You reach the mind of 1 creature you’ll see and force it to form an Intelligence saving throw. A creature automatically succeeds if it’s proof against being frightened. On a failed save, the target loses the power to differentiate friend from foe, regarding all creatures it can see as enemies until the spell ends. Whenever the target takes damage, it can repeat the saving throw, ending the effect on itself on a hit.
Whenever the affected creature chooses another creature as a target, it must choose the target randomly from among the creatures it can see within the range of the attack, spell, or other ability it’s using. If an enemy provokes a chance attack from the affected creature, the creature must make that attack if it’s ready to.
Enemies Abound 5e
- Casting Time: 1 action
- Range: 120 feet
- Components: V, S
- Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
- Scales: No
- Casters: Arcane Trickster, Bard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard
You force one creature you’ll see to form an Intelligence save. It automatically succeeds if it’s resistant to being frightened. On a failure, the target regards all creatures it can see as enemies, allies included. Whenever the target takes damage, it can repeat the save, ending the effect on a hit.
Whenever the creature chooses a target, it must choose randomly from among the creatures it can see within range. If an enemy provokes a chance attack, the creature must make that attack if it’s ready to.
As it triggers when the creature chooses a target it had been very easy for the target to control it in order that there was no effect from the spell. for instance, using a melee weapon and ensuring that only an actual enemy is in range, in order that they are the sole enemy to be randomly selected. Or using AOE spells and continuing to put it selectively to hit only the particular enemies. Or the worst case where the character simply put away their weapons and didn’t attack so as to not risk hitting an ally.
When cast, this spell caused a target creature to become confused and frightened, and subsequently unable to tell apart friend or foe. The creature randomly attacked anyone nearby. A strong-enough creature or a creature with resistance to fear was unaffected by this spell.
An enemy may be a person or group that’s working against a viewpoint person or group. Therefore the person targeted by Enemies Abound regards every creature they will see as purposefully working against them, though whether these enemies are seen as working against them as a bunch or individually is up to roleplay.
Although it’s possible for people to self-sabotage or otherwise do things are against their own interests, they can’t regard themselves as both workings to satisfy and to stop their own interests and goals at a similar time. Doing so would make a recursive loop of their interest now being to prevent themself from stopping themself.
The intent of this spell was to offer characters a capability like Frenzy or Confusion in other games, where the effected target lashes out at whatever is on the point of them. If they regarded themself as an enemy then they might strike out at themselves, being the closest enemy, which seems to go against the intention of the spell.