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In various versions of D&D, there's a cleric spell called "Command" where the cleric compels an enemy to obey a one-word command. Typical commands might be "sleep", "flee", "surrender", "undress", etc.

The problem for me is this limitation of using only one word. A command that's only one word in English might be more than one word in another language, and vice versa. "Have a nightmare" and "card wool" are single words in Navajo. Czech has a single word that means "call someone and let it ring only once so they know to call you back". Many languages let you incorporate the object in one word with the verb, so "give me it" is one word in Spanish, or even "go play with dolls" as one word in Chukchi.

D&D may have started as an English-language game, but it's gotten rather worldwide now. So I'm wondering, how do people limit Command to one word when playing D&D not in English?

Edit: Note that I'm not asking for suggestions for me and my gaming group, I'm looking to find out what is actually done in non-English gaming groups.

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    \$\begingroup\$ Forget real world languages, how does this rule work with Dwarven vs Elven vs Draconic or whatever... \$\endgroup\$
    – GMNoob
    Nov 4, 2011 at 7:37
  • \$\begingroup\$ Note that recent versions of D&D (i.e. 3.x, Pathfinder) sidestep this issue entirely by restricting legal command words. I wouldn't be surprised if language issues factored into that decision. \$\endgroup\$
    – AceCalhoon
    Nov 4, 2011 at 20:25

3 Answers 3

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Well, I would assume they get to use whatever is only one word in their own language. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Basically, if it's a single word imperative in your language, you get it. C'est la vie.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Although I'd agree that this correctly represents the inevitable bias that choice of language introduces, I'd also say that the definition of the spell can be improved to be more consistent across languages. \$\endgroup\$
    – edgerunner
    Nov 7, 2011 at 6:53
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Why don't you stop counting words and redefine it as a one verb command? That would better define the intent of the original and be more consistent across languages. No adverbs, no nouns, just one simple or compound verb.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Saying "one verb" doesn't actually fix the problem. Many languages require you to make the object part of the verb, so that one verb in that language carries the meaning of much more than one verb in English. It would be as if "defenestrate" were a completely regular way of making a verb. \$\endgroup\$
    – Joe
    Nov 3, 2011 at 23:42
  • \$\begingroup\$ How about "exhume", a single word verb that automatically involves soil, or "cut", a verb that may be misunderstood in many different ways? You'll probably never get it to be 100% consistent across languages but you may increase consistency with a one verb rule that excludes nouns, even compounded ones. \$\endgroup\$
    – edgerunner
    Nov 3, 2011 at 23:50
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The spell should be thought of as a simple active singular imperative:

  • simple — meaning only a single action to complete
  • active — meaning that the doer does something
  • singular — meaning the actor can accomplish the task alone
  • the object of the verb must be implicit

As a heuristic, pick a language, say... the one you speak.. and any single word command qualifies for the spell. If a player insists upon a word in Orcish that means 'Travel to your home town and harvest the leeks of the strongest warrior' you should respond with a word that means 'You no longer get to cast that spell in my games'.. you know, to keep in the spirit of things.

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    \$\begingroup\$ The idea of the question isn't to find out how Orcish handles this problem, but Spanish or Russian or Icelandic -- the language of the players, not the characters. \$\endgroup\$
    – Joe
    Nov 7, 2011 at 4:49
  • \$\begingroup\$ Although, in my games, I usually come up with at least a bare-bones framework of the local languages, so if a player insists on doing this, I'll insist on them learning the language... \$\endgroup\$
    – Joe
    Nov 9, 2011 at 16:19

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