The spell description says "A free-targeted hypnotic spell which mesmerizes up to six nearby enemies within its radius of effect." When it's refreshed you can click it and it will make your cursor a green halo on the ground if you point it within a 200 foot radius of yourself. Outside that radius it turns into a red cursor meaning it's too far away to cast. It also turns red when you do not have line-of-sight to your target. I haven't found a height-limit yet, but it's possible there may be one. When you click in a red spot it says "Your target is out of range, get closer!" or "You cannot see your target." When you click in a green spot, it starts the 3 second cast timer (can be reduced by focus effects). It doesn't seem to affect yourself, so you can cast it right next to you without worrying. It appears to mesmerize the six closest mobs to the spot you chose if you aim at a spot with more. The 9 tick duration is extendable with the mesmerization mastery AA.
Also, according to the Hypnotic Stare Mindwipe page it has a 40% chance to memblur with a -50 magic check, which seems accurate based on some playing around in Crushbone. I'm not sure whether or not the spell Hypnotic Stare Slow Rk. II has a chance to go off with this spell, but I haven't seen it happen yet. It does have a chance to add the Deep Sleep AA though.