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An unseen servant is an invisible, mindless, shapeless force that performs simple tasks at your command. It can run and fetch things, open unstuck doors, and hold chairs, as well as clean and mend. The servant can perform only one activity at a time, but it repeats the same activity over and over again if told to do so as long as you remain within range. It can open only normal doors, drawers, lids, and the like. It has an effective Strength score of 2 (so it can lift 20 pounds or drag 100 pounds). It can trigger traps and such, but it can exert only 20 pounds of force, which is not enough to activate certain pressure plates and other devices. It can’t perform any task that requires a skill check with a DC higher than 10 or that requires a check using a skill that can’t be used untrained. Its speed is 15 feet.

Can I send the servant into the air above my head, or above the head of enemies?

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3 Answers 3

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Yes, because it's a "force" (not a creature)

The key word here is Force. An unseen servant is not in the same class as, say, an incorporeal being under greater invisibility. It is, rather, a spell-created force effect that the caster controls via commands...rather like a simple automaton.

As a spell-created force-effect, it doesn't truly have any "movement type" at all -- rather, it merely has a speed which determines how quickly it can move from one place to another.

Unseen Servant can be thought of Mage Hand, Programmable Edition. It can do anything anywhere anyhow, so long as it is within the parameters of the spell...and by this, that includes flying.


By the way, as a total side note, if you play something that can get your own weight under 20 lbs though Reduce Person or other means, your Unseen Servant can carry you, too, as it flies about.

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It can.

Legalistically, the spell just says "speed", it does not specify land or base speed. Also, it has no shape. So no vertical reach or other means to be able to "affect" something that isn't on the floor, if we are to assume it "walks".

Thematically, the reason it can fly is that it isn't a creature or something tangible. It is a force which is essentially coming from nowhere. The Unseen Servant just "affects" what you want it to affect, so you should be able to send it anywhere within range.

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No.

Beacuse flying isn't something that human servant could do.

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    \$\begingroup\$ The spell says that it is a "shapeless force". Why would it matter what a human servant could or could not do? \$\endgroup\$
    – Oblivious Sage
    Oct 21, 2020 at 14:54
  • \$\begingroup\$ I agree, the term Servant and the given examples of what the servant is able to do let one think of some kind of invisible somewhat "humanoid" force. But since the spell doesn‘t say the servant cannot fly, it probably can. — In the Pathfinder rules this spell was clarified/changed by adding: "This servant cannot fly, climb, or even swim (though it can walk on water)." \$\endgroup\$
    – Peregrin
    Oct 21, 2020 at 16:48
  • \$\begingroup\$ I think that this is the right answer, but the wrong reasoning. Can you support the "what a human servant could do" criterion? \$\endgroup\$
    – Upper_Case
    Oct 21, 2020 at 19:26
  • \$\begingroup\$ Welcome to RPG.SE! Take the tour if you haven't already, and check out the help center for more guidance. \$\endgroup\$
    – V2Blast
    Oct 22, 2020 at 4:46

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