Volaran's page

Minor thing. I notice that when doing a search for a spell in the prd, the mythic version shows up before the normal version of the spell.

I've been reading up on the Communal Spells in Ultimate Combat, and I'm wondering if it might have been better to introduce them as a single metamagic feat. They seem pretty consistently implimented (same material component as original spell, 1 level higher than original). I'm wondering what design decision lead to them being done as individual spells instead.

In any case, I am considering offering the following metamagic feat. Any thoughts?

Communal Spell
You can divide a single-target spell among multiple recipients.
Benefit: You may divide spells with a range of touch, and a level-dependent duration between multiple targets. Each subject is treated as the target of the spell, and the duration is divided as evenly as possible between the targets, using the same increment as the base spell duration (minutes, hours, etc). No target can receive a duration increment smaller than the smallest increment of duration listed in the spell description.
A Communal spell uses a feat one level higher than the base spell.
Spells whose durations are not level dependent, as well as those with a range other than touch do not benefit from this feat.

I was kind of hoping that the Ranger would have an option for a Firearms combat style, since several of the other classes got some gun-love (Paladin, Inquisitor, Wizard, etc).

One could probably get a fair amount of benefit from the crossbow or archery styles and just use a gun, but has anyone else given any thought to what might go into a Firearms combat-style, or even a gun-based ranger archetype?

Just entering this in hopes that it can be answered in FAQ

Adept Champion
You can alter your smite ability, channeling the power of your deity into divine inspiration that grants you greater aptitude for performing combat maneuvers.
Prerequisites: Smite evil class feature, base attack bonus +5.
Benefit: While using your smite evil class feature, as a swift action at the start of your turn, you can forgo the bonus on damage rolls and instead gain half that bonus as a bonus on combat maneuver checks against the target of your smite. The effects of your smite evil feature return to
normal at the start of your next turn.

My understanding is that the Smite ability would normally allow you to add your Charisma bonus on combat maneuver checks against viable Smite targets (since they are attack rolls). Does this feat allow you to add half your normal damage bonus in place of the Charisma bonus to attack rolls, or in addition to? My assumption would that it is in addition to the charisma bonus.

My group is likely to be encountering Ileosa and her simulacra during this session or the next, and I have been wondering how to work her Harmonic Spell feat for Pathfinder.

For reference, I have re-written Ileosa as a Court Bard from the APG, so that she will be inflicting more penalties against the party, rather than only bonuses to her allies. Also, as I re-write the Harmonic spell feat, I am not excessively concerned about balancing it for PC use, as we have no bards in the party, and I would not make it usable for future groups.

The original feat is as follows:

Harmonic Spell (original version)
You can weave bardic music effects into your spellcasting.
Prerequisite: Bardic music ability, Perform (any) 8 ranks
Benefit: When you cast a harmonic spell, you can activate one of your bardic music abilities as a free action. The bardic music is incorporated into the spell’s casting time, and the effect of the bardic music lasts for as long as the spell’s casting time continues and for 5 rounds thereafter. Activating a bardic music ability with Harmonic Spellconsumes an additional bardic music use per day, but does not increase the effective level of the spell being cast.

Now, Ileosa can activate bardic music a swift action, and her duplicates as a move action so combining it will spellcasting to save time isn't much use. However, it still seems quite useful for having multiple bardic music effects in place at once. See what you think of this:

Harmonic Spell (proposed Pathfinder version)
You can weave bardic performance effects into your spellcasting.
Prerequisite: Bardic performance ability, Perform (any) 8 ranks
When you cast a harmonic spell, you can activate one of your bardic music abilities as a free action. The bardic music is incorporated into the spell’s casting time, and the effect of the bardic music lasts for as long as the spell’s casting time continues and for a number of rounds equal to the level of the spell being cast. Activating a bardic performance ability with Harmonic Spell consumes a number of the bard's daily performance rounds equal to the level of the spell being cast, but does not increase the effective level of the spell being cast.

This will let Ileosa keep up a primary effect (probably Satire or Glorious Epic), but throw up other bardic effects along with her casting. Ileosa, and even her duplicates, have quite a large number of bardic performance rounds/day, so this will also let them get the most out of that ability if the encounter is not particularly stretched out.

I am also curious whether it would make sense to stack repeated effects. For example, if Ileosa casts Irresistible Dance, and combines with the Scandal performance, the performance would last 6 rounds. If she then cast Greater Dispel Magic and wove in another Scandal performance, should I have it extend the stack with any remaining rounds of the original performance, or simply reset it to 5 rounds?

I realize that this is going to create a fair amount of bookkeeping for me, especially with Ileosa _and_ 6 False Ileosas in the final encounter, but I think it has the potential for some fun.

Any thoughts?

So, I am presently playing an elven wizard who has just multi-classed into Pathfinder Savant from Seekers of Secrets. One of the abilities of this class lets them borrow from other spell lists.

Esoteric Magic (Ex): At each class level beyond 1st, the Pathfinder savant chooses a spell from any class’s spell list and thereafter treats it as if it were on the spell list of his base spellcasting classes; if his base class could not normally cast that spell, it is treated as 1 level higher. The spell’s type (arcane or divine) and save DCs function as normal for his base spellcasting class. All other restrictions of his normal spellcasting class apply. This ability does not allow other spellcasters to prepare, cast, or use spell trigger or spell completion items of esoteric spells (such as a sorcerer using a cure light wounds scroll).

This is mostly pretty clear, and I can think of a few spells I might want to take from the other lists (Good Hope for example, may still be worth it as a 4th level wizard spell)

While the ability seems very clear as to spells you could not normally cast, I am curious as to the spells that some classes have access to as lower level spells, but are still on the wizard list (the Summoner has Haste and Slow as 2nd level spells for example).

On one hand, it seems like it might be all right, as I can only choose 6 of these Esoteric spells across 7 levels, but on the other hand, the line 'All other restrictions of his normal spellcasting class apply.' might imply that the standard spell levels of the wizard class might be enforced (eg. I could take Haste, but only as a 3rd level spell, which makes it a poor choice for this limited ability).

I searched, but could not find an appropriate discussion on this ability elsewhere. Any thoughts, precedents, or previous rulings on this?

I took a look in the archives, but I couldn't find another instance of this inquiry.

Is the listing for Thunderburst as an Extraordinary ability correct? All of the other oracle attack revelations seem to be supernatural or spell-like, and Thunderburst certainly seems like a magical effect. The other revelations listed as extraordinary abilities seem to be those that grant feats, vision-related powers, etc.

I`ll start this by stating that I know what my ruling on the matter is, and I am not looking for debate on that subject. I thought I might get some official clarification if possible though, for future reference.

An oracle of wind in my game picked up Spiritual Weapon last session, and was using it tonight. I noticed this in the PRD section for Spiritual Weapon:

It uses your base attack bonus (possibly allowing it multiple attacks per round in subsequent rounds) plus your Wisdom modifier as its attack bonus.

Now, when this was written originally, this was a cleric-only spell, and the cleric did not share their spell list with other classes. I have ruled that she can use her charisma as her relevant casting stat in place of wisdom to add to her Spiritual weapon attacks.

I am curious if this would likely match an official ruling, much the same way Telekinesis is listed:

Combat Maneuver: Alternatively, once per round, you can use telekinesis to perform a bull rush, disarm, grapple (including pin), or trip. Resolve these attempts as normal, except that they don't provoke attacks of opportunity, you use your caster level in place of your Combat Maneuver Bonus, and you add your Intelligence modifier (if a wizard) or Charisma modifier (if a sorcerer) in place of your Strength or Dexterity modifier.

Similarly, if it is ruled to work this way, would it be possible to include standardized phrasing in the PRD and future books where 'your relevant casting stat' or some similar phrase is used in place of specifically listing Int, Wis, or Cha?

Hey folks,

One of my players drew this, and I thought I would share:
http://www.imperialsquid.com/stuff/karz.jpg

To describe the picture, Karzoug has Tiera (our Varisian Wizard/Rogue/Duelist), Valandrie (Paladin of Sarenrae), her horse Kaimar, and her cohort Savitra (cleric of Sarenrae) being bounced about by Karzoug in a Telekinetic Sphere. At the time of the picture, he is about to bounce them into a Prismatic Wall.

Off in the corners are Runa (sorceress) and Ra'qor (shoanti barbarian), who were trapped in Maze spells at that point.

Karzoug did eventually fall to a blow from Chellan, wielded by the paladin after her own scimitar was shattered earlier in the adventure. Overall, a very fun final encounter.

Hey there.

This may have come up in the Alpha forums, but a quick search didn't give me anything on the boards to answer this question. This came up in game today, and likely will again, so I figured I'd double check.

Incorporeal creatures. In 3.5, attacking an incorporeal creature had a 50% miss chance unless it was a force effect or a ghost touch weapon (basically).

In the Pathfinder Beta (pg. 401), Incorporeal is listed as a condition:

"Incorporeal: Having no physical body. Incorporeal
creatures are immune to all nonmagical attack forms.
They can be harmed only by other incorporeal creatures,
+1 or better magic weapons, spells, spell-like effects, or
supernatural effects."

So, no 50% miss chance, but you need a +1 weapon, or magic to hurt an incorporeal creature. Then why does the ghost touch weapon ability still read the same as the 3.5 version, including mentioning that it is not affected by the usual 50% miss chance? Just something mistakenly left over?

I can still see the ability being present, but more to let incorporeal creatures wield such a weapon.

Thoughts?

Greed: Dwarves treat Appraise as a class skill when
attempting to determine the price of nonmagical goods
that contain precious metals and gemstones.

I'm trying to figure out exactly what this means. Near as I can tell, this means that if you _don't_ have Appraise as a class skill, but you _do_ have ranks in it, you get the normal +3 class skill bonus, but only in this specific case.

Is that correct? If so, doesn't that seem a bit...complicated...for a racial ability? My players forget to add every relevant bonus enough as it is. Perhaps just a flat racial bonus?

Hello,

This first came up for me in the following thread in ENWorld:
http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=225589

I don't know if something similar has been suggested for Pathfinder in the previous Alphas' rules threads.

The basic idea is to allow Protection from Energy and Resist Energy to apply to positive and negative energy in addition to acid, cold, electricity, fire and sonic. So in addition to channeling for example, it might apply to cure or inflict spells.

The basic idea that came up when my roommate (a fellow DM) and myself were discussing Pathfinder channeling and the idea that it actually gives clerics who channel negative energy but don't particularly have anything to do with the undead, a fairly large club to use against PCs with no obvious counter or protection.

In addition, it seems like it would offer a few other neat tricks and twists. For example; a necromancer casting one of these spells on some lower level undead. I find a party's first reaction to undead is a turning attempt, so even if the undead flee, they aren't dusted, and the party may assume any opposition is more powerful than it seems. Kind of a nice fake-out, I thought.

In any case, we have recently converted both our campaigns to Pathfinder in hopes of participating in the playtesting feedback. We intend to try out this rule, but as the PCs in one party are 1st level, and in the other they are 4th (with only a 2/2 Fighter/Cleric), it might not come up for a while.

If anyone else feels like giving this a try, I'd love to hear to results. :)