Detect Thoughts Question. Aka, Get out of my mind, Charles! [3.5]

[gdiddy]

One of my players just cast detect thoughts (and has concentrated to listen to surface thoughts) around several beings that do not think in Common. Can he understand the thoughts? Or does he just know that there are minds there and that they are thinking in a language he does not know?

[Dairun Cates]

One of my players just cast detect thoughts (and has concentrated to listen to surface thoughts) around several beings that do not think in Common. Can he understand the thoughts? Or does he just know that there are minds there and that they are thinking in a language he does not know?

Don't quote me on this, but if memory serves, surface thoughts aren't verbal thoughts, but general emotional states and general statements about their emotional state. So, yeah. You'd know, but it's things like anger, happiness, lying, hiding facts, etc.

[Tyger]

One of my players just cast detect thoughts (and has concentrated to listen to surface thoughts) around several beings that do not think in Common. Can he understand the thoughts? Or does he just know that there are minds there and that they are thinking in a language he does not know?

Seeing as the spell says you can understand "Creatures of animal intelligence (Int 1 or 2) have simple, instinctual thoughts that you can pick up." which don't have a language, and the spell doesn't say its language specific, and last but not least that telepathy is usually independent of language - well, no, he can understand what he's hearing.

[Lysander]

I'd rule that you'd understand the gist of what they're thinking about, but not any precise phrasing going through their head.

For example if they're thinking "That wretched Charles has stymied my plans for the last time! Tomorrow my assassin will kill him with a crossbow at the gala!" you'd pick up "Charles! Hate him! He die!"

Maybe houserule that a sense motive check allows you to understand thoughts in foreign languages to varying degrees.