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4 Magus Focus spells use somatic actions, which have the manipulate trait. Those 4 are:
Force Fang
Cascade Countermeasure
Runic Impression
Hasted Assault

These two new spells having manipulate instead isn't an issue.

As for Aloof Firmament, if one were to Cast Sky Laughs at Waves while in stance, the manipulate action of the spell would trigger a reaction (with the possibility of being disrupted), but the Fly action afterward would not (so you can't use Stand Still, for example).

Those listed 4 are all optional spells you take with feats though. The Conflux spells granted by the existing five Hybrid Studies all lack the somatic/manipulate traits; they're verbal only.

To me, that's still an issue worth clarification, because it means the existing five studies all have built-in ways to recharge spellstrike in combat without provoking a reaction, a benefit the two new studies lack. Even Laughing Shadow's spell, which is a move + strike, gets to avoid reactions because it's a teleport.

Clarification Request
The two new Magus Hybrid Studies in the TXCG both come with Conflux Spells that include the Manipulate trait, unlike all prior Conflux Spells.

Can we get clarification for why these two in particular are given that trait (opening them up to reactive strikes)?

More specifically, how does the Aloof Firmament's passive benefit - specific move actions not provoking a reaction while in Arcane Cascade stance - interact with their Conflux Spell's Manipulate trait? Does one override the other?

Ahh I gotcha.

Yeah, I'd love to get an answer on the Manipulate trait being there. I'm not sure why it's on either one in this book, unless they also intend to go back and add it to all prior Hybrid Studies? That seems like it'd be overly punishing, when you're already risking the reactions during at least some Spellstrikes.

Using a Conflux spell recharges your Spellstrike. So the optimal use is when you're already within Striking distance of a target, having expended your Spellstrike either on the previous turn or the same turn.

For the 4th-level feat, I'm guessing the point is that using Spellstrike already triggers the most common reaction, Reactive Strike, so the movement from the feat not triggering is going to come into play very rarely.

Yep I'm aware of the optimal use of Conflux after Spellstrike, but I think this just highlights OP's issue even more.

The 2-action Conflux triggers reactive strike for a full move + strike; compare that to Laughing Shadows, whose Conflux also gives a move + strike for 1-action. Theirs only gives half move, but it also doesn't provoke reactive strike (because teleport I guess?).

Then you get your own (feat taxed) reaction that lets you move while avoiding a reactive strike... which can only be used *after* a Spellstrike that would already have provoked it? And this only applies to the creature hit by the Spellstrike, so not really applicable for escaping a group.

Arcane Cascade doesn’t help keep the conflux spell from triggering reactive strike. If the spell has Manipulate, then casting the spell will trigger Arcane Cascade before you move anywhere.

I don't understand what you mean by that second sentence. You have to use an action to enter Arcane Cascade stance, don't you? So you wouldn't enter the stance until after you resolve the move + strike from the Conflux, and triggering the reactive strike either way.

Ultimately I just don't really understand the point of giving Aloof Firmament this passive bonus of being able to ignore reactions while using specific move actions during Arcane Cascade, if your two most common uses of those move actions (your Conflux and your reaction feat) can't even receive that passive benefit?

Going back to the Laughing Shadows study, their Conflux directly benefits from their passive, because their move speed is directly increased while in Arcane Cascade, making up for the Conflux only allowing half movement speed.

My group's like 3 sessions into Strength of Thousands and I'm the first character death, so I was thinking of a Jinin Elf Magus/Fighter from the Pavilion of Falling Flowers. But the more (I think) I understand that particular Hybrid Study, the less great it sounds. Might just go with bland old Inexorable Iron instead.

The inclusion of Manipulate is a bit anti-synergistic, but my guess is it's there to encourage using Sky Laughs at Waves only after you've entered Arcane Cascade, where it should (and they should make this more clear) allow you to avoid provoking a reaction. If you use it as the opening action of your turn/combat, then it has the balancing factor of provoking reaction.

I don't think the rest works as you describe though?

It still takes an action to go into Arcane Cascade to gain the Study's benefit. Additionally, the Conflux allows you to make a Strike (1 action), not a Spellstrike (2 actions). AFAIK those two aren't interchangeable, so you couldn't Conflux > Arcane Cascade > Spellstrike in a single turn.

Seems like they wanted these things to be done over subsequent turns. Something like:
Turn 1) 1 action spell > 1 action arcane cascade > 1 action conflux to move to target + strike (presumably w/o provoking enemy reaction)
Turn 2) 2 action spellstrike > reaction to move away (again w/o provoking enemy reaction) > last action for whatever

Sounds like a cool book, though after no appearance in the TXWG, I was really hoping Jinin's Pavilion of Falling Flowers would get an arcane school writeup in this one.

** spoiler omitted **

I love the concept of this Laxus build, but I feel like I'm missing something: how does a monk take Jalmeri Heavenseeker at level 4 if they don't meet the expert unarmed requirement until 5th?

Directing, if you didnt already know.

Not sure if your trollin in that last post or not....

I think you're mixed up. Wil Wheaton doesn't have anything to do with the Avengers movie. It's Joss Whedon.