Is there any method for doing this? I'm playing a rogue in a city based game, and that spell has ruined my larcenous efforts 3 times thus far. Are there any methods of getting past this vexatious spell without informing the caster?
I am in doubt, it might count as a magical trap in my opinion, but I would like some additional feedback on that.
I am in doubt, it might count as a magical trap in my opinion, but I would like some additional feedback on that.
My initial thought was: "of course you can use perception and disable device to take care of it; you've got Trapfinding! It's only a DC26!" I looked at the Alarm spell and it does not say that it creates a magical trap. I then looked at the skill description for Disable Device, which gives a list of spells that create traps that can be removed with the skill. No mention of Alarm...
RAW it looks like you cannot find nor disable an Alarm spell by mundane means. I'm hesitant to say more because I don't want to start another round of: "In MY campaign..." and "Talk to your DM."
It looks like the way to go is Detect Magic (Minor Magic Rogue trick or UMD a wand), looking for a faint Abjuration aura in any location that you suspect to have an Alarm spell cast upon it. If you can at least find it, a Dispel Magic by your friendly party arcanist should do the trick or UMD a wand yourself if you have the funds.
Ugh, I was afraid of that. Currently, the only caster we have is a sorcerer, and she doesn't know dispel magic. The alarms are usually situated in an area that we can't bypass; we have been forced to activate the thing everytime, thus ruining any sort of surprise. My would-be master thief is getting a littled irked that this simple spell is getting the best of him, but at this point, we don't seem to have any method of getting through.
Trista1986 has a point, there are mundane ways to get around alarm. It states you need a password, so...who knows the password? If a housekeeper/butler/maid knows it, maybe you can get the info from them (for a cut of the take of course). Also if the alarms have been audible, it says right in the spell description that silence works. If not, it only alerts the caster, so maybe you can neutralize them (knock out/tie up).
Edit: Alarm linkage
Set the alarm off and then come back in 30 minutes. The wizard likely hasn't prepared the spell more than once and if he has just keep setting it off. Then place a rat or something to set the alarm off when you aren't there. By now the wizard will be so pissed he might not cast alarm and you should be able to get in.
Oh and your Sorc can cast detect magic for free so you will always know if the spell is active or not.
He will either stop casting it or run out of spells either way you win!
Alarm-
Once the spell effect is in place, it thereafter sounds a mental or audible alarm each time a creature of Tiny or larger size enters the warded area or touches it.Emphasis mine. Alarm persists after it is tripped. No need to recast it.
Dispel magic is really the way to go. Other solutions come down to out-of-the box thinking, which is highly dependent on your DM and what you can convince him or her to let you get away with.
Edit: You need advice, and I'm just quoting rules. So your target is aware that their alarm has gone off. Perhaps use that as a diversion?
We'll need to know more about the game, your party, your DM, and most importantly, what is your *objective* to be of more help.
personally, it is hard for a low level party to bypass it.
- I think maybe the DM is overusing the alarm spell trick, once or twice is fine, but there should be options in place to bypass it by creative means most of the time.
- This might also have a caused effect by players using the same old tricks every time, are they always invisible, always silenced, always using there 30+ stealth ? Unimaginative dm's spawns like minded players, but the reverse is also true.
..and I still think a rogue should be able to disarm it
Set the alarm off and then come back in 30 minutes. The wizard likely hasn't prepared the spell more than once and if he has just keep setting it off. Then place a rat or something to set the alarm off when you aren't there. By now the wizard will be so pissed he might not cast alarm and you should be able to get in.
Oh and your Sorc can cast detect magic for free so you will always know if the spell is active or not.
He will either stop casting it or run out of spells either way you win!
Alarm-
Once the spell effect is in place, it thereafter sounds a mental or audible alarm each time a creature of Tiny or larger size enters the warded area or touches it.
Emphasis mine. Alarm persists after it is tripped. No need to recast it.
Dispel magic is really the way to go. Other solutions come down to out-of-the box thinking, which is highly dependent on your DM and what you can convince him or her to let you get away with.Edit: You need advice, and I'm just quoting rules. So your target is aware that their alarm has gone off. Perhaps use that as a diversion?
We'll need to know more about the game, your party, your DM, and most importantly, what is your *objective* to be of more help.
If the alarm keeps going off every 30 minutes, eventually the wiz will simply stop answering it. Now you might need a fairly steady supply of critters in order to keep it up if he starts wanding a MM on them.
detect magic will reveal its present. With Spellcraft you can likely figure out what it is.
Then... toss a coin with silence on it into the center. Finally, summon monster I something to trigger it. Hide and watch for reaction. If the wizard shows up, it's the mental alarm. If he doesn't, you know how to get past his alarm.
If it's mental, you'll need to go buy a scroll of dispel magic and hope. You could also spy on the wizard, and perhaps use clairaudience to find out what the password is if he shares it with anyone. charm person might be helpful to learn it.
Just a few thoughts, but ultimately magic needs to be fought with magic.
the spell description says that ethereal and astral creatures do not trigger the alarm and the caster must be within 1 mile for a mental alarm to alert him/her.
thies are potential exploits to this spell's defence of an object or airea.
- Cast Unseen Servant.
- Enter Bag of Holding
- Instruct Unseen Servant to carry the Bag of Holding through the warded area.
Depending on how far along in your campaign you are and how much money you have, you might be able to get something like the cloak of the bat for bypassing such things, if you can get the ability to find them. Alarm only triggers on tiny or above size creatures...so if you can become diminutive, you can bypass it without any sort of need to disarm it.
Check the date on these threads before you post. If he still had questions two yeas later, he'd start a new thread.