Increasing a Spell's DC

Is there any way to do this without going through the painful raising your primary attribute and not using the highest level spell slot you have? It seems rediculous to ever fight monsters in the latter levels such as devils who normally have monk-like progression and also slap on some spell resistance to boot for which there are.

I understand that normally you just try to identify the monster's weakness in DC but sometimes it just doesnt seem possible when fighting something like an ice devil. Will is the only thing even targetable an its still almost impossibly hard to affect.

Is there any way to do this without going through the painful raising your primary attribute and not using the highest level spell slot you have? It seems rediculous to ever fight monsters in the latter levels such as devils who normally have monk-like progression and also slap on some spell resistance to boot for which there are.

I understand that normally you just try to identify the monster's weakness in DC but sometimes it just doesnt seem possible when fighting something like an ice devil. Will is the only thing even targetable an its still almost impossibly hard to affect.

Spell focus is the only choice you have, AFAIK.

- Raising casting attribute
- Spell Focus
- A few odd racial and class abilities such as gnomes bonus to illusion DC's and devilish sorcerers bonus to [charm] DC's.
- Spell Mastery
- Heighten Spell
- Persistant Spell doesn't increase DC but requires them to save twice.

It's quite easy to make a viable SoL caster against high-CR saves. Many people actually argue SoL's are too powerful even at the higher levels; if you optimize completely, you can get something like an 85% or so success rate. The user RavingDork has an example of a Flesh to Stone sorcerer that's got spell DC through the roof.

I would have preferred if there were fewer options to raise spell DC's but that they weren't as needed. Basically, a decent chance to affect regardless of amount of optimization. Spell focus and GSF and nothing else, basically.

I see, well I'm not crazy about optimization but it does help to at least know what you're doing. I went through a combat in the campaign that I was running where the druid could not land a single spell since the ice devil that I mentioned earlier had a better plus to saves than all of the spells that she could actually cast.

Outsiders are annoying but in Pathfinder they only get 2 good saves, not 3 anymore.

The option exists to cast spells that will help but not be affected by the creature's SR or saves. e.g. buffs, some battlefield control. The druid certainly had to have more options than just trying to drop a spell directly on the devil

The lore seeker trait raises the DC of three spells by one. Spell perfection doubles the DC bonus from feats that apply to one spell (such as spell focus).

Don't forget elemental focus/greater elemental focus. . .

Focused Spell metamagic feat gives a +2 to the DC for one target in an AoE spell. With the arcane sorcerer +1 DC boost for a metamagic-applied spell, that's a pretty good deal. The major drawback is that you must affect 2 or more creatures with the AoE. . .

- Spell Mastery

Spell mastery doesn't increase a spell's DC. . .?

stringburka wrote:

- Spell Mastery

Spell mastery doesn't increase a spell's DC. . .?

I think he meant Spell Perfection, which doubles the bonus from feats like Spell Focus and Spell Penetration.

Sorry, yes, I meant spell perfection.