Ioun Stones, magic items, and buffing ability scores

[PlusSixPelican]

Do Ioun Stones, whether implanted or floating, stack with items like the Belt of Incredible Dexterity?

Related, what are the other avenues for increasing ability scores? I see people pumping them into the 30's, but I don't know how they're doing it.

[supermonkeyjoe]

Which version of DnD is this?

Assuming 3.5 or 3.P, if the bonuses have the same name (enhancement bonus, sacred bonus, insight bonus etc.) then they do not stack, only the highest applies.

For pumping ability scores:
+1 to a score every 4th Hit Dice/level
up to +5 inherent bonus from consecutive Wishes or the Manuals/tomes
+6 enhancement bonus from an appropriate magic item
Various class abilities such as barbarians rage can up it more
Certain spells have different bonus types, the rage spell gives a +2 morale bonus to STR+CON
Races and templates combined with good rolls can give you some starting scores in the low-mid 20s

Combine these and you could easily be pushing 40+ in some ability scores

[Yael]

Take levels of War Hulk from Miniatures Handbook, every level pump your str by +2.

[AttilaTheGeek]

In Pathfinder, they do not. They both give enhancement bonuses, so only the highest one applies. Using only basic items, the highest ability score is:

18 base + 2 racial + 5 levels (4, 8, 12, 16, 20) + 6 belt/headband + 5 tome = 36, for a modifier of +13.

A good place for simple rules questions like this is the simple Q&A thread, available in 3.5 and Pathfinder versions.

[PlusSixPelican]

I did mean 3.P, if I wasn't clear. Do they even have Ioun Stones in 4e?

[vasharanpaladin]

Yes, but they don't apply to ability scores ever.