When an intelligent weapon has skill ranks as one of its lesser powers, say 10 Ranks in Bluff. The character wielding it attempts a feint...do those ranks get added to the Character's roll straight away?
Or are the ranks really the weapon's ranks and simply permit the weapon to 'aid' in the feint?
I've not been able to find anything specific in the SRD...
Also, this is the first time using Intelligent weapons in a campaign. Anyone have any caveats or suggestions for DM'ing a game with one of these in a character's hands?
I consider them ranks that the item itself has, so an intelligent item with the "Item has 10 ranks in Bluff" Lesser Power can actually make Bluff checks. It could, thus, grant the wielder a +2 bonus by using Aid Another, or try to lie about something (perhaps concealing its abilities, or trying to trick someone into giving the item to a more appropriate wielder. Of course, an item that doesn't have Speech or Telepathy is going to have a hard time using most of the skills. Say it makes a Knowledge check, with empathy, it could only urge the wielder in a certain line of thought or action.
I base this position from the statements, "Intelligent items can actually be considered creatures because they have Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores." and "All powers function at the direction of the item, although intelligent items generally follow the wishes of their owner. Activating a power or concentrating on an active one is a standard action the item takes." So the Bluff is an action the item takes, rather than granting a bonus to the wielder. In addition, a +10 bonus to a skill check would generally cost 10,000 gp (bonus squared x 100 gp) so the pricing for the intelligent item seems out of line.
The weapon's skill ranks are separate, and don't get added to the character's. There is the Aid Another use of skills. I would rule that since the weapon is intelligent, it could choose to aid its wielder in a skill check, depending on the situation, of course.
As far as intelligent items in your campaign...the campaign should be about the characters, not the gear they carry, even if it is intelligent. Just make sure the characters aren't overshadowed by the intelligent item.
In addition, a +10 bonus to a skill check would generally cost 10,000 gp (bonus squared x 100 gp) so the pricing for the intelligent item seems out of line.
>smacks self on head< That makes a lot of sense. Thanks. Love the rapid response on this board...that, and the fact the office firewall doesn't seem to mind it.