Permanent Items and VoP

[Talakeal]

Could a character with a Vow of Poverty use items that give a permanent boost to the character such as books that provide an inherent bonus to an ability score or a magical training dummy? What about magic tattoos?

If the answer is no, what happens if they have already used this item before taking the feat? Is it grandfathered in, do they lose the benefits, or can they not take the feat until they take a magic cheese grader to their tattoos?

[Flickerdart]

They cannot use the items. However, things they have gained prior to taking the feat stay. Giving yourself a bunch of grafts before taking the vow is a legitimate way of overcoming its many flaws.

[Thurbane]

Do symbionts count against VoP? I assume not?

[Flickerdart]

Symbionts are living creatures, aren't they? I think VoP only applies to items...hm.

[Figgin of Chaos]

With Vow of Poverty, you can still drink a healing potion that's given to you. Following that logic, you should be able to read a Tome of Gainful excercise you find in a dungeon and discard it without losing your poverty-powers.

[Vangor]

With Vow of Poverty, you can still drink a healing potion that's given to you. Following that logic, you should be able to read a Tome of Gainful excercise you find in a dungeon and discard it without losing your poverty-powers.

Think this is trying to bypass Vow of Poverty in such a way as to defeat the purpose of VoP. If done this way, remove voluntary poverty as the requirement and make this more of a self-reliance feat. Reading the stat tomes allows you to become more capable, which would not be at odds with self-reliance, but does require expenditure of wealth, which would be at odds with voluntary poverty and further with the charitable aspects.

VoP was intended to assist a lifestyle, not make weight calculations easier.

[Cog]

To fulfill your vow, you must not own or use any material possessions... You may not, however, “borrow” a cloak of resistance or any other magic item from a companion for even a single round, nor may you yourself cast a spell from a scroll, wand, or staff.
The Tomes are far more like these latter examples than they are like a Cure potion. A Tome can't be used on your behalf, either.

Having a caster get you those inherent bonuses through castings of Wish is doable, but that would require either somebody in your party doing it for you or it being a reward freely given by an NPC caster. Even having somebody in your party pay on your behalf for an NPC casting would violate the Vow, if you were a willing participant.