My dude, I take your point, but you’re writing in properties for the mimic that aren’t in the rules, based on your real world perception of how things work. That isn’t applicable to the game mechanics. If you really have to have something to wrap your head around to explain the mimic both breathing and being imperceptible while impersonating an object, then model mimic breathing as some form of motionless skin breathing. Just realise that when you go digging for another reason to say why you can see it happening, its your model that is wrong, not the rules.
…you’re writing in properties for the mimic that aren’t in the rules…
The rules don’t say goblins breathe, either. If you can’t extrapolate that living creatures breathe, you’re not doing a good job.
…to explain the mimic both breathing and being imperceptible
I’m quite clearly doing the opposite, though. As does the lore attached to it, which clearly says “a mimic in its altered form is nearly unrecognizable”. Nearly unrecognizable means it is recognizable.
…some form of motionless skin breathing.
Okay, now you’re the one writing in properties that aren’t in the rules. Especially since its skin can be just wood.
…its your model that is wrong, not the rules.
No, neither are wrong. You just misunderstood the rules. And my model. The rules say they are indistinguishable when motionless. I say they aren’t motionless. No contradiction.
I’m going ahead and hit “doubt” on that statement as I looked at my 2014 Monster Manual before writing my previous message and the word “nearly” is absent in that description.
I don’t know what to tell you. I went to 5etools, looked at the 2014 lore, and directly copy-pasted that exact quote. You can check yourself. If I wrote it, I’d have spelt unrecognisable with an s instead of a z. Maybe it got errata’d at some point?
Ok, so I’m sorry about my previous tone, it seems that the mimic article, on 5etools and the SRD website, is the source of our confusion and disagreement: each time the description appears twice, first without the word “nearly” (under “False Appearance”) then once with it. That 2nd description, under “Imitative Predators”, does not appear in the Monster Manual. I could not check what D&D Beyond says because I do not have access to its contents.
Yeah, I think 5e tools uses the first ever printed version, while WotC reprint and edit the lore in the Monster Manual a LOT. D&D Beyond would probably be a third entry entirely. I’m glad we’re on the same page now (or rather, we were on the same page, but the books were different).
Couldn’t the mimics just hold their breath for a long time? I also see no problem with them having a physiology so different that their body literally doesn’t move when they breathe, but I don’t play D&D, so maybe I’m missing something with that.
In Dark Souls, mimics breathe slowly. Like, 17 seconds per breath. It’s tough to spot, but you can spot it if you’re cautious. Since it’s proven to catch people off guard, but CAN be spotted, I figure, why not use what works?
My dude, I take your point, but you’re writing in properties for the mimic that aren’t in the rules, based on your real world perception of how things work. That isn’t applicable to the game mechanics. If you really have to have something to wrap your head around to explain the mimic both breathing and being imperceptible while impersonating an object, then model mimic breathing as some form of motionless skin breathing. Just realise that when you go digging for another reason to say why you can see it happening, its your model that is wrong, not the rules.
The rules don’t say goblins breathe, either. If you can’t extrapolate that living creatures breathe, you’re not doing a good job.
I’m quite clearly doing the opposite, though. As does the lore attached to it, which clearly says “a mimic in its altered form is nearly unrecognizable”. Nearly unrecognizable means it is recognizable.
Okay, now you’re the one writing in properties that aren’t in the rules. Especially since its skin can be just wood.
No, neither are wrong. You just misunderstood the rules. And my model. The rules say they are indistinguishable when motionless. I say they aren’t motionless. No contradiction.
Where does this “nearly” come from? Because my Monster Manual doesn’t have that word in the mimic description…
I copy-pasted from the 2014 entry.
I’m going ahead and hit “doubt” on that statement as I looked at my 2014 Monster Manual before writing my previous message and the word “nearly” is absent in that description.
I don’t know what to tell you. I went to 5etools, looked at the 2014 lore, and directly copy-pasted that exact quote. You can check yourself. If I wrote it, I’d have spelt unrecognisable with an s instead of a z. Maybe it got errata’d at some point?
Ok, so I’m sorry about my previous tone, it seems that the mimic article, on 5etools and the SRD website, is the source of our confusion and disagreement: each time the description appears twice, first without the word “nearly” (under “False Appearance”) then once with it. That 2nd description, under “Imitative Predators”, does not appear in the Monster Manual. I could not check what D&D Beyond says because I do not have access to its contents.
Yeah, I think 5e tools uses the first ever printed version, while WotC reprint and edit the lore in the Monster Manual a LOT. D&D Beyond would probably be a third entry entirely. I’m glad we’re on the same page now (or rather, we were on the same page, but the books were different).
Couldn’t the mimics just hold their breath for a long time? I also see no problem with them having a physiology so different that their body literally doesn’t move when they breathe, but I don’t play D&D, so maybe I’m missing something with that.
In Dark Souls, mimics breathe slowly. Like, 17 seconds per breath. It’s tough to spot, but you can spot it if you’re cautious. Since it’s proven to catch people off guard, but CAN be spotted, I figure, why not use what works?