Lunaris G. Velskud's page

Whether the +1 applies is going to vary with the GM for sure. That said, even if it does, there are arguments to use and prepare other spells.

For instance, Horizon Thunder Sphere has very similar damage to Shocking Grasp (on non-metal targets) but has added versatility with its 3- and 6- action versions. Acid Arrow for the persistent damage. Expansive Spellstrike lets you lay in with AoE spells with the economy bonus. Etc.

Yeah it has versatality but as a Magus you already have really tight action economy that you probably wont event use the 3 and 6 action versions, and in terms of damage, average damage only catches up at spell level 6 and passes it by 0.5 on levels 7-8-9 each, to a total of 1.5 at maximum, and that is completely ignoring the persistent damage, which is 10.5 average at that level.

I agree that Expansive Spellstrike adds in extra utility and possibly cone and line spells to deal extra aoe, however you have really bad DCs as a Magus. At level 11, you will most likely have +4 Int and be Expert in spell DCs. So a DC 29 vs a level 11 monster would be quite low since the creature numbers table indicates that the save bonuses of level 11 monsters vary between +24 to +18 with a mean of +21. So even if you target the weakest save of the enemy, thats a 50% chance at highest. Against a strong save, it will be only 20% chance of them failing their save. So unless you are including 5+ enemies in that aoe, it will not be that worth mathematically.

I would be fine with it. I agree with Sanityfaerie, that the language of Spellstrike seems to imply that the +1 should apply.

Also, I am ok giving a Magus a +1 to hit with one of their 4 spells for the day. Shocking Grasp at level 4 does 4d12, or an average of 24 damage. Acid Arrow averages 29.5 assuming only one round of persistent damage. Chromatic ray does an average of 36. Telekinetic projectile does 18.

At on a level 6 slot, SG does an average of 36. Disintegrate averages 33 on a successful save, or 66 on a fail. AA averages 42. TP averages 25.

Shocking Grasp isn't so great that a +1 is going to make it overpowered when you are using a spellslot while leaving plenty of damage on the table if you used a better spell.

On a 6th level slot, Shocking Grasp deals 5d12 upfront and 1d4+5 as persistent, while Acid Arrow deals 7d8 upfront and 3d6 as persistent. If we only consider the persistent damage hitting for one round, SG deals 40 average and AA deals 42 average. The way I look at it, that +1 makes it much more worth to use than just 2 increase in average damage because it contributes to higher crit chance. (assuming used with True Strike it is a quite high chance to crit)

The way I look at it, Shocking Grasp has the highest possible maximum damage, and unless you want something dead really fast, it is not worth to use a spell slot for it since even the cantrips provide a really good amount of damage. But if I was going to use one of my spell slots for increased burst damage, or two slots to add in True Strike for extra accuracy, I would probably prefer Shokcing Grasp.

So almost everyone knows that Shocking Grasp was the bread and butter spell of most Magus players in the earlier edition. The +3 bonus to hit vs metal helped it quite a lot. My question is about this feature but for 2nd edition.

Shocking Grasp specifically says "If the target is wearing metal armor or is made of metal, you gain a +1 circumstance bonus to your attack roll with shocking grasp, and the target also takes 1d4 persistent electricity damage on a hit."

Most of the arguements I have seen online were divided between two options. Some considered the "attack roll with shocking grasp" to only be a spell attack roll while others claimed that "Your spell is coupled with your attack, using your attack roll result to determine the effects of both the Strike and the spell." clause in the spellstrike itself makes it possible for this interaction to work. What are the communities opinions about this ?

What do you think about MAD classes having multiple ability score bonuses ?

Classes like Paladins, Clerics, Monks and Rangers all have abilities that are multiple ability score dependant. I believe having another +2 for the secondary ability scores would help these classes a lot without disturbing the balance itself deeply.

For example lets talk about a Half Elf Paladin with Pathfinder Hopeful background.

Level increases to STR, DEX, CON and CHA

Ancestry increases to STR and CHA

Background increases to STR and CON

Class increases to STR and CHA

Resulting in

18 STR
12 DEX
14 CON
10 INT
10 WIS
16 CHA

looks pretty solid and standard to me. Now lets make a Dwarf Fighter with Blacksmith background to compare it if it is fair or not to give an additional +2.

Class increase to STR

Ancestry increases to CON, WIS and STR as well as a decrease to CHA

Background increases to STR and CON

Level increases to STR, DEX, CON and finally CHA to make up for the racial flaw.

We end up with this erray:

18 STR
12 DEX
16 CON
10 INT
12 WIS
10 CHA

I think some classes giving another +2 increase to one of their mostly used ability scores can solve the MAD class problem and be fair for the SAD class players at the same time.