I thought it looked a bit like an Old English word maybe resurrected for D&D, so I initially thought something like /gεɑs/ (a bit like “gas” or “GEH-ahs”; ain’t no player actually gonna say /ɣ/ or /æɑ/ properly) or /jεɑs/ (“yasss”)
Then I looked it up on Wiktionary. It’s from Irish “geis” with the wrong spelling apparently. Irish spelling do be silly, so all phonetic preconceptions should be checked at the door.
Wiktionary says /ɟɛʃ/ for Irish, anglicized as /ɡɛʃ/ or /ˈɡiː.əʃ/ (gesh and GEE-ush, respectively).
So I first encountered the word three days ago - I decided to make my way through the Baldur’s Gate series and started with The Black Pits, where it’s mentioned. I’m aware of the psychological phenomenon where you start seeing a word or concept you recently learnt about everywhere but man, still feels like a huge coincidence.
So anyway the pronunciation- ge- same as in “get”, -as same as “us”. My native Czech has super consistent rules of pronunciation, with each letter always representing exactly one specific sound (well, almost always) and it works out like this.
You place a magical command on a creature that you can see within range, forcing it to carry out some service or refrain from some action or course of activity as you decide. If the creature can understand you, it must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or become charmed by you for the duration. While the creature is charmed by you, it takes 5d10 psychic damage each time it acts in a manner directly counter to your instructions, but no more than once each day. A creature that can’t understand you is unaffected by the spell.
You can issue any command you choose, short of an activity that would result in certain death. Should you issue a suicidal command, the spell ends.
You can end the spell early by using an action to dismiss it. A remove curse, greater restoration, or wish spell also ends it.
At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 7th or 8th level, the duration is 1 year. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 9th level, the spell lasts until it is ended by one of the spells mentioned above.
in 5e, Geas is a level 5 spell that compels someone to either do something, or refrain from doing something - the compulsion is in the form of the threat of massive damage for disobedience.
A geas is a magically enforced taboo against something. Following the requirements brings power but violation comes with grave punishment, often resulting in a character’s death or undoing.
My brain first said “gee-ass”, with a soft G, as in jif. I don’t think I’d say that out loud though, because as a kid who read a bunch, I have long lasting trauma from being mocked for saying stuff wrong so I’d wait until I heard someone else say it.
Gods, I hate that. I get that kids are essentially sociopaths, but it still sucks. I was in the AP/advanced English classes, and a lot of the kids through the years were total dicks about that with other kids. It’s one thing to give someone the formal pronunciation, but don’t mock them.
I’m sorry people were jerks to you.
What’s worse is that your pronunciation is one of the more common variants among irish immigrant descendants in my area, just with an sh at the end instead of just an s. Weird mountain people lol, they know a smattering of Irish loaner words, but they’ve changed over the years.
I actually first ran into geas in Halo. The Librarian had the ability to implant people with a genetic destiny, a sequence of DNA which guides their species’ evolution in predictable ways. She used it to make Dr Halsey a eugenecist and John Halo a good candidate for surgical augmentation.
What’s great is that my family is heavily irish, so there’s bits and pieces of language from there. After I realized it was Irish in origin, it was obvious how it was originally said, but the gay-ass brain I have still likes gay ass better :)
Okay, so geas isn’t a word commonly spoken.
So, most people run into it via some branch of fantasy, be it d&d or books.
So, how did any of you guys pronounce it in your head before you looked it up?
Edit: ffs, should I say “so” again, or what? Never commente when brain dead, folks.
I thought it looked a bit like an Old English word maybe resurrected for D&D, so I initially thought something like /gεɑs/ (a bit like “gas” or “GEH-ahs”; ain’t no player actually gonna say /ɣ/ or /æɑ/ properly) or /jεɑs/ (“yasss”)
Then I looked it up on Wiktionary. It’s from Irish “geis” with the wrong spelling apparently. Irish spelling do be silly, so all phonetic preconceptions should be checked at the door.
Wiktionary says /ɟɛʃ/ for Irish, anglicized as /ɡɛʃ/ or /ˈɡiː.əʃ/ (gesh and GEE-ush, respectively).
So I first encountered the word three days ago - I decided to make my way through the Baldur’s Gate series and started with The Black Pits, where it’s mentioned. I’m aware of the psychological phenomenon where you start seeing a word or concept you recently learnt about everywhere but man, still feels like a huge coincidence.
So anyway the pronunciation- ge- same as in “get”, -as same as “us”. My native Czech has super consistent rules of pronunciation, with each letter always representing exactly one specific sound (well, almost always) and it works out like this.
I came to ask what it is.
https://roll20.net/compendium/dnd5e/Geas#content
in 5e, Geas is a level 5 spell that compels someone to either do something, or refrain from doing something - the compulsion is in the form of the threat of massive damage for disobedience.
A geas is a magically enforced taboo against something. Following the requirements brings power but violation comes with grave punishment, often resulting in a character’s death or undoing.
“Gee” with a hard G as in geek, then “us.” Stress on the first syllable.
My brain first said “gee-ass”, with a soft G, as in jif. I don’t think I’d say that out loud though, because as a kid who read a bunch, I have long lasting trauma from being mocked for saying stuff wrong so I’d wait until I heard someone else say it.
Gods, I hate that. I get that kids are essentially sociopaths, but it still sucks. I was in the AP/advanced English classes, and a lot of the kids through the years were total dicks about that with other kids. It’s one thing to give someone the formal pronunciation, but don’t mock them.
I’m sorry people were jerks to you.
What’s worse is that your pronunciation is one of the more common variants among irish immigrant descendants in my area, just with an sh at the end instead of just an s. Weird mountain people lol, they know a smattering of Irish loaner words, but they’ve changed over the years.
I actually first ran into geas in Halo. The Librarian had the ability to implant people with a genetic destiny, a sequence of DNA which guides their species’ evolution in predictable ways. She used it to make Dr Halsey a eugenecist and John Halo a good candidate for surgical augmentation.
Hard G, long E, ass.
I’m similar: hard G, long E, ahhs
I always have and will continue to pronounce it as “gay ass”
Me too lol.
What’s great is that my family is heavily irish, so there’s bits and pieces of language from there. After I realized it was Irish in origin, it was obvious how it was originally said, but the gay-ass brain I have still likes gay ass better :)
Gay ass.
I pronounce it how most youtubers pronounce the geass in code geass