Spirit Shaman's Spirit Guide

[Arn]

Can a Spirit Shaman's spirit guide help a blind man navigate? I have been RPing that, just want to make sure I am okay.

Part of my reasoning is that the spirit guide grants the Spirit Shaman the Alertness feat. So obviously, the spirit guide is supposed to guide the shaman and make him more aware.

But how does the spirit guide do that?

I have read that the Spirit Shaman's spirit guide exists on the ethereal plane, and only the Spirit Shaman can see or speak to it. Well, anything in the ethereal plane is supposed to be able to see into the material plane. So I figure the spirit guide could easily be telling the Spirit Shaman where to walk, what to watch out for, and so on.

[Archaos]

I actually think this is an amazing roleplay of a simple class ability, very fitting and very smart.

[DM Ioulaum]

This would be an excelent question for our inhouse lore wizard, DM Arkanis.

Calling DM Arkanis! Calling...!

[mireigi]

I think it should at least be possible (with DM approval if need be), though I'm not entirely sure if it would be flawless. The Ethereal Plane and that of the Prime are similar, but there are a few differences. What the Spirit Guide would perceive as being 10 feet away on the Ethereal Plane, might be anywhere between 7 to 13 feet away on the Prime. It's basicly like having perfect vision and then walking through town while wearing a pair of +4 glasses, attempting to guide someone who is walking with their eyes closed; or trying to judge distances under water while being above the surface.

[Arn]

I think it should at least be possible (with DM approval if need be), though I'm not entirely sure if it would be flawless. The Ethereal Plane and that of the Prime are similar, but there are a few differences. What the Spirit Guide would perceive as being 10 feet away on the Ethereal Plane, might be anywhere between 7 to 13 feet away on the Prime. It's basicly like having perfect vision and then walking through town while wearing a pair of +4 glasses, attempting to guide someone who is walking with their eyes closed; or trying to judge distances under water while being above the surface.

I'd be more than willing to RP imperfect navigation. I just want to be able to generally walk around, or find my way from Baldur's Gate to Beregost.

His spells are mostly AoE, so that would mesh with imperfect guidance.

Also, would the spirit guide be able to read for the Spirit Shaman?

[DM Arkanis]

In my opinion a Spirit Guide can guide a blind player through verbal communication although it would be very limited. It would not be the same as seeing through the Spirit Guide's eyes however to grant the character normal sight if they were blind. The character could ask it questions about where to go, or what it sees, and answers could vary from the vague to the detailed depending on the question asked, type of response needed (i.e. "yes" or "no" vs. "how far away?") Used in this capacity a SG becomes more of an Augury for the character - "Is it safe to go there?" could have a return answer of an uneasy feeling rather than, "there is a room full of goblins." It's role is really to nudge or guide as opposed to "lead" the character although there is some chatter on blogs relating to this that says as the SG and shaman get to know each other (i.e. the shaman levels up) that the bond increases to where there is more communication, albeit on a more "feeling' or intuitive level than direct conversation, and even then with regards to spiritual/etherial-type things that were more premonitions for the character than actual or direct warnings.

[Arn]

Thank you, DM Arkanis. I think that makes sense.

As to the form of the spirit guide, I have seen a list of animals that the spirit guide may be. However, can I choose a humanoid form for my spirit guide? The description seems to say that "The exact form of a spirit guide is purely personal preference, and confers no special advantages or disadvantages." As per your ruling, I would still RP that their communication is based on feeling and intuition, rather than verbal communication.

If the spirit guide must be in an animal form, can I say that the spirit was a dwarf when it was alive, and took the form of a spirit animal when it died?

[DM Arkanis]

"Master of the spirit world, the spirit shaman follows a different divine tradition from that of the cleric or druid. Her world is filled with powerful, living spirits, some helpful and some malign. By bargaining with these spirits, the spirit shaman gains power over the natural world and mighty divine magic with which to aid her comrades or smite her enemies. Creatures that are considered spirits include fey, elementals, and incorporeal undead such as wraiths and shadows."

This is all I could really find about what type of creature the Spirit Guide is. For RP purposes you could pretty much say it was almost anything, but I'd be careful advertising that you are walking around with an incoroporeal undead creature...

[LISA100595]

I've been playing a Spirit Shaman ever since Mask of the Betrayer came out in 2007 and when I joined multiplayer in 2008 is when Elvina my main character was developed. Before Kaedrins brought the Telthor Companion out, Elvina was always seen with a summoned Dire Wolf that was her companion that she affectionately named "Spike". Since most spirits are usually Bound to the place they die that they were protecting and continue to go on protecting... I took it upon myself to bend a bit saying that Spike died in her service and is now Bound to her as her spirit guide.

Here is a small bit on them:
http://www.realmshelps.net/monsters/tem ... thor.shtml

Hope that helps a bit.