D&D 5E The Kenku's Mimicry ability.

[Corpsetaker]

Here is the ability: Mimicry. You can mimic sounds you have heard, including voices. A creature that hears the sounds you make can tell they are imitations with a successful Wisdom (Insight) check opposed by your Charisma (Deception) check.

Notice the part that I highlighted. Since a kenku can Mimic voices, why couldn't they just Mimic someone's voice and just speak normally? Does their curse take away their ability to articulate?

 

[Lanliss]

Here is the ability: Mimicry. You can mimic sounds you have heard, including voices. A creature that hears the sounds you make can tell they are imitations with a successful Wisdom (Insight) check opposed by your Charisma (Deception) check.

Notice the part that I highlighted. Since a kenku can Mimic voices, why couldn't they just Mimic someone's voice and just speak normally? Does their curse take away their ability to articulate?

They can only mimic things they have heard. Not sure if they are restricted to words they have specifically heard that voice say. If they are not they still need to be coached before they can run a mimicry job, and that falls apart if a question comes up that they were not prepped for.

I imagine it as a database. They are simply a recorder that takes in things around them, and replay it.

 

[Jester David]

It's like Predator. They can repeat what they've heard, but also copy voices and sounds. But nothing new.

 

[Corpsetaker]

So what happens if they observe humans talking for months or even years? Could they then just mimic the words they hear and arrange them into sentences?

 

[Lanliss]

So what happens if they observe humans talking for months or even years? Could they then just mimic the words they hear and arrange them into sentences?

Sounds reasonable, unless the curse also reduces their capability to remember over a long time. Were I to role play a Kenku who had done this I would have him speak normal most of the time, but sometimes forget a word or two.

 

[Prakriti]

So what happens if they observe humans talking for months or even years? Could they then just mimic the words they hear and arrange them into sentences?

The Kenku lore section talks about how they lack creativity. They can't create their own sentences. Which, IMO, is really cool and flavorful and I'm not sure why anyone would want to find a loophole around it. It's the only reason why I'd consider playing a Kenku, because it's what makes them unique.

 

[ammulder]

So what happens if they observe humans talking for months or even years? Could they then just mimic the words they hear and arrange them into sentences?

I envisioned it being fairly stilted, perhaps with different words in a sentence in different people's voices or accents. And not so long-lasting that they didn't have to work a little to get their meaning across other than in well-trodden situations. So, "watch out, ambush!" sure, but "don't trust the Duke, he's conspiring with your enemy's mistress!" not so much.

 

[pdzoch]

I also suppose that the kenku would not understand the language syntax, so if any effort came about to extend the mimicry beyond set "recorded" phrases would come out as nonsense to those who spoke the language but may be undetectable to the non-language speaker. The effect would be very much like Sid Ceasar's foreign language imitation.

 

[Shiroiken]

A player in my game is getting ready to run SKT for another group, and one of his players is making a kenku. He's going to make a list of about 100 phrases that he's learned, and whenever he goes to say something, he's going to find the closest thing on his list. I think it's really cool, like always speaking in riddles or quoting sacred texts. It's probably going to be a major pain after a while for the player, but I'm sure it'll be fun for a while.

 

[Lanliss]

A player in my game is getting ready to run SKT for another group, and one of his players is making a kenku. He's going to make a list of about 100 phrases that he's learned, and whenever he goes to say something, he's going to find the closest thing on his list. I think it's really cool, like always speaking in riddles or quoting sacred texts. It's probably going to be a major pain after a while for the player, but I'm sure it'll be fun for a while.

At least he will be able to add to his list over time, like if someone in his party screams "GIANT!!!".