I am DMing a situation that has an unusual combination of factors and I'm wondering how others would interpret the outcome.
I have a player who is human (rogue) but he has an item that allows him to use Alter Self a number of times per day. He's taken to adopting the form of a small humanoid such as a goblin or kobold. This character is now in a melee with a ranger who has favored enemy Humanoid (Human), as well as an inquisitor with the favored judgment feat, also choosing Humanoid (human) as the focus.
So when attacking the rogue altered into goblin form, do these enemies gain the benefits of their favored enemy abilities, since the target is human or does the Alter Self transmutation (polymorph) mean they do not.
I'm inclined to rule that they do not since the form is not human and they don't know it is a human behind the polymorph. But I wondered if there is another meta rule about which takes priority that I'm not familiar with.
I guess it depends on how the favored enemy works. If it is a kind of motivational effect that spurs the character on to better performance when facing the favored enemy, then the polymorph would fool them. But if it is some more magical basis, the magic might not be fooled by the polymorph and manifest in better performance.
It has already been significant since on more than one attack, the favored enemy feature would have meant a hit that otherwise missed.
I am DMing a situation that has an unusual combination of factors and I'm wondering how others would interpret the outcome.
I have a player who is human (rogue) but he has an item that allows him to use Alter Self a number of times per day. He's taken to adopting the form of a small humanoid such as a goblin or kobold. This character is now in a melee with a ranger who has favored enemy Humanoid (Human), as well as an inquisitor with the favored judgment feat, also choosing Humanoid (human) as the focus.
So when attacking the rogue altered into goblin form, do these enemies gain the benefits of their favored enemy abilities, since the target is human or does the Alter Self transmutation (polymorph) mean they do not.
I'm inclined to rule that they do not since the form is not human and they don't know it is a human behind the polymorph. But I wondered if there is another meta rule about which takes priority that I'm not familiar with.
I guess it depends on how the favored enemy works. If it is a kind of motivational effect that spurs the character on to better performance when facing the favored enemy, then the polymorph would fool them. But if it is some more magical basis, the magic might not be fooled by the polymorph and manifest in better performance.
It has already been significant since on more than one attack, the favored enemy feature would have meant a hit that otherwise missed.
You might look at this post About Favored Enemies for some debate on the issue.
The Alter Self spell does not actually change your subtype, so bonuses against humans should still apply, and bonuses against your assumed form should not. The same would go for other polymorph spells -- no matter what form is assumed, you are still a human for effects such as favored enemy.
Of course, if your enemies have a way to switch up such bonuses but do not see through your assumed form, they are likely to pick the wrong subtype. Or, if they cannot change them up, they might choose to target foes who look human because they think their bonuses won't work on the guy who looks like a goblin or a kobold. But if they end up attacking a polymorphed creature, they should be in for a surprise when they get a bonus they didn't think they would get or vice versa.