When is Heightened better than Hound of Ill Omen?

[Naanomi]

The funny thing is... the Shadow Sorcerer can hide exactly as well as any other Sorcerer, in shadows or bright light. I doubt casting a Darkness spell to be hidden from sight is going to be any more subtle.

"Hey guys, do you see that dark sphere of shadow over there? Seems suspicious..."

True, but I would guess many would have Stealth Proficiency and generally utilize stealth techniques compared to their peers

[Dalebert]

Dispel desummons summoned creatures...

Yeah, if they were summoned with a spell. The hound is not a spell. It's a class feature. That's a nope to Dispel Magic and Counterspell and a yep to summoning it in silence or when you're tied up or when you don't have your focus and a yep to casting a full spell the same round you summon it because it's not a bonus action spell.

True, but I would guess many would have Stealth Proficiency and generally utilize stealth techniques compared to their peers

Maybe. Maybe not. I generally like stealth so yeah. I think it's a good fit. Then again, stealth isn't nearly as useful when you don't have cunning action. Your rogue will appreciate it being there so he can hide and then pop out and shoot.

[Chugger]

On top of everything else, if it is a "Dire Wolf" for stats, it can knock things prone, right? If it hits it does basically a greatsword damage and if the target fails a str save (I think), prone it goes.

This can be good or bad - bad if party has archer or caster getting ready to do scorching ray or chromatic orb - good if a meleer is on it.

Or does a shadow hound (hound of ill omen) not knock things prone?

[SharkForce]

Yeah, if they were summoned with a spell. The hound is not a spell. It's a class feature. That's a nope to Dispel Magic and Counterspell and a yep to summoning it in silence or when you're tied up or when you don't have your focus and a yep to casting a full spell the same round you summon it because it's not a bonus action spell.



Maybe. Maybe not. I generally like stealth so yeah. I think it's a good fit. Then again, stealth isn't nearly as useful when you don't have cunning action. Your rogue will appreciate it being there so he can hide and then pop out and shoot.

eh, i'd say the hound is still magically summoned, and dispel magic can target magical effects.

[tsotate]

eh, i'd say the hound is still magically summoned, and dispel magic can target magical effects.

It can TARGET magical effects. Dispel Magic only affects spells in this edition, though. The magical effects bit is just there to let you target the spell itself, in case you have no line of sight on the object/creature it's on (e.g. so you can dispel Darkness).

[Asmotherion]

Ever since I read about the Shadow Sorcerer, and especially Hound of Ill Omen, I knew what Character I'd be playing next :3




The best thing is, I don't think there is a RAW limitation to how many hounds you can summon, as long as you have the Sorcery Points to afford them. And that's really great, as you can actually plan your strategy around this sometimes, coupled with putting them in darkness. You're less of a Glass Cannon, and more of a Saddistic Slow Pain Dealer/Debuffer that does his job right and with good synergy.

[Dalebert]

On top of everything else, if it is a "Dire Wolf" for stats, it can knock things prone, right?

It uses the stats of a dire wolf with the only difference being it's medium-sized, so yes. You're summoning (creating?) an actual creature.

The best thing is, I don't think there is a RAW limitation to how many hounds you can summon, as long as you have the Sorcery Points to afford them.

Yes. I would summon one next to them and then next round summon another on the opposite side. Now any direction means an AoO. Though hopefully you can do this on the first turn with the help of your allies depending on distance and terrain.

eh, i'd say the hound is still magically summoned, and dispel magic can target magical effects.

As was said, you can absolutely target a creature and the hound is a creature. If the hound is under the effect of any spells, you could end those spells, e.g. Haste. The hound is not a spell.

Do you let people counterspell Bend Luck? Do you let people dispel Action Surge? These spells work on spells; not class features.

[Asmotherion]

It uses the stats of a dire wolf with the only difference being it's medium-sized, so yes. You're summoning (creating?) an actual creature.



Yes. I would summon one next to them and then next round summon another on the opposite side. Now any direction means an AoO. Though hopefully you can do this on the first turn with the help of your allies depending on distance and terrain.



As was said, you can absolutely target a creature and the hound is a creature. If the hound is under the effect of any spells, you could end those spells, e.g. Haste. The hound is not a spell.

Do you let people counterspell Bend Luck? Do you let people dispel Action Surge? These spells work on spells; not class features.

Meh, even so you still win. It's a 3rd level spell slot against 3 Sorcery Points; The opponent will run out sooner than you, just convert more :P

That said, it is specifically called a Magical Effect in it's description, thus it is Dispellable and Counterspellable unfortunatelly by RAW/RAI.

[Naanomi]

That said, it is specifically called a Magical Effect in it's description, thus it is Dispellable and Counterspellable unfortunatelly by RAW/RAI.

As something that is not a spell 3rd level or lower, or a spell 4th level or higher... it is targetable by Dispel Magic but the spell wouldn’t do anything to it without GM fiat

Counterspell is explicitly only for spells being cast, not any magical effect, so wouldn’t interact at all (without GM fiat)

[Dalebert]

That said, it is specifically called a Magical Effect in it's description, thus it is Dispellable and Counterspellable unfortunatelly by RAW/RAI.

That doesn't make it subject to DM or CS. That's clear from the description in those spells and has been verified as both RAW and RAI by Crawford. Good grief. Go re-read those spell descriptions. They're very specific. It does make it subject to Antimagic Field which is much more broad but DM and CS only work against actual spells.