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Thread: How to Fix Eschew Materials
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2021-04-09, 12:30 PM (ISO 8601)
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How to Fix Eschew Materials
Eschew materials lets you cast spells without material components that costs 1 gp or less. Thing is, a spell component pouch gives the caster an infinite amount of every material component that has no listed cost. Here's a list of spells that require a material component that has a listed cost less than or equal to 1 gp:
Detect Thoughts: 1 cp
Gentle Repose: 1 cp per eye on corpse
Fabricate: The original material (only applies to items for which the raw materials to craft cost 1 gp or less)
That's it. 3 spells in the entirety of the player's handbook that fall under this condition. There may be others in non core books, but the point is that there are very, very few cases where this feat is useful. In my game, I've increased the gp equivalence to 250 gp, which allows for you cast stuff like identify, stoneskin, true seeing, and others without paying. I don't know if this is the best way to solve this, but please let me know if y'all have a better solution (or a reason not to change it in the first place).
Edit: I've been informed that it is a move action to take a component out of the component pouch. Eschew materials let's you bypass that, making it much better than I originally thought. Thanks for the feedback!
Edit (again): Previous edit has been questioned, looking in chapter 8 (Combat) of the players handbook under the actions in combat section, it specifically says preparing a spell component to cast a spell is a free action that provokes no attack of opportunity. Continue informing me of eschew materials use cases, nothing to see here.Last edited by Hachristo; 2021-04-09 at 02:31 PM. Reason: Retraction Retracted
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2021-04-09, 12:35 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
well to be fair spell pouch isn't infinite like some magical arrow quivers. the materials are so common and so cheap keeping track of them would be a nuisance. if a caster was in an isolated environment for an extended time the dm would be well within fairness to begin saying you run out. it is also used a lot in monsters for whom it would be strange to carry a pouch or have anatomical reasons not to wear one.
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2021-04-09, 12:43 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Does it need "fixing"? It does exactly what it says: you can play a caster without having to worry about your component pouch getting damaged or lost, or being somewhere where the handwaving doesn't work (stuck in a desert, another plane, and so on).
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2021-04-09, 12:56 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Yeah the point of this feat is not to be in the narrow zone of "components you can't get automatically from a pouch that cost 1 gp or less". It's supposed to substitute for the pouch entirely.
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2021-04-09, 01:21 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Just a note: plane shift requires a tuning fork made from a material from the plane in question. Obtaining such can be a real pain if there're reasons why you wouldn't be able to get one despite what's printed in the rules for a spell component pouch. For instance, it's a demiplane created by an enemy spellcaster and you have no way to get material from said plane. Eschew Materials would allow you to go there, whereas it's unlikely a DM would allow you to do so with just a spell component pouch. Yes, this is Rule 0, and yes, it goes against RAW of the pouch. It's still a point to be made, however.
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2021-04-09, 01:23 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Honestly I would much rather buy spare pouches than expend a feat, especially if I'm not a human. I suppose that a lot of the feats available to casters in core at first level aren't the greatest (Spell Penetration, Spell Focus, Spell Mastery), but you could always play the long game and get a metamagic feat. If I was running a game where I was super tactical and had all my enemies try to sunder the caster's pouch, I would be more hesitant to buff the feat, but currently most of my players prefer a casual, easy going game, so I don't have such considerations.
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2021-04-09, 01:24 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Think about how big a spell pouch is, how much weight the materials would take up, and realize that the only reason it is infinite is because the DM allows it to be. It's simply a handwave device, but that doesn't mean you should take it for granted. It can be sundered, AoE'd, or taken from you. Getting an item out of the pouch is a move action. Eschew materials makes it so you don't have to bother getting the items out.
Last edited by Darg; 2021-04-09 at 01:25 PM.
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2021-04-09, 01:26 PM (ISO 8601)
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2021-04-09, 01:29 PM (ISO 8601)
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2021-04-09, 01:37 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Dragon scale costs 1 gp
It's material component for:
Dragon Breath (Spell Compendium)
Dragonskin (Spell Compendium)
Hide from Dragons (Spell Compendium)
Scorch (Spell Compendium)
Sense of the Dragon (Races of the Dragon)
Summon Aspect of Bahamut (Races of the Dragon)
Wall of Scales (Races of the Dragon)
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2021-04-09, 01:43 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Doesn't work. Eschew Materials only allows you to ignore material components. The tuning fork is a focus component.
Also, the tuning fork doesn't need to be made from something from the target plane. It just needs to be "A small, forked metal rod. The size and metal type dictates to which plane of existence or alternate dimension the spell sends the affected creatures." What metal corresponds to what plane is left to the DM, so that they have control over how easy or difficult it is to get the right tuning fork.
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2021-04-09, 01:48 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Last edited by MaxiDuRaritry; 2021-04-09 at 01:49 PM.
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2021-04-09, 01:51 PM (ISO 8601)
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Rhymes with "Protracted."
Handbooks: The Warlockopedia | The Warmagepedia (WIP) | Tier List (2019 Update)
Spreadsheets: Spellcasting classes | Deities | Useful items
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2021-04-09, 02:04 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Of course, by the time I finish this post, it will already be obsolete. C'est la vie.
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2021-04-09, 02:14 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
It's pretty useful if you like magic jar, lets you cast spells while possession people who don't have a pouch.
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2021-04-09, 02:26 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Some of it is to save roleplay time. You just assume that the cavalcade of "free" but weird stuff (including, oddly, the live spider you need to swallow for spider climb) are there with every pouch but if you lose your pouch, I guess you could roleplay looking for a spider to swallow, etc. And it is easier to have the pouch, or the feat, than roleplaying hunting up every free thing of every spell you cast, or can cast, that has a free but weird material component.
Mind you, an illusionist sans spell component pouch or eschew materials feat can get quite far with just a fleecy coat that they can take little bits of fleece off of at need.
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2021-04-09, 03:23 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Things mentioned so far
Numerous components cost 1g to 2cp.
Using a Pouch while being grappled is a full round action
Simulacrum and ice assassin tom foolery. ( I disallow this, the items in those cases are more of a focus that is consumed not a cheap spell component). 99% of ice assassin usage doesn't fly.
Here is one that isn't mentioned yet.
Bluffing while spell casting. If you silent and still a spell that uses components you can still easily be called out and the spell can be identified. You MUST have eschew mats to pull off a con using most magic.
I have always seen Eschew Mats as metamagic modifier, but instead of playing the metamagic game like silent and still (+1 adjustment was the minimum when 3rd first came out) but the OG designers didn't want to punish casters with another penalty. Instead they opted to have this apply to all spells cast by the feat holder.
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2021-04-09, 04:27 PM (ISO 8601)
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2021-04-09, 06:53 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
In my campaign sorcerers and similar get eshew materials for free. Not that it comes up a lot but it just feels right to leave the fiddling with bat guano and other obscure ingredients to the wizards.
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2021-04-09, 06:54 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
If you have a DM that likes to capture you a lot and you end up in jail with no equipment, this feat is mandatory.
The usefulness of this feat id directly proportional to how RAW your DM is on components. Arcane focus also removes a lot of the need for this too.Last edited by Zaile; 2021-04-09 at 06:55 PM.
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2021-04-09, 07:21 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
A spell cast with Eschew Materials can be cast with no material components. Spells without material components are not affected. Spells with material components with a cost of more than 1 gp are not affected. An eschewed spell uses up a spell slot of the spell’s normal level
It should be noted that, for whatever reason, your game going into Epic level, taking Eschew Material becomes a bit of a power play, as it is a requirement for possibly one of the second most exploitable feats in the entire game, Ignore Material Components losing out only to Epic Spellcasting as a means of generating wealth (casting time of Fabricate and the high level requirement really thwarts it).
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2021-04-09, 07:54 PM (ISO 8601)
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2021-04-09, 08:52 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
It's on the table of free actions in the Actions in Combat section.
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2021-04-09, 09:29 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
World of Madius wiki - My personal campaign setting, including my homebrew Optional Gestalt/LA rules.
The new Quick Vestige List
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2021-04-09, 10:05 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
That says to prepare it, not bring it out of storage though. It also doesn't say that it is a special property of the spell component pouch either. I guess technically the rules don't require you to have the component in hand to cast as it only requires you to possess the item, but then that invalidates the need for the grapple component retrieval rule. Except for the specific rule requiring components to be in hand while grappled... Although I think the intent is for components to be in hand/touching your body in some way, maybe it is something they wanted to do away with similar to overrun on a charge which is mentioned in a few separate places.
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2021-04-09, 10:24 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
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2021-04-09, 10:49 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
For a focus it could be positioning it to be used as a focus. For components it could be dumping the sand out of the small vial holding it, throwing some tarts, unwrapping a bit of flesh, drip a few drops of water, etc. It really doesn't fit the iconic image of a wizard to simply dump all that stuff outside of containers to keep materials separate and preserved into a bag. I mean, water evaporates fairly quickly you know?
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2021-04-09, 11:13 PM (ISO 8601)
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2021-04-10, 07:57 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
Of course, by the time I finish this post, it will already be obsolete. C'est la vie.
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2021-04-10, 11:14 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: How to Fix Eschew Materials
It's not a particularly powerful feat, but I'd say it's plenty useful. The smart thing to do if you take it is to continue using your components pouch so people still think you need it, then if you get captured they'll take it and won't know you can still cast all your spells. It doesn't usually matter, but when it does you'll be very glad to have it. It is very DM dependent of course, but it's still pretty good for core.