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So, I've gotten into various discussions over the years on proficiency with weapons, and how feats intended to grant proficiency, don't. I will admit this post is made in response to the discussion over Cao Phan's "rock throwing build" current you ongoing in the "Throwing builds are practically impossible" thread. So I do have an agenda in doing this, and that is to get clarification over what constitutes proficiency with weapons in Pathfinder. But also to prove I'm right, as egotistical as that is.
Simple Weapon Profciency:
You are trained in the use of basic weapons.
Benefit: You make attack rolls with simple weapons without penalty.
Normal: When using a weapon with which you are not proficient, you take a –4 penalty on attack rolls.
Special: All characters except for druids, monks, and wizards are automatically proficient with all simple weapons. They need not select this feat.
Martial Weapon Proficiency:
Choose a type of martial weapon. You understand how to use that type of martial weapon in combat.
Benefit: You make attack rolls with the selected weapon normally (without the non-proficient penalty).
Normal: When using a weapon with which you are not proficient, you take a –4 penalty on attack rolls.
Special: Barbarians, fighters, paladins, and rangers are proficient with all martial weapons. They need not select this feat.
You can gain Martial Weapon Proficiency multiple times. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new type of weapon.
Exotic Weapon Proficiency:
hoose one type of exotic weapon, such as the spiked chain or whip. You understand how to use that type of exotic weapon in combat, and can utilize any special tricks or qualities that exotic weapon might allow.
Prerequisite: Base attack bonus +1.
Benefit: You make attack rolls with the weapon normally.
Normal: A character who uses a weapon with which he is not proficient takes a –4 penalty on attack rolls.
Special: You can gain Exotic Weapon Proficiency multiple times. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new type of exotic weapon.
Catch-Off Guard:
Foes are surprised by your skilled use of unorthodox and improvised weapons.
Benefit: You do not suffer any penalties for using an improvised melee weapon. Unarmed opponents are flat-footed against any attacks you make with an improvised melee weapon.
Normal: You take a –4 penalty on attack rolls made with an improvised weapon.
Throw Anything:
You are used to throwing things you have on hand.
Benefit: You do not suffer any penalties for using an improvised ranged weapon. You receive a +1 circumstance bonus on attack rolls made with thrown splash weapons.
Normal: You take a –4 penalty on attack rolls made with an improvised weapon
Universal Monster Ability: Rock Throwing:
This creature is an accomplished rock thrower and has a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls with thrown rocks. A creature can hurl rocks up to two categories smaller than its size; for example, a Large hill giant can hurl Small rocks. A “rock” is any large, bulky, and relatively regularly shaped object made of any material with a hardness of at least 5. The creature can hurl the rock up to five range increments. The size of the range increment varies with the creature. Damage from a thrown rock is generally twice the creature’s base slam damage plus 1-1/2 times its Strength bonus.
Oracle Stone Mystery Revelation: Rock Throwing:
Rock Throwing (Ex): You are an accomplished rock thrower and have a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls with thrown rocks. You can hurl rocks up to two categories smaller than your own size. The range increment for a rock is 20 feet, and you can hurl it up to 5 range increments. Damage for a hurled rock is 2d4 for a Medium creature or 2d3 for a Small creature, plus 1-1/2 your Strength bonus.
Rough and Ready:
Your intense familiarity with the tools of your trade allows you to use them in combat as if they were actual weapons and makes them more effective for that purpose than they would normally be.
Benefit: When you use a tool of your trade (requiring at least 1 rank in the appropriate Craft or Profession skill) as a weapon, you do not take the improvised weapon penalty and instead receive a +1 trait bonus on your attack. This trait is commonly used with shovels, picks, blacksmith hammers, and other sturdy tools — lutes and brooms make terribly fragile weapons.
Weapon Focus:
Choose one type of weapon. You can also choose unarmed strike or grapple (or ray, if you are a spellcaster) as your weapon for the purposes of this feat.
Prerequisites: Proficiency with selected weapon, base attack bonus +1.
Benefit: You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls you make using the selected weapon.
Special: You can gain this feat multiple times. Its effects do not stack. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new type of weapon.
To keep post size down, I put the above examples of feats, traits and abilities in spoilers.
So, as you can see, many of the proficiency feats have nearly identical language: they all let you attack normally, but never actually state you become "proficient" with the weapon. The improvised feats state you don't take the improvised penalty, but don't state you become proficient; Rough and Ready has similar language. The Rock Throwing abilities don't have language about attacking normally or not taking penalties, but claim you are an accomplished rock thrower. It is also worth noting that many giants and creatures with rock throwing also possess the feat Weapon Focus (rock); a feat that explicitly requires proficiency with the weapon to take.
Now, the Rules As Written here is pretty clear: you aren't proficient with the selected weapon or weapons with any of the above examples. But I believe the intended function of the abilities is to grant proficiency.
So the question is, what makes someone proficient in a weapon?
Do they need an ability, such as a feat or class feature to explicitly call out proficiency to become proficient?
Or would one of the above abilities grant proficiency, despite not having such language saying so?
Is this FAQ worthy?
If abilities such as Rock Throwing don't grant proficiency, then how do monsters with said abilities take Weapon Focus (rock) as a feat?
I got to watching the Primitive Technology channel on YouTue (again) and I found myself wondering how one would run a primitive campaign. For example, with far more restricted magic, and classes and weapons etc.
So, how would you do it? What would you restrict? Would you use any homebrewed or 3rd party classes/material?
Personally, my thoughts lead me to restrict many classes from the game. For example, say, Ranger, Barbarian and Kineticist might fit well into a more primitive campaign, while restricting access to pretty much all of the caster classes. One half-thought idea for those who really want magic, is that the only spell list/progresson available, is from the Adept class. So you can play an Oracle, or Wizard, or Magus, but you use the Adept spell list. Bloodlines or Domains or other class features that add bonus spells can draw from the original spell list, but otherwise, you only have access to the Adept spells.
I've kicked around the idea of a dragon slayer archetype (as inspired by Natsu from Fairy Tail) pretty much since the playtest. But I'm a procrastinator so I kept putting off writing it. I decided it was long enough, and people have enough experience with the class now to spot any issues I myself would miss.
I went through multiple different ideas of how one could eat elemental energy to fuel the kineticist without being terribly broken, but I could never settle on anything. I'm pretty confident in the method I came up with, but I'd still appreciate any input, criticisms or concerns on the class.
I was digging around in some of my old, forgotten folders, clearing out junk when I came across a class I'd written that was originally inspired by the Sword Art Online light novels. During the creation, I started drawing inspiration from many other sources for abilities, but the core of it is inspired by SAO.
Anyway, I thought I'd share my 2nd draft and see if anyone had any thoughts or critiques about it, or any ideas to further add to it. I do have some concerns about the class, namely that it might outperform most martial classes. That and, because I've only got a handful of abilities for the class, any potential build for it comes off as fairly cookie cutter. Hopefully, time, editing and balancing will solve those problems though!
Hmmm... sounds good. Playing in an evil campaign myself, could always use some inspiration. Definitely interested in any tips for fighting Ghaele Azata though, I suspect my GM may throw one at us after I talked up how OP it is.
Let's say I'm a Bloodrager using the longarm spell, Lunge feat, while also under the effects of enlarge person and wielding a reach weapon. With the two spells and Lunge, I have a 20 ft. reach, and reach weapons double my reach, so I have a total of a 40 ft. reach. (I may be wrong on calculating my reach, but that's not a big factor in the point of this post)
Now, I've also taken Improved Unarmed Strike, Wolf Style and Wolf Trip as feats.
Wolf Trip wrote:
Benefit: You gain a +2 bonus on all combat maneuver checks to trip as part of an attack of opportunity. While using Wolf Style, whenever you successfully trip a creature, as a free action you may choose an available square adjacent to you for the tripped creature to land prone in.
Emphasis mine. So, with my 40 ft. reach, I could trip someone 40 ft. away from me, and then, because of Wolf Trip, move them adjacent to myself, potentially into the waiting arms of my companions to bludgeon to death. Is this correct? In fact, I could even move then behind me, or off a cliff, or into a pool of lava etc. as long as the square is adjacent, right?
There are a number of 'gish' type characters in the game, some pull it off better than others, such as the Magus, Bard, Paladin, or Druid. However, they can all, pretty much, be split into three categories Full Bab 4th level casting, 3/4 BAB 6th level casting, and 3/4th BAB 9th level casting. They can further be divided between two sub-categories Str based and Dex based.
My question is, what do you guys expect a for these type of characters to have in their primary physical and primary mental stat at levels 5, 10, 15, and 20?
I'm curious to see where the forum sees the average stat spread is for these types of characters.
I only recently began playing Minecraft (mostly so my nephew can play it when he visits me) and on the Xbox One at that. But I thought it might be fun to build Castle Scarwall in Minecraft, and, maybe, even other parts of Curse of the Crimson Throne.
This is the result of about 3 - 4 hours of dedicated work. A not insignificant amount of that time was spent just landscaping to get the room for what I've built so far. I'm sure this would be easier on the PC version, but...
Anyway, here is quick video of a brief fly-over and partial walkthrough of a few areas in what I've built so far.
As the build progresses, I'll try and upload more videos of it. I don't know how often I'll work on it, but the castle is currently the focus of my free time so... who knows?
41 people marked this as FAQ candidate. Answered in the FAQ.
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Magic Weapons wrote:
Ranged Weapons and Ammunition: The enhancement bonus from a ranged weapon does not stack with the enhancement bonus from ammunition. Only the higher of the two enhancement bonuses applies. Ammunition fired from a projectile weapon with an enhancement bonus of +1 or higher is treated as a magic weapon for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.Similarly, ammunition fired from a projectile weapon with an alignment gains the alignment of that projectile weapon.
This is the only rules text that really interacts with ranged weapons and ammunition.
It points out that ammunition fired from a projectile weapon with a +1 enhancement bonus is treated as magic for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. Then it goes further on to indicate that a weapon with an alignment, conveys that alignment to the ammunition.
If it's assumed that projectile weapons convey their properties to the ammunition, then the second line is meaningless. But if the weapon doesn't convey the properties to the ammunition, then the second line serves a purpose.
This is a really important question, because the first line I emphasized only states ammunition is treated as magic but it doesn't state that they gain the ability to penetrate DR as if it also had the same enhancement bonus as the weapon used.
So this would mean an arrow fired from a +5 longbow will penetrate DR/piercing, DR/magic, and it will affect incorporeal creatures, but it won't penetrate damage reduction based off cold iron, silver, adamantine, or good/evil/lawful/chaotic.
This would mean that in order for an archer, or gunslinger, or crossbowmen etc, to penetrate damage reduction, they can't just have a magical weapon, they are also required to carry around magical ammunition with an enhancement bonus as well.
[Edit] I feel this is an important question that should probably get some designer input as it could have very large consequences for the ranged weapon users everywhere. So please, click the FAQ button unless you've got irrefutable proof that answers the question in a definitive manner.
The idea, is that outside of combat, you would use the coup de grace mechanic, which is an automatic critical, to amplify the healing of cure/inflict spells (if you get healed by negative energy that is).
RAW wise, this seems to work perfectly, the only slight hurdle is the Fort save or die aspect. But even then, one could argue that since it's a "DC 10 plus damage dealt" for the saving throw, you would add a negative modifier as you are healing damage.
So if you coup de grace with a cure light wounds wand, you'd heal 2d8+2 for an average of 11 hp, meaning the DC would 10 - 11 = -1 (or 0).
I mean, fluff wise, you could make it work as you are focusing the healing on the wounds itself, whereas in battle, it's too chaotic to focus the magic. So I'm curious as to people's thoughts on this. Would you let cure/inflict wounds work to amplify healing? Would you enforce the save or die aspect of the coup de grace?
Art is subjective, and all, and I don't mean any offense to the folks involved, but the illustrations of this character we have published have been among my absolute least favorite renditions of any character in a Pathfinder book.
So unless we had some reason to re-illustrate her, and unless that illustration took a decidedly different approach than "cute girl in a razor-blade catsuit," there is a precisely 0% chance that I would want to make a mini of her.
My first character I ever really played in a tabletop RPG was a female half-orc ranger nearly about 12 years ago. She was built in 3.0 and, over the years, got updated to 3.5 and then Pathfinder. This character is 16th, almost 17th level, and recently, after a tumble with a half-orc Bard going by the name of Carlos, Man of Love, my Portia found herself pregnant.
I'm wondering how I should run this? Has anyone else played a character that got pregnant before? What did you do? Should I retire her?
Further more, how should I roleplay this as a male playing a female character? I should also add, that Portia's sense of identity is already a little... loose, as she spent a few years of her life as a man, due to a cursed belt that was mis-identified by the arcane casters. Should this time as a man have an significant impact on her pregnancy?
GM's how have you handled PC pregnancy? Did you kind of ignore the issue and hand waive it? Did you impose any mechanical penalties?
Do size changing spells and effects provide all of the bonuses for changing size (+ or - Dex/Str, reach/lack of reach, +/- to CMB/CMD, +/- to skills) or do they only provide the bonuses mentioned in the spell or effect?
I know it's often been assumed that they grant the additional bonuses, but I'm beginning to wonder if, in fact, they do or don't. Mainly because Pathfinder is a permissive system. It tells you what you get, not what you don't get. The rules on size changing are pretty clear, but, at the same time, spells tend to grant only what the spell says it grants.
I have decided that I will no longer accept Paizo's errata except on a case by case basis. There is so much swing-and-a-miss stuff with the errata these days, that I can't trust Paizo to do it correctly anymore.
It feels like I have to go through books with highlighters and markers to cross stuff out that is stupid or doesn't make sense these days.
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When the spell ends with an enemy trapped inside it, what happens to the enemy?
I see this question pop up often enough that I think it's something that should be answered in the FAQ. Logically, this could be a 2-spell instant win combo, or it might be completely useless depending on how the GM rules it. But for the sake of PFS and others, it's something that should be addressed.
I ask this, because I constantly hear about people complaining with phrases like, "There's nothing to watch," or "Nothing's on Netflix," or "When will Hulu get new stuff?"
People who torrent stuff have an even wider selection to choose from, and yet they frequently suffer from having too many choices as well.
Is it possible that just the sheer number of choices robs us of any desire to watch stuff we would normally appreciate?
I remember when I was younger, I would check TV Guide all the time to find out what movies were showing on and when. We would eagerly anticipate when a movie would start playing would sit down to watch it. Now days, with the number of choices we have available, everyone seems to just scroll through listings, unable to find anything to pique there interest. Do you think it's because the availability has lessened the desire to watch movies and shows?
When a new episode of a show is merely a click of the button away, is there any pressure to sit down and enjoy it now, instead of at a later time when it's more convenient? It seems like the more choices people have available to them to watch, the less time they spend watching something, and the more time they spend deciding on what to watch.
Could it be that, companies like Netflix might very well have been the worst thing for us as a consumer?
Kung Fury is a kung-fu renegade cop who must travel back in time to defeat the worst criminal of all time: Adolf Hitler, A.K.A. "Kung Furher". With the help of his allies like Hackerman, Triceracop, and Barbariana will Kung Fury be able to take on the death army of Hitler and make it back to his own time?
Sorcerer: Do the bonuses granted from Bloodline Arcana apply to all of the spells cast by the sorcerer, or just those cast from the sorcerer's spell list?
The Bloodline Arcana powers apply to all of the spells cast by characters of that bloodline, not just those cast using the sorcerer's spell slots.
General rule: If a class ability modifies your spellcasting, it applies to your spells from all classes, not just spells from the class that grants the ability. (The exception is if the class ability specifically says it only applies to spells from that class.)
Wizards who select a bonded object begin play with one at no cost. Objects that are the subject of an arcane bond must fall into one of the following categories: amulet, ring, staff, wand, or weapon. These objects are always masterwork quality. Weapons acquired at 1st level are not made of any special material. If the object is an amulet or ring, it must be worn to have effect, while staves, wands, and weapons must be held in one hand. If a wizard attempts to cast a spell without his bonded object worn or in hand, he must make a concentration check or lose the spell. The DC for this check is equal to 20 + the spell's level. If the object is a ring or amulet, it occupies the ring or neck slot accordingly.
A bonded object can be used once per day to cast any one spell that the wizard has in his spellbook and is capable of casting, even if the spell is not prepared. This spell is treated like any other spell cast by the wizard, including casting time, duration, and other effects dependent on the wizard's level. This spell cannot be modified by metamagic feats or other abilities. The bonded object cannot be used to cast spells from the wizard's opposition schools (see arcane school below).
A wizard can add additional magic abilities to his bonded object as if he has the required Item Creation Feats and if he meets the level prerequisites of the feat. For example, a wizard with a bonded dagger must be at least 5th level to add magic abilities to the dagger (see Craft Magic Arms and Armor feat). If the bonded object is a wand, it loses its wand abilities when its last charge is consumed, but it is not destroyed and it retains all of its bonded object properties and can be used to craft a new wand. The magic properties of a bonded object, including any magic abilities added to the object, only function for the wizard who owns it. If a bonded object's owner dies, or the item is replaced, the object reverts to being an ordinary masterwork item of the appropriate type.
If a bonded object is damaged, it is restored to full hit points the next time the wizard prepares his spells. If the object of an arcane bond is lost or destroyed, it can be replaced after 1 week in a special ritual that costs 200 gp per wizard level plus the cost of the masterwork item. This ritual takes 8 hours to complete. Items replaced in this way do not possess any of the additional enchantments of the previous bonded item. A wizard can designate an existing magic item as his bonded item. This functions in the same way as replacing a lost or destroyed item except that the new magic item retains its abilities while gaining the benefits and drawbacks of becoming a bonded item.
The Bonded Item text above is the full text, but I'll quote the relevant bits below.
Bonded Item wrote:
If the object is an amulet or ring, it must be worn to have effect, while staves, wands, and weapons must be held in one hand. If a wizard attempts to cast a spell without his bonded object worn or in hand, he must make a concentration check or lose the spell. The DC for this check is equal to 20 + the spell's level. If the object is a ring or amulet, it occupies the ring or neck slot accordingly.
Emphasis mine.
Now, by my reading, the Bonded Item doesn't specifically limit it to the Wizard class spells, it just mentions anytime he casts a spell. Based off the general rule outlined in the FAQ above, this would mean it applies to all spellcasting.
For the FAQ:
If a Wizard that multiclasses into another spellcasting class attempts to cast a spell from the second class without his bonded item, does he have to make a concentration check to do so? For example, a Wizard/Cleric/Mystic Theurge, does he need his bonded item to cast spells from his Cleric levels without a concentration check as outlined in the Wizard's Arcane Bond class feature?
A good point was brought up in the Sound Striker FAQ thread by Neume; namely, that the Sound Striker's Weird Words are not considered weapons and, therefore, don't benefit from feats or effects like Point Blank Shot or Precise Shot which specifically apply to ranged weapon attack rolls.
Inspire Courage is in the clear as it specifies "attack and weapon damage rolls". Because of the phrasing, 'attack rolls' are classified differently than 'damage rolls' or it would have been worded "weapon attack and damage rolls" instead.
However, Neume's comment brings up a good point, that being that 'ranged attack rolls' and 'ranged weapons attack rolls' are technically different.
Now, a ray is specifically called out as being a weapon for the purposes of feats and effects that specify as such, like the feat Weapon Focus, or Improved Critical. Therefor, spells or abilities that are classified as 'rays' aren't at jeopardy.
However, Occult Adventures is coming with a new class that is all about the ranged attack rolls: the Kineticist. True, we don't have the final print form of the Kineticist before us, but we do have the playtest.
This is what the Kineticist's 'Kinetic Blast' ability has to say about the blast itself:
At 1st level, a kineticist chooses one of her element’s simple blast wild talents. The kineticist can unleash her kinetic blast at a range of 30 feet at will. A kinetic blast requires at least one hand free to aim the blast. All damage from a kinetic blast is treated as magic for the purpose of bypassing damage reduction.
By using wild talents called infusions, a kineticist can alter her kinetic blast to suit her whims. Substance infusions alter a kinetic blast’s inner nature to cause an additional effect, while form infusions change the outer nature of the blast, causing it to manifest in a completely different way. You can use any of the blast wild talents you know in conjunction with no more than one associated form infusion and no more than one associated substance infusion at a time.
Notice it doesn't specify what kind of ranged attack the Kinetic Blast is. That would be because the Kineticist can opt to use a ranged attack that targets Touch AC, or normal AC, depending on her elemental leaning. I will quote what each element offers for an attack and any pertinent information.
Kinetic Elements wrote:
Aether - Telekinetic Blast "You throw whatever unattended object happens to be nearby at a single foe as a ranged attack."
Air - Air Blast: "You batter a single foe with a gust of air as a ranged attack.
Air - Electric Blast: " You shoot an arc of electricity to shock a single foe as a ranged touch attack."
Earth - Earth Blast: " You shape earth into clumps or jagged shards and send it flying at a foe as a ranged attack."
Fire: " You unleash a gout of flickering fire to burn a single foe as a ranged touch attack."
Water - Cold Blast: " You emit a beam of utter cold to freeze a single foe as a ranged touch attack."
Water - Water Blast: "You slam a single foe with a stream of
water as a ranged attack."
So all of the Kineticist's blasts are right 'ranged attacks' or 'ranged tough attacks'. None of them are 'ranged weapon attacks' or 'rays'. This means that the Kineticist may be able to take Point Blank Shot and Precise Shot, but the Kineticist is unable to use them with his Kinetic Blast, because they don't qualify. So a class that is built entirely around the idea of blasting people with ranged attacks... forever has to eat the -4 penalty for shooting into melee.
Sure, some of them target touch AC, but some of them don't.
But it's not just the Kineticst who suffers from this distinction. Sound Striker bards do as well, with their Weird Words ability. So do any casters that use a 'ranged attack' roll or 'ranged touch attack' roll with their spells.
So, the FAQrrata I ask:
Should 'ranged attacks' and 'ranged touch attacks' be classified as weapons for the purpose of feats or effect like Point Blank Shot or Precise Shot?
This is one that may take some time to answer as it could have non-immediate side effects down the line. But! It's a question that should be answered before the Kineticist makes it to print, or at least, shortly after.
However, it might just be easier to errata PBS and PS to change their wording from from specifying 'ranged weapons' to just 'ranged attacks', which should allow for the Kineticist and other non-weapon ranged attackers (like the Sound Striker bard or casters) to benefit from said feats.
I've been wondering about the possibility of a MurderHobo NPC and the idea of giving him a code to follow, but one that keeps in line with the idea of the MurderHobo. Then, I remembered a webcomic called Schlock Mercenary that I'm a fan of (but have fallen waaaaa behind on). In the comic there is the concept of the Seventy Maxims of Maximally Effective Mercenaries. After re-reading it, I realized, it's basically a code on how to be the ultimate MurderHobo. There are some rules that don't fit well (because a MurderHobo probably isn't part of a private army), but, over all, I think this could be the start of an adaptation to a real Code of the MurderHobo.
Which ones do you guys are the most appropriate for a MurderHobo?
Are there any other rules a MurderHobo should follow?
Thoughts?
[Edit] Forgot to include the Maxims in a spoiler :D
Seventy Maxims of Maximally Effective Mercenaries:
1. Pillage, then burn.
2. A Sergeant in motion outranks a Lieutenant who doesn't know what's going on.
3. An ordnance technician at a dead run outranks everybody.
4. Close air support covereth a multitude of sins.
5. Close air support and friendly fire should be easier to tell apart.
6. If violence wasn’t your last resort, you failed to resort to enough of it.
7. If the food is good enough, the grunts will stop complaining about the incoming fire.
8. Mockery and derision have their place. Usually, it's on the far side of the airlock.
9. Never turn your back on an enemy.
10. Sometimes the only way out is through. . . through the hull.
11. Everything is air-droppable at least once.
12. A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head.
13. Do unto others.
14. "Mad Science" means never stopping to ask "what's the worst thing that could happen?"
15. Only you can prevent friendly fire.
16. Your name is in the mouth of others: be sure it has teeth.
17. The longer everything goes according to plan, the bigger the impending disaster.
18. If the officers are leading from in front, watch out for an attack from the rear.
19. The world is richer when you turn enemies into friends, but that's not the same as you being richer.
20. If you're not willing to shell your own position, you're not willing to win.
21. Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Take his fish away and tell him he's lucky just to be alive, and he'll figure out how to catch another one for you to take tomorrow.
22. If you can see the whites of their eyes, somebody's done something wrong.
23. The company mess and friendly fire should be easier to tell apart.
24. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a big gun.
25. If the damage you do is covered by a manufacturers warranty, you didn't do enough damage.
27. Don't be afraid to be the first to resort to violence.
28. If the price of collateral damage is high enough, you might be able to get paid for bringing ammunition home with you.
29. The enemy of my enemy is my enemy's enemy. No more. No less.
30. A little trust goes a long way. The less you use, the further you'll go.
31. Only cheaters prosper.
32. Anything is amphibious if you can get it back out of the water.
33. If you're leaving tracks, you're being followed.
34. If you’re leaving scorch-marks, you need a bigger gun.
35. That which does not kill you has made a tactical error.
36. When the going gets tough, the tough call for close air support.
37. There is no 'overkill.' There is only 'open fire' and 'I need to reload.'
38. Just because it's easy for you doesn't mean it can't be hard on your clients.
39. There is a difference between spare parts and extra [parts]
40. Not all good news is enemy action.
41. “Do you have a backup?” means “I can’t fix this.”
44. If it will blow a hole in the ground, it will double as an entrenching tool.
47. Don't expect the enemy to cooperate in the creation of your dream engagement.
51. Let them see you sharpen the sword before you fall on it.
I'm working on the idea for a game world in which some of the exploits casters can do, are actually part of the assumed normality of the world.
I got the idea from the Tippyverse style campaign setting.
However, I need a list of exploits that casters can use from the Core Rulebook. I will be operating under the idea that material from the Core Rule Book is, essentially, pretty common, relatively at least, anyway. For example, the spells available to Wizards in the Core Rule Book will be ones that nearly every caster has heard about, but ones from Ultimate Magic? Not so much.
This doesn't necessarily have to be only spells either, magical items can be on this list as well.
Some examples I'm thinking of are as follows:
Simulacrum of creatures for easy access to spells or powers (such as an Efreet for free wishes).
Using trap mechanics for different spells (trap that casts Create Food and Water, trap that casts Remove Disease, trap that casts Cure Light Wounds etc.)
Using a Candle of Invocation for easy access to powerful beings, especially at low level.
So, the idea behind this is quite simple, double-dipping Sneak Attack.
Bomber allows you to gain a number of bombs, similar to the Alchemist, equal to your Intelligence modifier, but they deal damage equal to your Sneak Attack (they don't gain Intelligence to damage however). Key point though, they are splash weapons.
Bomber's Discovery grants you a single Discovery that modifies a bomb. You can only take it once, however, so choose wisely.
Underground Chemist is the clincher though. Underground Chemist lets you sneak attack with splash weapons, and adds your Intelligence modifier to the damage of the splash weapon.
So, this means, that, as a 10th level Rogue, when you throw a bomb that deals 5d6+Int points of damage; if it's a sneak attack, it deals another 5d6 points of damage for a total of 10d6+Int points of damage.
Not a bad little blast for a Rogue eh?
Something that will come up and that is subject to GM variance, is whether or not the Sneak Attack damage is dealt to everyone in the area of effect. Underground Chemist's Precise Splash Weapons doesn't give us an answer, only saying that it must be directed at a creature, rather than a square. Splash weapons still do damage in an area, even if directed at a creature, however.
I'm inclined to say that all subjects in the AoE take sneak attack damage if they are subject to it, purely based off the rules. As a GM and a player, I really don't see a problem with a Rogue being capable of such an attack either. Unfortunately, said Bomber Rogue would never get Fast Bombs without taking Alchemist levels, so he's kind of in a '1-hit wonder' scenario.
I came across the tales of Ostog the Unslain, a Barbarian played by Erik Mona, and I thought the idea behind him was pretty rad. So, inspired, I decided to build an NPC Barbarian that was neigh-unkillable, but didn't wear armor.
What I came up with, is an Invulnerable Rager with a 1 level dip into Unbreakable Fighter (for Die Hard and Endurance). He uses Dragon Totem and the feats Combat Expertise, Stalwart and Improved Stalwart to have ungodly DR.
I made a 12th level version you can see here: Ostog the Unslain. When I'm building NPCs like this, I always use the Heroic stats of 15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8; for him, I arranged it as follows:
The way I see him functioning is this, while raging, with combat expertise and Dragon Totem, he's got DR of 19: 5 from class levels, 6 from dragon totem, and +8 from Combat Expertise/Improved Stalwart. Also, due to Guarded Life, whenever he gets low on HP, damage up to his Barbarian level is converted to non-lethal damage, which is then applied to his non-lethal DR, which is double whatever his current DR is. In this case, his non-lethal DR is 38.
So his ungodly DR combined with his huge HP pool means he's really, really hard to kill; despite the fact you're all but guaranteed to hit him with every attack as his AC while raging is 10. Also, the fact he can walk around bare chested in even the coldest of winters, and shrug off the most intense flames from the oldest red dragon... This Ostog is truly a Man's Man!
Now the questions I have for everyone are...
1) Is this all legal? I know there is a bit of a hoo-doo about whether or not Dragon Totem works with the Invulnerable Rager, did that ever get cleared up?
2) What else can I do to make this guy even tougher? Changing his stat array isn't an option because I try and build all of my NPCs off the Heroic Stat array. Remember, he also has to continue with the theme of not wearing armor. I even consider the bracers of armor kind of cheating, but I couldn't figure out how to get that extra +2 to maintain that AC of 10.
I'm considering thoughts pertaining to the idea of allowing sunder to target natural attacks and unarmed strikes. Basically, if you succeed on a sunder attempt, the weapon gains the broken condition, which amounts to a -2 on attacks and damage. If you 'destroy' the object, you basically sever the limb, or cripple it in some manner; crushed bones, cut tendons etc.
The target CMD would include the normal CMD of the creature, plus any armor bonus or natural armor bonus the creature has. The hardness of the weapon would be equal to 2+ half the creatures natural armor bonus (rounded up). The HP of the weapon itself would be 1/10th the creatures full HP (same as the HP to cut yourself out if swallowed hole).
So, for example, to sunder the claw of the bulette, you would have the following stat block: CMD 40; hardness 8, hp 8.
It wouldn't be easy to sunder the bulette's claw, but it would be possible.
What are some scenarios of Pathfinder you've always wished to get the chance to play in?
I've always wished I could, one day, play in a game where I'm playing a Longspear character with Greater Trip, Lunge, and Whirlwind Attack while Enlarged and surrounded by plentiful targets. Then I'd perform a Lunging Whirlwind Attack and make a trip attempt against everyone in reach. Any success also provokes an attack.
Such a scenario would just be an awesome cinematic combo to play in game. Thought it'd be a *lot* of dice rolls!
What are some mini games you guys have created for your players?
I was watching a Lets Play of Ocarina of Time, specifically the challenge to shoot targets on horseback for the expanded quiver, and it occurred to me something like that could be adapted for Pathfinder.
Like a challenge for the party archer to compete off horseback and they have to hit a series of targets and their performance would be scored afterward. If they reach a certain point, they would get rewarded. Possibly through a 'title' bestowed upon them, or gold, or favors, or a magical item etc.
You could do this by having a bullseye and each ring of the bullseye has a separate armor class. For example, target is AC 10, the first ring could be AC 15, the second ring AC 20, the 3rd ring AC 25 and the bullseye AC 30. The bullseys is worth 100 points, 3rd ring is 75, 2nd ring is 50 and 1st ring is 25, just hitting the target rewards no points.
Anyway, what kinds of minigames have you guys used in your games?
28 people marked this as FAQ candidate. Answered in the errata.
29 people marked this as a favorite.
As some people may know, a new feat, Slashing Grace, was released in the Advanced Class Guide. Many people are unhappy with the feat as the mechanics of the feat itself are clunky, extremely limiting, and denies iconic weapons from being function able with the feat.
Another poster on the forums copy/pasted the feat into the Advanced Class Guide thread that I will quote here:
Advanced Class Guide wrote:
Slashing Grace (Combat)
Prerequisites: Dex 13, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus with chosen weapon.
Benefit: Choose one kind of one-handed slashing weapon (such as the longsword). When wielding your chosen weapon one-handed, you can treat it as a one-handed piercing melee weapon for all feats and class abilities that require such a weapon (such as a swashbuckler’s or a duelist’s precise strike) and you can add your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier to that weapon’s damage. The weapon must be one appropriate for your size.
Issues with the feat above include the following:
1) The feat is limited to a single one-handed slashing weapon. This means that weapons in the 'light' weapon category, either piercing or slashing, are not applicable with this feat; such weapons include the dagger, shortsword, wakizashi etc. One handed piercing weapons, like the rapier, do not benefit from this feat either; the big one in this group being the Rapier, the single most iconic swashbuckling and fencing weapon in all history.
2) The feat allows weapons to benefit from their dexterity score to damage, but not on attack rolls. So except for the Aldori Dueling Sword and the Whip (to my knowledge) there are no other one-handed finesseable weapons that also deal slashing damage. This means that the only class that truly benefits from this feat is the Swashbuckler, because they have the ability to apply their dexterity score to more weapons than the traditional weapon finesse feat.
3) The feat harms iconic images with the above limitations of problem #1. You can have a character wield a battleaxe and get his dexterity score to damage, but not a rapier. You can benefit from Dex to Damage with a Bastard Sword, but not a dagger (a common weapon that is paired with rapiers). There are a great many weapons in the game that *should* benefit from Dex to Damage, and yet they are restricted due to the language in the feat itself.
4) Weapons that should be capable of benefiting from a Dex to Damage feat, aren't capable of doing so. They can still benefit from the agile weapon property, but that means the character is entirely reliant on a magical weapon using a weapon property from a non-core rule line book; something many GMs don't allow or have issue with.
5) The feat restricts the option of fighting with multiple different weapons as you can only take the feat once. So unless you have someway of fighting with two one-handed weapons at a reduced penalty, such as sawtooth sabres, then you can't do something like fight with a rapier and dagger (even if the weapons were viable selections), unless you have enough wealth to afford at least a +1 agile enhancement for both weapons.
Now, you may question how such a massive oversight came to be? Well, Jason Bulmahn did weigh in on the feat itself in the thread with this post.
I will quote the main explanation, as the post itself is rather long:
Jason Bulmahn wrote:
So, this feat originally had nothing to do with damage. It was just a way for the swashbuckler, and a few other classes, to use slashing weapons with some of their class features. Thats it. As the book was getting close to print, we were looking over it and felt that was just too weak. The damage component was added to make the feat more attractive. It was not until after it went to the printer that we realized the odd case we had created (that you cannot get Dex to damage on a rapier). Since this was obviously a vital part of the iconic character for that class, we saw it as a real problem and started looking for a solution.
So, the reason this feat is so limiting is a mistake on their part; an oversight that was unintentional. Now, this does send up red flags in my mind and I will explain why.
During the ACG playtest, we, the players, were promised a more generic dex to damage feat. Based on my reading of the above post, it sounds to me that the Dex to Damage option only came about because they felt the feat itself need a little more 'oomph' in power and attractiveness. Now, if they were already promised to give out a Dex to Damage feat, then why was the Dex to Damage option tacked onto a feat at the last minute?
Purely my own interpretation, but it feels to me, as if though they weren't going to include the Dex to Damage option at all! This hurts me as a customer because I place a lot of trust in Paizo as a company to keep their word, and it feels like they only managed to do so by sheer coincidence.
However, that is neither here nor there. It is entirely my own feeling and though it doesn't have any bearing on the outcome of this thread, I felt the need to express it.
Now, Jason also went one step further to say that they, as the designers, realized the issue with Slashing Grace, but only after the final edition was sent to the printers. So he promised to fix this, but including a feat called Fencing Grace in the upcoming Player's Companion: Advanced Class Guide Origins. He even included the proposed feat in the post for us to use:
Pathfinder Design Team wrote:
FENCING GRACE (COMBAT)
Your extreme style and fluid rapier forms allow you to use agility rather than brute force to fell your foes. Prerequisites: Dex 13, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier).
Benefit: When wielding a rapier one-handed, you can add your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier to that weapon’s damage. The rapier must be one appropriate for your size.
In addition, if you have the panache class feature, you gain a +2 bonus to CMD against attempts to disarm you of your rapier while you have at least 1 panache point.
While this solves the issue of the Rapier being denied a Dex to Damage option, it still doesn't fix the issue with the other multitude of weapons that are more deserving of a Dex to Damage feat than a battleaxe.
My question, is should Paizo release a FAQ/Errata to fix the Slashing Grace feat to make it a more generic Dex to Damage option than what currently exists?
Why is it that I can't play a Dexterous Dagger Wielder that gets Dex to Damage, without becoming Mythic, but I'm able to wield an axe and get my dexterity to attack and damage? Why is a battleaxe more 'dexterous' than a weapon like a dagger? Or a shortspear? Or a shorsword? Or a wakizashi?
Should a more generic Dex to Damage feat function more like Dervish Dance, allowing only a single weapon to benefit from dex to attack rolls and damage? Should it be allowed to be taken multiple times, so a character that wants to fight with two weapons can do it, but it requires a heavy feat investment?
How do you feel about this? What are your thoughts?
To the Paizo Admins, I don't know if this is the right forum for this, but, as it's not errata, and more of a discussion on whether or not errata should even be done, I felt it would fit best here.
Here's a game/challenge for you! Describe an aspect of your day as if it were an adventure!
I'll start:
Today my father woke my nephew and myself up and told us that we needed to journey forth unto the river to gather resources from it's bountiful waters. He told us we must seek out an old friend of his, a grizzled old man named Ross, to aid us in our endeavor. He had gathered up 3 poles used to extract the resources from the river and together, my father, myself and my nephew set forth on our quest.
Unfortunately, my nephew's father, my elder brother, could not join us as he had taken a dark path in his life. My nephew is aware his father is not around, but not aware of the path he has taken. (GM note, possible adventure hook for later in the campaign)
We set forth on our way down the dusty trails. My father had not visited his friend Ross in many decades, but he knew the general direction of which we had to go. As we proceeded down the trails, we had some trouble with some troublesome beasts that leapt into our path, blocking our way. They unleashed their loud cries to intimidate us and bared their fangs, but by creating a loud noise, we were able to drive them off and continue on our way.
Unfortunately, we still did not know our way, so we had to wonder all over the land trying to find the old friend of my father. After some time, we stumbled across a mysterious man just sitting on the side of the road. We stopped and asked him for help, and curiously, he knew the way we needed.
With the help of the sage of the road, and the directions he gave to us. We were able to locate the old man Ross. Our quest to find the old man was now over, but a new quest, to extract the resources we needed, had only just begun. But that's a tale for another time.
I kind of get the feeling this will be a flop. While there have been some bad ass chicks in action movies before, most of them don't really carry their own fight scenes in the way someone like Jason Statham, Jet Li, or even Stallone can.
I mean, Sigourney Weaver wouldn't be getting into a 1 on 1 fight like Stallone and Van Damme in Expendables 2. I could see some people doing it, but not Weaver.
However, people I guess would be approached for this film include:
Sigourney Weaver
Angelina Jolie
Michelle Rodriguez
Mila Jovovich
Scarlett Johansson
Summer Glau
Gina Torres
Charlize Theron
Uma Thurman
Maggie Cheung
However, if they got a good fight choreographer, I could easily several of the above ladies of action pulling off great hand-to-hand fight scenes. Especially Maggie, Summer, ScarJo, for a more Statham/Li style of fighting and Angelina and Michelle adopting more of a Stallone or Willis style of fighting.
With the exception of the Archer-Fighter Archetype which explicitly gives the Fighter the ability to make a variety of combat maneuvers with his bow, is there actually anything in the rolls that says you can't make a combat maneuver with a ranged weapon?
I've tried looking around the rules myself, but I can't find anything that explicitly states you can't use a ranged weapon, like a bow or throwing axe for combat maneuvers. Now, the only weapons that it would even be possible with, is Disarm, Trip and Sunder, as they are the only maneuvers that can normally be used in conjunction with a weapon.
Disarm, Trip and Sunder however, all explicitly states they are used in place of a melee attack. So these maneuvers are all out of the question. Normally, this means you can't make any combat maneuvers with a bow.
However! The reason why I ask this question is because of Stand Still and Snap Shot.
The Snap Shot feats (Snap Shot + Improved Snap Shot) allows the bow user to threaten up to 15 ft around him. Stand Still allows you to make a combat maneuver in place of an attack of opportunity to prevent a creature from moving through your threatened squares.
So, if a bow user could make combat maneuvers, he could use Snap Shot + Stand Still to control his threatened area.
This brings me back to my question: Is there a rule that says you can't make combat maneuver checks with a ranged weapon?
Have you seen the premiere episodes? Did you like or dislike them? Any special things that you really liked or enjoyed? Anything specific you disliked?
Is a rogue, or similar character, considered to be sneak attacking even if the opponent is immune to precision damage?
Take an Elemental for example:
Elemental Subtype wrote:
Not subject to critical hits or flanking. Does not take additional damage from precision-based attacks, such as sneak attack.
Cannot be flanked, nor is it subject to extra damage from precision based attack, like sneak attack.
However, is the rogue considered to still have made a sneak attack? I ask because of a very small subset of abilities, like the Sneaky Maneuver:
Sneaky Maneuver wrote:
Anytime a rogue with this talent could hit an opponent with a melee sneak attack on her turn, she may take a –2 penalty on her attack roll and attempt a dirty trick, disarm, steal, sunder, or trip combat maneuver instead of dealing sneak attack damage. If the attack succeeds, the rogue deals weapon damage as normal and then attempts a combat maneuver check as a swift action (the –2 penalty only applies to the initial attack roll, not the combat maneuver check). This combat maneuver still provokes attacks of opportunity unless the rogue has a feat or ability that allows her to perform it without provoking attacks of opportunity.
or the Sword of Subtlety:
Sword of Subtlety wrote:
A +1 short sword with a thin, dull gray blade, this weapon provides a +4 bonus on its wielder's attack and damage rolls when she makes a sneak attack with it.
Both have effects dependent on making a sneak attack, but not on dealing sneak attack damage, like Befuddling Strike:
Befuddling Strike wrote:
When the rogue deals sneak attack damage against an opponent, that opponent takes a –2 penalty on attack rolls against the rogue for 1d4 rounds.
So, for the purposes of such abilities as a Sneaky Maneuver or the Sword of Subtlety, is the Rogue, or similar classes, considered to be sneak attacking even if she deals no sneak attack damage?
As a standard action, taken during your move or as part of a charge, you can attempt to overrun your target, moving through its square. You can only overrun an opponent who is no more than one size category larger than you. If you do not have the Improved Overrun feat, or a similar ability, initiating an overrun provokes an attack of opportunity from the target of your maneuver. If your overrun attempt fails, you stop in the space directly in front of the opponent, or the nearest open space in front of the creature if there are other creatures occupying that space.
When you attempt to overrun a target, it can choose to avoid you, allowing you to pass through its square without requiring an attack. If your target does not avoid you, make a combat maneuver check as normal. If your maneuver is successful, you move through the target's space. If your attack exceeds your opponent's CMD by 5 or more, you move through the target's space and the target is knocked prone. If the target has more than two legs, add +2 to the DC of the combat maneuver attack roll for each additional leg it has.
Moving Through a Square wrote:
Overrun
During your movement, you can attempt to move through a square occupied by an opponent (see Overrun).
Charge:
Charging is a special full-round action that allows you to move up to twice your speed and attack during the action. Charging, however, carries tight restrictions on how you can move.
Movement During a Charge
You must move before your attack, not after. You must move at least 10 feet (2 squares) and may move up to double your speed directly toward the designated opponent. If you move a distance equal to your speed or less, you can also draw a weapon during a charge attack if your base attack bonus is at least +1.
You must have a clear path toward the opponent, and nothing can hinder your movement (such as difficult terrain or obstacles). You must move to the closest space from which you can attack the opponent. If this space is occupied or otherwise blocked, you can't charge. If any line from your starting space to the ending space passes through a square that blocks movement, slows movement, or contains a creature (even an ally), you can't charge. Helpless creatures don't stop a charge.
If you don't have line of sight to the opponent at the start of your turn, you can't charge that opponent.
You can't take a 5-foot step in the same round as a charge.
If you are able to take only a standard action on your turn, you can still charge, but you are only allowed to move up to your speed (instead of up to double your speed) and you cannot draw a weapon unless you possess the Quick Draw feat. You can't use this option unless you are restricted to taking only a standard action on your turn.
Attacking on a Charge
After moving, you may make a single melee attack. You get a +2 bonus on the attack roll and take a –2 penalty to your AC until the start of your next turn.
A charging character gets a +2 bonus on combat maneuver attack rolls made to bull rush an opponent.
Even if you have extra attacks, such as from having a high enough base attack bonus or from using multiple weapons, you only get to make one attack during a charge.
Lances and Charge Attacks: A lance deals double damage if employed by a mounted character in a charge.
Weapons Readied against a Charge: Spears, tridents, and other weapons with the brace feature deal double damage when readied (set) and used against a charging character.
Charge Through:
You can overrun enemies when charging.
Prerequisites: Str 13, Improved Overrun, Power Attack, base attack bonus +1.
Benefit: When making a charge, you can attempt to overrun one creature in the path of the charge as a free action. If you successfully overrun that creature, you can complete the charge. If the overrun is unsuccessful, the charge ends in the space directly in front of that creature.
Normal: You must have a clear path toward the target of your charge.
I think I quoted all of the relevant bits.
Here's how I see it, Overrun states that you can make an overrun 'as a part of a charge'. The next bolded line states that the target of an overrun can opt to avoid it, and this allows the one making the overrun to move through his square.
Now, the only way this is possible, is if the overrun is made in addition to the movement+attack of the charge.
I used Alain, Lem and a Giant Enemy Crab in another thread, so that is what I will use here. Say Alain is mounted and Lem stands between himself and the Crab. Normally, the charge rules state you can't declare a charge, because Lem is in the way.
However, as we all know, in Pathfinder, specific > general. The specific rules of overrun would allow Alain to charge the Crab, making an overrun attempt during the charge, which Lem would simply avoid, and continue on to the Crab to show off how BadA*s he is.
I have been told I am wrong (which I very well may be), because the Charge rules specifically state you can't declare a charge as the path is obstructed by Lem. Also, it would negate the point of the Charge Through feat (spoilered above).
I respond to this by pointing out that Paizo has released feats before that are, or were, effectively worthless as they prevented you from doing anything (Monkey Lunge), or had absolutely no benefit (pre-errata Prone Shooter). Charge Through may very well just be another one of those feats.
FAQ and Discussion if you please!
(Also, if I failed to uphold the other sides arguments, I apologize as I am inherently biased towards my own interpretation).
How do metamagic with special effects and spells that target multiple people (even the same person multiple times) interact?
Specifically, I'm referring to a dazing magic missile, would a person targeted by all the missiles have to make multiple saves? Or a toppling magic missile, do I get to make multiple trip attempts on the same person?
I ask because I've currently got a level 13 admixture Wizard with 4 Archmage mythic tiers and magic missile is one of her mythic spells. If she were to augment it, then it would fire double the normal amount of missiles (10 total) and each one deals 2d4+1 points of damage and bypasses spell resitance, spell immunity and shield spells or effects.
If dazing, or toppling were to apply to each missile she fires, then she could force 10 will saves, or make 10 trip attempts with a single spell. This same line of thought applies to spells like scorching ray, or contagious flame as they are both capable of single, or multiple, targets.
Now, I'm inclined to believe that the affects of such metamagic feats would apply to each missile or attack of the spell, as a dazing fireball would daze anyone in the area of effect that fails their save. The difference is that fireball only has one save, while a dazing magic missile could force up to 5 saves (or 10 if using mythic).
On the other hand, this makes spells that can single target, like magic missilevery good choices for the effects of feats like dazing or toppling spell. Especially if combined with heighten spell. Even worse if one has a dazing metamagic rod as they could force multiple high DC will saves or lose their turn for multiple rounds.
Weapons wielded by a warpriest are charged with the power of his faith. In addition to the favored weapon of his deity, the warpriest can designate a weapon as a sacred weapon by selecting that weapon with the Weapon Focus feat (if he has multiple Weapon Focus feats, this ability applies to all of them)...
Mythic Weapon Training wrote:
Select one group of weapons from the list of fighter weapon groups. You gain proficiency with all weapons in this group. If you possess a feat such as Weapon Focus that requires you to choose a kind of weapon, you can instead apply the effects of that feat to all weapons from that weapon group. When wielding a weapon from that group, add a number equal to your tier to your CMD against disarm and sunder attempts made against that weapon. You can select this ability more than once. Each time you select this ability, it applies to a different weapon group.
So, can a Warpriest with Weapon Focus (greatsword) that has selected Mythic Weapon Training use his Sacred Weapon ability with all weapons in that weapon group?
This question came about as to dealing with a lightsaber replacement in the talk about the Technology Guide, but it applies to other aspects as well.
For example, Plasma weapons deal spit fire/shock damage; it's also an option via the Elemental Spell metamagic feat. I'm sure there are other examples, but these are the ones that come immediately to mind.
The question is, how does the split energy damage deal with things like hardness?
The pseudo-lightsaber is a +1 brilliant energy, flaming burst, ghost touch, shocking burst mithral bastard sword. How does the energy damage interact with hardness in such a situation? Is each die of energy damage (1d6 fire, 1d6 shock, plus 1d10 fire and 1d10 shock in the case of a critical) applied separately, or all together?
For example, wood has hardness 5 and 10 hp per inch. If a weapon with flaming burst and shocking burst were to strike the piece of wood, would it deal 1d6 halved (1d3) fire and 1d6 halved (1d3) shock damage before hardness, or would you add the fire and shock damage together before applying hardness?
If the former case (added separately) the energy damage can't overcome the hardness and deals no damage. In the latter case, it could overcome the hardness (by 1 point) and deal some damage.
This is important as Robots use hardness instead of DR (unlike Golems) so a Plasma Weapon might be functionally useless against a robot, if the former is the case, or barely functional, in the latter case.
I'm using Internet Explorer 10 (business laptop, no choice) but I've noticed the odd stacking of my account options for roughly a month now. It occurred nearly a month ago when the siet went down for awhile for maintenance (I don't recall the date) and thought it might have just been a minor glitch. However, it hasn't changed since then. I noticed that on my home computer (using Firefox) the account options are horizontal (like they used to be), just not on Internet Explorer.
It's not really an issue for me, just a minor annoyance, but I was wondering if there was a way to change it back?
Here's the issue, my cousin needed help designing an underwater encounter, and I agreed to help him. He explained that he'd had issues with his party stomping through really challenging encounters, so I asked to see their character sheets so I could audit them.
The party is playing with 25 point buy, and each person was allowed to select a 3rd party race or class if desired. The other big issues is he's been letting the party craft items at 50% and then selling them for full price (making a 50% profit). So they whole party is well above and beyond standard Wealth By Level.
Now, I need help picking out any illegal combos on this character.
I am aware of the fact he's stacking enhancement bonuses from ioun stones and from a headband together. I'm also aware that he seemingly has a base intelligence of 19 (despite 18 being the max) and that even if the 19 is a typo, he actually used a 26 point buy. I am also aware that he has basically 'combined' 5 Mnemonic Robes into one item so he could use the ability 5 times a day.
He said his race is a 'Vita' but I have no idea what this is and cannot find it through any Google search or on the PFSRD or in any of the 3E and 3.5E material I own. I need to know what race this is, and what it's abilities are, because it seems like the racial adjustment for this race a +2 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Con, +4 Int, and -2 Cha.
Now, I do not own the Eldritch Godling books published by Super Genius Games, and am using the PFSRD entry on the Godling to verify things.
Most of the Godling things seem to check out, except that his Ascendancies are a little iffy. Based on the fact that several of the Ascendancies specifically call out they can be selected multiple times, I'm assuming that the intention is that an Ascendancy can only be selected once. If so, then some of his Ascendancies are not legal as he's selected Talent for Mysticism 3 times, once at first level to select Evasion, once at 5th level for Force of Intellect and he intends to select it again at 9th level for Retribution.
However, if Ascendancies are intended to be taken multiple times (meaning the specific Ascendancies that call this out are just redundant) then all of his Ascendancies appear to be legal.
Could people more familiar or knowledgeable about this class look it over? I also really would like to find out exactly what race it is he's selected.
My Cousin lives in Minnesota and I live in Alaska, and we communicate mostly by e-mail so I don't really have quick access to either him or his player for questions.
I'm looking to make a gallery of NPCs for my players to have before the campaign begins. I'm looking for big names that they should 'know' because they are important to the region.
So far I've picked up:
Queen Galfrey Crusader Queen and ruler of Menedev for the last 112 years. Galfrey is not just a pretty face sitting on her throne, she also serves as a powerful paladin of Iomedae.
Prelate Hulrun Shapok Witch Hunter and regent of the city of Kenabres, Hulrun keeps an order of experienced Witch Hunters under his command to investigate and discover acts of demonic possession or alliances.
Terendelev an Ancient Silver dragon that serves as the protector of Kenabres, she nearly killed Khorramzadeh, the Storm King, when he attacked Kenabres and cracked the wardstone 21 years ago.
Nestrin Alodae A cleric of Iomedae, Nestrin is head of both the Cathedral of Saint Clydwell and the Temple of Iomedae, the two largest temples in Kenabres.
Eterrius Sunnestier A cleric of Iomedae, he manages most of the leadership duties at the Cathedral of Saint Clydwell, though Nestrin Alodae is the official leader. Many adventurers seek out Eterrius for his first hand experience fighting demons in the Worldwound.
On the bad guy side:
Aponavicius A Marilith General and ruler of the fallen Crusader city of Drezen.
Areelu Vorlesh A witch and servant of Deskari that was responsible for aiding Deskari in opening the Worldwound 100 years ago.
Deskari Demon Lord of Chasms, Infestations and Locusts; he is the mastermind behind the opening of the Worldwound.
Khorramzadeh A Balor Lord known as the Storm King, he is the ruler of the city Iz, once the capital of Sarkoris before the Worldwound opened. Twenty-one years ago, he led an assault on the wardstone in Kenabres that resulted in it cracking before being driven off (and nearly killed) by Terendelev.
Baphomet Demon Lord of Beasts, Labyrinths and Minotaurs, he aids Deskari in his Worldwound campaign.
I figure the above are the major movers and shakers of the Worldwound, and Kenabres and the names of the above are probably well known, even to newcomers. The other people mentioned in the Factions section of the Worldwound Incrusion, I figure, would possibly known by those who live in Kenabres or who have served in the Crusades for an extended period.
Is there anyone else the PCs should be aware of before the campaign starts? I've only got the Worldwound Incursion and the Golarion Wiki so I was hoping others might make me aware of anyone else that gets mentioned in further modules that the players *should* know about.
I had this idea that occurred to me in another thread to make crossbows more useful. As it stands, when you compare bows to crossbows, there is a lot against the crossbow, be it static damage, or rate of fire.
The idea is to introduce strength bonuses to damage, and strength checks.
Basically, in order to reload a crossbow requires a strength check to do it 'bare handed' or a winch to succeed. Using a winch to reload a heavy crossbow is a full-round action, and it's a move action for a light crossbow; if the user has Rapid Reload with the appropriate crossbow, it reduces the time to a move action or a swift action.
Alternatively, the user can attempt a strength check as a move action for a heavy crossbow, or a swift action for a light crossbow; Rapid Reload reduces this to a swift action or a free action respectively.
The starting strength check is a DC 5 for a light crossbow, or a DC 10 for a heavy crossbow. Each strength modifier increases the check by two points on the crossbow, so a light crossbow with a +3 strength modifier would be a DC 11 strength check to reload bare handed.
A masterwork crossbow receives a +2 competence bonus on strength checks to reload the crossbow. Magical crossbows receive a competence bonus on strength checks to reload the crossbow equal to double the enhancement modifier (this doesn't stack with masterwork).
Now, after reading this, you have to ask, "Why would I ever choose a heavy crossbow?" This is something I had to ask myself as well. So the idea I came up with is that heavy crossbows deal double the strength modifier in damage. So a Strength +3 Heavy Crossbow would deal 1d10+6 damage on a shot, but requires a DC 16 strength check to reload bare handed.
If a character using a crossbow attempts to reload bare handed and fails, he loses the attack. For example, if a character had three shots, he attacks, makes a strength check (succeeds), makes his second attack, makes a strength check (fails) and forfeits his last attack do to the failure. If he had failed the second attack, he would forfeit that attack and proceed to the third attack. Keep in mind, that a character using a heavy crossbow requires a swift action to reload (with Rapid Reload), so you are restricted to, at most, two attacks in a round.
While I may not like him very much and I clash with him on rules, it's going to be a sad day when he leaves. He's a talented designer with many years of experience and I hope him all the best luck in his future endeavors.
