Question About Mage Armor

[Bartmanhomer]

Does mage armor AC stack with regular armor AC?

[Buufreak]

No. Bonus characters

[heavyfuel]

To complement Buu's answer, it doesn't because they are both Armor bonuses. Bonuses with names (ie, "shield bonus"; "enhancement bonus"; "insight bonus", etc) never* stack, you only take the highest one. Following this logic, a Shield spell, which grants a Shield bonus, would do nothing for a character wearing a +3 Heavy Steel Shield, since the physical shield already provides a greater Shield Bonus.

Bonuses without names, usually called "untyped bonuses", stack with themselves as long as they come from different sources (ie, different spells, different class features, etc).

*Dodge bonuses, despite having a name, do stack with each other. Circumstance bonuses stack as well, as long as the circumstances are different

On a sidenote, the RAW Q&A threads that are stickied at the top of the forum are a great place to ask these simple questions and get quick answers.

[Elkad]

It does co-exist though.

So if a wraith is hitting you, your platemail is worthless, but your mage armor still works.

[Malphegor]

Where this could come in handy is if you're hit by something like a rusting grasp or that fiend that can remove armour at a touch (I forget the name, but I remember this existing), since the spell would then still work even if the armour that was better than it is gone.

[Bartmanhomer]

Where this could come in handy is if you're hit by something like a rusting grasp or that fiend that can remove armour at a touch (I forget the name, but I remember this existing), since the spell would then still work even if the armour that was better than it is gone.

I believe it called a rust monster.

[NontheistCleric]

Where this could come in handy is if you're hit by something like a rusting grasp or that fiend that can remove armour at a touch (I forget the name, but I remember this existing), since the spell would then still work even if the armour that was better than it is gone.


I believe it called a rust monster.

More likely the Bebilith with its Rend Armor ability if we're talking about fiends.

[mouser13]

Doesn't stack I think this issue is because neverwinter 2 nights allow it so. So I believe why that comes up from time to time.

[ShurikVch]

Does mage armor AC stack with regular armor AC?In which book Armor and Mage Armor are available as options for Animal Companion (AC)?

[Rijan_Sai]

In which book Armor and Mage Armor are available as options for Animal Companion (AC)?

In the PHB: it has both barding (animal armor) and the Mage Armor spell.

[Remuko]

In which book Armor and Mage Armor are available as options for Animal Companion (AC)?

My animal companion is a suit of half plate

[Mordaedil]

On that topic, Natural Armor AC bonuses are some of the most inconsistent bonuses. A lot of the spells that grant Natural Armor bonuses specify that they stack with other Natural Armor bonuses and classes that grant Natural Armor AC also specify that they stack with existing Natural Armor AC.

There's a few exceptions to that too, but it feels really inconsistent and I just wonder why they didn't just have Natural Armor stack for convenience.

[Kelb_Panthera]

On that topic, Natural Armor AC bonuses are some of the most inconsistent bonuses. A lot of the spells that grant Natural Armor bonuses specify that they stack with other Natural Armor bonuses and classes that grant Natural Armor AC also specify that they stack with existing Natural Armor AC.

There's a few exceptions to that too, but it feels really inconsistent and I just wonder why they didn't just have Natural Armor stack for convenience.

What's intended is that such spells will add on to an existing NA for creatures that have physical natural armor in the form of a thick, scaly, or chitinous hide. In fact, I believe most of them say something to the effect of "X grants an enhancement bonus to the target's natural armor (creatures who have no natural armor bonus listed have an effective bonus of +0)." Some 3.0 spells with a similar effect may be more poorly worded than that though.

[Fizban]

Doesn't stack I think this issue is because neverwinter 2 nights allow it so. So I believe why that comes up from time to time.
Neverwinter Nights has a number of problems in their translation of DnD rules, because it's so complicated. NWN1, for some reason, has Mage Armor giving +1 to four different types of AC, so some but not all of it stacks, until you have a set of items covering all the types. NWN2 I think might have treated the whole thing as an enhancement bonus, they same way their Bracers of Armor item works- which allows you to use an armor with interesting abilities and overwrite the low enhancement with a pair of bracers. But they also have much fewer item slots and you can't just put whatever you want on whatever you want, so these are real opportunity costs.