Questions tagged [languages]
For questions relating to setting-specific use of language in RPGs. Questions about real-world languages should be tagged with the specific language instead (e.g. [french]).
238
questions
13
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Can I exclude characters from understanding my magically understandable speech from the monk's Tongue of the Sun and Moon feature?
The rules for the monk ability Tongue of the Sun and Moon state:
Starting at 13th level, you learn to touch the ki of other minds so that you understand all spoken languages. Moreover, any creature ...
- 2,464
5
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Does Telepathy need a shared language to work?
I have telepathy as the MM1 says:
Telepathy (Su)
A creature with this ability can communicate telepathically with any other creature within a certain range (specified in the creature’s entry, usually ...
- 4,252
23
votes
1
answer
50k
views
Does knowing Primordial mean you understand all the different languages of elementals?
I'm wondering if knowing the language Primordial means that you understand all different languages of elementals?
- 493
3
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Does an entity speaking the god's language understand every language?
I can't remember exactly the name, but I heard of a language used by gods, wich is understandable by every sentient being. It directly form the concept in the auditor's mind (thus, you can adress ...
- 4,791
5
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Party communication across languages
I'm running the 5e starter set for the first time - remotely - with a bunch of friends. The party speaks a range of languages, and we'll be using Google Chat so each of us will have our computers ...
- 51
20
votes
5
answers
4k
views
How can one establish communication with intelligent creatures lacking language?
The ice toad (Frostburn 140-1) is a magical beast with an Intelligence score of 6 yet no language. Beyond being conceptually annoying and making me feel bad for the handful of aberrant genius ice ...
- 190k
6
votes
4
answers
862
views
Can I use the cryptography skill to learn new languages?
I am wondering if i can reasonably use the cryptography skill in GURPS to attempt to learn a foreign language?
An example would be my character only speaks english but discovers a book in french.
It ...
- 441
14
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Can anyone else learn Drow Sign Language?
Can anyone else than drow learn Drow Sign Language? or is it a language that only drow can learn because of, I dunno... dexterity or some other physical conditions?
- 143
0
votes
1
answer
2k
views
German spell descriptions for DnD 5e? [closed]
Does anyone have a good site where I can find German translations for all the spells? We are struggling with different translation variants.
- 429
6
votes
5
answers
744
views
How do I model a non-native speaker's weak grasp of a language?
I've created a character for my/our current campaign that is essentially a "foreigner" to the group. He understands and speaks the language, but doesn't always understand the meaning behind choice ...
- 71
11
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Communicating with Conjured Creatures
This question seems to come up in every edition of D&D and this version does not seem to really clarify the situation.
All of the spells of the type Conjure X (Animals, Celestials, Elementals, ...
- 10.2k
31
votes
3
answers
60k
views
Can Thieves' Cant be understood without a level in Rogue?
The Player's Basic Rules and Player's Handbook describe the Thieves' Cant class feature as:
... a secret mix of dialect, jargon and code allows you to hide messages in seemingly normal conversation. ...
- 7,612
26
votes
3
answers
12k
views
How do you pronounce “svirfneblin”?
In a campaign I'm writing, an aged sage sends my party to the Underdark to aid Deep Gnomes against a Drow takeover. The group that will be playing this has read R.A Salvatore's books and knows both ...
- 1,543
6
votes
2
answers
447
views
Which creatures in Middle Earth can speak common in the One Ring RPG?
We are getting set to start a One Ring game. The creature section does not seem to delineate languages. Which creatures speak common in this game?
It's been a while since I read The Hobbit but I seem ...
- 61
9
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Are overlapping language proficiencies wasted?
When creating a character, if you would receive the same skill/tool proficiency from multiple sources, you get to choose another skill/tool proficiency instead of having it go to waste.
Does the same ...
- 144k
11
votes
2
answers
619
views
How do people swear in Eclipse Phase?
I wonder how should I play some hot-tempered NPCs when it comes to swearing. First, there are sex-based and ancestry-based insults but even that is slightly outdated because procreation is different ...
- 1,347
26
votes
8
answers
7k
views
How to roleplay languages that none of the player characters know?
Imagine a Dwarf meets an Elf. Both speak common, but the Elf doesn't speak Dwarven and the Dwarf doesn't speak Elvish. The Elf is in a bad mood and decides to speak to the Dwarf only in Elvish instead ...
- 3,971
6
votes
1
answer
491
views
Using Ghoul Army spell as am Oracle with the Tongues curse
My character just reached Orcale level 10 and I was looking through 5th level spells. I came across the spell Ghoul Army but was told by another player that I cannot use it because as an Oracle with ...
- 739
19
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Does speaking Supernal result in communicating with everyone?
Long story cut short, I've found online that gods, angels and demons speak Supernal to convey their ideas.
"When a god or angel speaks Supernal, listeners who don’t speak Supernal understand the ...
- 1,131
13
votes
2
answers
11k
views
Can a character know Druidic without having any levels of druid?
Related to my answer here.
Druidic is a special language in that no race can take it as a bonus language (even those who can choose any language specifically say except Druidic) and cannot be learned ...
- 346k
17
votes
6
answers
9k
views
Why are starting languages restricted? [closed]
In Pathfinder, each race starts with some given languages, usually Common and its own racial language. Characters with more Intelligence can have additional starting languages, but only taken from a ...
- 5,719
6
votes
2
answers
4k
views
Designing and Implementing a Crypto-Puzzle Language
Currently I am in the planning stages for when I plan to run a game of D&D 4E, but this question its self is more system-agnostic.
I want to design a written language that will come up in some of ...
- 1,146
44
votes
5
answers
2k
views
How can we make overcoming a language problem interesting?
I am currently involved in a game of Fate Accelerated, and one of our goals is learning the system and experimenting with it. In this game, two characters may have a language barrier to overcome. One ...
- 36.3k
2
votes
1
answer
255
views
Retrain languages in the 4e character builder?
Is it possible to retrain languages? How does one do this in the 4e Character Builder?
- 55
24
votes
4
answers
2k
views
How do you customise swearing to a setting?
Good fantasy books often have 'custom' swearing, and they help provide a more realistic view of the world the campaign takes place in. For instance, in a book where metals are key to magic, a common ...
- 1,885
9
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Fantasy accent and dialect, or how do I speak like Tom Hanks in Cloud Atlas?
For example, inhabitants of Planescape setting say things like "chant" for news or gossip, "berk" or "cutter" for a kind of adventurer, "barmy" for crazy, etc.
I want to portray a guy from a far away ...
- 433
14
votes
7
answers
664
views
Representing different languages in online games
What are methods for clearly representing different languages (e.g. Elven, Dwarven, Deep Speech) in text-based online play?
We have tried footnotes and are using colored text (green for Elven, brown ...
- 617
16
votes
4
answers
1k
views
Languages and Knowledges
We were running our Dungeon World campaign, and the time came to confront the goblins about their evil ways and interrogate them for what they knew. At this point, we hit a snag; how can we know if ...
- 4,312
35
votes
12
answers
3k
views
How to have a realistic set of languages without making adventuring prohibitively difficult?
"Do you speak Common?" "Of course I do! Everyone speaks Common..."
My group is starting a somewhat experimental campaign. We're using a setting that is neither canon (e.g. described in a book) nor ...
- 4,149
7
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Do shardminds have to share a language to communicate with an NPC/PC?
The tooltip says that they can communicate telepathically with any creature that has a language, but does that mean that they must share a language? one of our players insists that he can somehow ...
- 585
17
votes
3
answers
2k
views
How should one-word "commands" work in languages other than English?
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",...
- 17k
73
votes
6
answers
21k
views
What's the deal with alignment languages?
In early D&D, there was the concept of an "alignment language."
The original "little brown book" D&D says only:
Law, Chaos and Neutrality also have common languages spoken by each ...
- 8,427
6
votes
1
answer
5k
views
What are the different PC languages for 2nd edition AD&D?
I would like to know what the different languages my PC can automatically have. I play Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd edition and my PC has a 12 Intelligence.
- 1,142
23
votes
3
answers
11k
views
What does Drow Speech sound like?
I am about to play a Drow Rogue-Fighter and I want to roleplay my character well, and this includes doing a voice. What is the proper voice for a [charismatic] Drow [Rogue-Fighter]? I was thinking ...
- 247
18
votes
6
answers
30k
views
What does Deep Speech look/sound like?
My character picked up the Deep Sage feat, so he can now speak, read and write Deep Speech. But I haven't been able to find any published examples of what it may look like when written or sound like ...
- 1,617
16
votes
6
answers
578
views
What are some examples of games that don't invent history or language? [closed]
IE, games that don't make up words or names in languages belonging to the game-verse, but borrow as exactly as possible from history, folklore, etymology, and mythology.
(What is this type of game ...
- 720
10
votes
5
answers
33k
views
Where can I find official depictions of the written alphabets/scripts of the various languages of D&D?
To add more flavor, I want to create documents written in the actual script.
I remember awhile back seeing examples of the Common/Elven/Dwarven alphabets for instance, but can not recall where I can ...
- 656
14
votes
4
answers
9k
views
Handling Languages in D&D, or is the Linguist Feat desirable?
The Linguist feat gives three extra languages. A feat for 3 languages seems problematic and not balanced with all the other feats available, many of which seem highly desirable and the feat doesn't ...
anon186