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If you cast imprisonment with the option Minimus Containment on a high-level paladin, can you wear the gem as a necklace and continue to gain paladin buffs? This is assuming that the paladin continues to view you as an ally.

I assume that the paladin is considered to be conscious since the spell does not say otherwise and it mentions that it is possible for the creature trapped inside the gem to view what is going on outside.

ItsWormy
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    Welcome to our stack! Please take the [tour] to learn more about us and you can also visit the [help] for more information. – NotArch Sep 11 '20 at 15:56
  • I don't think this works by RAW, but I love the idea, so it'll definitely work at my table if it ever comes up! – Ettina Kitten Mar 04 '22 at 02:07

1 Answers1

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Only light can pass through the gem, and nothing else.

The Minimus Containment option of imprisonment says:

Light can pass through the gemstone normally (allowing the target to see out and other creatures to see in), but nothing else can pass through.

I've emphasized the relevant portion - nothing else can pass through. Not even the Paladin's magic. But why?

Abilities that affect other creatures generally require a clear path to the target:

To target something, you must have a clear path to it, so it can't be behind total cover.

If you place an area of effect at a point that you can't see and an obstruction, such as a wall, is between you and that point, the point of origin comes into being on the near side of that obstruction.

The paladin's class features and spells, things that magically affect others, are not light. Since the gemstone only allows light to pass through, the paladin does not have a clear path to the target for these abilities - their abilities cannot pass through the gem that they are inside.

To see this another way, we can emphasize that the target can't be behind total cover. Everything outside the gem has total cover with respect to the paladin, so the paladin cannot target anything outside the gem.

Thomas Markov
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  • Hmmm.... paladin aoe buffing features (not spells) do not say that they require a clear path to the target and there have been many times that I have provided bonuses through walls. Some of the features such as Aura of Courage do not specify that it uses magic and could simply be an inspirational influence on those around you. However, I am looking for the raw interpretation which does not specify either way.

    EDIT: I think the most important part is that the feature does not say the aura emanates from the paladin.

     – ItsWormy Sep 11 '20 at 15:56
  • This is the RAW ruling. Buffing through walls is against the rules. – Thomas Markov Sep 11 '20 at 16:15
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    @ThomasMarkov the rules definitely say that to target something with a spell requires line of effect, but paladin auras are not spells and don't necessarily have to behave that way. ("Do auras require line of effect?" is a prior question in that field in which I argue against your reasoning here.) – Carcer Sep 11 '20 at 17:59
  • @Carcer You make some good points. But my point about only light passing through still stands. – Thomas Markov Sep 11 '20 at 18:01
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    @ThomasMarkov yes, I think it's justifiable to rule that the explicit statement that only light passes through precludes magical effects (spell or not) from crossing the barrier purely by itself - it's the reasoning invoking the total cover argument that I think is suspect. – Carcer Sep 11 '20 at 18:03
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    @Carcer I think there are probably some paladin abilities that reasoning applies to and some it does not. I think its worth mentioning either way. Since it would apply sometimes. – Thomas Markov Sep 11 '20 at 18:04