Yes, restore senses works on a permanent effect like this one. But that's not something they had access to.. so dispelling was attempted.
By saying 'they' it sounds like you are the GM of the group.
So if they don't have access to Restore Senses on their own, there is always Spellcasting Services that could be used instead. Though that does mean finding some NPC who does have the spell - either a wandering traveler or having the party return to a settlement.
If that is still undesirable, having Dispel Magic work on permanent blindness caused by magic would probably be a reasonable stopgap. In general it would be stepping on the toes of Restore Senses, but since they don't have that to begin with, no one is going to complain.
Since the duration of Blindness isn)t instantaneous, Dispel Magic should have a chance. Also, note that the Blindness spell has everyone’s favourite tag, Incapacitation …
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Since the duration of Blindness isn)t instantaneous,
Technically, it is.
The duration of a spell is how long the spell effect lasts. Spells that last for more than an instant have a Duration entry. A spell might last until the start or end of a turn, for some number of rounds, for minutes, or even longer. If a spell’s duration is given in rounds, the number of rounds remaining decreases by 1 at the start of each of the spellcaster’s turns, ending when the duration reaches 0.
Some spells have effects that remain even after the spell’s magic is gone. Any ongoing effect that isn’t part of the spell’s duration entry isn’t considered magical. For instance, a spell that creates a loud sound and has no duration might deafen someone for a time, even permanently. This deafness couldn’t be counteracted because it is not itself magical (though it might be cured by other magic, such as restore senses).
The example is using deafness instead of blindness, but the idea is identical.
Since the duration of Blindness isn)t instantaneous,Technically, it is.
The example is using deafness instead of blindness, but the idea is identical.The duration of a spell is how long the spell effect lasts. Spells that last for more than an instant have a Duration entry. A spell might last until the start or end of a turn, for some number of rounds, for minutes, or even longer. If a spell’s duration is given in rounds, the number of rounds remaining decreases by 1 at the start of each of the spellcaster’s turns, ending when the duration reaches 0.
Some spells have effects that remain even after the spell’s magic is gone. Any ongoing effect that isn’t part of the spell’s duration entry isn’t considered magical. For instance, a spell that creates a loud sound and has no duration might deafen someone for a time, even permanently. This deafness couldn’t be counteracted because it is not itself magical (though it might be cured by other magic, such as restore senses).
Ouch. Misread it, thought the lack of a Duration entry made it variable.
Yeah, mostly I remember that fiddly little rule because of how it interacts with Golem Antimagic - a spell with no duration line that deals persistent damage (like Produce Flame on a critical hit) would be dealing non-magical persistent damage and so wouldn't trigger Golem Antimagic in later rounds at all.
There are spells (like Fear) that have a Duration of 'varies'.
My understanding is that the blindness spell is instantaneous so dispel magic would have nothing to target. In effect, the blindness caused is non-magical.
As I understand things, dispel magic shouldn't work. But if the party doesn't have access to other spells to restore sight, as a GM I would probably allow it because playing a character that has been blinded isn't fun at all.
Dispel magic wouldn't work technically, but it's much more fun for everyone (probably) to let it work. Otherwise the party has to quit adventuring and go find someone who can cast the spell.
Another option (and slight retcon) would be to tweak the hero point rules such that you get a second roll and take whichever is better. Yes it's strong, but it's a pretty limited resource.
This would reduce the blindness to 1 minute instead of permanent. Taking someone out of 1 battle is fine. Taking someone out of all battles via permanent blindness until an unknown time when they can find someone with restore senses is brutal and not fun.
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It was at the beginning of a huge fight, and a hero point was used to turn a failed save into a crit failed save. It was disheartening to say the least.
LOL. Yup, that always stings when it happens. I've learned to not spend hero points to reroll anything higher than a 3. On a 5, just take the L and move on. Still hurts to reroll a 2 into a 1 though.
Yup. They're in the middle of a book 4 dungeon for hell's rebels (2e converted), and teleportation and time are both limited at the moment. I begrudgingly let it fly to keep things moving - and things were dire; it didn't feel like the right call tho.
Now, I'm leaning heavily towards dispel magic shouldn't work.
Having it not work is correct by the rules.
Letting it work may be the better choice for the pacing and plot of the story. Just let the players know (yes, a good version of metagaming) that allowing it once shouldn't be seen as a precedent for other similar things.