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We recently had a session where the big bad used telekinesis on a player character, who failed the save. An NPC wanted to grab him back, essentially.

I had the NPC essentially make the escape DC to see if he could pull the PC out, but that doesn't seem quite right.

For the subsequent attempts to keep the target under telekinesis, can other characters help the target affected by telekinesis? Or is it only the targeted character that can escape the restrained status from telekinesis?

V2Blast
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Michael
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    This was subsequent attempts. The player failed the save. – Michael Oct 21 '20 at 16:00
  • What save? Telekinesis says even on the initial cast, the target creature has to make a Strength ability check, contested by the caster's spellcasting ability check. I assume you mean failed that. (And yes, that would happen before the target's allies could do anything to help, unless they were already expecting the spell and had already taken Actions to hold onto the creature). – Peter Cordes Oct 22 '20 at 03:04
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    Worth noting: telekinesis is not “big mage hand.” Looks like this misconception may have informed the question; certainly it informed my attempt at an answer. Telekinesis does not specify an ongoing effect beyond the restrained condition; it does not lock something or someone in place once the caster has moved it. Many thanks to those who explained this to me. – ChumpNicholson Oct 22 '20 at 19:49
  • It looks like the reference to the telekinesis spell in particular was added by another user, not the querent - though the querent did include the [spells] tag, so it may still be what they're referring to. @Michael, could you clarify what monster/NPC the "big bad" was, and whether they're using the telekinesis spell in particular, or some other specific ability that involves telekinesis? ...Also: Welcome to RPG.SE! Take the [tour] if you haven't already, and check out the [help] for more guidance. – V2Blast Oct 23 '20 at 21:35

1 Answers1

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You can use the Help action to give an ally advantage on an ability check.

The Help action is what you are looking for:

You can lend your aid to another creature in the completion of a task. When you take the Help action, the creature you aid gains advantage on the next ability check it makes to perform the task you are helping with, provided that it makes the check before the start of your next turn.

Telekinesis says:

You can try to move a Huge or smaller creature. Make an ability check with your spellcasting ability contested by the creature's Strength check. [...]

On subsequent rounds, you can use your action to attempt to maintain your telekinetic grip on the creature by repeating the contest.

So the NPC ally would use the Help action on their turn, and the target of telekinesis would have advantage on the next Strength check contest for the spell. Note, most DMs, myself included, would rule that the helping character has to be within reach of the helped character at the time of the ability check.

Helping on subsequent rounds

This will be the most common use case, I think. BBEG casts telekinesis on the paladin, we'll call him Rick.

After Rick's turn, it is Laurie's turn. She moves next to Rick and uses the Help action to help Rick escape telekinesis. On BBEG's turn, BBEG uses their action to maintain control of Rick. With Laurie's help, Rick has advantage on the strength check to be free from the telekinesis.

Helping with the initial check

This situation is a bit odd. From a purely mechanical perspective it works out just fine. On Laurie's turn, she moves next to Rick and declares "I'm using the help action to help Rick break free of a telekinesis spell, should one come his way." Then, if BBEG casts telekinesis on Rick, he has advantage on the initial strength check.

But this is a bit of an odd scenario. It takes some forward thinking from Laurie, which may not make sense if she is unaware of the BBEG's telekinetic capabilities. If she is totally unaware of the BBEG's ability to cast telekinesis, from a roleplaying perspective, it's probably much more likely that Laurie spends her action doing something else.

On the other hand, suppose Laurie knows BBEG is inclined to shaking his enemies about with some telekinesis. Then it may seem reasonable for Laurie to preemptively declare that she is going to Help Rick.

Thomas Markov
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  • The language used definitely seems to describe something happening after the initial contest; "used", "grab him back". – Thomas Markov Oct 21 '20 at 14:37
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    Thanks a bunch! that makes sense! – Michael Oct 21 '20 at 16:00
  • Why wouldn’t Laurie to make her own Strength check to pull Rick free? If Laurie had higher Str than Rick this could be more advantageous, and it feels like it makes more sense from a “what is actually happening?” perspective. – ChumpNicholson Oct 21 '20 at 17:55
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    Because the spell is on Rick, not Laurie. Nothing in the spell description allows another creature to make the check against the spell. – Thomas Markov Oct 21 '20 at 18:03
  • If you are going for the Grimes, it is spelled Lori. – Kirt Oct 21 '20 at 19:56
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    Potentially relevant rules on working together: "A character can only provide help if the task is one that he or she could attempt alone. For example, trying to open a lock requires proficiency with thieves' tools, so a character who lacks that proficiency can't help another character in that task. Moreover, a character can help only when two or more individuals working together would actually be productive. Some tasks, such as threading a needle, are no easier with help." – V2Blast Oct 23 '20 at 21:39