Answering Questions

[Fax Celestis]

Ask Wizards listed a number of questions they were asked in the past 24 hours that they did not choose to answer. I'll answer them here.

# A light horse can drag up to 2,250 pounds, under Carrying Capacity; this max weight suggests that the horse could only move 5 feet per round while doing so. How much weight could a light horse pull in a cart while maintaining a light load and move its full 60 feet as a single move action? Is there a formula to find this?--Jakob

The horse would be able to pull a light load to still move it's action. In the case of a light horse, it's based on the creature's strength score and increased due to both size and quadrupedity, for a grand total of 56 (from 14 Str) * 3 (Large quadruped) = 168 lbs without speed reduction. A light horse's speed can be reduced to 40' to increase this load capacity to 348 lbs.


# If I am playing a cleric who chooses to not have a specific deity and I choose the war domain, how do I determine my domain power? (i.e., what weapon proficiency and weapon focus feat can I choose?)--Trevor

This question has no RAW answer. However, it would be appropriate (and in-line with non-deity-specific clerics) to base them upon the cleric's alignment and go with a weapon from a deity that shares that alignment.

# Why does the unicorn have a jump of 21? Its skills are listed as:

Jump +21, Listen +11, Move Silently +9, Spot +11, Survival +8*

A Magical Beast of its Hit Dice and Intelligence would have 12 skill points to spend. It has Alertness and a special +3 racial bonus on Survival and +4 to Move Silently. If I back those out it has only 2 pts to spend on jump giving it a racial jump bonus of +14.

If it has a racial bonus of +14 to Jump, why does the celestial charger listed right beside it have 0 Jump ranks? Please explain.--Trevor

The Unicorn receives a +12 bonus to Jump checks due to its land speed exceeding 30'. Creatures receive a +4 bonus to Jump checks for each 10' their speed exceeds 30'.


# I was looking at Two-Weapon Defense, and it says it allows an off-hand weapon to grant a +1 shield bonus to AC. Armor spikes can be used as off-hand weapons, would Two-Weapon Defense apply?--Derrick

Despite this being mildly illogical, armor spikes can indeed qualify for Two-Weapon Defense.

# According to the Monster Manual IV, the Teleport ability of justice archons allows them to teleport at will as the teleport spell. According to the Monster Manual I, all archons have the ability to use greater teleport at will. Are justice archons supposed to be able to use greater teleport or regular teleport?--Steve

The text of a creature always overrides any type or subtype distinctions. In this case, Justice Archons have teleport, not greater teleport.

# I have a follow-up to the 11/14 published question. My mentor in gaming (who introduced me to 3E), though not a fan of campaign settings nonetheless loved the concept of bronzewood from Eberron. He proposed that a bronzewood dagger, rapier, or even arrow and an appropriate called shot could sufficiently dispatch a vampire in a combat round. What do you think?--Garrett

Called shots are always hard to adjucate, but it seems to be a reasonable interpretation of the rules for this to be feasible.

# I am trying to get an answer to a question that has a morale impact on gaming. Should a cleric be denied a feat or prestige class because he chooses to not name his god or have no devotion to a particular deity?--Aaron

Only if the feat or prestige class specifically requires one to worship a particular deity in its prerequisites. Of course, a DM is still the final say in all matters like this, so if a DM determines that a prestige class is only viable for followers of a specific alignment or deity, that's how it is.

# If the pair of daggers, shortswords, etc., used in a steeldance spell have magic properties, do those properties get taken into account when calculating hits, damage, etc.? I ask because the spell description refers to the weapons' base damage.--Tim

Yes. You are still striking the foe with the weapon, and therefore all of the weapon's properties do indeed come into effect.

# What would the level adjustment be on the chosen of mystra template?--Dustin

The Chosen of Mystra template is not given a level adjustment because it is not considered appropriate for player use.

# If I cast whirling blade while prone, are all my weapons’ attack rolls subject to the penalty for attacking while prone?--Gary

Yes. Whirling blade treats your attacks as melee attacks against all targets within the range of the spell, and you would therefore suffer the appropriate penalties for being prone.

# Can you use Many Shot to make a Ranged Sunder attempt (provided you have the Ranged Sunder feat from Complete Warrior and the Many Shot feat)?--Luke

Yes. Manyshot allows you to make multiple attacks against a single target, and the sunder action replaces a single attack.

# Assume a shadowdancer (with Hide in Plain Sight ability) strikes an opponent in melee combat. Could the character then use HiPS to Hide, and would there be a -20 penalty to the Hide check as with Sniping? Reading the 3.5 FAQ dealing with a high-level ranger's HiPS makes it sound like there would be no penalty, as in both of these situations it is likely there is no need to move to concealment.--Jeff

Despite the lack of need for cover, Sniping still incurs a -20 penalty. See the Hide skill.

# If a character does not have any of the Two Weapon Fighting feats, but is currently wielding two weapons, and a threatened enemy provokes an attack of opportunity, could that character attack with his/her off-handed weapon with the full attack bonus? Also, would there be any impact on that character's regular attack roles on his/her turn assuming they only chose to make attacks with their primary weapon?--Justin

The penalties for utilizing the Two-Weapon Fighting feats are for extra attacks, not for merely fighting with two weapons. You would not incur a penalty for making an Attack of Opportunity with your off-hand weapon.

# If a paladin gets a temporary bonus to his Charisma score, does that allow him to heal more with his Lay on Hands ability?--Mike

Yes, but only within certain limits. The paladin can only heal a finite amount per day with Lay on Hands. Repeated castings of eagle's splendor, for instance, would not allow him to heal extra, as his Lay on Hands pool would drop into negatives after the spell wore off and would return to zero after a recasting of the spell.

# Can a character make a 5-foot step on a surprise round?

The 5-foot step rule indicates that it can be used in any round when you don't perform any other kind of movement action. This seems to imply that this can be done also during a surprise round.

The surprise round states that characters that are aware can make standard actions during the surprise round; it also states that you could perform free actions during the round at the DM’s discretion. Since it does not mention a 5-foot step, it leave me with doubt as to whether the 5-foot step is legal for a character that takes a non-movement action during a surprise round.
--Daniel from Buenos Aires, Argentina

A five-foot step is not a "free action." Instead, it is listed under "Miscellaneous Actions" within the combat chapter. As such, it is technically not a free action. However, under its own rules it is usable in any round in which you do not take a move action (including a surprise round).

# The wizard alternative class feature spontaneous divination from Complete Champion (p52) is worded thus:

You can spontaneously cast any spell of the divination school by sacrificing a prepared spell of equal or greater level. For example, if you suddenly have need of the 2nd-level spell locate object, you can sacrifice a prepared 2nd-level spell (such as mirror image) or any prepared spell of a higher level to cast it on the spot.

Now, what does "any spell of the divination school" actually mean? Is it really any spell, no matter from what class spell list, or is it only wizard spells, or is it even restricted to wizard spells known only?--Jonny

The rules are unclear here, but the intention is to allow a wizard to spontaneously cast known divinations from the Sorcerer/Wizard list, essentially making a wizard into a "diviner sorcerer lite".

# Is there any item that can shield a vampire from the sun so that he can walk freely in the daylight?
--Zeljko

I can only think of one such item, and it is an artifact possessed by Strahd: The Dawnheart, from Expedition to Castle Ravenloft.

# Last night we had a debate about cones. If a sorcerer were to cast a cone of cold, would the cone be three dimensional? For example, if cast on the ground, would it hit creatures in the air? Or does the cone release as a two dimensional blast?--Matt

All spells are three-dimensional. Spheres ascend and descend vertically, as do cylinders, cones, emanations, bursts and cubes. Only lines work in two dimensions.

# The thought bottle (I might have it wrong due to the translation) in Complete Arcane can store the amount of XP the character has and then can restore the character's XP to the same amount for the price of 500 XP. Could my character store her XP, then create a magic item (or multiple items) of high XP costs then restore them using the bottle (minus 500)?--Jonathan

Yes, you can.

# If a mounted PC is claiming cover from his mount and the attacker fails to hit him for less than 4 points, does the attacker automatically hit the beast the PC is mounted to?--Gabriele

No. As a creature, the mount is still allowed to defend itself. The best adjucation of this would be for the attacker to roll against the mount's AC.

# Is a warlock affected by 'The Weave', dead magic zones, and 'Weave Drain' effects in the Forgotten Realms?--Craig

Yes. Warlocks are still spellcasters, even if they have slightly different mechanics.

# Does the 3rd level cleric/druid spell spikes from Spell Compendium (p202) affect a fighter’s lance if the body of the lance is wooden but the tip is metal?--Vance

Weapons of multiple materials only count the 'effective' part of the item. For instance an adamantine/darkwood scythe will overcome DR as an adamantine weapon but not a darkwood one, since the damaging part of the weapon is made of adamantine.

# With regards to the feat Ray Burst, which was in Dragon Magazine Annual #5: this feat allows you to change the ray effect to a 30 radius burst effect centered on myself. I know it affects both friend and foe, so here is my question: am I part of the blast, i.e., do I take damage from the blast also, like a fireball centered on me, or does the ray shoot forth from my body in all directions creating the burst effect? Also, say I get three rays because of my level, will the burst be the combined amount of the three rays, or will it shoot out as three different bursts?--Henry

Burst effects include all targets within the area, including yourself.

# Can animals without claw attacks climb? I recently had a group of players hide in a tree from a worg attack, then protest when I had the worg climb the tree. They claim that since worgs have no claw attack, their claws aren't strong enough to allow them to climb the tree. What do you think?
--Michael

There is no ruling on who has the ability to climb and who does not. Any creature with a Strength score can make a Climb check, so as long as the worg followed those rules, there is no reason it could not.

# Since an unarmed attack does necessarily need a free hand, could a character attack with a two-handed weapon as a primary attack and an unarmed strike as the secondary attack of two-weapon fighting?--Patrick

As long as the secondary attack unarmed strike is made with a limb other than a hand, this is entirely feasible. "Unarmed Strike" does not necessarily mean 'fist': it could also mean 'kick', 'knee' or 'head butt'.

# I have two more questions regarding monks and gauntlets:

1) Can a Medium-sized character wield a Large-sized gauntlet through Monkey Grip (Complete Warrior), thus increasing his unarmed damage as if he was one size category larger? For example, an 11th-level fighter with Superior Unarmed Strike (Tome of Battle) deals 1d8 unarmed damage, but could he Monkey Grip a gauntlet to do 1d10?

2) Do Superior Unarmed Strike and a monk's belt stack together? For example, would an 11th-level fighter with Superior Unarmed Strike count as a 9th-level monk and thus do 1d10 unarmed damage? If he also has a monk's tattoo (Magic of Faerun) which would increase his unarmed damage by four monk levels, would he do 2d6 damage as if he were a 13th-level monk?--Stefan

Yes and yes. Superior Unarmed Strike and a monk's belt increase your effective level instead of treating you as X levels higher.

# Every spellcaster can make a ranged touch attack with a spell demanding a ranged touch attack. He can do so without special training. Is it therefore reasonable to assume that it can be considered a simple weapon? Or is it something else? Because, the Intuitive Attack feat, from Book of Exalted Deeds, states that you can use your Wis modifier instead of your Str modifier for any simple or natural weapon (you are guided by your faith). I am confused, as Complete Arcane explains the possibilities of making critical hits and applying sneak attacks.--Jon

Ranged touch attacks (that is, rays) are not considered any kind of weapon. They are weapon-like spells, certainly, but do not actually qualify as a weapon for the purposes of feats such as Intuitive Attack, Power Attack, Weapon Finesse, or similar feats.

[clericwithnogod]

# If I am playing a cleric who chooses to not have a specific deity and I choose the war domain, how do I determine my domain power? (i.e., what weapon proficiency and weapon focus feat can I choose?)--Trevor

This question has no RAW answer. However, it would be appropriate (and in-line with non-deity-specific clerics) to base them upon the cleric's alignment and go with a weapon from a deity that shares that alignment.

I would note that it would be equally appropriate to let the player pick a martial weapon that he feels fits his character.

[Fax Celestis]

I would note that it would be equally appropriate to let the player pick a martial weapon that he feels fits his character.

That is an equally appropriate action. Proficiency and Focus with a single weapon is not exactly gamebreaking in itself.

[Azerian Kelimon]

Or take the closest example and gain benefits with the weapon called by the Spiritual Weapon spell as per your alignment.

[Kaelik]

# According to the Monster Manual IV, the Teleport ability of justice archons allows them to teleport at will as the teleport spell. According to the Monster Manual I, all archons have the ability to use greater teleport at will. Are justice archons supposed to be able to use greater teleport or regular teleport?--Steve

The text of a creature always overrides any type or subtype distinctions. In this case, Justice Archons have teleport, not greater teleport.

But if all Archons gain X, and this Archon gains Y, but it does not say that they don't receive X, then they do. Therefore the Justice Archon would gain both Greater Teleport at will and Teleport at will.

# Can you use Many Shot to make a Ranged Sunder attempt (provided you have the Ranged Sunder feat from Complete Warrior and the Many Shot feat)?--Luke

Yes. Manyshot allows you to make multiple attacks against a single target, and the sunder action replaces a single attack.

Incorrect. Many Shot grants a single attack with multiple arrows. You could use Many Shot with Ranged Sunder, You would make a single attempt, but each arrow would need to overcome hardness separately.

# I have two more questions regarding monks and gauntlets:

1) Can a Medium-sized character wield a Large-sized gauntlet through Monkey Grip (Complete Warrior), thus increasing his unarmed damage as if he was one size category larger? For example, an 11th-level fighter with Superior Unarmed Strike (Tome of Battle) deals 1d8 unarmed damage, but could he Monkey Grip a gauntlet to do 1d10?

2) Do Superior Unarmed Strike and a monk's belt stack together? For example, would an 11th-level fighter with Superior Unarmed Strike count as a 9th-level monk and thus do 1d10 unarmed damage? If he also has a monk's tattoo (Magic of Faerun) which would increase his unarmed damage by four monk levels, would he do 2d6 damage as if he were a 13th-level monk?--Stefan

Yes and yes. Superior Unarmed Strike and a monk's belt increase your effective level instead of treating you as X levels higher.

You seem to contradict yourself here. They should not stack because they only increase your "effective level" If you level is X and you have three effects that increase you effective level, because each one is applied to your original level, they overlap instead of stacking.

In addition, as regards Superior Unarmed Strike, if you have no Monk levels then you obtain damage based on your level. There is no rule for increase or decreases do to size. A Guargantuan Dragon that took Unarmed Strike would do an equal amount of damage as a Pixie.

[Fax Celestis]

But if all Archons gain X, and this Archon gains Y, but it does not say that they don't receive X, then they do. Therefore the Justice Archon would gain both Greater Teleport at will and Teleport at will.

Incorrect. Archons receive benefits due to their subtype, one of which is teleportation. Since the greater teleport feature is not included in the Justice Archon description, it doesn't have it.

Incorrect. Many Shot grants a single attack with multiple arrows. You could use Many Shot with Ranged Sunder, You would make a single attempt, but each arrow would need to overcome hardness separately.

That's what I said.

You seem to contradict yourself here. They should not stack because they only increase your "effective level" If you level is X and you have three effects that increase you effective level, because each one is applied to your original level, they overlap instead of stacking.

In addition, as regards Superior Unarmed Strike, if you have no Monk levels then you obtain damage based on your level. There is no rule for increase or decreases do to size. A Guargantuan Dragon that took Unarmed Strike would do an equal amount of damage as a Pixie.

An increase to effective level stacks with other increases to effective level. Otherwise, Binder PrCs wouldn't work, orange ioun stones wouldn't work, etc. If you are treated as a monk of four levels higher from the feat and five levels higher from the belt, then you're treated as nine levels higher.

And as for Superior Unarmed Strike, it does not qualify within the feat for the size of the possessor. However, damages are always adjusted by size as stated in the MM. It is assumed that SUS presumes you to be Medium size.

[Chronos]

The horse would be able to pull a light load to still move it's action. In the case of a light horse, it's based on the creature's strength score and increased due to both size and quadrupedity, for a grand total of 56 (from 14 Str) * 3 (Large quadruped) = 168 lbs without speed reduction. A light horse's speed can be reduced to 40' to increase this load capacity to 348 lbs.

There's also a modifier for the thing being dragged having wheels: I believe it's a factor of 4. The maximum drag listed in the tables is for something not designed to be dragged.

[Triaxx]

# With regards to the feat Ray Burst, which was in Dragon Magazine Annual #5: this feat allows you to change the ray effect to a 30 radius burst effect centered on myself. I know it affects both friend and foe, so here is my question: am I part of the blast, i.e., do I take damage from the blast also, like a fireball centered on me, or does the ray shoot forth from my body in all directions creating the burst effect? Also, say I get three rays because of my level, will the burst be the combined amount of the three rays, or will it shoot out as three different bursts?--Henry

Burst effects include all targets within the area, including yourself.

# I have two more questions regarding monks and gauntlets:

1) Can a Medium-sized character wield a Large-sized gauntlet through Monkey Grip (Complete Warrior), thus increasing his unarmed damage as if he was one size category larger? For example, an 11th-level fighter with Superior Unarmed Strike (Tome of Battle) deals 1d8 unarmed damage, but could he Monkey Grip a gauntlet to do 1d10?

2) Do Superior Unarmed Strike and a monk's belt stack together? For example, would an 11th-level fighter with Superior Unarmed Strike count as a 9th-level monk and thus do 1d10 unarmed damage? If he also has a monk's tattoo (Magic of Faerun) which would increase his unarmed damage by four monk levels, would he do 2d6 damage as if he were a 13th-level monk?--Stefan

Yes and yes. Superior Unarmed Strike and a monk's belt increase your effective level instead of treating you as X levels higher.

Two questions you forgot to answer minor, but important bits of.

[Kaelik]

Incorrect. Archons receive benefits due to their subtype, one of which is teleportation. Since the greater teleport feature is not included in the Justice Archon description, it doesn't have it.

If the Archon subtype says "All Archons may use Greater Teleport at will." And the Justice Archon states "Justice Archons may use Teleport at will." Then a Justice Archon may use both Teleport and Greater Teleport at will, because no where does it say that Justice Archons do not gain the ability granted by their ssubtype.

That's what I said.

No, you said that it grants multiple attacks and that the Sunder would apply to one of those attacks. It grants a single attack, and so Ranged Sunder would apply to the whole attack.

An increase to effective level stacks with other increases to effective level. Otherwise, Binder PrCs wouldn't work, orange ioun stones wouldn't work, etc. If you are treated as a monk of four levels higher from the feat and five levels higher from the belt, then you're treated as nine levels higher.

Orange Ioun Stones add to you effective Caster level. Orange Ioun Stones also don't stack with each other.

[Fax Celestis]

There's also a modifier for the thing being dragged having wheels: I believe it's a factor of 4. The maximum drag listed in the tables is for something not designed to be dragged.

Cart

This two-wheeled vehicle can be drawn by a single horse (or other beast of burden). It comes with a harness.

Lifting and Dragging

A character can lift as much as his or her maximum load over his or her head.

A character can lift as much as double his or her maximum load off the ground, but he or she can only stagger around with it. While overloaded in this way, the character loses any Dexterity bonus to AC and can move only 5 feet per round (as a full-round action).

A character can generally push or drag along the ground as much as five times his or her maximum load. Favorable conditions can double these numbers, and bad circumstances can reduce them to one-half or less.

"Favorable Conditions" would probably double that amount, yes, but you'd think that the Cart description would mention that.

[UserClone]

Azerian, you took the words right out of my, er...keyboard.

[Fax Celestis]

If the Archon subtype says "All Archons may use Greater Teleport at will." And the Justice Archon states "Justice Archons may use Teleport at will." Then a Justice Archon may use both Teleport and Greater Teleport at will, because no where does it say that Justice Archons do not gain the ability granted by their ssubtype.

Wrong again:

Traits

An archon possesses the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature’s entry).

Since the Justice Archon's entry does not include a Greater Teleport ability, it doesn't have one.

No, you said that it grants multiple attacks and that the Sunder would apply to one of those attacks. It grants a single attack, and so Ranged Sunder would apply to the whole attack.

As a volley attack, Manyshot grants many attacks that all use one attack roll. Ranged Sunder would apply to one or more of the arrows on a case-by-case basis.

Orange Ioun Stones add to you effective Caster level. Orange Ioun Stones also don't stack with each other.

They don't stack with each other because of the "Same effect, same source" clause. If one has an orange ioun stone and a circlet that grants +1 caster level, they DO stack because they're unnamed bonuses from different sources. Unnamed bonuses always stack unless they're from the same source.

[Pelfaid]

# Can a character make a 5-foot step on a surprise round?

The 5-foot step rule indicates that it can be used in any round when you don't perform any other kind of movement action. This seems to imply that this can be done also during a surprise round.

The surprise round states that characters that are aware can make standard actions during the surprise round; it also states that you could perform free actions during the round at the DM’s discretion. Since it does not mention a 5-foot step, it leave me with doubt as to whether the 5-foot step is legal for a character that takes a non-movement action during a surprise round.
--Daniel from Buenos Aires, Argentina

A five-foot step is not a "free action." Instead, it is listed under "Miscellaneous Actions" within the combat chapter. As such, it is technically not a free action. However, under its own rules it is usable in any round in which you do not take a move action (including a surprise round).

So are there any circumstances in which I can move, attack and then take a five-foot step? This is assuming I do not have Spring Attack.

[Fax Celestis]

Two questions you forgot to answer minor, but important bits of.

Oops.

Question 1, regarding multiple rays. No, you would not receive multiple rays, as the Effect line of the spell description would change from "1 or more rays; see text" to "30' burst".

Question 2, regarding Monkey Grip. You can wield a larger gauntlet with Monkey Grip. Doing so would allow you to deal damage as one size category larger, as with all weapons.

[tyckspoon]

Orange Ioun Stones add to you effective Caster level. Orange Ioun Stones also don't stack with each other.

Of course they don't, thanks to the general rule that bonuses from the same source don't stack with themselves. This analogy would hold true if somebody attempted to wear and stack two Monk's Belts at the same time, or wanted to take Superior Unarmed Strike twice. However, you seem to be claiming that an Orange Ioun Stone cannot stack with any other boost to effective caster level, no matter the source of the benefit.

[Fax Celestis]

So are there any circumstances in which I can move, attack and then take a five-foot step? This is assuming I do not have Spring Attack.

No. You cannot five-foot step in any round in which you take another form of movement.

[MeklorIlavator]

# Every spellcaster can make a ranged touch attack with a spell demanding a ranged touch attack. He can do so without special training. Is it therefore reasonable to assume that it can be considered a simple weapon? Or is it something else? Because, the Intuitive Attack feat, from Book of Exalted Deeds, states that you can use your Wis modifier instead of your Str modifier for any simple or natural weapon (you are guided by your faith). I am confused, as Complete Arcane explains the possibilities of making critical hits and applying sneak attacks.--Jon

Ranged touch attacks (that is, rays) are not considered any kind of weapon. They are weapon-like spells, certainly, but do not actually qualify as a weapon for the purposes of feats such as Intuitive Attack, Power Attack, Weapon Finesse, or similar feats.

Actually, this is contradicted in the Complete Arcane, pages 85-86, in the section titled Weapon-like Spells, and previously on pages 72 to73. Weapon Finesse is listed as a possibility, as are several other feats. It should be noted that they are not listed as martial, simple or exotic weapons.

[Fax Celestis]

Actually, this is contradicted in the Complete Arcane, pages 85-86, in the section titled Weapon-like Spells, and previously on pages 72 to73. Weapon Finesse is listed as a possibility, as are several other feats. It should be noted that they are not listed as martial, simple or exotic weapons.

The point I was attempting to make is that they are not martial, simple, or exotic weapons and therefore do not apply for feats that specifically require a specific class of weapon.

[MeklorIlavator]

The point I was attempting to make is that they are not martial, simple, or exotic weapons and therefore do not apply for feats that specifically require a specific class of weapon.

Ah. My mistake. You may want to take Weapon Finesse and power attack off the list then, as they make no specific mention of simple, martial, or exotic weapons.

[Fax Celestis]

Ah. My mistake. You may want to take Weapon Finesse and power attack off the list then, as they make no specific mention of simple, martial, or exotic weapons.

Weapon Finesse and Power Attack do indeed mention weapon classes: light, one-handed, and two handed. Weapon-like spells do not function as any of those either.

[tyckspoon]

Weapon Finesse and Power Attack do indeed mention weapon classes: light, one-handed, and two handed. Weapon-like spells do not function as any of those either.

It doesn't matter for ranged touches, but I could swear that melee touch spells are considered light weapons for purposes of Weapon Finesse (and presumably Power Attack, if you wanted to bother with that for some bizarre reason.) Is that actually written anywhere? I might have just assumed it as a natural extension of the rule that unarmed and natural attacks are always considered light.

[clericwithnogod]

Or take the closest example and gain benefits with the weapon called by the Spiritual Weapon spell as per your alignment.

The closest example would be getting to select two domains to "reflect his spiritual inclinations and abilities." So selecting a weapon that reflects his spiritual inclinations and abilities as the granted ability of one of those domains follows quite nicely.

But, forcing a neutral cleric to have to juggle four weapons depending on how he is acting would be a hoot too.

[psychoticbarber]

Since the Justice Archon's entry does not include a Greater Teleport ability, it doesn't have one.

However, the Justice Archon's entry does not note that it lacks the Greater Teleport ability. I realize you're just going to correct me anyway, but from my point of view, it appears that the entry doesn't "note otherwise". It mentions a separate ability, but there is no mention of Greater Teleport.

[Kaelik]

Since the Justice Archon's entry does not include a Greater Teleport ability, it doesn't have one.

But the Justice Archon entry does not note otherwise. Creatures get all there own effects, then they receive all the traits of their type and subtype that are not explicitly contradicted.

If there is an undead somewhere that does not explicitly state that it is immune to critical hits, does it still gain the undead traits? Yes. The same logic would grant Greater Teleport to the Justice Archon.

[brian c]

But the Justice Archon entry does not note otherwise. Creatures get all there own effects, then they receive all the traits of their type and subtype that are not explicitly contradicted.

If there is an undead somewhere that does not explicitly state that it is immune to critical hits, does it still gain the undead traits? Yes. The same logic would grant Greater Teleport to the Justice Archon.

Every undead has the entry "Undead Traits: [Creature] has all normal undead traits".

You can argue about the RAW, but please tell me you can see that the intention of the designer was that Justice Archons would not have Greater Teleport. There would be no reason to have both spells, both at-will.

[Kaelik]

Every undead has the entry "Undead Traits: [Creature] has all normal undead traits".

Really? You've looked at every single undead in every single Monster Manual/splatbook? Or are you just assuming.

The point remains that if there is such an undead, they still gain all undead traits. Why? Because undead traits apply unless the entry specifically says they don't apply.

You can argue about the RAW, but please tell me you can see that the intention of the designer was that Justice Archons would not have Greater Teleport. There would be no reason to have both spells, both at-will.

The intention might just as well have been for Justice Archon to have Greater Teleport at will just like every other Archon, but was accidentally given Teleport instead due to an error. We don't know. We do know that he gains Greater Teleport from his Archon subtype because Justice Archon's entry does not state that he doesn't.

[ghost_warlock]

Really? You've looked at every single undead in every single Monster Manual/splatbook? Or are you just assuming.

Oh, come on, that's just absurd!

The intention might just as well have been for Justice Archon to have Greater Teleport at will just like every other Archon, but was accidentally given Teleport instead due to an error. We don't know. We do know that he gains Greater Teleport from his Archon subtype because Justice Archon's entry does not state that he doesn't.

Because WotC does not intentionally omit type/subtype-based SLAs from a creature's description unless the creature doesn't have a particular SLA a creature of its type/subtype has, and there is no errata adding greater teleport, justice archons do not have greater teleport but have regular, old teleport, instead.

[deadseashoals]

Oh, come on, that's just absurd!




Because WotC does not intentionally omit type/subtype-based SLAs from a creature's description unless the creature doesn't have a particular SLA a creature of its type/subtype has, and there is no errata adding greater teleport, justice archons do not have greater teleport but have regular, old teleport, instead.

All that is irrelevant. The only things that matters are:

• All archons have greater teleport unless otherwise noted.
• It is not noted in the description that they do not have greater teleport.

Not all common type/subtype traits have to be repeated in the monster's entry. They are either corner cases due to laziness or typographical omission, but they can and do exist. For example, the hydra entry does not list vulnerability to cold for pyrohydras or vulnerability to fire for cryohydras in the SQ entry, despite making allowances for pyro- and cryohydras in the Environment and Challenge Rating entries.

My guess? Just a mixup, and they meant to give it greater teleport. But thems the RAW.

[Kaelik]

Oh, come on, that's just absurd!

I'm absolutely serious. I've been very tempted to look through my books for a specific example because there very probably is one.

Because WotC does not intentionally omit type/subtype-based SLAs from a creature's description unless the creature doesn't have a particular SLA a creature of its type/subtype has, and there is no errata adding greater teleport, justice archons do not have greater teleport but have regular, old teleport, instead.

Actually, WotC often omits subtype traits in the individual description. If they didn't there would be no reason for subtype traits at all.

And WotC makes mistakes too. Someone could have accidentally put Teleport instead, and they just didn't realize that they had a creature with both Teleport and Greater Teleport at will because they never read the Archon description and the Justice Archon entry together (except the guy who wrote it, and accidentally forgot the word greater.) Errata only comes up after a problem has been discovered.

[ghost_warlock]

I'm absolutely serious. I've been very tempted to look through my books for a specific example because there very probably is one.

Serious or not, it's still an absurd proposition because it's not likely, and probably impossible, for someone to search through every published 3.0/3.5 D&D book. You're not arguing against his ruling in terms of rules but instead by presenting a situation in which he is expected to perform a improbable task in order to refute your position. Essentially saying "since you can't find it, I'm right!"

In any case, saying "undead traits" in the SQ is redundant anyway because undead are always assumed to have all undead traits, unless noted otherwise, and any undead creature is already identified as such else we'd all be saying 'what type is this?'

Not all common type/subtype traits have to be repeated in the monster's entry. They are either corner cases due to laziness or typographical omission, but they can and do exist. For example, the hydra entry does not list vulnerability to cold for pyrohydras or vulnerability to fire for cryohydras in the SQ entry, despite making allowances for pyro- and cryohydras in the Environment and Challenge Rating entries.

Elemental vulnerabilities don't need to be listed (see below). Also, the publication trends for elemental vulnerabilities and spell-like abilities are different. With regards to SLAs, it's improbable that most DMs will memorize every SLA creatures are granted by type because this amounts to a large amount of semi-complicated information. So, typically, WotC lists all of a creature's SLAs available in the creature's description for ease of use (regardless of whether some of those SLAs are reproduced from information printed in its general type description). Less detailed and lengthy qualities, such as elemental vulnerability, are not always reproduced in the SQ or combat text because simply noting the creature's elemental subtype is normally sufficient for an experienced DM to remember a vulnerability without referencing creature types continually during an encounter (as they would probably have to do for SLAs).

It comes down to making reasonable expectations of DMs. Will DMs remember every single SLA a creature is granted based on type/subtype? Probably not, so these are reproduced, more-or-less faithfully, where applicable. Will they be able to remember that creatures with the (Fire) subtype are vulnerable to cold damage? Yeah, that's probable so it can be simply noted with the fire subtype. Will they remember that undead are immune to effects and attacks that require a funcitonal biological system? They should, that's one of the defining characteristics of undead; and all undead creatures are listed as such in the second line of the creature's statistical block. Other undead traits, such as d12 Hit Dice, are already noted in the stat block and weapon proficiencies are irrelevant because DMs will typically have the creature attack with whatever weapon/natural attack it's listed as using in the stat block.