Tower Shield Specialist question

[Murdock Mudeater]

Trying to figure out how this works:

Tower Shield Training (Ex)

Spoiler:

At 3rd level, a tower shield specialist gains armor training as normal, but while he employs a tower shield, the armor penalty is reduced by 3 and the maximum Dexterity bonus allowed by his armor increases by 2. The benefit increases every four levels thereafter as per standard armor training; if the tower shield specialist is not employing a tower shield, the benefits to armor training revert to the normal bonuses.

Okay, only tower shields affect max dex bonus. If I have a tower shield and armor equipped. How is my max dex calculated? More so, how does it interact with either the above feat or normal armor training?

Example, full plate and tower shield. Looking at max dex +1 and max dex +2 respectively. With the above feat, at 7th level, I'm looking at +3 to my dex.

How does this interact with the shield, which, as read it, is not armor...? D we increase the full plate +1 to +4, but then use the tower sheidls +2 because it's lower? Or do we pick the lower of the two and modify that number? Or do we somehow add the two together and then modify?

[Secret Wizard]

Armor Training also reduces the Tower Shield's max Dex, making only the armor's the relevant max Dex.

ACP penalties stack, but you reduce them both by the armor training bonus.

[Murdock Mudeater]

Secret Wizard wrote:

Armor Training also reduces the Tower Shield's max Dex, making only the armor's the relevant max Dex.

ACP penalties stack, but you reduce them both by the armor training bonus.

Thank you so much.

For the record, do know where this is found?

[Secret Wizard]

Shields are listed under armor, so they are armor for Armor Training purposes.

Max Dex is a static restriction, ACP is a cumulative penalty. Just following my reasoning here.

[Spacecase]

I'm still a little confused here. Do the max dex mods stack making the +1 MD(Max Dex) for full plate and the +2 MD for tower shield a grand total of plus three. Or is the MD for both limited by the total allowed by the tower shield's MD of +2 no matter how high the armor goes. My usual GM is saying I can only go by which ever is lower because the shield is a shield and not armor. Maybe I'm over thinking this.

[Secret Wizard]

You are restricted by your lowest Max Dex.

Armor Training DOES increase your Max Dex for your Tower Shield too, so if you are wearing full plate, you work off that +1 MD.

[Spacecase]

Secret Wizard wrote:

You are restricted by your lowest Max Dex.

Armor Training DOES increase your Max Dex for your Tower Shield too, so if you are wearing full plate, you work off that +1 MD.

I think I understand now. The +2 MD(Max Dex) bonus from armor training would make the Shield go from a +2 to +4 and the armor go from +1 to +3. As you said the shield is considered armor for armor training purposes. I just go with the lowest MD of the two, and the ACP(Armor Check Penalty) from both are stacked together and the reduction is taken away from the total of both combined, correct?

[Secret Wizard]

I actually reduce 2 ACP from both the armor and the shield.

[Howie23]

The Max Dex is the lowest of any items that have a max Dex. So if shield is max Dex +4 and armor is +3, the lowest of these is +3, so that is your max Dex. You can gain a maximum of three to your armor due to Dex. max Dex does not affect any other Dex Checks.

ACP stacks. Whatever the modified numbers are with the class ability, add them. Minimum ACP is 0 for each item, so avoid just subtracting at the end.