Setup:
My group (I am the DM) was attacked by a naturally invisible creature, at night, called a Baykok, that is visible only to the person it attacked and then only for one round. The Paladin gets attacked, so he can see it for one round, and uses his Detect Evil ability. Moderate aura (4 HD, aligned undead) so he directs folks to where he sees it, even though others cannot. After a swing from the Ranger and others the Baykok decides to leave and come back another day.
The Problem:
The Paladin wants to "track" the creature via it's lingering aura (d6 minutes), and we ended the session here. Now I need to rule on his "tracking" of the creature.
My thoughts are:
1) since he can't see it, he no longer can use his Detect Evil ability as a move action since the Paladin Detect Evil says: "A paladin can, as a move action, concentrate on a single item or individual within 60 feet and determine if it is evil, learning the strength of its aura as if having studied it for 3 rounds". Well, he can't see it so he can't concentrate on it.
2) So he has to use it as per the spell and spend three rounds to determine the exact location of the aura, IE. a dim aura goes north to the limit of your spell, and you can move to that square and start looking again. Given that the creature can run a lot faster, sooner or later the Paladin will lag behind enough for the aura to completely dissipate.
#2 is just *so* dissatisfying to me. Any suggestions?
The other thing that I wonder about, *IS* there a lingering aura at all? The text in the Detect Evil spell says: "Lingering Aura: An evil aura lingers after its original source dissipates (in the case of a spell) or is destroyed (in the case of a creature or magic item). If detect evil is cast and directed at such a location, the spell indicates an aura strength of dim (even weaker than a faint aura). ..."
That could be interpreted as unless the item/creature no longer exists (IE. dissipated or destroyed) then only the spot where it last was has the aura and no where else.
Thoughts?
-- david
Papa.DRB
He can definitely just follow the smoky miasma of evil to chase it down.
You're missing that the duration is concentration and "Concentrating to maintain a spell is a standard action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity."
So he could just cast it once, and he has it for 10min/level. He can then just take a normal move after the aura every single round until he runs it down or the spell runs out.
There is a lingering aura, since it'd an undead. Yes, you can do this to track down evil clerics who are hiding among the people of society. Yes, it is lame. Yes, he can do it.
Well being a Paladin, the 10 minutes/level goes away since he can use it at will as per the spell, but that's ok. He can only move 30 and the critter will eventually get 6 minutes and 10 seconds ahead of him so he will lose the trail (they are in the wilderness).
Lingering Aura - I am not sure of your interpretation. I agree, doing Detect Evil on an aligned undead shows the evil, but detecting evil in an open area and knowing that an aligned undead passed that way some rounds/minutes/days ago is stretching it for me, and I can not find a rule either in support of either position.
-- david
Papa.DRB
He can definitely just follow the smoky miasma of evil to chase it down.
You're missing that the duration is concentration and "Concentrating to maintain a spell is a standard action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity."
So he could just cast it once, and he has it for 10min/level. He can then just take a normal move after the aura every single round until he runs it down or the spell runs out.
There is a lingering aura, since it'd an undead. Yes, you can do this to track down evil clerics who are hiding among the people of society. Yes, it is lame. Yes, he can do it.