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Ok, this is going to be my last familiar related post tonight.

But the Player Core 2 familiar ability "Item Delivery" seems broken:

Item Delivery: If your familiar is adjacent to you, you can Command it to deliver an item. Instead of its normal 2 actions, your familiar Interacts to take an item you’re holding of light Bulk or less, then takes one move action, then fnally Interacts to pass off the item to another willing creature. It can instead administer the item to the creature if it can do so with 1 action and has an appropriate type

of item (such as alchemical elixir). If your familiar doesn’t reach the target this turn, it holds the item until commanded otherwise. Your familiar must have the manual dexterity ability to select this.

Problem is, familiars shouldn't be able to administer alchemical elixirs. The companion items say that non-companion tagged items can't be used by familiars/companions etc. We have a RAI ruling that familiars can't administer potions, because of the activation requirements, and elixirs have the same activation requirements https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2zhNnBhnB0

The way this feat reads, it's intending to provide action compression for familiars assisting with items. However, if it actually works, what it does is stealthily break one of the biggest limits on familiar usage, and I feel like if that was intended it would have been spotlighted instead of having to go, "Hey, I wonder if this interacts with the rules that say you can't do that"

It's definitively RAI that you can only reload a weapon while holding it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2zhNnBhnB0

Is there any RAW support for this anywhere? I find nothing.

I may be missing something regarding Change Shape.

Change shape automatically succeeds to appear as a member of the new ancestry or creature type.

It doesn't let the shapechange appear as a specific individual.

But it gives the shapechanger a +4 status bonus to deception to keep people from seeing through it's disguise.

As far as I can tell, the uses of this result in automatic success or failure. You can always appear as another ancestry or creature type. You can never disguise yourself as a specific individual.

What's the +4 for? Just the instances where it does let you appear as a specific individual?

Bonus question, the Vrykolakas Master (https://2e.aonprd.com/Monsters.aspx?ID=843) get the Change Shape ability, but says it has the effects of an unlimited duration Humanoid Form. But Humanoid Form requires deception checks to pass as a member of the humanoid ancestry chosen. Which takes precedence: Change Shape's auto-success or Humanoid Form's not-auto-success?

Change Shape

https://2e.aonprd.com/MonsterAbilities.aspx?ID=8

(concentrate, [magical tradition], polymorph, transmutation) The monster changes its shape indefinitely. It can use this action again to return to its natural shape or adopt a new shape. Unless otherwise noted, a monster cannot use Change Shape to appear as a specific individual. Using Change Shape counts as creating a disguise for the Impersonate use of Deception. The monster's transformation automatically defeats Perception DCs to determine whether the creature is a member of the ancestry or creature type into which it transformed, and it gains a +4 status bonus to its Deception DC to prevent others from seeing through its disguise. Change Shape abilities specify what shapes the monster can adopt. The monster doesn't gain any special abilities of the new shape, only its physical form. For example, in each shape, it replaces its normal Speeds and Strikes, and might potentially change its senses or size. Any changes are listed in its stat block.

Primarily concerned with the clockwork bumblebees. They have a 10 minute wind up and a 10 minute operating time. It takes 1 pilot, 2 crew to fly, and can carry 1 passenger.

If you don't have to turn off a clockwork to wind it, the passenger could wind it in flight to keep it going.

Real world clocks don't have to be stopped to wind, but these aren't real-world clockworks.

I can't tell the design intent. RAW I think it works, especially if the bolded section holds that they're generally re-wound once they get half wound down.

https://2e.aonprd.com/Traits.aspx?ID=331

"Wind-Up: To remain operational, a clockwork vehicle or creature must be wound with a unique key by a creature. This takes an amount of time listed in the clockwork's wind-up entry, which also lists how long the clockwork remains operational once wound; after this duration, the clockwork becomes inactive and immobile until it's wound again. Some clockworks' abilities require them to spend some of their remaining operational time. They can't spend more than they have and shut down immediately once they have 0 time remaining. If it's unclear when a clockwork was last wound, most are re-wound approximately halfway through their operating time."

Greater Retrieval Prism let's you recall any object in your posession as a free action, but the normal Retrieval Prism doesn't have that restriction. You designate one object when you affix it to your armor and then can recall it as a free action, the only restrictions being the object is 1 bulk or less, you have a free hand, and the object is on the same plane.

I feel like the base Retrieval Prism was intended to have the 'in your possession' language, but I don't see anything in the errata about it.

At level six the sohei can gain weapon training in the crossbow or thrown weapons group, and the ability to flurry with those weapons.

Crossbows and sling-type weapons generally cannot make multiple attacks per round without special feats.

Does the sohei ability to flurry with them trump those requirements, or does he require rapid reload or ammo drop+juggle ammo?

Boon Companion says:

"The abilities of your animal companion or familiar are calculated as though your class were 4 levels higher, to a maximum effective druid level equal to your character level."

The Ranger Falconer Archetype has it's companion start at half hit points, but gets the rest as a class feature at ranger level 4, and get a bonus trick at ranger level 6.

If I take Boon Companion with 2 levels of falconer, and treat the ranger class as 4 levels higher for determining the abilities of the animal companion, do I include the abilities the animal companion would gain due to the character's class features within those four levels?

Can't find this one anywhere, and it'd be handy to know for (among other things) a rogue with the Major Magic(Mount) trick and a set of magic horseshoes.

In Ultimate Magic, the Moon patron gives the witch darkness at level 2.

Darkness normally can't be cast until level 3 as it is a second level spell.

Does this mean darkness is a first level spell for a witch, or that she doesn't get to cast her patron spell for another level?

All other patron spells granted at level 2 are first level spells.

For another game, but I figure why not ask here.

I've got a musician who gains power from performing.

One of his schticks is that he can ask the primal aspect of music for a small favor, and then has to offer a service in return.

Since performing isn't much of a service (it directly benefits him), what might the Concept of Music like to have done?

Maybe writing out sheet music? Sharing youtube videos? Volunteering at indie concerts?

I know that you can Hold the Charge and deliver a touch spell via a natural weapon/weapon/unarmed strike attack.

But lets say that I have SU abilities that read "Make a melee touch attack. If you hit, X happens"

Can I choose a natural weapon/weapon/unarmed strike to deliver that ability?

Reason being, I might want to use something with reach, or an enhancement bonus or whatever. Or am I limited in those cases to getting up close and poking with a finger (and not using unarmed strike skills)?

I'm considering targets for casting awaken, but I'm only likely to have one set of material components available.

If the spell fails, does wasting the spell include wasting the components as well?

This is puzzling me.

Let's say I want to gain an initiative advantage over an enemy by reducing its initiative.

I have several ways to do this, a myriad of Dex reduction methods but most easily special abilities and spells that deafen.

Deafened's big hit is a -4 to initiative checks. But how can I get that to apply? If I say I want to take a hostile action to deafen the enemy, that triggers an initiative roll that is locked in before the action resolves, so the penalty doesn't apply to this combat.

Do I have to hit from stealth, end combat somehow, and then re-engage with the penalty in place?

I know house-rules can fix it, but I'm trying to understand RAW implications.

Does anyone know how close you have to be to use handle animal to push a creature? Adjacent? In earshot? Visible? I'm finding no references.

So the carnivalist gets to use bardic performances using handle animal rather than perform.

But only the 6th level Trained Legerdemain specifies where the animal that's performing has to be.

1) So where do the pets have to be? The ability says it works like bardic performance, so the effect is emanating from the rogue, not the animal. That suggests the animal needs to be either adjacent to the rogue or within hearing distance to implement the handle animal check.

I think it's the first one because RAW you could have a pet dancing unseen on the other side of the campsite and it would still fascinate people who couldn't see it (eta: there's not even a written requirement for there to be a pet present at all). I think it needs to be adjacent and visible, ( the latter per the bardic performance guidelines).

2) Also, which pets are eligible to use the abilities with? The way i read it, any pet would work regardless of tricks known. I'd say that means any familiar, AC, or animal owned by the rogue (possibly with an attitude of helpful.)

The PRD describes the Max Attacks attrtibue of the eidolon like this:

Max. Attacks: This indicates the maximum number of natural attacks that the eidolon is allowed to possess at the given level.

However, a FAQ entry on stacking natural attacks for a synthesist describes it as:

the fused character's natural attacks are still subject to the Maximum Attacks entry in the table for an eidolon of his level. For example, a 1st-level synthesist is limited to 3 natural attacks per round, whether those natural attacks are from the eidolon, the synthesist, or a combination of the two.

So which is it? Is the limit natural attacks made per round or natural attack evolutions taken?

This has a few consequences.

It changes how rake works. The eidolon rake triggers on a grapple check, regardless of whether it starts the turn grappled. If the limit is the number of natural attacks taken, than an eidolon with claws linked to grab can get as many (twice as many technically) rake attacks as it has claws. The more claws it has, the further the number of attacks made can exceed the number of natural attacks taken.

If it's based on the number of attacks made, then it's rules legal to take an evolution that gives two attacks while you posses a number of attacks equal to one below the natural attack limit. The rule is that when you're at max natural attacks you can't take another evolution that grants natural attacks. But if you're one below, and you take two, it doesn't break the limit if you only make your max attacks per round and leave the other one unused. If of course, the limit reflects made rather than taken.

Either way has some odd consequences, but I'm not quite sure which way to come down.

I've actually got a bunch of players who didn't kill their parents off in their backstory. Not only they, they made them relevant to the narrative.

So I need to stat them up. But I'm having trouble getting the balance of age/level right.

I've got two warriors, a cleric, and either a ranger or warrior (not sure which way I'll interpret the last).

All are supposed to be middle age which for them is late twenties, early thirties since they hit adulthood at 12. There's all supposed to be notably accomplished at what they do, especially the latter two.

Does anyone have any advice or resources that could help me?

I'm trying to help a player make a low strength build viable.

Is there any reason she couldn't put a weapon sheath on her mount like a saddle ring so she could jump on her mount and draw a sword but not have to carry it around on foot?

Is there any reason you couldn't tie yourself to a flying mount like a safety harness, so if you got knocked out you'd only fall the length of the rope? The downside of course is that if your mount got knocked out you'd either need to cut free and activate a contingency or do something that saves both of you.

The ability reads:

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Natural Divination (Ex): You can read the entrails of a freshly killed animal or humanoid to gain an insight bonus equal to your Charisma modifier on one saving throw. Alternatively, by observing and interpreting the flights of birds, you may apply a +10 competence bonus on any one skill check. Finally, by charting marks in dirt or stone, or observing the behavior of sand when thrown into the wind, you gain a +4 insight bonus on one initiative check. These bonuses must be used during the next 24 hours and you must declare you are using the bonus before the check or save is made. Making a natural divination takes 10 minutes. You may use natural divination (in any combination) once per day plus one additional time per day for every four oracle levels you have attained.

--------

It's the "(in any combination)" that gets me. Is it saying you get to use all three aspects once a day, or just one once a day (prior to level 4 of course)?

I had a hard time deciding where to post this, so if this is in the wrong place, my apologies.

I'm GMing a pathfinder game in a few weeks and I'd like to prep some tokens by printing NPC/monster circles and gluing them on a base.

Friends have suggested metal washers and wood stickers.

As a player I've used wood turnings before.

Does anyone have experience with finding a good price:quality point regarding these?

Telekinetic flurry isn't an unarmed attack by the description, but I don't know what it actually is. Multiple bonus feats in the telekinetic monk archetype give bonuses to unarmed strikes and natural weapons, so I hope one of those categories applies to it.

Any thoughts?

"Starting at 1st level, a monk can make a telekinetic flurry as a full-attack action. A telekinetic flurry does not use weapons. Instead, the telekinetic monk punishes his foes with mental force. ...

Telekinetic flurry attacks inflict the monk’s normal unarmed strike damage, but damage is not modified by Strength."

So I'm pondering level advancement for my monk.

He can take Ki Strike as a bonus at 10 and Improved Ki Strike as a bonus at 14, without regard for prereqs.

I get that. So it's clear that I could take improved without the base.

However, Improved Ki Strike is written, "When using the Ki Throw feat" so is it simply my option to take a useless feat, or does taking improved Ki Strike let me use a Ki Throw?

So I'm pondering level advancement for my monk.

He can take Ki Strike as a bonus at 10 and Improved Ki Strike as a bonus at 14, without regard for prereqs.

I get that. So it's clear that I could take improved without the base.

However, Improved Ki Strike is written, "When using the Ki Throw feat" so is it simply my option to take a useless feat, or does taking improved Ki Strike let me use a Ki Throw?