[RPG] Does using the Speak with Animals spell with the ghostwise halfling’s Silent Speech trait allow speaking telepathically to animals

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(My question was inspired by this question: Can the Ghostwise Halfling's Silent Speech be used to telepathically intimidate using growls?)

The ghostwise halfling, a halfling subrace in the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide (p. 110), has the racial trait Silent Speech:

You can speak telepathically to any creature within 30 feet of you. The creature understands you only if the two of you share a language. You can speak telepathically in this way to one creature at a time.

I'm curious about a specific interaction with the spell speak with animals:

You gain the ability to comprehend and verbally communicate with beasts for the duration. The knowledge and awareness of many beasts is limited by their intelligence, but at minimum, beasts can give you information about nearby locations and monsters, including whatever they can perceive or have perceived within the past day.

Would a ghostwise halfling under the effects of speak with animals be able to telepathically communicate with an animal using Silent Speech?

Best Answer

RAI, yes

While @Icyfire has the RAW perspective perfectly explained, I strongly believe the RAI would disagree:

As I argued in this answer though a very conservative interpretation of Silent Speech could argue that "Speak with Animals" is not technically a language and so Silent Speech still wouldn't work, I'd say RAI goes the other way around. Since

You might be able to persuade a beast to perform a small favor for you

I'd say that making Speaks with Animals insufficient for Silent Speech is a bit absurd. Sage Advice agrees on this point when talking about Command, that also requires the creature to understand your language:

Iain A. Phillips: @JeremyECrawford does casting Speak with Animals allow you to cast spells like Command or Suggestion on beasts? #DnD

Jeremy Crawford: Yes.

Relevant text for Command:

The spell has no effect [...] if [the creature] doesn't understand your language

So while not a strict RAW reading, "comprehend and verbally communicate" seem to be RAI for "share a language with", as far as Sage advice is concerned.

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