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Shadowleaf
2010-06-11, 12:52 AM
How come I have never heard of this baby?
It's a level 2 spell, and at level 13+ you use can use it to:

Give yourself SR 10+Caster level/3.
+2 enhancement bonus to a stat.
+1 Caster Level for casting purposes.

Plus other minor stuff.

The requirement for this is 1 rank in Craft: Drawing or similar, and making a DC 20 Craft check.

You can have 3 tattoos active at a time, 24 hours duration, 100 gp material cost.

Why have I never heard of it before? It's a pretty decent spell, especially since it only takes up a second level slot.

Seffbasilisk
2010-06-11, 01:00 AM
100gp.

Per tattoo.

Per day.

Short term useful? Yes. Long term? Ehhhh...

Shadowleaf
2010-06-11, 01:06 AM
100gp.

Per tattoo.

Per day.

Short term useful? Yes. Long term? Ehhhh...
A level 13 character has 110000 gold with WBL. How long does your average dungeon crawl take, timewise? A few days at most?

Of course, you would not want to use it every day, but doing a dungeon crawl 300 gp is smuck money for 50 SR or 3 CL's.

PapaNachos
2010-06-11, 01:09 AM
Caster Level/3 != 3/Caster Level

Shadowleaf
2010-06-11, 01:10 AM
Caster Level/3 != 3/Caster Level
Yea, sorry, brain fart. Minimum 42 then.

Seffbasilisk
2010-06-11, 01:12 AM
I guess you haven't read CharOp threads or the Spell Compendium extensively?

The stats are enhancement, so should already be covered.

The saves are resistance. The AC is deflection. Same.

SR is nice, but by then you should have more reliable and constant ways of SR that can't be dispelled so readily.

The +1 CL is shiny, but again, other sources are often better, and IIRC it's been errata'd not to stack with other sources. Additionally, same source doesn't stack. So it'd only give you a +1. SR overlaps, doesn't stack. So at level 13, you're looking at SR 14.

Shadowleaf
2010-06-11, 01:17 AM
I guess you haven't read CharOp threads or the Spell Compendium extensively?

The stats are enhancement, so should already be covered.

The saves are resistance. The AC is deflection. Same.

SR is nice, but by then you should have more reliable and constant ways of SR that can't be dispelled so readily.

The +1 CL is shiny, but again, other sources are often better, and IIRC it's been errata'd not to stack with other sources. Additionally, same source doesn't stack. So it'd only give you a +1. SR overlaps, doesn't stack. So at level 13, you're looking at SR 14.
Yea, not really. I just figured an untyped bonus was an untyped bonus.

Though I still think a level 13 character can do a lot worse than +1 CL for 100 gp and a 2nd level spell slot. :smallbiggrin:

Curmudgeon
2010-06-11, 01:17 AM
A level 13 character ... doing a dungeon crawl 300 gp is smuck money for 50 SR or 3 CL's.
Where are you getting those figures from? You'd get SR 14, or +1 CL. You can't stack 3 identical tattoos.
Stacking

In most cases, modifiers to a given check or roll stack (combine for a cumulative effect) if they come from different sources and have different types (or no type at all), but do not stack if they have the same type or come from the same source (such as the same spell cast twice in succession). You can have 3 different tattoos, but 3 identical ones give exactly the same effect as 1: they overlap rather than stack.

Optimystik
2010-06-11, 02:20 AM
Eh, Psionic Tattoos (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20031225a) are better.

Keld Denar
2010-06-11, 02:26 AM
They are also Conjouration (Creation), meaning you can mimic them with the 4th level spell Shadow Conjouration and pay 0 components for them. Sure, it takes a 4th level slot per day, rather than a 2nd, but it is free. Once you get to the CL 13 you need drop this baby, you'll probably have 7th level spells, meaning your 4th level spell slots won't be QUITE as important to you as they were when you were level 7.

Myth
2010-06-11, 02:31 AM
It's a decent spell, I picked it up rather early for a Wizard gish I'm making right now. The earlier you get it, the more you will use it. Of course i hadn't heard of Wraithstrike when i leveled up last time :smallfrown:

Caster levels are always nice. Considering one of the Archmage High Arcana grant you +1, it's not something to ignore, especially if you can sneak it by your DM as an untyped bonus that will stack with HA/Ioun stones etc.

tyckspoon
2010-06-11, 02:34 AM
Caster levels are always nice. Considering one of the Archmage High Arcana grant you +1, it's not something to ignore, especially if you can sneak it by your DM as an untyped bonus that will stack with HA/Ioun stones etc.

Why would you need to 'sneak' that by? That's exactly what it *is*.

The Cat Goddess
2010-06-11, 02:34 AM
Also, each tattoo takes a magic item slot... having 3 empty magic item slots at level 13 is problematic.

Saph
2010-06-11, 03:26 AM
It's an extremely useful spell. My gish characters make heavy use of it.

Honestly, the lower-level tattoos are probably even better than the +1 CL, because you'll get more use out of them before reaching high levels.

Rannil
2010-06-11, 05:50 AM
Also, each tattoo takes a magic item slot... having 3 empty magic item slots at level 13 is problematic.

I can't find that in the spell description, but when I think about it shouldn't it NOT take a magic item slot? Most other buff spells also don't cost a magic item slot.

Myth
2010-06-11, 06:04 AM
Also, each tattoo takes a magic item slot... having 3 empty magic item slots at level 13 is problematic.
No it doesn't :redcloak: I can post the full description but i don't want to get slapped across the wrist again.

Ranos
2010-06-11, 06:10 AM
Eh, Psionic Tattoos (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20031225a) are better.
Yeah, psionic tattoos are a whole 'nother ball game. Good luck getting your mid-level character slinging 9th level powers around accepted by the DM though.
Myself, I prefer power crystals. They're priced fairly, and only need a little bit of UPD and either a cognizance crystal or a level in a psionic class to get them working. If you're anywhere around the WBL, you can get one or two powers of around the same power as a full-manifester of your level. And they don't make your DM hit you in the face with a rulebook.

hewhosaysfish
2010-06-11, 06:20 AM
They are also Conjouration (Creation), meaning you can mimic them with the 4th level spell Shadow Conjouration and pay 0 components for them. Sure, it takes a 4th level slot per day, rather than a 2nd, but it is free. Once you get to the CL 13 you need drop this baby, you'll probably have 7th level spells, meaning your 4th level spell slots won't be QUITE as important to you as they were when you were level 7.

Don't you automatically disbelieve you own illusions?

Ranos
2010-06-11, 06:31 AM
Don't you automatically disbelieve you own illusions?
"A character faced with proof that an illusion isn’t real needs no saving throw". You don't need a saving throw to disbelieve, but you don't HAVE to disbelieve.

Runestar
2010-06-11, 06:57 AM
Or extend it to make it last 2 days, effectively halving the material cost. :smallsmile: