Tell me more ×
Role-playing Games Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for gamemasters and players of tabletop, paper-and-pencil role-playing games. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 7 down vote favorite

I have just created a Wizard (Mage) who specializes in enchantment. I have a question about the Hypnotism spell..

The power states that the target creature can be forced to attack another enemy (or itself apparently). If there are no other creatures adjacent to the monster can it move to attack another creature, and if so, what is the range of its movement?

share|improve this question
You might want to split off your question about increasing attack bonus to hit into a seperate question. It keeps things far cleaner that way – Phil Nov 14 '12 at 15:16
I agree with Phil, I've edited your second question out as it's not related to the first. Please feel free to ask about increasing the wizard's attack bonus at low levels. – wax eagle Nov 14 '12 at 15:31

1 Answer

up vote 10 down vote

The hypnotism power's hit line reads as follows:

Choose one of the following effects:

  • The target uses a free action to make a melee basic attack against a creature with a +4 bonus to the attack roll.
  • You slide the target up to 3 squares.

(HOTFL 205)

This means that you can only cause the target to attack or to move, not both. The attack is a Melee Basic Attack which requires an attack roll like a normal MBA.

Note that charge is not a valid use in this situation, unless the creature's MBA specifically allows for charging.

share|improve this answer
4  
On a side note, I believe you can force it to attack itself. – Oblivious Sage Nov 14 '12 at 16:46
The online compendium updates the wording slightly: "The target uses a free action to make a melee basic attack against a creature of your choice, with a +4 power bonus to the attack roll." This definitely supports the idea of attacking itself, but makes it a little more fuzzy in regards to moving towards a specified target. The intent seems to have been as specified in your answer. – Ananisapta Nov 16 '12 at 3:52
@Ananisapta I don't see how the update makes it any more fuzzy - for an MBA target to be valid, it must be adjacent (or within reach range). Choosing an MBA target that's not within reach is kind of pointless, unless you just want the amusement of watching your enemy flail hopelessly in that general direction. (Maybe ask the DM if the hypnotized monster should make an Acrobatics check to maintain balance?) – Iszi Nov 16 '12 at 19:58
@Iszi - What I was getting at was it says 'of your choice', but does not specify that this does not include enemies currently out of reach of your target. Adding the 'of your choice' might imply a removal of this restriction as compared to the original version. But I concede that it probably isn't any more debatable than the original wording. – Ananisapta Nov 16 '12 at 22:53

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.