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"Bit of Luck (Sp): You can touch a willing creature as a standard action, giving it a bit of luck. For the next round, any time the target rolls a d20, he may roll twice and take the more favorable result. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom modifier."
Let's say I use this ability at the start of Round 1. Does this ability function:
1. Only for my Next round?
2. For the remainder of this round, and for my entire next round?
3. Only for the remainder of this round?
If this functions how I think it does... it'll greatly help with Flurry of Blows.
It functions until the beginning of your next turn.
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The normal english meaning of "for the next [time unit]" is that it lasts until exactly one [time unit] has elapsed.
For instance, if it's 2:35pm right now and I tell my wife I'm going to be busy "for the next hour", when would she think I would be done? At the end of this hour (3:00pm)? No. One hour after the end of this hour (4:00pm)? No. She'd expect me to be done one hour after I started: at about 3:35pm.
I don't see anything in the rules to suggest we shouldn't read Bit of Luck in the same normal, obvious manner.
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bit of luck isn't for you. It's for your allies. It's exceptionally useful when someone really needs to make a save, or hit something, or, or, or. But most cleric domain powers aren't really for the cleric.
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As people said above, this domain power is mostly for other people.
Bit of Luck lasts from when you activate it until the start of your next turn, and consumes your standard action. This generally makes it useless for your own attacks, as you won't get any.
There are a few personal ways to use Bit of Luck, but not for what you want.
Option 1: Bit of Luck does apply to your AoOs. So, if you're playing a Cleric who fishes for AoOs (e.g. a Reach Cleric) this domain power is great. Use this ability on yourself, then move into position to scoop up AoOs. Magda frequently does this. Misses become rare, critical hits become common, and you will rarely fail a saving throw.
Option 2: An obscure magic item, the Headband of Fortune's Favor, adds an extra round to the duration of Bit of Luck.
If you can take Quicken Spell-Like Ability then Bit of Luck becomes amazing.
You could also, for example, use it on yourself and then roll twice on an Acrobatics check to move through an opponent's square. Or, use it on yourself and use a quickened spell and roll twice on whatever rolls the spell requires.
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CWheezy, depends on if it is PFS or not. If not then just stick it on an existing headband for +50% cost.
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That magic item takes the beadband slot, so it is total trash. Similar to every other item that takes the headband slot and is not + mental stats
This depends entirely on whether one needs that slot for something else. For example, a Fighter who dips cleric probably doesn't care much about the headband slot, and could get great use out of that item.
I have never seen a fighter use the headband slot for wisdom. Intelligence? Sometimes, but never wisdom. It is just too expensive for what amounts to just a Will save bump and bumping Perception by +5 is cheaper elsewhere.
CWheezy, please try not to take my statements out of context. I said "too expensive for what amounts to just a Will save bump".
There are cheaper ways to achieve Will save bumps.
The word "just" in this case is not indicative of the importance of Will saves. It is indicative of what does the price tag for the magic item get you. A Headband of Wisdom does exactly two things for a (standard) fighter.
1) It raises Will saves. This can be accomplished cheaper using other means.
2) It raises wisdom based skills. This is primarily helpful for raising Perception which, again, can be accomplished cheaper using other means.
Spending 4k, 16k, or 36k for a limited effect when there are other, better ways to do the same thing is not something I regularly see fighters doing. If you are doing that then you are sacrificing other benefits that would probably be more effective.
BTW, I think you are exaggerating the 'save or die' element of Will saves. They are more often 'save or suck' or 'save or do nothing' at which point your party can help you deal with it.
Regarding Int, I said that sometimes I have seen Fighters take a headband for Int. I did not say it was advisable. Again, please do not take my statements out of context.
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Bit of Luck is amazing for things making lots of attacks in a round. Plop it on your archer and watch bad guys wilt away in a hail of arrows that essentially double their chances of hitting.It doesn't even come close to doubling their chance of hitting. And, as a byproduct of the way math works, Bit of Luck gets worse the better your chance of hitting becomes.
That doesn't make any sense to me.
Your rolls are based off of the D20. This allows you to roll Every D20 for that turn, and take the better result. You then add that roll to your other bonuses. How would this "get worse"? Just think of all the things this applies to... Saves, Abilities like Snake Fang when attacking, or Snake Style and rolling Sense Motive as your new AC... etc.
Also, thank you for the total cost. That's fairly expensive, but very tempting.
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Bit of Luck is amazing for things making lots of attacks in a round. Plop it on your archer and watch bad guys wilt away in a hail of arrows that essentially double their chances of hitting.It doesn't even come close to doubling their chance of hitting. And, as a byproduct of the way math works, Bit of Luck gets worse the better your chance of hitting becomes.That doesn't make any sense to me.
Your rolls are based off of the D20. This allows you to roll Every D20 for that turn, and take the better result. You then add that roll to your other bonuses. How would this "get worse"? Just think of all the things this applies to... Saves, Abilities like Snake Fang when attacking, or Snake Style and rolling Sense Motive as your new AC... etc.
Also, thank you for the total cost. That's fairly expensive, but very tempting.
He didn't mean "worse than not having Bit of Luck", he meant "provides less benefit than it does when you have a lower bonus". That is, Bit of Luck makes a much bigger difference for someone who needs a natural 14 than it does for someone who needs a natural 3.
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He didn't mean "worse than not having Bit of Luck", he meant "provides less benefit than it does when you have a lower bonus". That is, Bit of Luck makes a much bigger difference for someone who needs a natural 14 than it does for someone who needs a natural 3.Bit of Luck is amazing for things making lots of attacks in a round. Plop it on your archer and watch bad guys wilt away in a hail of arrows that essentially double their chances of hitting.It doesn't even come close to doubling their chance of hitting. And, as a byproduct of the way math works, Bit of Luck gets worse the better your chance of hitting becomes.That doesn't make any sense to me.
Your rolls are based off of the D20. This allows you to roll Every D20 for that turn, and take the better result. You then add that roll to your other bonuses. How would this "get worse"? Just think of all the things this applies to... Saves, Abilities like Snake Fang when attacking, or Snake Style and rolling Sense Motive as your new AC... etc.
Also, thank you for the total cost. That's fairly expensive, but very tempting.
Aaahh. That makes much more sense! Thank you.
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Yes, thanks for the clarification, Jiggy. To demonstrate what I was talking about, let's look at 2 different characters.
Joe the Mighty Barbarian has an attack sequence of +20/+15/+10.
Schmoe the Weakling Rogue has an attack sequence of +15/+10/+5.
Clyde the Cleric decides he's going to use Bit of Luck on each of them in consecutive rounds, and each of them will attack a creature with 25 AC.For Joe's round of luck, his chances of hitting with each attack are: 96%/84%/64%
And for his round without luck, his chances of hitting with each attack are: 80%/60%/40%For Schmoe's round of luck, his chances of hitting with each attack are: 84%/64%/36%
And for his round without luck, his chances of hitting with each attack are: 60%/40%/20%
So that might actually be a wise choice for a Monk/Cleric then...
Charm Person/Dominate Person has a massive achilles heal...PFE. I am almost never worried about control spells as a result of that. They are just too easy to stop. At most it is a 1 round effect until someone can cast PFE on the subject.
Color Spray is only a useful spell for the levels when you could not reasonably purchase a Headband of Wisdom anyhow.
Feeblemind on a Fighter...ok sure. How does that stop him from being a killing machine? Heck, it is only a problem for 2 levels (9th and 10th level, at 11th level the Cleric has Heal).
Yes, there are a few spells out there that hitting a fighter out there with them could really be a hindrance but I have never found them to really warrant wasting gold on a Headband of Wisdom. There are often other ways to deal with them (such as the party spellcaster dispelling the effect).
Is the any time from this ability meant to be any one time or is it every time? In other words can the target reroll all the D20 rolls or just one?
I would read it as any one time.
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Is the any time from this ability meant to be any one time or is it every time? In other words can the target reroll all the D20 rolls or just one?
I would read it as any one time.
I don't see how it can be interpreted that way. It clearly says "any time the target rolls a d20". It doesn't say "the next time the target rolls a d20" or "any one time the target rolls a d20".
Because it doesn't say every time. I thought that was a difference. But I was not sure so I asked.
Edit: I suspected the same difference like with anyone and everyone.
Because it doesn't say every time. I thought that was a difference. But I was not sure so I asked.
Edit: I suspected the same difference like with anyone and everyone.
"Anyone" and "everyone" can still refer to multiple people; one is just non-specific.
"Any D20 roll" just means any rolls you make with the specified criteria, but there might not be any at all. In the context of "any roll in the next turn" and "every roll during the next turn", these two terms are essentially equivalent. It's entirely possible that they started with "every" and needed to copy fit the text, so they changed it to "any".
If it said "Any D20 roll you choose in the next turn", that would mean a single roll that occurs during the next turn, and you choose which roll. In those cases, though, they usually use some form of "a single d20 roll" and "this roll must occur before the start of your next turn."
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When under the effects of Bit of Luck the recipient must always roll each d20 twice and take the most favorable result.
Example: Magda intends to run a short gauntlet of three foes. She uses Bit of Luck on self (Standard Action), then moves. She uses acrobatics several times to attempt to evade AoOs. Each d20 roll for acrobatics is rolled twice. Not surprisingly she makes all the rolls. Magda clears the gauntlet and sets up to get AoOs, then ends her turn. During enemy turns Magda must make a saving throw, so she rolls twice and takes the best roll. Unsurprisingly, she makes the save. Now three enemies move up to attack her, each provoking an AoO. She rolls each AoO d20 twice, taking the best results. Two are just regular hits, but the third threatens a critical. She rolls the critical confirmation d20 twice, confirming a critical hit. Damage is rolled normally, since damage dice are not d20. The effect ends at the start of her next turn. Magda rolled d20 sixteen times for 8 events. Thats 3 Acrobatics rolls, 1 save, 3 AoO attacks, and 1 critical confirmation, each rolled twice.
The above represents effective use of Bit of Luck, taken from an actual game session. One GM called that sort of action a 'Matrix move'.
OK, thanks for the clarification.
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OK, thanks for the clarification.
I am using bit of luick intonights campaign which as a barbarian i can use six times per day. originally since i am hasted and have 5att per round i thought i would be using up 5 of my six times per day in my initial attack. but understanding what you are saying is with one casting i can withstand a hundred d20s as long as they all come before the end of the round. So what does the six times per day refer to? The number of times i can use it (it is a spell like ability)
"Bit of Luck (Sp): You can touch a willing creature as a standard action, giving it a bit of luck. For the next round, any time the target rolls a d20, he may roll twice and take the more favorable result. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom modifier."
Now i plan to move first then cast BOL. but either way the effects take place on the next round. so if i do this on round 1 then the effects take place on round two and last till round 2 is over thereby allowing me to make my attacks. is this correct? its all about the next round terminology
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@ancientdm : Sounds like you are a bit confused about Bit of Luck. Bit of Luck requires a Standard Action to use, it takes effect immediately, and runs out at the start of your next turn. That means it's nearly pointless to use on yourself: after using it you have no actions remaining with which to attack.
If you can use Bit Of Luck six times per day (as with a 16 Wisdom) that means you can activate the ability, as a Standard Action, six times per day.
Generally, you use Bit of Luck on someone else, thus giving up your Standard Action in the hope someone else makes good use of their turn. It's not a very useful ability for a Barbarian. Instead, the Barbarian's small, wimpy friend should use it on the Barbarian. It's really only useful on self if you expect to get a lot of AoOs.
Did that answer your questions?
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@ancientdm : Sounds like you are a bit confused about Bit of Luck. Bit of Luck requires a Standard Action to use, it takes effect immediately, and runs out at the start of your next turn. That means it's nearly pointless to use on yourself: after using it you have no actions remaining with which to attack.You're mistaken. Bit of Luck works is in effect for the next round. In a round all creatures have a chance to take a turn. So you'd gain the effect when the next round starts and it lasts 'till that round ends.
Effects that last a certain number of rounds end just before the same initiative count that they began on.
Unless you want to argue that "for the next round" doesn't count as lasting a certain number of rounds...?
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You're mistaken. Bit of Luck works is in effect for the next round. In a round all creatures have a chance to take a turn. So you'd gain the effect when the next round starts and it lasts 'till that round ends.
I wish it worked as you seem to think it does: Magda's Luckbending ability would be that much better. Sadly, it is not so.
Yes, as you say, Bit of Luck is in effect for the next round from when you activate it. That means it ends at the start of your next turn.
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thank you for helping me to figure this out everything seems to be defined on what next round means. I did not get the answer in time for my game session so i presented it to the DM and the group. They as a whole body chose to define next round as the round after my usage of the ability. So when i use the ability say in round 3 of combat i do not get the extra d20 rolls until the start of round 4 and it lasts until the 1st segment of round 5. I have just leveled up and chose quicken special ability which makes everything moot. The reason i chose this for myself isa house rule goes that if you roll a natural 1 on your d20 as an attack regardless of the number of attacks still available you lose any attacks you have left because of a fumble. so if you have 5 attacks and you roll a 1 on the first one then you lose the other four. By using Bit o luck it is nearly impossible for me to roll a 1 unless i roll double 1's. so the odds are in my favor i wont lose any attacks.
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You're mistaken. Bit of Luck works is in effect for the next round. In a round all creatures have a chance to take a turn. So you'd gain the effect when the next round starts and it lasts 'till that round ends.I wish it worked as you seem to think it does: Magda's Luckbending ability would be that much better. Sadly, it is not so.
Yes, as you say, Bit of Luck is in effect for the next round from when you activate it. That means it ends at the start of your next turn.
Jiggys definition is the one the group decided on but thank you both for covering different aspects of the same rule.
Bit of luck is absolutely horrifying if your ally has a vorpal weapon and also that auto-crit-confirm rage power..
Also helpful if your ally is doing some kind of special attack (e.g. a combat maneuver, stunning fist, etc).