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View Full Version : Searing Blade: Okay, I must be really lost.



Dac
2010-01-31, 11:58 PM
Page 56 of Tome of Battle. Searing Blade. It's a boost that gives you an extra 2d6+manifester level fire damage when you hit with your melee attacks.

Okay, that sounds cool, I got it.

But it costs a Standard Action to initiate. And does no damage on its own. And lasts until the end of your turn.

I. Am. Confused. Precisely what use is there to be garnered from using this, other than standing there looking intimidating until the flames go out?

Please help; I am a newbie to Tome of Battle. My DM is allowing the classes from it, but not the feats, and I'd really like to be able to build a good maneuver list. Searing Blade seemed really awesome to me until I saw the initiation action.

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff137/catseye543/gf-cripes.gif

Please tell me I'm missing some horrifyingly obvious, here.

Eldariel
2010-02-01, 12:02 AM
It's a typo. As it stands, it's only useful with Factotum, Belt of Battle and few other choice tricks and quite weak even then. Inferno Blade and the 1st level version both are the same, except swift actions (at 1d6 and 3d6 respectively) so it stands to reason it's intended to be a swift action too.

Mongoose87
2010-02-01, 12:03 AM
I agree with Eldariel, it's gotta be a mistake.

olelia
2010-02-01, 12:05 AM
Are there any boost maneuvers that don't take a swift? :smallconfused:

KillianHawkeye
2010-02-01, 12:05 AM
Unfortunately, there's really isn't any errata for this book because it was printed so late in 3.5's life cycle. You just have to use common sense.

I believe that in general, boosts are usually (if not always) swift actions.

arguskos
2010-02-01, 12:07 AM
Unfortunately, there's really isn't any errata for this book because it was printed so late in 3.5's life cycle. You just have to use common sense.

I believe that in general, boosts are usually (if not always) swift actions.
No, they jacked up the errata. It exists, but switches to the Complete Mage errata on like page 2. :smallannoyed:

sofawall
2010-02-01, 12:17 AM
No, they jacked up the errata. It exists, but switches to the Complete Mage errata on like page 2. :smallannoyed:

And that fact is one of the things that fills the community with so much rage, because if they actually fixed the few things wrong, it would become the best-balanced book in 3.5.

Sinfire Titan
2010-02-01, 12:18 AM
No, they jacked up the errata. It exists, but switches to the Complete Mage errata on like page 2. :smallannoyed:

AND IT BROKE OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF ERRATAING SEARING BLADE!!!

arguskos
2010-02-01, 12:19 AM
AND IT BROKE OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF ERRATAING SEARING BLADE!!!
LOLWUT. That's deeply ironic and amusing.

Douglas
2010-02-01, 07:18 AM
It's an extremely obvious error. The initiation action should be a swift action, just like Burning Blade, Inferno Blade, and every single other boost in the entire book.

Doc Roc
2010-02-01, 12:34 PM
I've always found the ToB errata to be the single most insulting thing Wizards did during the 3.x era. I was just completely bowled over. It's still available on their website if you know where to look.

I've always wondered if there was a story behind that...

Blackfang108
2010-02-01, 12:39 PM
I've always found the ToB errata to be the single most insulting thing Wizards did during the 3.x era. I was just completely bowled over. It's still available on their website if you know where to look.

I've always wondered if there was a story behind that...

They hate 3.5 and want it to die?

Sinfire Titan
2010-02-01, 01:22 PM
I've always found the ToB errata to be the single most insulting thing Wizards did during the 3.x era. I was just completely bowled over. It's still available on their website if you know where to look.

I've always wondered if there was a story behind that...

I like to go back to my old standby from when I played MTG regularly, and blame Mark Rosewater for the ToB Errata. Seriously, someone ****** up that day. I wonder how much alcohol it takes to get to that point...

Person_Man
2010-02-01, 02:30 PM
I like to go back to my old standby from when I played MTG regularly, and blame Mark Rosewater for the ToB Errata. Seriously, someone ****** up that day. I wonder how much alcohol it takes to get to that point...

I'm guessing that there was/is a lot of drinking going on throughout WotC. Remember that in the transition to 4E, WotC fired at least 100 people (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=99015). These things are rarely complete surprises. Many people were let go before the big layoff in dribs and drabs. Remember (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=5449905&postcount=71) all of the problems they had with their botched marketing, Gleemax, D&D Online, the whole OGL controversy, and the worst recession/depression in 70ish years? A completely messed up errata doesn't surprise me. I'm surprised that the ex-employees didn't steal the servers on their way out.

AtopTheMountain
2010-02-01, 05:17 PM
Does anyone have a link to the ToB errata, then?

Douglas
2010-02-01, 05:18 PM
Here (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/er/20040125a) is the general errata page, with links to each of the individual errata pdf documents (inside zip archives). The Tome of Battle errata specifically is here (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/files/Errata_ToB.zip).