QUESTION: when a cleric channels does he expressly know when he has healed or harmed some one?
STORY: So I am playing a Ranger with very good sleath skill. During a battle with another group that we were losing I came up with a plan to defeat the enemy. I have an item that can provide long duration invisibility. I stealthed, put on the item and the rest of our group retreated from the battle.
I was now, in the enemy camp so to speak, the enemy did what any group would do. they dusted themselves of and their cleric spammed Channel Positive Energy to heal.
This left us with a question... does the cleric know that he just healed 5 people instead of the 4 that are in his group?
What if for some random reason the cleric spammed negative energy, would they realize they had damaged some one or more people than he expected to damage? (we already established it would not pop me out of invisibility like WOW)
we ended the day discussing it and the GM will make a ruling next session but I wanted to see if I could get any answers or opinions here.
I would say no you dont free automatic perception for having used channel energy. Now if he hurt you i might make you make a save to no make a noise from the pain there by triggering a perception check but your invisiable so your probably good.
No; much like with other area of effect spells and abilities, channel energy is a burst that effects all within the area, barring those purposely left out, as with the Selective Channeling feat. Just as with using waves of exhuastion or lightning bolt the caster has no way of knowing whether or not they struck an target not visible to them. One could add in the ability to know, or the ability to make a Perception check against a yelp of pain or the like, but that would be purely a house-rule.
I agree with Talonhawke. The cleric is channeling positive energy through himself to others. There's no expectation of feedback to know what happened to said energy.
Taken a step further, if a character is invisible or similarly unknown to a cleric, I would say a cleric would not be able to use selective channeling to avoid healing that character.
If they are invisible or unknown to the cleric then the cleric would not be able to target them with Selective Channeling (what with them having total concealment).
Although channel energy isn't a spell per se, it is a magical effect, and under the magic chapter it states that while a caster knows if a creature makes or doesn't make a save when the effect is targeted, they do not get such information when the effect is an Area of Effect.
So I would say, as a DM, that no, the channeler is not aware of any "extra" targets in the channel.
