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Just to be very clear, this question is very much related to, but distinct from a previous question I asked a few years ago: Does Darkness cast a shadow? - I still am not quite satisfied with SevenSidedDie's very excellent answer (they usually are, aren't they?). This question asks does light penetrate through the darkness spell or does darkness cast a shadow. And it is distinct from Does the Darkness spell block vision?, which asks if the darkness blocks vision through it.

Is the Darkness spell visible from the outside? To make the question more clear, if darkness were cast on the surface of a flat plane, would I see a spot of darkness on the ground, or would I see a hemisphere above the ground?

Rubiksmoose
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Escoce
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    How is this question different from the other one? As far as I can tell it is the exact same question but with different examples. If you are not satisfied with the answers to the other question, you should a bounty on the other question. – Ruse Mar 20 '19 at 22:58
  • It is not asking the same question. One asks, does the light shine through and illuminate things behind it, the second one asks if I am inside, can I see what's outside. This one is can I see through it and see what's illuminated on the other side of the darkness spell. I am sorry, it's not a duplicate at all to either of the other two questions. Unduplicate please. – Escoce Mar 21 '19 at 11:50
  • @Escoce please refrain from passive aggressive notes about duplication in your answer thanks. Being clear about what your question does and does not ask benefits everyone, but most notably you, because it makes sure you get the exact answer you want without confusion. I have edited to remove. – Rubiksmoose Mar 21 '19 at 12:19
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    While the title of the first duplicate "Does the darkness spell block vision out of the area", the body of the question absolutely covers this one with the question about acting as a barrier to vision. I'm not seeing how this isn't a duplicate other than that question needing an update to it's title to match the body question (and the answers.) – NotArch Mar 21 '19 at 12:31
  • Changed question completely – Escoce Mar 21 '19 at 13:49
  • I'm not sure if the change really makes a difference, but you've kept all of the meat of the question which doesn't seem like it's changed that much. Are you simply asking "What does darkness look like?" That seems to bypass being a duplicate, but it also seems to be a question without a problem and descriptions may be opinion-based. If the problem you're trying to solve with the answer (so it's not an X-Y question) is can you see through it, then those are answered by the duplicates. – NotArch Mar 21 '19 at 14:07
  • No, the meat of the question is the last block of text, everything above it references what the question is not – Escoce Mar 21 '19 at 14:10
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    Then this is a dupe. It's asking the same thing (whether or not it blocks vision). It sounds like this is more of a different answer to that question (you think it may not) and should be submitted as such if that's your belief. – NotArch Mar 21 '19 at 14:29
  • @Escoce you seem to be assuming that Does the Darkness spell block vision? is only asking about from inside the area of darkness, but, as Naut has said, that does not appear to be the case. Neither the question or the answers seem to assume that. And, without that assumption the question, still exactly seems to ask and answer this one. – Rubiksmoose Mar 21 '19 at 14:34
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    @Escoce I apologise for the frustration, I'll try to better explain why I believe your question is a duplicate (and why I'm starting to believe the other two questions are also duplicates of each other). All three questions are different ways of asking "is it opaque?" If the darkness is opaque, then it must be visible, block vision, and cast a shadow. If light passes through the darkness, then the darkness is not visible, it doesn't block vision and doesn't cast a shadow. Answering any of the three questions automatically answers the other two. – Ruse Mar 21 '19 at 15:07
  • @ruse no neither of the three questions ask that at all. And yes I am getting frustrated (as happens sometimes) by community tyranny (and no I don't mean it to mean as strong as that may imply, but it's still the correct term). The three questions are quite distinct and opacity doesn't seem to apply to any of them. They are literally three different questions asking about 3 different properties of the Darkness spell. 1) does it block light shining through it, 2) does it block vision though it (similar but still distinct), 3) can you see the Darkness itself as an object from the outside. – Escoce Mar 21 '19 at 17:02
  • @Escoce I'll give this one more shot: can you explain the difference between 2 and 3 for me? I'm sorry, but I'm just not getting it. – Rubiksmoose Mar 21 '19 at 17:10
  • Agree with @Rubiksmoose. All 3 points in above comment seem different ways of asking the same thing. At risk of sounding scientific (which I know doesn't always apply with magic), but: If something blocks light (and there is a light source) then it will stand out as something present blocking the light, the same as any solid opaque object. That's what opaque means! Reversed: If it doesn't block light then you would see through it as per an invisible object (or transparent if it scatters a small amount of light). – PJRZ Mar 21 '19 at 17:26
  • I think we're starting to boarder on answers in comments here. There are some really good comments that would likely benefit the duplicate link "Does the darkness spell block vision" as answers. – NotArch Mar 21 '19 at 17:43
  • this isn't science. It's magic. Science wouldn't even allow this to happen period. so using a scientific sensibility doesn't make sense. The three properties are just different, and I am sorry that you can't see that. You are trying to logic the question, but it's not logic. It's magic. The three questions are different. If it was science you could use inference, but since it's magic you can't. I am getting even more frustrated here. Probably just going to leave again like I have in the past. Do whatever you want. – Escoce Mar 21 '19 at 18:22
  • "It's magic" does not deny common sense in cases where there is no explicit "the magic works like this" rule. If the rules of some magic effect do not say otherwise then assume basic realism is in effect: a light object is still light, an opaque object is opaque, a heavy object is heavy and so on. – PJRZ Mar 24 '19 at 10:58

1 Answers1

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No, you can't see through it

A creature with darkvision can’t see through this darkness, and nonmagical light can’t illuminate it.

Think of the darkness spell as working a lot like a cloud of dark vapour. You can't see through it, even with darkvision.

Magical darkness spreads from a point you choose within range to fill a 15-foot-radius sphere for the duration.

If you cast it on a flat plain it would be a hemisphere above ground since it spreads in a sphere from the target location.

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Allan Mills
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