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Hello;
I need a bit of help; this is a simple question, but i have doubts about if it has been answered anytime or not:

I am lvl 3 and i've got CRAFT WONDROUS ITEMS; i've got Spellcraft 8 and i want to create an Ioun stone. THe item has those requirements (apart from gold):

Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, creator must be 12th level;

The question is... Can i increase in a bare +5 the Spellcraft check to avoid the "12th lvl" requirement? Or do i need to wait until lvl 12, not matter how much Spellcraft (and gold) can have...?

Well; actually i'm GMing the Carrion Crown AP. I've got a player with a Human Barbarian that recently has reached lvl 12 and he has chosen this rage power:

Come and Get Me (Ex): While raging, as a free action the barbarian may leave herself open to attack while preparing devastating counterattacks. Enemies gain a +4 bonus on attack and damage rolls against the barbarian until the beginning of her next turn, but every attack against the barbarian provokes an attack of opportunity from her, which is resolved prior to resolving each enemy attack. A barbarian must be at least 12th level to select this rage power.

He also have 2 feats related with my next questions:

Combat Reflexes (Combat)
You can make additional attacks of opportunity.
Benefit: You may make a number of additional attacks of opportunity per round equal to your Dexterity bonus. With this feat, you may also make attacks of opportunity while flat-footed.
Normal: A character without this feat can make only one attack of opportunity per round and can't make attacks of opportunity while flat-footed.
Special: The Combat Reflexes feat does not allow a rogue to use her opportunist ability more than once per round.

Pushing Assault (Combat)
A strike made with a two-handed weapon can push a similar sized opponent backward.
Prerequisites: Str 15, Power Attack, base attack bonus +1.
Benefit: When you hit a creature your size or smaller with a two-handed weapon attack modified by the Power Attack feat, you can choose to push the target 5 feet directly away from you instead of dealing the extra damage from Power Attack. If you score a critical hit, you can instead push the target 10 feet directly away from you. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunities, and the target must end this move in a safe space it can stand in. You choose which effect to apply after the attack roll has been made, but before the damage is rolled.

Well... He wants to do some things with those feats and the rage power:

1 - One of the things is use the Rage power; if an enemy starts near him, he attacks (and probably hits) the enemy and then he will push back the enemy... In this case, the enemy could use the 5' step and then... A) he continues his attack, because it was declared before? B) he must choose to do (if he can) a second attack, because the first one was out of reach and he lost it?...
- And, if the enemy tries to do another second attack, the barbarian will use the feat again, pushing the enemy away 5' and the enemy will loose the rest of the attacks, ever...?
- And, if the enemy has done the 5' step to reach the barbarian (because the barbarian in the last turn attacked him and then used the 5' step to walk away from the enemy), and then the barbarian uses rage power+feat.. the enemy loses all its turn?
Because you can choose if you do an action attack or a full action attack, but you can't choose between a 5' step and a movement; so, if you have declared (and used) a 5' step, you cannot use a movement action (i mean, to move).
What is more, if 6 enemies charge against him and he has got enough aoo's, they will loose their turn, after receive, each, an attack with a +4 to attack and damage...
I don't find it very fair. Then, from now on, the melee enemies are completely castrated from this point...?

And the second thing he says he wants to do:

2 - He wants to get ready with the rage power and the feat to sunder enemies' weapons when the enemies try to attack him:
- As far as he doesn't have the Improved sunder feat, he provokes an aoo when he tries to sunder them. But, if the enemies use their aoo to attack him, or to sunder him, they are doing another attack, so the Come and get me rage power gives the barbarian another aoo. And he wants to use this attack TO SUNDER... Then te result is that he sunders, Yes or Yes, and the enemies will end without their weapons. And there is no option.

Is really that way? I mean... As far as i see the results, i see that he is breaking part of the game. Am i wrong? Is there anything that i haven't considered?

Hi;
first of all, sorry for my english ^^U I will try to explain the better I can. And sorry, too, if you think (when you read this thread) this is a basic question, or that it's clear to understand and answer; but i haven't found in any place (pages nor books) a real and clean answer to my doubt. My question has been generated due to a celestial Sorcerer; her first bloodline power is:

Heavenly Fire (Sp): Starting at 1st level, you can unleash a ray of heavenly fire as a standard action, targeting any foe within 30 feet as a ranged touch attack. Against evil creatures, this ray deals 1d4 points of damage + 1 for every two sorcerer levels you possess. This damage is divine and not subject to energy resistance or immunity. This ray heals good creatures of 1d4 points of damage + 1 for every two sorcerer levels you possess. A good creature cannot benefit from your heavenly fire more than once per day. Neutral creatures are neither harmed nor healed by this effect. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier.

I've read (i don't remember where, to be honest xD) you can target friends and not only foes, that it was a typo. So, starting from that base, i went to Touch spells and Ranged touch spells, to determine how should it work... And here start the problem.
The Touch spells and Ranged touch spells are explained this way:

Touch Spells in Combat: Many spells have a range of touch. To use these spells, you cast the spell and then touch the subject. In the same round that you cast the spell, you may also touch (or attempt to touch) as a free action. You may take your move before casting the spell, after touching the target, or between casting the spell and touching the target. You can automatically touch one friend or use the spell on yourself, but to touch an opponent, you must succeed on an attack roll.

Touch Attacks: Touching an opponent with a touch spell is considered to be an armed attack and therefore does not provoke attacks of opportunity. The act of casting a spell, however, does provoke an attack of opportunity. Touch attacks come in two types: melee touch attacks and ranged touch attacks. You can score critical hits with either type of attack as long as the spell deals damage. Your opponent's AC against a touch attack does not include any armor bonus, shield bonus, or natural armor bonus. His size modifier, Dexterity modifier, and deflection bonus (if any) all apply normally.

Holding the Charge: If you don't discharge the spell in the round when you cast the spell, you can hold the charge indefinitely. You can continue to make touch attacks round after round. If you touch anything or anyone while holding a charge, even unintentionally, the spell discharges. If you cast another spell, the touch spell dissipates. You can touch one friend as a standard action or up to six friends as a full-round action. Alternatively, you may make a normal unarmed attack (or an attack with a natural weapon) while holding a charge. In this case, you aren't considered armed and you provoke attacks of opportunity as normal for the attack. If your unarmed attack or natural weapon attack normally doesn't provoke attacks of opportunity, neither does this attack. If the attack hits, you deal normal damage for your unarmed attack or natural weapon and the spell discharges. If the attack misses, you are still holding the charge.

Ranged Touch Spells in Combat: Some spells allow you to make a ranged touch attack as part of the casting of the spell. These attacks are made as part of the spell and do not require a separate action. Ranged touch attacks provoke an attack of opportunity, even if the spell that causes the attacks was cast defensively. Unless otherwise noted, ranged touch attacks cannot be held until a later turn.

As we can see, there are two main explanations in bold and, two minor explanation of the first main one, both in italic.
So, I assume that, taking this into account, the description given in the first main explanation, in bold (Touch Spells in Combat) only refers to itself and its two minor ones in italic.
Then, the second main explanation in bold (Ranged Touch Spells in Combat) has its own rules, explained right there, in its explanation.

But Ranged Touch Spells in Combat doesn't give any factible explanation about if you can automatically touch one friend or use the spell on yourself, or not. There is no explanation for them.

Then, if the sorcerer wants to use the Heavenly Fire (Sp) in an injured friend, can she actually touch her friend, if it's in range automatically? Or must the sorcerer do an attack roll Vs its friend AC? And what Armor Class should be in that case? I find it really messy...

SO, that's the question: in the rules doesn't clarify nothing about Ranged touch spells Vs friends, at least directly, what should i do? is there any FAQ answering that? Why isn't that point clarified, given that it has been inherited from 3.5 (2003?)?

As i said at first, maybe i don't see something basic; maybe i'm missing a simple rule that clarifies that. But, in first instance, the only explanation about friends (you can automatically touch one friend or use the spell on yourself) has been written only in the first paragraph in bold; not in the second (the one that concerns to us).

Sorry for this... "peculiar" question, but this is a question i didn't know how to answer.
I'm from Spain and here, we use some written accents to determine where is the strong syllable.
For example, in this case this should be writen...
Cambión - if it's strong in -on
Cambion - if it's strong in Cam-
So, when i find some words in english, i don't know what's his intonation. And, in this case, i found it enough important to ask here.
I would appreciate any answer; thanks. ^^U

Sorry if the question seems a bit simple; I was reading this card and suddenly i saw 2 possible interpretations. The card says so:

Banish this card to shuffle your location deck, examine all of its cards except the bottom one, then shuffle the deck.

Then, if the location deck has, i.e. 10 cards, I banish the Chief Sull, I shuffle, then I take the top 9 cards and I examine them; the tenth one (the bottom one) remains downside.

A) I shuffle the 10 cards again, because they don't write anything about any distinction between the 9 cards in my hand and the bottom one.
B) I only shuffle the 9 cards in my hand, because it refers to the cards in my hand when they write "shuffle the deck"; then I put the shuffled cards on top of the not-shuffled card (the bottom one).

I find very inconsistent the 2nd option, so i guess it's the 1st one (A) the true interpretation, but i prefer to ask and confirm, if it's possible. Taking into account that in te rulebook always say that you must do what the cards say they do, it seems the correct answer, but...

What do you think?