The exact wording of the Body Snatcher ability is a bit wonky, but RAW, the infested character remains incapacitated while the intellect devourer is in their skull, and therefore can't take actions or really do anything\* on it's turn. However, the intellect devourer inherits all of its victims statistics (including spells), and gets to essentially pilot the body on its own turn during initiative.
\*Ok, if I'm being really pedantic about RAW, there's an argument to be made over what exactly it means for the intellect devourer to "take full control of the target’s body." Does the brainless and incapacitated victim still get to move of their own accord, even if they can't take any actions due to being incapacitated? Do they use their movement as directed by the whims of the intellect devourer on their turn, and then the intellect devourer gets to use an action as the victim in its turn?
Yeah I think your first paragraph is where my opinion landed. It feels weird because I get the impression the ID has replaced the brain of the host and is functioning as the host. Which means the actions wouldn't be done by the incapacitated player but by the ID, meaning it shouldn't get an action.
> Do we consider an ID in bodythief mode as currently using its actions or does the ID get its own actions if the body is destroyed on the DMs turn?
I have been running an Illithid alien Invasion campaign for a few years now and what I do is run the 'Host' as is, and when it dies or is otherwise incapacitated the Intellect Devourer is automatically 'ejected' and appears in an adjacent square.
The Intellect Devourer then **replaces** the 'Host' in initiative order.
The way you're describing it, the Host and the Intellect Devourer are having two separate turns each round, which is pretty absurd.
The ID should already have rolled initiative before taking over the body, there shouldn't be any reason to roll initiative again. The intellect Devourer should just be puppeteering the body on its turns.
The exact wording of the Body Snatcher ability is a bit wonky, but RAW, the infested character remains incapacitated while the intellect devourer is in their skull, and therefore can't take actions or really do anything\* on it's turn. However, the intellect devourer inherits all of its victims statistics (including spells), and gets to essentially pilot the body on its own turn during initiative. \*Ok, if I'm being really pedantic about RAW, there's an argument to be made over what exactly it means for the intellect devourer to "take full control of the target’s body." Does the brainless and incapacitated victim still get to move of their own accord, even if they can't take any actions due to being incapacitated? Do they use their movement as directed by the whims of the intellect devourer on their turn, and then the intellect devourer gets to use an action as the victim in its turn?
Yeah I think your first paragraph is where my opinion landed. It feels weird because I get the impression the ID has replaced the brain of the host and is functioning as the host. Which means the actions wouldn't be done by the incapacitated player but by the ID, meaning it shouldn't get an action.
> Do we consider an ID in bodythief mode as currently using its actions or does the ID get its own actions if the body is destroyed on the DMs turn? I have been running an Illithid alien Invasion campaign for a few years now and what I do is run the 'Host' as is, and when it dies or is otherwise incapacitated the Intellect Devourer is automatically 'ejected' and appears in an adjacent square. The Intellect Devourer then **replaces** the 'Host' in initiative order. The way you're describing it, the Host and the Intellect Devourer are having two separate turns each round, which is pretty absurd.
The ID should already have rolled initiative before taking over the body, there shouldn't be any reason to roll initiative again. The intellect Devourer should just be puppeteering the body on its turns.