pad300 |
Ritual Hex is a feat from the Occult Origins Player Companion. What it does is teach you an Occult Ritual : Beseeching the Patron (Level 4 Ritual). This ritual is quite potent, allowing a caster with the Hex class feature to access an additional hex for 24 hrs. It's also not too hard to cast: 4X DC 20 skill checks on K. History (2 Checks) and K. Arcana (2 Checks).
Can a character simply use the research rules for rituals, (Occult Adventures. pg208-209, 4 months research and a DC19 Int check) to learn this ritual without taking the feat?
Kalindlara Contributor |
Mark Seifter Designer |
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The intention is 99.9% likely to be no.
That said, the Player Companion line doesn't have the wordcount to cover every single loophole, so the strict-RAW is probably yes.
By the rules of occult rituals, you can't just start researching an occult ritual anyways, they lie completely in the realm of GM permission:
"The mysteries of occult rituals are jealously guarded secrets, often painstakingly obscured by a ritual's originators or those who stumbled upon the obscure formulae detailing it.
The particulars of casting occult rituals are hidden within coded tomes, concealed in puzzles, or referenced only through allusions woven into esoteric tales. Recovering the casting method of an occult ritual can be an adventure within itself, something revealed by hallucinatory visions, coerced from an occult practitioner, or passed on by a true initiate hovering at death's door and wishing for his genius to live beyond his mortal existence."
Also the DCs indicate that you need clues or a teacher.
So can you learn that ritual without the feat? If the GM chooses to allow it (by giving you the clues you need), then yes, though given there's a feat to learn it, I doubt many GMs will choose to do so.
Kalindlara Contributor |
Why was this released so soon after the ACG errata determined a nearly identical effect was too powerful (Spirit Talker)?
Because the Player Companions and the RPG line are written by different people.
For a similar - though not identical - example, compare Illustrious Urbanite (Heroes of the Streets) and Overwhelming Magic (Inner Sea Races). Released in the same month, no less.
Decorpsed |
Follow up questions in regards to the ritual itself.
The caster gains access to one additional hex for which she qualifies.
In regards to Shamans, how does one determine if you "qualify" for a hex? Shamans have such flexible access to Hexes already, I can see multiple interpretations for what you "qualify" for on any given day.
Does this list include just the basic shaman hexes? What about the Witch Hex? Can i take that from the Ritual and select a different Witch Hex each time?
Are Spirit Hexes included? Just your base Spirit? All Wandering Spirits? Or all Spirit Hexes in general?