Difference between revisions of "Knocking (cantrip)"

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'''Knocking''' is a cantrip that replicates the rhythmic tap of knuckles or an object against a wooden surface.  To the listener, the source is elusive, echoing diversely from no specific location.  Typically, the listener perceives it as real, prompting them to investigate or respond.
  
 
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'''Knocking''' imitates the sound of a repetitive tap upon wood, as made by a humanoid knuckle or hollow piece of woodThe sound may seem to come from anywhere — a door, from beneath the floor, even from the inside of a tree. Normally, the cantrip's effect will be taken for what it seems, encouraging a creature within to "answer the door" or to try and identify where the sound is coming from.  Therefore, the cantrip serves as a distraction, gaining the listener's attention long enough to take a quick action or effect [[Initiative|initiative]].  When the knock is sounded, creatures "in the know" gain a +1 to their initiative.
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Thus the dweomer acts as a distractionThose who investigate and who fail a [[Saving Throws|saving throw vs. magic]] receive a -1 penalty against their [[Initiative|initiative]] if confronted while searching for the soundThe perceived knocking might lead a listener to assume that someone important or urgent is at the door, compelling them to open it — unwittingly giving others a chance to enter.
  
The spell may also succeed in getting a person within to unknowingly open a locked door, enabling an ambush.
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The cantrip could be used as a coded signal between allies or as a form of non-verbal communication, though the knocking's beat cannot be determined by the caster.  In a more lighthearted setting, a skilled user of the cantrip might incorporate it into a performance, or to defraud an individual by supposing the knocking is some form of communication from beyond the grave.
  
  

Revision as of 18:16, 26 November 2023

Knocking (cantrip) b.jpg

Knocking is a cantrip that replicates the rhythmic tap of knuckles or an object against a wooden surface. To the listener, the source is elusive, echoing diversely from no specific location. Typically, the listener perceives it as real, prompting them to investigate or respond.

Knocking
Range 10 ft.
Duration 1 round
Area of Effect 30 ft.
Casting Time 2 action points
Saving Throw negates
Level cantrip

Thus the dweomer acts as a distraction. Those who investigate and who fail a saving throw vs. magic receive a -1 penalty against their initiative if confronted while searching for the sound. The perceived knocking might lead a listener to assume that someone important or urgent is at the door, compelling them to open it — unwittingly giving others a chance to enter.

The cantrip could be used as a coded signal between allies or as a form of non-verbal communication, though the knocking's beat cannot be determined by the caster. In a more lighthearted setting, a skilled user of the cantrip might incorporate it into a performance, or to defraud an individual by supposing the knocking is some form of communication from beyond the grave.


See Haunting Sound Cantrips