Witchcraft • Legacy Language Disruption

Babble (Tongue Tie)

Babble disrupts verbal communication across a cone, leaving affected creatures convinced that they are speaking normally while everyone else hears nonsense.

Babble at a Glance

5.5e / 2024	No direct conversion published here
5e / 2014	No direct conversion published here
Pathfinder 1e	Not a Pathfinder Witch spell by default
D&D 3.x Legacy	Witch 3, Bard 3, Sorcerer/Wizard 3

D&D 3.x Legacy Rules

School	Transmutation
Level	Witch 3, Bard 3, Sorcerer/Wizard 3
Components	V, S, M
Casting Time	1 action
Range	Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Area	Cone, 20 ft. + 5 ft./caster level
Duration	1 round/level
Saving Throw	Will negates
Spell Resistance	Yes

Creatures in the cone that fail their saves can speak only confused babble. Each affected creature believes its own speech is normal, while the speech of other affected creatures sounds equally meaningless.

Unaffected creatures can speak normally but cannot understand an affected creature’s babbling. Under the legacy rules, spells requiring verbal components are disrupted while the caster is affected.

Undead and creatures immune to mind-affecting magic are unaffected. Remove Curse or Tongues can counter the effect under the original rules.

Material component: a snake’s tongue tied in a knot.

Edition Boundary

The verbal-component disruption, immunity assumptions and cone scaling belong to older d20 rules. Modern editions should use their own language, silence and spellcasting-interruption mechanics.