Quote:
Originally Posted by Skarg
I think there is a grey area though about what an image or illusion can see, and maybe also whether they can actually seem to pass through doors or curtains and what the limit on that would be.
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I agree. It is not at all clear cut as the excerpts from RAW that I have posted clearly show.
The illusion spell has limitations, and those are spelled out most clearly in the quote, flagged by SJ as the general rule:
that an illusion behaves as the wizard believes the world to be. This shows it is not interacting with the real physical world, but the world as imagined by the spell caster. Which is why an illusion of an owl cannot see things in the dark that you don't know about.
And let's think about the purpose of the spell, which is to make somebody else think something is there, which is not there. It's a mental projection, nothing more, designed to fool and maybe harm. It's not a scouting or seeing spell at heart and I don't believe that an illusion of a rattlesnake will be able to tell you how many warm bodies are around that corner. And if this was the general ruling, that you can stand on an illusion of a chair, then it is so powerful as to be completely unbalanced. Want to fly? Just conjure a giant eagle and it can carry you. Want to break down that wall, just rustle up an elephant and its have it over in a second. Drowning? Just create an illusory bubble of air around you.
In fact, re passing through doors it is explicitly stated, as quoted RAW, that illusions can
never do that (no exceptions mentioned). They pass through tripwires, and walk over hidden pits. "If you try and walk over an illusory bridge your foot will pass right through it". (Whether you think your walking over the bridge or not!) Because they cannot affect physical reality. Why? Because objects cannot believe in them. Illusions are not real!