The Ability Enhancer feat from dragon compendium - Questions

[daremetoidareyo]

I'm playing around with the ability enhancer feat and I have some questions

Here is the feat

Prerequisite Spell Focus (PH) (transmutation),
Benefit: Any transmutation spell you cast that enhances ability scores increases the ability scores by +2 more than it normally does. For example, casting bull's strength with this feat grants the subject a +6 enhancement bonus to Strength, instead of the usual +4 enhancement bonus.


But not all transmutation spells are so simple.

Polymorph or any of the spells that set your ability score to that of an average member of a creature don't specifically add a bonus to an ability score but they can enhance your current score to a higher amount. Do these get the +2 added? How about Draconic polymorph?

Negative ability score effects: say a spell penalizes dexterity, like briarweb or freeze armor, do I add +2 to the penalty, thus reducing its negative effects. Or do i add the magnitude of +2 to the negative effect? Or do I not apply this feat to ability score penalties.

Awaken animal, or awaken sand: Do I add +2 to the ability scores that are rolled?

"Awakened sand beings have the earth subtype, and their Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores are each 3d6."


Nar Fiendbond: Do I add +2 to the template ability score boosters for applying the template?

axiomatic creature:" If the target has an Intelligence of 2 or less, the spell imbues the target with an Intelligence of 3." Do I add +2 to that?

Treeshape: "you have an effective Dexterity score of 0" Can I add +2 to that?

Fuse Arms: Do you gain an additional +2 per fused set of arms or just add the +2 at the end of the arm fusioning?

[EndocrineBandit]

Does the spell enhance the ability score or replace the ability score? If it enhances, the effect enhances it further, if it replaces, it doesn't change the effect.

[frogglesmash]

Does the spell enhance the ability score or replace the ability score? If it enhances, the effect enhances it further, if it replaces, it doesn't change the effect.

To expand on that, decreasing an ability score is by definition but an enhancement.

[EndocrineBandit]

Indeed it's one of three things, a penalty, damage, or drain. I don't think enhancements provide a negative bonus.

[Necroticplague]

Polymorph or any of the spells that set your ability score to that of an average member of a creature don't specifically add a bonus to an ability score but they can enhance your current score to a higher amount. Do these get the +2 added? No. Polymorph doesn't enhance ability scores, it replaces them. In some cases, this is an enhancement (assuming that that phrase was not used to mean 'provide an enhancement bonus to', which I believe actually is the case).




How about Draconic polymorph? Again, this still doesn't enhance your stat, just replaces them. The replaced number is bigger, but it's still a number replacement.


Negative ability score effects: say a spell penalizes dexterity, like briarweb or freeze armor, do I add +2 to the penalty, thus reducing its negative effects. Or do i add the magnitude of +2 to the negative effect? Or do I not apply this feat to ability score penalties.
There is absolutely no logical way, using real-world definitions or likely meant game definition, that a penalty is 'enhancing' something.


Awaken animal, or awaken sand: Do I add +2 to the ability scores that are rolled?
The Intelligence is a replacement, so that stays at 3d6. The Charisma Bonus, however, is does enhance charisma, so that would be boosted (again, assuming 'enhance' has nothing to do with enhancement boni)




Nar Fiendbond: Do I add +2 to the template ability score boosters for applying the template? No. The spell does not enhance ability scores. It adds a template.



axiomatic creature:" If the target has an Intelligence of 2 or less, the spell imbues the target with an Intelligence of 3." Do I add +2 to that?Nope, it's not an enhancement. It's replacing its INT with another.


Treeshape: "you have an effective Dexterity score of 0" Can I add +2 to that?
No, because it isn't changing your DEX at all. You have an effective dexterity of zero, but your actual dexterity is unchanged. Isn't changing anything, much less enhancing anything.


Fuse Arms: Do you gain an additional +2 per fused set of arms or just add the +2 at the end of the arm fusioning?
Continuing to assume a divorce of 'enhance' from 'enhancement', now we have something where the feat will finally have an affect. It would add +2 after all the arms are considered (because normally, the spell is just giving a bonus of different size. The feat adds +2 to the bonus, never more, never less).

[EndocrineBandit]

Here is a question that's on topic. Would it affect the shadowcaster mystery that enhances your psychological scores?

[Necroticplague]

Here is a question that's on topic. Would it affect the shadowcaster mystery that enhances your psychological scores?

Only if it's the highest level you can initiate (and you thus use it like a spell). If you use a lower level one, it wouldn't apply anymore, since the feat only applies to spells (and not SLAs or SU abilities

[animewatcha]

Hexer prestige class has enhancement penalty as class ability.

[daremetoidareyo]

Thanks NecroticPlague, That's kinda where I was leaning. But let's drill deeper while we have it.


Continuing to assume a divorce of 'enhance' from 'enhancement', now we have something where the feat will finally have an affect. It would add +2 after all the arms are considered (because normally, the spell is just giving a bonus of different size. The feat adds +2 to the bonus, never more, never less).

Let's play with a magic mantle ardent with some psywar levels, relying on XPH; "For the purpose of psionics–magic transparency, psychometabolism powers are equivalent to powers of the transmutation school (thus, creatures immune to transmutation spells are also immune to psychometabolism powers)."



Strength of My Enemy XPH p.133, Psychic Warrior 2, 1 round/level, deals 1 point of Strength damage on each successful hit. You gain that point of Strength as an enhancement bonus to your Strength score. Strength you siphon from different foes is tracked separately—the total siphoned from each individual foe is considered a separate enhancement bonus to your Strength (maximum +8) For every 3 additional power points you spend, the maximum enhancement bonus you can add to your Strength increases by 2.



Psychofeedback XPH p.127, Egoist 5, Lurk 5, Physical Power 5, Psychic Warrior 5: 1 round/level: You can readjust your body to boost one physical ability score at the expense of one or more other scores. Select one ability score you would like to boost, and increase it by the same amount that you decrease one or more other scores. All score decreases are treated as a special form of ability damage, called ability burn, which cannot be magically or psionically healed—it goes away only through natural healing. You can boost your Strength, Dexterity or Constitution score by an amount equal to your manifester level (or any lesser amount), assuming you can afford to burn your other ability scores to such an extent. When the duration of this power expires, your ability boost also ends, but your ability burn remains until it is healed naturally.