| 1 person marked this as FAQ candidate. |
I did a few searches and found no thread on the topic, so forgive me if this has already been addressed.
I'm specifically curious about what one can do while maintaining a spell with a duration of "Concentration." For your typical caster, this is fairly straight-forward: They cast the spell and maintain it every round as a standard action. When they want to cast something else, they dismiss it.
So let's establish what CAN be done while concentrating. Since it only costs a standard action, presumably the character can use their move and swift actions as they please so long as their actions don't cause them to fail a concentration check. So they definitely can 5-foot step or move their full move distance. Can they draw a weapon? Can they reload a light crossbow? Can they drink a potion?
Now, if they can do one or all of those things, can they make Attacks of Opportunity (assuming they're equipped to do so and have the opportunity)?
If not, why not? The text on concentration only dictates that a caster must spend a standard action each round to maintain his concentration, and that he cannot cast any spell while maintaining the first spell. There doesn't seem to be anything I can find that stipulates the caster cannot make attacks of opportunity.
If a caster CAN make Attacks of Opportunity while maintaining concentration, where does this leave the Magus? Since the Magus can cast spells that normally take 1 Standard Action as a part of Spell Combat, does that mean that a Magus can maintain concentration while making a full attack?
If not, why not?
This has come up in our games and I've scoured the CRB and UM looking for an answer, but have come up empty-handed. Thoughts?
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So let's establish what CAN be done while concentrating. Since it only costs a standard action, presumably the character can use their move and swift actions as they please so long as their actions don't cause them to fail a concentration check. So they definitely can 5-foot step or move their full move distance. Can they draw a weapon? Can they reload a light crossbow? Can they drink a potion?
Yes, yes, no (drinking a potion is a standard action).
Now, if they can do one or all of those things, can they make Attacks of Opportunity (assuming they're equipped to do so and have the opportunity)?
If the caster wields a melee weapon or has Improved Unarmed Strike, there's no reason they can't.
There's a -trait- that lets you throw a potion in the air and catch it in your mouth, drinking it as a move action rather than a standard. Interesting combination right there...
A possible way to get around the limit there, using summon swarm to harry your enemies while self-buffing with potions.
| 1 person marked this as FAQ candidate. |
well reading it over and over, as long as the magus does not cast another spell he can do aoo. he can not do spell combat because he can not cast a spell and maintain concentration, this would apply to any of his abilities. and since he has to perform a standard action he is left to move only, so he...
If the Magus can do an AoO without breaking concentration, and if the Magus can perform spellcraft that normally takes a Standard action as a part of Spell Combat, is there any reason why he shouldn't be able to substitute the Standard Action of concentration in place of casting a new spell with Spell Combat?
What I'm saying is, should he be able to maintain concentration AND make a full attack?
I understand that if we go strictly RAW, the answer is probably no--concentrating is not "casting a spell," and Spell Combat only deals with casting a spell while attacking. But do you think that maintaining should fall within the bounds of what counts as "casting a spell" for RAI?
Bumping once for visibility. I would love to see some opinions on whether Magi can count "concentrating as a standard action" as "casting as a standard action" for the purposes of Spell Combat.
What I'm saying is, should he be able to maintain concentration AND make a full attack?I understand that if we go strictly RAW, the answer is probably no--concentrating is not "casting a spell," and Spell Combat only deals with casting a spell while attacking. But do you think that maintaining should fall within the bounds of what counts as "casting a spell" for RAI?
I'd say no, both for RAW and RAI. Casting <> maintaining.
Of course, with anything in regards to RAI, it's always in the eye of reader as to what is the intended meaning.
Casting <> maintaining.
I'll certainly grant that, but what's the functional difference? If casting is a standard action and maintaining is a standard action and both are the manipulation of magic energy, then what is different about the act of concentration versus spellcasting?
To clarify, both are spellcasting and both require concentration. So what's different about continuous concentration to maintain a spell that makes it functionally different from periodic concentration to bring a spell into existence? Is it a harder thing to do? Given that spellcasting provokes AoO (if you don't cast defensively) but maintaining does not, I would suggest that maintaining a spell is actually easier than creating one.
One last bump for visibility and I'll let it die if no one cares.