from the start.

[Derpy]

But could I say “you must be tired, try to get some sleep right now?”

But you can't make them tired. You can suggest a course of action, you can't inflict physical conditions upon them. They can try to sleep, but if they aren't naturally tired I doubt they'd fall asleep with any speed. I might let a player who worded it right convince the target to try to take a nap, making them prone; but it would be a stretch for me to have it have a target fall asleep in a timely manner... though I think there might be a spell to make targets fall asleep all by its lonesome. Anyway, if suggestion inflicted physical status you might as well skip the middle man of sleep and suggest to the target they feel a heart-attack coming on, kill them, and move on. suggestion cant hurt; snark = fail.

[ShikomeKidoMi]

"Ignore pain" is never going to fly on a spell that explicitly does not allow you to give obviously harmful commands. And, honestly, "go to sleep right now while surrounded by hostile creatures" shouldn't either.

On the other hand, if you're looking for a way to end most fights, I'd just go with "Leave", since it doesn't harm the creature creature commanded.

[FaerieGodfather]

"My friends and I are very dangerous and you should get as far away from us as you can."

If you can cast mass suggestion in the first place, this is eminently reasonable.

[That House]

Thanks for clearing this up everyone!

:smallsmile: