“The target of a spell or effect is always aware that he’s rolled a saving throw, though the caster of the spell isn’t revealed.” Huh. Who knew?
I’m always amazed whenever I take the time to read the official D&D FAQ. I remember when I played Magic: The Gathering and a new set would be released. The set would have a new mechanic of some sort that the players all had to learn in order to effectively compete. Very often, the new mechanic would rely on some specific component of a core rule of the game, (such as “the stack” for you who’ve played) that you had to know inside out.
D&D has always been a little more flexible. Still, this may be the reason that I’ve missed some pretty basic concepts as time has gone on. For example, knowing what order “the stack” in Magic: The Gathering works in is vital, and you can’t play the game without that basic knowledge. But knowing that a spell’s target is always aware they’ve made a saving throw is something you could play for years and never be aware of.
Now, having said all of that, I’d like to put in my $.02 on this particular ruling. The fact of the matter is that the entire concept of certain types of magic (enchantment, anyone? how about illusion?) is based on the target being unaware of what’s going on. I’m sorry, but for a character to always know the’ve made a save gives away too much. If you’re seeing an illusory baalor because you’ve failed a save, you need to believe (as a player) that you’re seeing a baalor. Anything less makes it more of a “how much can I fool myself” game, which is not fun in my experience.
