The Usefulness of Hypnotism? - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

The Usefulness of Hypnotism?

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
Langrishe
Dec 16, 2010 20:09:30 I was wondering if Hypnotism could be used to build up a kind of “obey command” in a player characters head over a period of time.

The reason behind this is we have an assassin in the group and she has no idea my character knows she’s a killer. I was planning to use Hypnotism on her with an obey command so if she ever reveled her true intentions and tried to kill me I need only speak a word to stop her. I would prefer to keep her in play incase she is out to kill someone else. I have my own evil plans and am waiting to make my move, and an assassination attempt upon another companion would be the perfect opportunity to set my plans into motion.

The idea is that using Hypnotism over time will allow me to remove the need to role when I’m under attack incase it fails. This would only need to be a one off command, not total control over the PC for life.

Also wondering what else Hypnotism could be used for during play? aside from the obvious.

Thanks.
#2
salla
Dec 16, 2010 20:19:16 By the rules, no.

If your DM wants to encourage petty party infighting and similar bullcrap, though, he may houserule otherwise. Talk to him.
#3
Langrishe
Dec 16, 2010 22:36:23 We are playing in a very dark and gritty world. These types of undesirable characters are quite common in our adventures and I would hardly call it "petty bullcrap". We’ve had quite a rollercoaster ride of plot twists between characters that have made our game nights most enjoyable and very memorable.

If Charm Person makes someone believe you are his or her friend then how can Hypnotism be used any differently? Hence my question regarding the long-term effects of subliminal commands using Hypnosis.

What if our party were imprisoned and awaiting our deaths by hostile captures? It would be useful to hypnotise the executioner in the days before the sentence and hide an obey order in his head to free us on the way to the execution stage.

My question was about Hypnotism and how it works. If I am to understand correctly Hypnotism is basically the same as Charm Person and I was wondering if anyone else has used it in any other ways or situations. Since I cannot manipulate the assassin over time I will need to decide whether to rely on Hypnosis when she attacks or if I should take care of the problem before she strikes.

I would still like to hear what others have used Hypnotism for and the outcomes.
#4
salla
Dec 17, 2010 10:19:03 Since you reference Charm Person, I'm going to take that to mean that you're playing 3rd, which may invalidate my previous post.

3e Hypnotism says:

Your gestures and droning incantation fascinate nearby creatures, causing them to stop and stare blankly at you. In addition, you can use their rapt attention to make your suggestions and requests seem more plausible. Roll 2d4 to see how many total Hit Dice of creatures you affect. Creatures with fewer HD are affected before creatures with more HD. Only creatures that can see or hear you are affected, but they do not need to understand you to be fascinated.

If you use this spell in combat, each target gains a +2 bonus on its saving throw. If the spell affects only a single creature not in combat at the time, the saving throw has a penalty of -2.

While the subject is fascinated by this spell, it reacts as though it were two steps more friendly in attitude. This allows you to make a single request of the affected creature (provided you can communicate with it). The request must be brief and reasonable. Even after the spell ends, the creature retains its new attitude toward you, but only with respect to that particular request.

A creature that fails its saving throw does not remember that you enspelled it.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Whether or not this will accomplish anything remains questionable, as attitude levels only exist in reference to NPCs because PCs cannot use social skills on one another, and since you're all 'dark and gritty', asking him not to kill you may not qualify as a reasonable request ... and even if you do houserule in attitude levels for PC vs PC, he's assuredly going to be hostile, so two up gets him as far as Indifferent ... which means he won't care if he kills you.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Langrishe Dec 16, 2010 20:09:30	I was wondering if Hypnotism could be used to build up a kind of “obey command” in a player characters head over a period of time. The reason behind this is we have an assassin in the group and she has no idea my character knows she’s a killer. I was planning to use Hypnotism on her with an obey command so if she ever reveled her true intentions and tried to kill me I need only speak a word to stop her. I would prefer to keep her in play incase she is out to kill someone else. I have my own evil plans and am waiting to make my move, and an assassination attempt upon another companion would be the perfect opportunity to set my plans into motion. The idea is that using Hypnotism over time will allow me to remove the need to role when I’m under attack incase it fails. This would only need to be a one off command, not total control over the PC for life. Also wondering what else Hypnotism could be used for during play? aside from the obvious. Thanks.
#2 salla Dec 16, 2010 20:19:16	By the rules, no. If your DM wants to encourage petty party infighting and similar bullcrap, though, he may houserule otherwise. Talk to him.
#3 Langrishe Dec 16, 2010 22:36:23	We are playing in a very dark and gritty world. These types of undesirable characters are quite common in our adventures and I would hardly call it "petty bullcrap". We’ve had quite a rollercoaster ride of plot twists between characters that have made our game nights most enjoyable and very memorable. If Charm Person makes someone believe you are his or her friend then how can Hypnotism be used any differently? Hence my question regarding the long-term effects of subliminal commands using Hypnosis. What if our party were imprisoned and awaiting our deaths by hostile captures? It would be useful to hypnotise the executioner in the days before the sentence and hide an obey order in his head to free us on the way to the execution stage. My question was about Hypnotism and how it works. If I am to understand correctly Hypnotism is basically the same as Charm Person and I was wondering if anyone else has used it in any other ways or situations. Since I cannot manipulate the assassin over time I will need to decide whether to rely on Hypnosis when she attacks or if I should take care of the problem before she strikes. I would still like to hear what others have used Hypnotism for and the outcomes.
#4 salla Dec 17, 2010 10:19:03	Since you reference Charm Person, I'm going to take that to mean that you're playing 3rd, which may invalidate my previous post. 3e Hypnotism says: Your gestures and droning incantation fascinate nearby creatures, causing them to stop and stare blankly at you. In addition, you can use their rapt attention to make your suggestions and requests seem more plausible. Roll 2d4 to see how many total Hit Dice of creatures you affect. Creatures with fewer HD are affected before creatures with more HD. Only creatures that can see or hear you are affected, but they do not need to understand you to be fascinated. If you use this spell in combat, each target gains a +2 bonus on its saving throw. If the spell affects only a single creature not in combat at the time, the saving throw has a penalty of -2. While the subject is fascinated by this spell, it reacts as though it were two steps more friendly in attitude. This allows you to make a single request of the affected creature (provided you can communicate with it). The request must be brief and reasonable. Even after the spell ends, the creature retains its new attitude toward you, but only with respect to that particular request. A creature that fails its saving throw does not remember that you enspelled it. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Whether or not this will accomplish anything remains questionable, as attitude levels only exist in reference to NPCs because PCs cannot use social skills on one another, and since you're all 'dark and gritty', asking him not to kill you may not qualify as a reasonable request ... and even if you do houserule in attitude levels for PC vs PC, he's assuredly going to be hostile, so two up gets him as far as Indifferent ... which means he won't care if he kills you.