5E - Aura Effects

[Paladins Pride]

I have been experimenting with using aura effects for movable zones like cloudkill or stinking cloud. I put the aura on a small dummy creature (I have a special creature created for this purpose that is immume to all damage). It'd be convenient however, if I could get the aura to show even if the creature itself is out of sight or hidden. I imagine the same is true for traditional auras as well. A spirit guardian is still visible around the corner even if you cannot see the creature. Has anyone used aura effects for a similar purpose, and if so, do you have any advice?

[SilentRuin]

I have been experimenting with using aura effects for movable zones like cloudkill or stinking cloud. I put the aura on a small dummy creature (I have a special creature created for this purpose that is immume to all damage). It'd be convenient however, if I could get the aura to show even if the creature itself is out of sight or hidden. I imagine the same is true for traditional auras as well. A spirit guardian is still visible around the corner even if you cannot see the creature. Has anyone used aura effects for a similar purpose, and if so, do you have any advice?

I use modules and extensions (5E only) which automatically place and remove all those auras. You can check out Grim Press discord if you want someone to explain all that. But if your looking for a free way to do it yourself, that is for sure a valid option - you just have to insure you do it all manually on writing the aura effects yourself and manually place them on an NPC which you manually make invisible in map and CT. Or write your own extension(s) to automagically create the NPC, attach the aura effects, and make it invisible on map/CT and remove it when effect is removed.

[Paladins Pride]

Programming and placing the auras isn't my issue -- though I am glad to know there might be a paid extension to assist me if I don't want to do it myself. What I'm really interested in is a way to make the aura visible when the actor on which the aura effect is placed is out of sight (when using a map that supports line of sight)

[Camberme]

I've tried searching and failed, Does this ext work, for ONE creature, to detect if it's within 5 ft of an ally, to trigger it's own pack tactics?

[MrDDT]

I've tried searching and failed, Does this ext work, for ONE creature, to detect if it's within 5 ft of an ally, to trigger it's own pack tactics?

So here is the thing AURAs has to make some assumptions on how you want to deal with AOE effects.

1) Creatures coming into an area are not affected until at least part of the affected area hits the center of the creatures token.
2) Default circle "aura" is based # + 1/2 token size. This means if the token size of the creature with the aura on them is 5ft, it would be +2.5. So a "5ft" aura, is going to be 7.5ft from the center of this creature.

The best way to get it to work better is likely to make your 5ft "aura" a 15ft radius cube, for a 5ft (medium) creature.

For info about pack tactics. I use an extra ext for this that does it automatically, however, you likely can code this with BCEG and AURA effects. However, if you already have BCEG, then Pack Tactics is automatically done =P

[fesegato]

Not sure if someone has already done this. But I remember searching the thread to find out how to work two identical auras (for exemplo two paladins with Aura of Protection) from overlapping and doubleing. I couldnt find it, but last week we came up with a work around that worked! So I thought I'd share it (sorry if this has been shared/discovered). It does require the Better Combat Effects extension (not sure if Gold is needed. I have both).

So, instead of naming both Aura's the same. We named them Aura of Protection One and Aura of Protection Two. Now, we played around with IFs conditionals. At first we places a few ifs to turn off the auras if the player is incapacitated. Then, the aura with the highest bonus (in our case one has 5 and the other 3, but works the same with identical ones), in the highest (or just one of them), you place a negative IF, deductiing the lowest aura's bonus if the aura is applied together. That way, the game sums, but subtracts, working perfectly.

Here is the code we did:

IF: !custom(unconscious); IF: !custom(incapacitated); IF: !custom(paralyzed); IF: !custom(petrified); IF: !custom(stunned); AURA: 10 friend; Aura of Protection Two; SAVE: 3;
IF: !custom(unconscious); IF: !custom(incapacitated); IF: !custom(paralyzed); IF: !custom(petrified); IF: !custom(stunned); AURA: 10 friend; Aura of Protection One; SAVE: 5; IF: custom(Aura of Protection Two); SAVE: -3

Hope it helps

[Hjorimir]

Is there a way to turn off the visibility of the circle on the map? I'm also using Auras Visualized (along with spell token auras that looks nice) and I'd rather just see those auras if possible.

[Hjorimir]

Just a syntax error, I got it working.

[MrDDT]

Just a syntax error, I got it working.

Let me know if you have any more issues

[Hjorimir]

Actually, I am getting a weird issue. I'm trying to get an aura going for a shadow monk where he casts darkness on himself (but he can see through it as per the ability's description in the 2024 PHB). Here's what I got so far:

TEST; AURA: 10 DarknessSelf, all; The Darkness; IF: FACTION (enemy); Blinded

(The DarknessSelf is just the name of the Aura I'm using for Visualized Auras, which displays fine).

The weirdness is that the Blinded condition doesn't effect his rolls (good, that makes sense), however, on the map he is blind (no LOS to other tokens). So, it isn't effecting the rolls, but it is effecting what can be seen when you have focus on the token. I hope that makes sense.