Creative Director
|
I dont suppose you would be willing to say what part is not 100% accurate?Is whats written in the Thassilon section of lost kingdom Spoilers for what happens in Shatterd star. Specificly
** spoiler omitted **
There may well be some spoilers in that section, yes. To a certain extent. It's not a 100% accurate spoiler.
But yeah... the Campaign Setting line does periodically include adventure spoilers. That's nothing new. They're aimed at GMs, primarily, after all...
Not yet.
|
Creative Director
|
Can a pinned creature or character make a full attack?
Nope, because one of the things that happened when you are pinned is that you are VERY limited as to what actions you can take. Most importantly, you can't attack if you're pinned—in order to attack, you first need to escape the pinned condition. So... no. If you're pinned, you can't make a full attack.
Do the effects of an Orange Prism Ioun Stone* and the Magical Knack trait stack?
Are the following example caster levels possible?
Wizard 10 with MK = CL 10
Wizard 10 with OPIS = CL 11
Wizard 10 with both = CL 11
Wizard 9/fighter 1 with MK = CL 10
Wizard 9/fighter 1 with OPIS = CL 10
Wizard 9/fighter 1 with both = CL 11
Wizard 8/fighter 2 with MK = CL 10
Wizard 8/fighter 2 with OPIS = CL 9
Wizard 8/fighter 2 with both = CL 11
Some people seem to think that the character level limits of Magical Knack should extend to the Orange Prism Ioun Stone. A few examples of what the difference would look like:
Wizard 10 with MK = CL 10
Wizard 10 with OPIS = CL 11
Wizard 10 with both = CL 11
Wizard 9/fighter 1 with MK = CL 10
Wizard 9/fighter 1 with OPIS = CL 10
Wizard 9/fighter 1 with both = CL 10
Wizard 8/fighter 2 with MK = CL 10
Wizard 8/fighter 2 with OPIS = CL 9
Wizard 8/fighter 2 with both = CL 10
This interpretation seems inconsistent to me as the Orange Prism Ioun Stone works with a fully leveled caster even when he has Magical Knack, but suddenly stops working when he is short one or two caster levels. It also turns a beneficial trait into something of a handicap, as it prevents a host of other abilities (see below) from working.
In short, it's a question of order of operations. When does one check for Magical Knack's character level limit? Before or after applying the ioun stone's benefits?
* Alternatively, Spell Specialization, Varisian Tatoo, or anything else that increases caster levels.
|
Creative Director
|
| 4 people marked this as a favorite. |
Do the effects of an Orange Prism Ioun Stone* and the Magical Knack trait stack?
Yes, they stack. Magical knack grants a trait bonus, whereas the ioun stone grants an untyped bonus.
Magical knack, though, can NEVER raise your caster level above your Hit Dice. So if you have another effect that raises your caster level above your HD (like an ioun stone), then Magical Knack doesn't help.
The easiest way to deal with it is to just apply the ioun stone bonus first. If your caster level is still lower than your Hit Dice, then Magical Knack kicks in. (Magical Knack is really only for multiclass spellcasters or spellcasters with racial HD; a single-class spellcaster should never take Magical Knack since it'll never help him unless his caster level is lower than his HD, as in the case of a ranger or paladin.)
Can a pinned creature or character make a full attack?Nope, because one of the things that happened when you are pinned is that you are VERY limited as to what actions you can take. Most importantly, you can't attack if you're pinned—in order to attack, you first need to escape the pinned condition. So... no. If you're pinned, you can't make a full attack.
I think one exception might be for Maneuver Master Monks, since each Iterative Attack itself may be a Grapple Check (to Reverse/Escape the Grapple in this case). Tetori or Grab Monsters couldn't, since they have to make a normal attack first BEFORE getting the free Grab/Grapple, but Maneuver Masters seems like they just might be able to get away with it.
|
Creative Director
|
I think one exception might be for Maneuver Master Monks, since each Iterative Attack itself may be a Grapple Check (to Reverse/Escape the Grapple in this case). Tetori or Grab Monsters couldn't, since they have to make a normal attack first BEFORE getting the free Grab/Grapple, but Maneuver Masters seems like they just might be able to get away with it.
There are always exceptions. That's not what the question was asking though, so I didn't want to overcomplicate things.
Do the effects of an Orange Prism Ioun Stone* and the Magical Knack trait stack?Yes, they stack. Magical knack grants a trait bonus, whereas the ioun stone grants an untyped bonus.
Magical knack, though, can NEVER raise your caster level above your Hit Dice. So if you have another effect that raises your caster level above your HD (like an ioun stone), then Magical Knack doesn't help.
The easiest way to deal with it is to just apply the ioun stone bonus first. If your caster level is still lower than your Hit Dice, then Magical Knack kicks in. (Magical Knack is really only for multiclass spellcasters or spellcasters with racial HD; a single-class spellcaster should never take Magical Knack since it'll never help him unless his caster level is lower than his HD, as in the case of a ranger or paladin.)
For clarity:
Fighter 2 + wizard 8 with an ioun stone(+1 caster level) and Magical Knack(+2 caster level)
Is the caster level +11 or +10?
|
Creative Director
|
For clarity:
Fighter 2 + wizard 8 with an ioun stone(+1 caster level) and Magical Knack(+2 caster level)
Is the caster level +11 or +10?
A fighter 2/wizard 8 has 10 HD.
He has a caster level of 8th.
If he has an ioun stone, that'll make his caster level 9th, which is still lower than his HD. If he has magical knack, that boosts his caster level up to 10th, which is equal to his HD, and thus legal and legit. It does NOT increase his caster level to 11th, since that would increase it above his HD.
Basically... Magical Knack has to take the LEAST advantageous route to giving you those extra caster levels.
(If you add magical knack first and increase your caster level to 10, then try to add your +1 from your ioun stone, your effective caster level is above your Hit Dice and Magical Knack gets angry.)
A Dwarf, an Elf and a Kitsune walk into a tavern.
they sit at the bar, order drinks and chug them down.
the kitsune starts to laugh, the dwarf passes out and the elf starts raging and cursing at the half-orc barkeep.
my question is, do you have any idea why?
For clarity:
Fighter 2 + wizard 8 with an ioun stone(+1 caster level) and Magical Knack(+2 caster level)
Is the caster level +11 or +10?
A fighter 2/wizard 8 has 10 HD.
He has a caster level of 8th.
If he has an ioun stone, that'll make his caster level 9th, which is still lower than his HD. If he has magical knack, that boosts his caster level up to 10th, which is equal to his HD, and thus legal and legit. It does NOT increase his caster level to 11th, since that would increase it above his HD.
Basically... Magical Knack has to take the LEAST advantageous route to giving you those extra caster levels.
(If you add magical knack first and increase your caster level to 10, then try to add your +1 from your ioun stone, your effective caster level is above your Hit Dice and Magical Knack gets angry.)
Thanks. That is how I read it also.
For clarity:
Fighter 2 + wizard 8 with an ioun stone(+1 caster level) and Magical Knack(+2 caster level)
Is the caster level +11 or +10?
A fighter 2/wizard 8 has 10 HD.
He has a caster level of 8th.
If he has an ioun stone, that'll make his caster level 9th, which is still lower than his HD. If he has magical knack, that boosts his caster level up to 10th, which is equal to his HD, and thus legal and legit. It does NOT increase his caster level to 11th, since that would increase it above his HD.
Basically... Magical Knack has to take the LEAST advantageous route to giving you those extra caster levels.
(If you add magical knack first and increase your caster level to 10, then try to add your +1 from your ioun stone, your effective caster level is above your Hit Dice and Magical Knack gets angry.)
Why should orange ioun stones have less benefit for those with Magical Knack? That seems awfully close to having a belt of giant strength +3, which only gives partial benefit to half the population--something I thought you developers excluded for a reason.
Why bring it back in another form here? It's not like it's overpowering or anything.
Why would a trait, any trait, prevent me from utilizing otherwise advantageous items and abilities such as an orange ioun stone, Spell Specialization, or Variasian Tattoo? That just doesn't make any sense at all!
|
Creative Director
|
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
Why should orange ioun stones have less benefit for those with Magical Knack? That seems awfully close to having a belt of giant strength +3, which only gives partial benefit to half the population--something I thought you developers excluded for a reason.
Why bring it back in another form here? It's not like it's overpowering or anything.
Why would a trait, any trait, prevent me from utilizing otherwise advantageous items and abilities such as an orange ioun stone, Spell Specialization, or Variasian Tattoo? That just doesn't make any sense at all!
Because Magical Knack is only a trait, and because the ioun stone is much more powerful than Magical Knack which is already VERY good for a trait and thus needs that HD limitation to keep it from being way too good, and because increases to caster level are and should be VERY rare things indeed. The game expects certain power levels for certain levels, and when they get too out of control, the game breaks.
Put another way... there's THOUSANDS of traits and feats and powers and abilities... and as a result its absolutely inevitable that some would overlap. You can't take every feat and power and ability anyway, so why are you worried if some overlap or render other options less than optimal? Just pick a different thing that doesn't clash with your character and go on from there.
In any case... Magical Knack absolutely does NOT prevent you from using an orange ioun stone. Quite the opposite. Because an orange ioun stone (or specilaizaiton, or tattoo or whatever) is a more powerful effect and has a result that overwhelms the lesser trait.
Not every option has to be the best.
Do you ever have sudden, unexpected ideas and think "Oh I have GOT to put that into the game!"?
Assuming that time and development dollars were not an issue and you were the sole deciding person, what would be the next hardcover Pathfinder book you would like to see released (excluding announced but unreleased books, like the item or NPC guide)
Does the feat (and Monk of the Four Winds ability of the same name) Elemental Fist stack with elemental damage granted from weapon properties if one were to have an Amulet of Mighty Fist?
Another question, I got into an argument recently on magic item creation with someone that just moved into my town and dropped by our local Hobby Store. He claims that a Universalist Wizard can use their Metamagic Mastery ability to create items with spells that are enhanced through Metamagic feats, without having to pay the cost for the increased level of the spell because the Metamagic Mastery doesn't increase the actual spell level. I say this is incorrect because it's a limited uses thing, and you still have to pay the extra cost, besides that, it starts breaking the game if it were allowed as Wizards could create things like Maximized wands of Fireball for the same price as regular wand.
Is there anything in the rules that would disallow this beyond Rule 0?
Because Magical Knack is only a trait... Not every option has to be the best.
Thanks for answering the original question! And yes, it can be abused a little ;) lol though that was not the intent :D.
The good news is that, through counseling and treatment the wizard in my group has come to terms with never being able to have a CL of 21. At least I think he is...
Why is he pricing multiple Rings of three wishes? (joke!)
John
So the Nodaichi is a large unwieldy eastern weapon but only requires martial proficiency.
the Katana is a bastard sword sized weapon that requires martial proficiency, but with exotic weapon proficiency you can use it with one hand.
The Wakazashi, the smallest and easiest to use of the trio of eastern swords requires exotic weapon proficiency.
Why is a Wakazashi exotic?
Why should orange ioun stones have less benefit for those with Magical Knack? That seems awfully close to having a belt of giant strength +3, which only gives partial benefit to half the population--something I thought you developers excluded for a reason.
Why bring it back in another form here? It's not like it's overpowering or anything.
Why would a trait, any trait, prevent me from utilizing otherwise advantageous items and abilities such as an orange ioun stone, Spell Specialization, or Variasian Tattoo? That just doesn't make any sense at all!
Because Magical Knack is only a trait, and because the ioun stone is much more powerful than Magical Knack which is already VERY good for a trait and thus needs that HD limitation to keep it from being way too good, and because increases to caster level are and should be VERY rare things indeed. The game expects certain power levels for certain levels, and when they get too out of control, the game breaks.
Put another way... there's THOUSANDS of traits and feats and powers and abilities... and as a result its absolutely inevitable that some would overlap. You can't take every feat and power and ability anyway, so why are you worried if some overlap or render other options less than optimal? Just pick a different thing that doesn't clash with your character and go on from there.
In any case... Magical Knack absolutely does NOT prevent you from using an orange ioun stone. Quite the opposite. Because an orange ioun stone (or specilaizaiton, or tattoo or whatever) is a more powerful effect and has a result that overwhelms the lesser trait.
Not every option has to be the best.
Are you implying that caster level increases don't stack in general then? Or is this an exception to the rule?
A followup question: While myself and others were discussing the matter, many people remembered a game developer somewhere saying that bonuses stacked in the most beneficial way. Sadly, no one can remember who said it or where that was said. Do you have any recollection of any such statement or similar statement? I would sure love to track down its source. I'm beginning to think it may have been from v3.5.
How does Magical Knack interact with Esoteric Training (generic spellcasting guild benefit from Inner Sea Magic)?
^ I now have a lot of characters to fix and need to know how to fix them.
He mentioned "Use the least advantageous combination." So, figure out the least advantageous combination and use that.
|
Creative Director
|
Assuming that time and development dollars were not an issue and you were the sole deciding person, what would be the next hardcover Pathfinder book you would like to see released (excluding announced but unreleased books, like the item or NPC guide)
Something that's actually getting released that I've wanted us to do for years, so I can't say yet because it'll be announced at PaizoCon.
Do you ever have sudden, unexpected ideas and think "Oh I have GOT to put that into the game!"?Yup; quite often.
do you ever get ideas from these boards?
I'm sorry if you have answered this recently, I don't want to go through 800+ posts but does Paizo have plans for mythic levels in the near future, say by the end of next year? Thanks.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Does the feat (and Monk of the Four Winds ability of the same name) Elemental Fist stack with elemental damage granted from weapon properties if one were to have an Amulet of Mighty Fist?
Another question, I got into an argument recently on magic item creation with someone that just moved into my town and dropped by our local Hobby Store. He claims that a Universalist Wizard can use their Metamagic Mastery ability to create items with spells that are enhanced through Metamagic feats, without having to pay the cost for the increased level of the spell because the Metamagic Mastery doesn't increase the actual spell level. I say this is incorrect because it's a limited uses thing, and you still have to pay the extra cost, besides that, it starts breaking the game if it were allowed as Wizards could create things like Maximized wands of Fireball for the same price as regular wand.
Is there anything in the rules that would disallow this beyond Rule 0?
Yes, Elemental Fist stacks with energized weapons.
Your friend is wrong. Metamagic Mastery only helps you cast spells. It doesn't help with item creation—item costs are not balanced with that erroneous assumption in mind. What disallows it in the rules is the simple fact that it's such an unusual exception to the standard method of item creation that if it WERE allowed, we would have mentioned it, pointed it out, and priced items in our books in that way. We did none of that, so it's in the same category as "There's no rule in the game that says humans cannot time travel at will, and therefore they must be able to time travel at will.
Rules that don't exist aren't very strong platforms to base arguments on, in other words.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
So the Nodaichi is a large unwieldy eastern weapon but only requires martial proficiency.
the Katana is a bastard sword sized weapon that requires martial proficiency, but with exotic weapon proficiency you can use it with one hand.
The Wakazashi, the smallest and easiest to use of the trio of eastern swords requires exotic weapon proficiency.
Why is a Wakazashi exotic?
Because it's a smaller katana. If that seems arbitrary... well, you're right. A fair number of rules in ANY RPG are arbitrary.
But also because it's fundamentally better (if only slightly) than an equal sized similar martial weapon like a short sword.
When we determine if a weapon is simple, martial, or exotic... the actual real-world difficulty in wielding the weapon isn't something that we factor in. It's pretty much "is this weapon better than the standard version of the most similar weapon?" and if it is, it's exotic.
If a real world weapon is hard to wield, we'll often DELIBERATELY give it better stats than a martial weapon equivalent so that it's Exotic, of course.
And further complicating all that is the unfortunate truth that there are multiple different ways for different designers to decide what makes a weapon exotic or not—and those decisions don't always match up with other folks' opinions.
do you ever get ideas from these boards?Do you ever have sudden, unexpected ideas and think "Oh I have GOT to put that into the game!"?Yup; quite often.
I bet James won't answer this one because he doesn't want people to start throwing ideas at him in hopes of getting them into the game ;)
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Are you implying that caster level increases don't stack in general then? Or is this an exception to the rule?
A followup question: While myself and others were discussing the matter, many people remembered a game developer somewhere saying that bonuses stacked in the most beneficial way. Sadly, no one can remember who said it or where that was said. Do you have any recollection of any such statement or similar statement? I would sure love to track down its source. I'm beginning to think it may have been from v3.5.
I'm not implying anything. Magical Knack has a BUILT IN LIMITATION and that limitation must matter regardless of the situation. An orange ioun stone does not have that limitation.
I have never heard that statement. And frankly, given the numbercruncher mindset and the goal of squeezing blood from rocks, my opinion is that bonuses should be stacked in the LEAST beneficial way.
|
Creative Director
|
How does Magical Knack interact with Esoteric Training (generic spellcasting guild benefit from Inner Sea Magic)?
^ I now have a lot of characters to fix and need to know how to fix them.
Same way.
Apply Esoteric Training first. If your caster level is lower than your HD, Magical Knack kicks in to raise your caster level up to (but not above) a caster level equal to your HD.
|
Creative Director
|
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
do you ever get ideas from these boards?Do you ever have sudden, unexpected ideas and think "Oh I have GOT to put that into the game!"?Yup; quite often.
All the time.
For example, the recent discussion about APs supporting redemption themes not only inspired me to put a HEAVY redemption theme into an unannounced AP we're launching in the future, but also sooner into the adventures of Shattered Star.
Hah, I guessed incorrectly (I was kind of joking anyway ;) )
James one of my favorite campaign setting books so far is "Distant Worlds". Are we ever going to get more material either in AP or module form (and yes I did see the upcoming moonscar adventure), or even whole campaign settting books about the individual worlds? The book was just so awesome.
|
Creative Director
|
I'm sorry if you have answered this recently, I don't want to go through 800+ posts but does Paizo have plans for mythic levels in the near future, say by the end of next year? Thanks.
We've not said yea or nay to Mythic rules public yet. I'd love to do them someday though. Stay tuned!
|
Creative Director
|
I bet James won't answer this one because he doesn't want people to start throwing ideas at him in hopes of getting them into the game ;)do you ever get ideas from these boards?Do you ever have sudden, unexpected ideas and think "Oh I have GOT to put that into the game!"?Yup; quite often.
Too late! Already answered!
|
Creative Director
|
James one of my favorite campaign setting books so far is "Distant Worlds". Are we ever going to get more material either in AP or module form (and yes I did see the upcoming moonscar adventure), or even whole campaign settting books about the individual worlds? The book was just so awesome.
Yes. Moonscar's a good example.
Do you ever have sudden, unexpected ideas and think "Oh I have GOT to put that into the game!"?Yup; quite often.
How often do you then realise they're already in the game?
(Asks the man who once woke up and started to frantically scribble down an outline for the novel-plot he'd just dreamt - and then realised it was Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, which he'd been to see in the cinema the day before.) ;)
How does Magical Knack interact with Esoteric Training (generic spellcasting guild benefit from Inner Sea Magic)?
^ I now have a lot of characters to fix and need to know how to fix them.
Same way.
Apply Esoteric Training first. If your caster level is lower than your HD, Magical Knack kicks in to raise your caster level up to (but not above) a caster level equal to your HD.
Unlike other caster level increasing effects Esoteric Training specifically states that it grants you extra spells per day and spells known, however.
If I have magical knack as well, does esoteric training suddenly no longer grant the full extra spells known/per day?
|
Creative Director
|
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Do you ever have sudden, unexpected ideas and think "Oh I have GOT to put that into the game!"?Yup; quite often.How often do you then realise they're already in the game?
(Asks the man who once woke up and started to frantically scribble down an outline for the novel-plot he'd just dreamt - and then realised it was Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, which he'd been to see in the cinema the day before.) ;)
There are no new ideas anyway. Only interesting ways to present them.
|
Creative Director
|
How does Magical Knack interact with Esoteric Training (generic spellcasting guild benefit from Inner Sea Magic)?
^ I now have a lot of characters to fix and need to know how to fix them.
Same way.
Apply Esoteric Training first. If your caster level is lower than your HD, Magical Knack kicks in to raise your caster level up to (but not above) a caster level equal to your HD.
Esoteric Training specifically states that it grants you extra spells per day and spells known, however.
If I have magical knack as well, does esoteric training suddenly no longer grant the full extra spells known/per day?
Esoteric training is a more powerful version of Magical Knack (since magical knack does NOT grant you more spells—since like most caster level increases, it only increases your caster level for effects of spells you cast.)
If you have Magical Knack AND Eclectic or Esoteric training, they stack with each other, but you still can't raise your effective caster level above your HD. You get to choose what order you apply these bonus caster levels—it's more advantageous to add the ones from esoteric training, of course.
If you have Magical Knack AND Esoteric Training, you essentially have a +5 caster level boost. If your caster level is not at least 5 higher than your Hit Dice... you're wasting resources.
(Again... ALL of these effects are designed PRIMARIALLY for multiclassed spellcasters to help keep their spellcasting relevant. These effects are pointless for single-classed spellcasters... and increasingly overkill for multiclassed spellcasters who only level dip out of their primary spellcasting class.)
I noticed that you've got the Lead Designer credit on the Advanced Race Guide. Any particular reason you ended up taking on that responsibility for this release instead of the usual Mr. Bulmahn?
I'm sorry if you have answered this recently, I don't want to go through 800+ posts but does Paizo have plans for mythic levels in the near future, say by the end of next year? Thanks.We've not said yea or nay to Mythic rules public yet. I'd love to do them someday though. Stay tuned!
You are such a tease :)
I might have to accelerate the completion of my current epic campaign if new above-20 rules are on the horizon ....