| 1 person marked this as FAQ candidate. |
My question centers around actions underwater, specifically speaking and understanding others who are speaking underwater. I have an Aquatic Druid in my campaign. And it's also important for a published encounter for which I will be vague about it's origins. If I need to spoiler this let me know.
In the encounter, the tactics indicate that the aquatic bad guy druid (who speaks Aquan) prior to combat she casts Speak with Animals. And then she uses Summon Nature's Ally. Hence, one would assume the Speak with Animals is to more easily control the summoned animal. This seems to indicate that she can communicate underwater. While the setting includes some above water surface air pocket, most the of combat and the summoned creature will be underwater. Speak with Animals is allowing her to speak with a creature obviously without a language in this case. So is the reason she can speak and the creature can understand because A) Rules are silent on communicating underwater as to whether one can or can't; B) Because both creatures are aquatic; C) She speaks Aquan; D) Other?
This is the only example I've seen in official Pathfinder products that indicates any hint at the answer to can creatures communicate underwater. And the answer seems to be yes, but doens't educate as to why.
As for why is it important for the rest of the campaign? My PC Aquatic Druid is a dwarf (non-aquatic, doesn't speak Aquan, yet) and has a non-aquatic animal companion (Croc).
So can he use Handle Animal on the croc while underwater by speaking commands? He also doesn't yet have the ability to breath underwater via abilities or spells or magic items. If not, what would he need to be able to do so?
Thanks for any insight you guys can offer, as I'm sure this will come up throughout the AP and the answer might differ depending on the player's choices as he levels up.
What creature is being summoned?
Aquan is a planar language, the plane of water. So it is very likely that this outsider has water breathing or some such that allows it to breathe (and hence speak) under water.
I'd probably treat all outsiders that natively speak Aquan as being able to communicate underwater.
What creature is being summoned?
Aquan is a planar language, the plane of water. So it is very likely that this outsider has water breathing or some such that allows it to breathe (and hence speak) under water.
I'd probably treat all outsiders that natively speak Aquan as being able to communicate underwater.
Not an outsider. The creature doing the summoning is an aberretion. The creature being summoned is an octupus via Summon Nature's Ally.
Hmm...it depends on the aberration. Can you spoiler it?
Hmm...it depends on the aberration. Can you spoiler it?
Ahhhhh.
The Aquatic subtype. They can breathe water (and thus speak underwater). It is also amphibious so it can breathe air (and thus speak out of water).
There's no listing of how the animal is trained to respond. It could be voice, hand gestures, or a combination of the two. Attack and fetch for example, seems to be based off of pointing at things.
Unless you're running an aquatic campaign i wouldn't worry about it too much.
Now that's a good question BigNorseWolf...does the octopus summoned from Summon Nature's Ally have a Friendly attitude?
A summoned creature attacks your foes automatically and takes minor direction if you can communicate with it. I would call that Helpful attitude. Hence why I think Speak with Animals is needed to communicate, b/c the summoned animal is not trained.
But regarding handle animal and druid animal companions, BigNorseWolf, you are correct. I can't find that actually speaking to an animal companion is required to give it commands. And IRL trained animals do all kinds of commands with only hand signals. I guess it is best to treated ACs as being able to understand words and hand signals and only becomes an issue in underwater, zero visability situations.
And yes, I'm running a published campaign with LOTS of underwater encounters.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Step 1: Learn aquan
Step 2: Up the critters int to 3
Step 3: Put 1 point in linguistics to give the critter aquan as a language
Step 4: glarble burble glarble grrrrgh.
Step 5: critter listens to your commands.