Quote Originally Posted by aglondier View Post
I think that for someone using UMD to activate a scroll the standard action would be required, because they don't really know what they are doing.
On the other hand, having UMD ranks probably means you do know what you're doing--you just can't produce magical effects by yourself, only hijack magic someone else has already placed outside themselves (into a magic device).


In general, I don't think the scroll/wand rules are a big problem. They're pretty straightforward gp-for-spell rules, so they won't be any less balanced than spellcasting already is. If you've fixed all the broken spells, scrolls and wands should be fine, too. If you have problems with players using tons and tons of scrolls to trivialize encounters, keep in mind that about 10% of all treasure they gain is expected to be spent on consumables. If they're spending much more than that, it makes sense to reflect that in their WBL.

One thing you might address is the flat DC 20 UMD check for wands and staves. It's a check that becomes quite easy to hit at high levels, even for characters that haven't invested much in UMD or Charisma. You could separate activation into a "proper" activation with a fairly high DC (maybe 20 + 2 * spell level), or a "slow" activation, with a significantly lower DC (maybe 15 + spell level) but also a much longer casting time. Essentially, the first check is accessible only to dedicated UMD-users, and allows you to use scrolls and wands in combat; the second check is for UMD dabblers, and allows them to use utility items out of combat, like using a scroll of break enchantment to un-petrify the cleric.