Simple RAW Thread for 3.5 #37: 3d12+1

[lehp]

Q360
Does Freedom of Movement allow a character to ignore mundane difficult terrain, such as rubble, gravel, underbrush, uneven rocks, bogs et cetera?
Does it work against effects that require Balance checks, such as slippery surfaces? Would the nature of the effect make a difference, for example a natural ice sheet vs a magical effect such as Sleet Storm?
Does it work against strong winds, magical or mundane?

[Venger]

A 360

Q360
Does Freedom of Movement allow a character to ignore mundane difficult terrain, such as rubble, gravel, underbrush, uneven rocks, bogs et cetera?

No.

Does it work against effects that require Balance checks, such as slippery surfaces?

No.

Would the nature of the effect make a difference, for example a natural ice sheet vs a magical effect such as Sleet Storm?

Yes. Freedom of movement helps against magic that impedes movement and being underwater, but not nonmagical obstacles in your way like naturally formed ice.

Does it work against strong winds, magical or mundane?

Kind of. It will stop you from being checked by wind and let you move normally while in a tornado created by control weather, for example but won't work in a natural one or prevent the damage from a spell like boreal wind even if it does let you walk against the wind without impediment.

It would not work against mundane winds because it doesn't say it does.

[St Fan]

Q 361
Not sure there will be an easy answer for this one...

Auspicious Odds

Evocation
Level: Luck 3
Components: V, S, M, DF,
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Effect: Creature touched
Duration: 1 minute/level; see text
Saving Throw: Will negates (harmless)
Spell Resistance: Yes (harmless)

Whenever making an attack roll, saving throw, ability check, or skill check, the subject rolls 4d6 and drops the lowest single die roll from the total rather than rolling 3d6.
If, on a single roll, all four die results are 1s, the spell immediately ends.
Material Component: A copper piece.

If a character under the effect of this spell rolls four 1s, but immediately benefits from a reroll effect (Luck Domain, alter fortune, benediction or immediate assistance spells, some Luck feats, etc.), will the reroll prevents the auspicious odds spell from ending prematurely? Or will the spell still end, and the reroll itself, presumably, be done on 1d20 rather than with d6?

[Beni-Kujaku]

Q 361
Not sure there will be an easy answer for this one...



If a character under the effect of this spell rolls four 1s, but immediately benefits from a reroll effect (Luck Domain, alter fortune, benediction or immediate assistance spells, some Luck feats, etc.), will the reroll prevents the auspicious odds spell from ending prematurely? Or will the spell still end, and the reroll itself, presumably, be done on 1d20 rather than with d6?

If you reroll, the previous roll still happened, though its result is not taken into account for the actual effect. Auspicious Odds does end. Also, Auspicious Odds is a spell that only exists in the 3d6 variant rules. The reroll would also be 3d6 instead of 1d20.

[St Fan]

If you reroll, the previous roll still happened, though its result is not taken into account for the actual effect. Auspicious Odds does end. Also, Auspicious Odds is a spell that only exists in the 3d6 variant rules. The reroll would also be 3d6 instead of 1d20.

Ah, I missed that. That explains better the wording. Though the spell could still be interesting if ported to normal rules, both as a bless or a curse, by smoothing out critical failure and critical success.

[St Fan]

Q 362

Strictly following the magic item creation rules:

If a wizard owns a wand with a spell from her spell list, but not yet in her spellbook, can she use Scribe Scroll to write a scroll with said spell on it, spending a charge of the wand for each day of creation?

(And of course, afterward, transcribe the spell from the scroll on her spellbook...)

[Beni-Kujaku]

A 362 Yes.

[ShurikVch]

Q 363

Blood Magus (Complete Arcane) and Maho-tsukai (Oriental Adventures) are both have class features which are named "Blood Component", but work differently
So, would Blood Magus/Maho-tsukai be able to use them both?
On the same spell?

[St Fan]

A 363

Barring any errata (Maho-tsukai being from a 3.0 sourcebook), I don't see anything that would prevent combining the two features.
The DM might impose needing to draw enough blood for 2 HP of damage, but I wouldn't say it's a necessity.

[St Fan]

Q 364

Okay, this has been confusing me for a while.

I know the "Caster Level" given for every magic item determine the level of its power(s), its saving throws and resistance to dispel magic...

But is it, or is it not, a prerequisite for crafting the item?

Prerequisites are given afterward, and sometimes they include a character level minimum... but can a spellcaster craft an item above his or her current caster level?

[ShurikVch]

A 363

Barring any errata (Maho-tsukai being from a 3.0 sourcebook), I don't see anything that would prevent combining the two features.
The DM might impose needing to draw enough blood for 2 HP of damage, but I wouldn't say it's a necessity.

I meant: Maho-tsukai also able to substitute blood for material component - from 5 damage for 1-50 gp to 23 damage for 750 (or more) gp
And blood can be not just their own, but somebody else's too! (What kind of action it should be to draw blood from other creature?)


Q 365

Powerful Build, Jotunbrud feat, etc...
a) Is it possible for creature with one of those to actually grapple an enemy which is two size category bigger? I mean: some people say it would just remove the enemy's size bonus on grapple check - in case if the enemy is just 1 size larger; but still wouldn't allow to grapple with two categories difference ("Size is not a check!")
b) Could having one of those qualify for "size-sensitive" templates - like Lycanthropy or Symbiotic Creature? (And the "opposite" variant - Kobold's Slight Build?)

[redfdf]

Q 366
Gore +13 melee (2d6+12)
Powerful Charge (Ex)
A rhinoceros deals 4d6+24 points of damage when it makes a charge.

a) When the rhino charges, the damage is 2D6+12 + 4D6+24,or just 4D6+24?
b) If Rhino's Strength increases by 2, does Powerful Charge's damage also increase? Increase by 1 or 2?
c) Do damage bonuses (such as power attack and Magic Fang) affect Powerful Charge?
d) Will other special attacks be affected by the damage bonus, such as Constrict,rend?

[Venger]

A 366a 4d6+24
A 366b Yes. 2.
A 366c Yes. As you can see by the numbers in the statblock it just means you deal double damage on a charge, so apply those accordingly to whatever bonuses you're thinking of.
A 366b If the effect boosts str and the ability uses str like your examples, yes.

[Thurbane]

Q 367

Can the Draconic Aura feat grant the auras a Sragon Shaman gets, or just the ones on page 87 of Dragon Magic?

When you select this feat, choose a draconic aura (see page 86).

Q 368

Are the bonus feats granted by swearing service to an Elder Evil limited to those listed in the Elder Evils book, or are vile feats from other books allowed?

These bonus feats must be selected from among the vile feats given in the accompanying table.

[Troacctid]

Q 367

Can the Draconic Aura feat grant the auras a Sragon Shaman gets, or just the ones on page 87 of Dragon Magic?

It just has to be a draconic aura.

Q 368

Are the bonus feats granted by swearing service to an Elder Evil limited to those listed in the Elder Evils book, or are vile feats from other books allowed?

It must be one of the ones from the table.

[RSGA]

Q 364

Okay, this has been confusing me for a while.

I know the "Caster Level" given for every magic item determine the level of its power(s), its saving throws and resistance to dispel magic...

But is it, or is it not, a prerequisite for crafting the item?

Prerequisites are given afterward, and sometimes they include a character level minimum... but can a spellcaster craft an item above his or her current caster level?

A 364

Unless you have a helper, feature, or item that lets you have a higher CL, you can't create with a higher CL than your own. This doesn't necessarily mean that you can't make the item. For wands, scrolls, and potions as long as you have the minimum CL to cast the perquisite spell for the class you're using you can make the scroll and we definitely know what happens when you make it with lower CL and possibly different Spell Level. For Wondrous Items, the text on magical items suggests that you can also do this but we won't necessarily have a fixed or knowable cost and won't always have an easily knowable use. CL 6 Boots of Speed have a figurable price if you assume that the basic one was calculated as use activated with one use per day or a rough equivalent, and it would give six rounds of haste per day but a theoretic CL 3 Boots of the Winterlands have neither.

Magical weapons and armor have, by the text, fixed minimums. If you don't have 3 CL for each plus or meet the CL minimum for the special abilities on there (whichever is higher), you can't make it and you can't make a lesser version unless those things explicitly exist and you can make those lesser versions. So RAW there's no possible Shadow armor between CLs 5 and 10 if the GM doesn't explicitly make it, but if you got your hands on an item of Craft Magic Arms and Armor, you could make +1 armor at CL 3. Even with that, you'd still have to wait till you had an actual CL 5 to make +1 Shadow armor.

[Eladrinblade]

Q 369

Does a prone ally block your ability to charge?

[Venger]

A 369 You cannot charge through a square containing another character unless they are helpless.

[St Fan]

A 364

Unless you have a helper, feature, or item that lets you have a higher CL, you can't create with a higher CL than your own. This doesn't necessarily mean that you can't make the item. For wands, scrolls, and potions as long as you have the minimum CL to cast the perquisite spell for the class you're using you can make the scroll and we definitely know what happens when you make it with lower CL and possibly different Spell Level. For Wondrous Items, the text on magical items suggests that you can also do this but we won't necessarily have a fixed or knowable cost and won't always have an easily knowable use. CL 6 Boots of Speed have a figurable price if you assume that the basic one was calculated as use activated with one use per day or a rough equivalent, and it would give six rounds of haste per day but a theoretic CL 3 Boots of the Winterlands have neither.

Magical weapons and armor have, by the text, fixed minimums. If you don't have 3 CL for each plus or meet the CL minimum for the special abilities on there (whichever is higher), you can't make it and you can't make a lesser version unless those things explicitly exist and you can make those lesser versions. So RAW there's no possible Shadow armor between CLs 5 and 10 if the GM doesn't explicitly make it, but if you got your hands on an item of Craft Magic Arms and Armor, you could make +1 armor at CL 3. Even with that, you'd still have to wait till you had an actual CL 5 to make +1 Shadow armor.

Ah yes, yes, yes, much clearer now, thanks a lot.

With this in mind, the "Disciple of Boccob" ACF from Dragon #357 gets much more interesting.

Reminds me of another question about magic item crafting:

Q 370

I've been under the impression that, for magic items with several versions of regularly increasing power (such as an Amulet of Health or a Headband of Intellect), the maker could first craft the lesser version, and then come back to it for further enchanting, paying the price difference between each version.

For example, a Wizard making first a Headband of Intellect +2 (for a price of 2000 gp and 160 xp), and then later, when having gathered enough funds, further works on the same item to make it a Headband of Intellect +4, paying just the price difference between the two version (12000 between base prices, thus an additional 6000 gp and 480 xp).

However, is this at all supported by the rules, or is it some kind of homebrew?

[Troacctid]

Ah yes, yes, yes, much clearer now, thanks a lot.

With this in mind, the "Disciple of Boccob" ACF from Dragon #357 gets much more interesting.

Reminds me of another question about magic item crafting:

Q 370

I've been under the impression that, for magic items with several versions of regularly increasing power (such as an Amulet of Health or a Headband of Intellect), the maker could first craft the lesser version, and then come back to it for further enchanting, paying the price difference between each version.

For example, a Wizard making first a Headband of Intellect +2 (for a price of 2000 gp and 160 xp), and then later, when having gathered enough fonds, further works on the same item to make it a Headband of Intellect +4, paying just the price difference between the two version (12000 between base prices, thus an additional 6000 gp and 480 xp).

However, is this at all supported by the rules, or is it some kind of homebrew?

Yes, this is explicitly allowed by MIC.

[St Fan]

Q 371

Okay, first of all, let's get this out of the way: I consider the prohibition from Clerics (and most other divine spellcaster classes) from casting spells of an opposed alignment from their own or their god's to be more of a vow than anything, and thus trying to squirt around it through loophole abuse would be a very bad idea -- a quick way to lose the approval of your deity and end up without your divinely granted powers nor any new divine spells.

That said, by RAW:

A) The prohibition for a Cleric to cast spells of an opposed alignment doesn't concern just Cleric spells, right? If she's multiclassed with another spellcasting class, those spells are also forbidden from being of opposed alignments...

B) Does this cover also spells cast from a scroll, a wand, a staff, or other magic items?

C) The line for Clerics is "A cleric can’t cast spells of an alignment opposed to his own or his deity’s (if he has one)." Would that mean the character can still prepare those spells without ever casting them?

D) The Archivist class, notably, doesn't have such a restriction (which is thematically fitting, the basic schtick of the Archivist being to retrieve forbidden secrets that other characters balk at even touching). Now, could a Wizard or Archivist multiclassed with Cleric (or other restricted divine class) still transcribe an opposed-alignment spell to their spellbook/prayerbook (from a scroll, likely) without running afoul of the clerical interdiction?

[Venger]

A 371a In terms of "cannot cast [alignment] spells" that restriction only applies to your cleric spells.

A 371b This is not specified one way or the other in the rules. Since it seems you ofavor more restrictive interpretations when it comes to this, you might rationalize that for the purposes of determining who is considered "the caster" for using spell trigger or spell completion items, it is the user, so a cleric activating scrolls, wands, et al of cleric spells would be unable to cast opposing alignment descriptor spells. If you wanted a more permissive reading you might say that in the section on spell trigger items say that using them is not exactly like casting a spell but only "basically" like casting a spell, so it is not precisely the same as casting the spell, so you yourself are not really casting it.

A 371c Yes.

A 371d Yes.

[St Fan]

A 371a In terms of "cannot cast [alignment] spells" that restriction only applies to your cleric spells.

I'll have to contest the RAW interpretation on this one. I've seen previous discussions with the posters clearly implying it concerned all spells, and the text of the feature is "can’t cast spells", not "can't cast clerical spells" or even "can't cast divine spells".

[ciopo]

Q372

I want to destroy a wall of force with a disintegrate, how is this resolved, do I have to roll an attack? against what AC?

[Troacctid]

Q372

I want to destroy a wall of force with a disintegrate, how is this resolved, do I have to roll an attack? against what AC?

Yes, an attack roll is required, since it is still a ray. The wall's AC is the same as any inanimate object: 3 + its size modifier (usually between -1 and -8). You can take a full-round action beforehand to line up the shot for a +5 bonus to the attack roll. But unless you really suck at ranged attacks, you should only miss on a natural 1—because by RAW, even the literal broad side of a barn can dodge your attack when you roll a nat 1.

[St Fan]

Q 373

A) A while ago, I had asked if a Mage of the Arcane Order could add a metamagic effect from a feat to a spell called from the Spellspool. The answer strongly leaned toward "no", unsurprisingly, which I agree with.

However, now I wonder if that would also concern Metamagic effects added "on the fly", such as with a Metamagic Rod. Could a Guild Mage apply the effect of a Metamagic Rod when casting a spell called from the Spellpool?

B) Same question, but with a Spellthief. The class description does specify "A spellthief can't apply metamagic feats or other effects to the stolen spell unless the specific spell stolen was prepared with such an effect." However, I read it as concerning the Spellthief's own feats. Again, could a Spellthief apply the effect of a Metamagic Rod when casting a spell stolen from another spellcaster's mind?

[St Fan]

Q 374

For the owner of an Item Familiar who's invested life energy in it, is there anything preventing the bonus XP it contains (and specifically those XPs, from the 10% XP bonus awarded) to be used when spending XP for casting some spells or crafting magic items?

[Troacctid]

Q 374

For the owner of an Item Familiar who's invested life energy in it, is there anything preventing the bonus XP it contains (and specifically those XPs, from the 10% XP bonus awarded) to be used when spending XP for casting some spells or crafting magic items?

The amount of XP you lose if the item is lost or destroyed is dependent on the amount of bonus XP gained from the item. That amount doesn't change when you spend XP. So you can use your XP to craft items, but doing so won't reduce the amount stored in the item.

[ciopo]

Q375

Some questions about contingency:

.a) can the linked spell be sourced from a scroll/wand/staff?

.b) when the contingency triggers, is the linked spell shared via share spell feature of animal companions/familiars? (assuming within range due to enspell familiar/companion spellbond)

.c) if the linked spell is "an emanation centered on you", will it affect the area as normal, or only you? specific example antimagic field

.d) ... is AMF a valid contingency spell?

[Venger]

A 375a Yes.
A 375b Yes.
A 375c While the spell text unfortunately says "one that affects your person" instead of using real ranges such as personal, touch, etc, I don't think an emanation centered on you affects your person. They probably meant personal, touch, targeted, etc spells but this is something of a judgement call with no real answer due to the lack of discrete rules terms.
A 375d Probably not, but if your gm rules emanations centered on you count as "affecting your person," then yes.