Spellcasting: ...You must spend 1 hour per day in quiet meditation to regain your daily allotment of spells. You may prepare and cast any spell on the ranger spell list, provided that you can cast spells of that level, but you must choose which spells to prepare during your daily meditation.
I should move the class list thing into one of the bullets, and/or clarify that it means the ranger versions of those spells (since rangers no longer have a specific list).
6. What spell list does Ranger use? I was under the assumption this list was the one being referred to.
7. Brass dragon and Steel dragon in the Sorcerer's Draconic Bloodlines table refer to the Blast Spell feat, which seems to have been subsumed into the Channel Spell feat.
1. My best guess is there's a separation between activating and directing the spell effect: Free Action to activate the magic item, default Partial Action to direct the spell effect.
2. Does this allow weapon-specific feats to apply to a form that normally wouldn't qualify (e.g., Crushing Blow feat with a greatsword form)?
Theurgy and Bonus Spells: When racial spell-like abilities are given up in favor of spellcasting synergy (as described for each race in Chapter 2), the racial spell-like abilities listed can be used in place of the standard bonus feats for the primary casting progression.3. Is this supposed to say "in place of the standard bonus spells"?
4. Is the Spells Grimoire acting up for anyone else? It'll work if I download it, but it's refusing to load within Google Drive.
5. How do you make the table of contents links in the beginning of the Feats chapter, and can this be used to link to specific sections of other dpcuments?
1. Yes, I should have spelled that out.
2. That thought never occurred to me. Let me think on it.3. That's correct. I;ll fix it in the master document. Thanks!
7. Brass dragon and Steel dragon in the Sorcerer's Draconic Bloodlines table refer to the Blast Spell feat, which seems to have been subsumed into the Channel Spell feat.
Another one I missed. Thanks!
6. What spell list does Ranger use? I was under the assumption this list was the one being referred to.
I had a list in an earlier draft, got rid of it, and now I'm kind of torn.
Thank you for your responses, they help quite a bit. I figured out the Grimoire and Table of Contents parts in the meantime.
I had a list in an earlier draft, got rid of it, and now I'm kind of torn.Spellcasting: ...You must spend 1 hour per day in quiet meditation to regain your daily allotment of spells. You may prepare and cast any spell on the ranger spell list, provided that you can cast spells of that level, but you must choose which spells to prepare during your daily meditation.I should move the class list thing into one of the bullets, and/or clarify that it means the ranger versions of those spells (since rangers no longer have a specific list).What spell list does Ranger use? I was under the assumption this list was the one being referred to.
An earlier draft, you say? Guess I'll use the 2014 spell list for now.
A Reach weapon can be used to make attacks at greater range.
1. This is in 5ft. increments, not Reach Spell increments i.e. first increment being 25ft + 5ft/2Lv, right? Because that'd be silly.
A Reach weapon can be used to make attacks at greater range.1. This is in 5ft. increments, not Reach Spell increments i.e. first increment being 25ft + 5ft/2Lv, right? Because that'd be silly.
No idea how Kirth will handle it, but in base d20, reach weapons do not come in 5' increments but rather doubles base reach, which for most characters amounts to the same thing, but it can matter if you start giving big monsters reach weapons.
2. Whips seem to be missing the "In addition, unlike most other weapons with reach, you can use it against foes anywhere within your reach (including adjacent foes)." clause it has in Pathfinder. Is this intentional?
When placed into an item, an amplified spell functions at the activator’s caster level, rather than at the item’s. In addition, the save DC (if applicable) is calculated using the activator’s Charisma modifier.
you may use your Wisdom modifier in place of your Charisma modifier when calculating saving throw DCs of your spells and extraordinary, supernatural, and spell-like abilities that rely on Charisma.
3. Can Amplify Spell and Serenity work together? It would make sense, but how they're written makes me feel like I'm making an assumption.
Mind Blade (Su): any weapon-specific feats (e.g., Weapon Specialization) that apply to your mind blade in one form also apply to the mind blade in all other forms.
4. Does this include Proficiency level gained via class or racial properties? I'm not certain whether Proficiencies count as feats themselves, or if they count as properties that the actual Proficiency feats bestow upon the character.
Armor or shield bonus to AC
Armor check penalty (per +/-1)
Armor or shield max. Dex bonus
Armor spell failure (per -5%)
Attribute score
Damage reduction /―
Item hardness (per +1)
Item hit points (per +5 hp)
Natural armor
Penetration of DR (per +1 step)
Skill checks (single task only)
Skill checks (all tasks for 1 skill)
User attribute score
Weapon attack rolls
Weapon damage
5. Is there a difference between "Attribute score" and "User attribute score" I'm missing, or is this just a typo?
6. Does the Expanded Arcana feat work with Ki Powers and Skill Tricks? Between being built off of the same Spell Capacity table, and having their own mechanics differences from normal spellcasting, I can see this being ruled either way.
2. Whips seem to be missing the "In addition, unlike most other weapons with reach, you can use it against foes anywhere within your reach (including adjacent foes)." clause it has in Pathfinder. Is this intentional?
Yes. If you want to use it on adjacent foes, I's allow the ranged feat that does that.
6. Does the Expanded Arcana feat work with Ki Powers and Skill Tricks? Between being built off of the same Spell Capacity table, and having their own mechanics differences from normal spellcasting, I can see this being ruled either way.
I never thought of that, but I'd probably allow it.
5. Is there a difference between "Attribute score" and "User attribute score" I'm missing, or is this just a typo?Armor or shield bonus to AC
Armor check penalty (per +/-1)
Armor or shield max. Dex bonus
Armor spell failure (per -5%)
Attribute score
Damage reduction /―
Item hardness (per +1)
Item hit points (per +5 hp)
Natural armor
Penetration of DR (per +1 step)
Skill checks (single task only)
Skill checks (all tasks for 1 skill)
User attribute score
Weapon attack rolls
Weapon damage
Remember that you can buff your familiar, etc. as if it's a magic item, so, yes, they're separate.
Can Amplify Spell and Serenity work together? It would make sense, but how they're written makes me feel like I'm making an assumption.
Yes.
Does this include Proficiency level gained via class or racial properties? I'm not certain whether Proficiencies count as feats themselves, or if they count as properties that the actual Proficiency feats bestow upon the character.
Again, I hadn't thought about that specific case, but again, I'd probably allow it unless some weird corner-case threatened to wreck the game. In fact, use that reply for just about anything, and please let me know if it goes haywire so I can fix it!
A Reach weapon can be used to make attacks at greater range.1. This is in 5ft. increments, not Reach Spell increments i.e. first increment being 25ft + 5ft/2Lv, right? Because that'd be silly.
Silly or not, if you look at the Grimoire, that's how the Blood Wind spell is constructed. Then again, because it's a ranged attack, it provoked AoO from creatures within their normal reach of you.
Thank you for the responses, they help immensely, especially that "weird corner-case threatened to wreck the game" guideline. Now to come up with less ambiguous naming for attribute score increases. Maybe Owner for one and Minion for the other.
Currently Tower Shields are wonky and don't really work with the rest of the game. They require you to "give up all actions" in order to take cover behind them.
I think it would be vastly preferable if this was replaced with the "take total defense action" so it has some semblance of synergy with other Shield related feats, like Shared Shield.
Speaking of which, it might be nice to specify whether "total defense" locks you out of all immediate actions in Kirthfinder, or only ones that result in an attack rolls.
While we're on the topic, Shield Wall's ability to share the Tower Shield's cover feature only works on Total Cover, which the Tower Shield only provides if you have Exotic level proficiency. Martial proficiency would provide Improved Cover, but as written, it would not transfer over with Shield Wall the way Total Cover does.
Also, Exotic Proficiency.
If I have an Exotic Proficiency that gives me a feat, do I only gain access to that feat while I wield that specific item?
Like, Exotic Proficiency in Heavy Shields gives Block Arrow; Do I only gain Block Arrow while using Heavy Shields, or can I wield a Buckler or Tower Shield and still get the benefit of Block Arrow from Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Heavy Shield)?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
In other news, do Special Materials actually matter? Other than Adamantine for bypassing DR/Adamantine and Force for Force damage, it kinda seems like most of the special materials don't really matter, since there's nothing really stopping you from enhancing the hardness and hit points of a regular material item until it's the functional equivalent, is there?
While I'm asking questions, I might as well ask about Empower spell. I noticed that it had this tidbit:
"Metamagic Cost: +2 levels. These levels do not themselves count towards Heightening the base spell."
So... does this mean that Empower Spell does not count towards increasing the damage cap of the spell?
If so, can Augment Spell be used to counteract this?
Let's say I just hit level 11. I have Magical Talent: Bolt of Force as a level 1 spell (from the Magic Domain, as an archivist), as well as Feat Mastery towards the same spell.
Ergo, my effective caster level is 16. My maximum spell level, however, is 6.
I want to cast an Empower [+2] Maximize [+3] Bolt of Force [1st level] SLA. Is this a 6th level spell as is?
Would I use the damage cap for a 6th level spell (i.e. 20d6), or would I use the damage cap for a 4th level spell (i.e. 15d6)?
If the second, what about Metamagic Synergy?
Could I instead cast the SLA as Empower [+2] Maximize [+3 -> +2] Augment [+2 -> +1] Bolt of Force as a 6th level spell, that has a maximum damage cap of 20d6, instead of 15d6?
Is that an accurate assessment?
I'm looking through the Ghost beastiary page, and while the template states "incorporeal traits" it doesn't exactly state what those traits actually are.
This is a bit problematic, if this template is meant to replace the incorporeal ability. But what's especially concerning, is that all of the monsters written as examples using the ghost template, all state the following: "half damage from corporeal."
This is markedly different from incorporeals in regular Pathfinder / DnD, where Incorporeals take ZERO damage from non-magical (i.e. corporeal?) sources, and only half damage from magical sources. Is it intended that ghosts lose their immunity to non-magical attacks, and only just always take half damage from anything not explicitly ghost touch and/or from another ghost and/or empowered by Ghost Strike/Transdimensional Spell?
The Fighter's Knightly Order of the Lion has this ability:
Shield of the Liege (Ex): At 15th level, as an immediate action, you can redirect an attack made at a creature adjacent to you on to yourself, as long as the creature making the attack is within your reach. This ability must be declared before the attack roll is made. The attack is made against your AC and defenses, even if the creature could not normally reach or attack you. You lose any cover or concealment bonuses when subject to the redirected attack.
Considering the fact that Kirthfinder treats Shield bonuses as Cover, I found it kind of funny that this "Shield" of the Liege ability doesn't actually allow you to actually use a Shield.
Is that an accurate summation of the ability, or is it some sort of oversight?
Houserule documents can be viewed/downloaded at my Google Site.
Is an updated and/or higher-resolution version of this available (ideally in PDF or other searchable form)?
Houserule documents can be viewed/downloaded at my Google Site.Is an updated and/or higher-resolution version of this available (ideally in PDF or other searchable form)?
Kirth Gersen's Profile has the most up-to-date Link to all of the material up on Google Docs.
Kirth Gersen's Profile has the most up-to-date Link to all of the material up on Google Docs.
I clicked in expecting nothing special...and was blown away. They've essentially bug-fixed the entire game (including equipment*, spells, and monsters), resolving major issues such as caster/martial disparity, etc, and it's all in lavishly-illustrated Word document format And since it's an evolving non-commercial project, it's not shackled by copyright.
I look forward to seeing a core rulebook (for those who are "new" to d20).
(*Swords are mainly fixed, aside from some descriptive "flavor-text:, e.g., historical arming-swords were around 2.5ft in total length, and longswords 3.5ft.)
1. If I have an Exotic Proficiency that gives me a feat, do I only gain access to that feat while I wield that specific item?2. do Special Materials actually matter? Other than Adamantine for bypassing DR/Adamantine and Force for Force damage, it kinda seems like most of the special materials don't really matter, since there's nothing really stopping you from enhancing the hardness and hit points of a regular material item until it's the functional equivalent, is there?
1. Only that item.
2. Those rules are in place to allow the special materials in previous editions to be replicated.| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Things have been difficult in my professional life this year, and now in my personal life in the wake of Beryl. I'll get to other questions when I can muster the bandwidth.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
My condolences. I wish you good luck in getting your life back in order.
Is there a minimum Caster Level for spells based on their Spell Level? I remember that being a thing in 3.5 and PF1e, but the only things I see in Kirthfinder that have a restriction with Spell Level are Spell Capacity and Spellcasting Attribute. Is the older restriction assumed to be carried over, or is cheesing the Caster Level for cheaper magic items treated as a non-issue because Dispel Magic is sitting at the ready like an attack dog (a la using Ritual Spell to make magic items cheaper)?
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Is there a minimum Caster Level for spells based on their Spell Level? I remember that being a thing in 3.5 and PF1e...
Yes, that carries over.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
A player of mine pointed out a problem and I had to houserule it. The Incarnate Grave Mystery's Grave Sight revelation grants Detect Undead as a continuous ability. Detect Undead is built with Tenuous Spell such that the user could be stunned for a round. A continuous ability that can stun the user sounds like a death wish. My quick fix is to remove Detect Undead and have Grave Sight's Lifesense work on both the living and the undead.
Was having a continuous ability that self-stuns in the face of a high-HD undead intentional? I'm guessing no, but I'm making assumptions on the design philosophy and I'd like to be certain.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Was having a continuous ability that self-stuns in the face of a high-HD undead intentional? I'm guessing no, but I'm making assumptions on the design philosophy and I'd like to be certain.
No. Given a chance, I'll have to go back and look at it.
Personally I’d operate the self stun a bit like bright lights. If tou suddenly get flashed with a bright light, it is stunning and blinding for a moment, but most of the time you will see the bright light indirectly or from far enough away that it won’t stun you at all.
Personally I’d do the same with a continuous detect undead, it would only self stun if very suddenly confronted or purposefully examining auras for their strength.
That’s just me though.
Oh cool, Kirth is back.
Question: The Kirthfinder Fighter has the Warlord ability, which gives them access to what seems like a psuedo-Leadership, with the following restrictions:
Leader of Men: You can attract a body of men-at-arms led by an above-average fighter. This works similarly to the Leadership feat (Chapter 5), using your ranks in Knowledge (Warfare) rather than Diplomacy, but you can attract only fighters, warriors, or experts (grooms, smiths, sappers/miners, etc.) with this ability.
Are there any race requirements on this men-at-arms or the above-average Fighter?
I was kinda thinking of making a low level calvary squad of flying soldiers with low level drakes.
If I choose the Mount Talent, can I also recruit animal followers, or am I restricted to an animal cohort?
You gain Skill Focus (Handle Animal) as a bonus feat. In addition, you gain the service of a loyal and trusty steed to carry you into battle. This mount functions similarly to a druid’s bonded companion (per the mark of the wild ability), having a maximum CR equal to 3 less than your number of ranks in Handle Animal.
...
Special: The creature generally is one that is suitable as a mount for you (e.g., boar, camel, dog, horse, pony, or wolf), but with referee approval you can choose one or more animals other than a mount―a hunting hawk, for example, or a pair of attack dogs, subject to the normal total CR limit.
Does Mount force me to choose between animal cohort or animal followers?
Also, any qualms with the Swarm template being applied to companions / cohorts?
1. Are there any race requirements on this men-at-arms or the above-average fighter?
2. If I choose the Mount Talent, can I also recruit animal followers, or am I restricted to an animal cohort?
3. Does Mount force me to choose between animal cohort or animal followers?
4. Also, any qualms with the Swarm template being applied to companions / cohorts?
1. Not unless the race violates your CR limits for cohorts and followers.
2. Yes, the Mount talent, the Warlord ability, the Leadership feat, etc. are all independent of one another.3. Not sure what you're asking. If you mean "can I use the Mount talent to get a bunch of critters that aren't mounts," the answer is "No, but a level in ranger will get you that, too."
4. Insofar as there are class features that explicit;y grant you swarms of vermin, not really. Again, as with all responses, if there's a weird corner-case that makes this absurd, please let me know so I can close that loophole.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
On the topic of spell lists: I see that some classes (Druid, Cleric) list them explicitly, while others (Ranger, Wizard, Sorcerer), don't.
For Wizard and Archivist I assume they can just transcribe any spell of appropriate type that's not explicitly restricted, but what about others? Do I just assume that i.e. the Ranger's spell list is "any spell which in its source book is listed as a Ranger spell, rebuilt with the spell building system"?
In that case, do the classes with explicit spell lists just have them as a way to mark the spells that don't fall under a specific domain, making the above reasoning universal?
I've been using the Ranger spell list from Kirthfinder circa 2014.
Add the following spells to the core ranger’s spell list; non-core sources (noted as superscripts) are cited in Chapter 1. You also have access to all of the Nomad psionic discipline powers from the d20 System Reference Document, as if they were spells of the appropriate level, and you can learn certain martial maneuvers from the Tome of Battle as if they were spells of the same level, choosing from the following disciplines: Diamond Mind, Tiger Claw, and Desert Wind (the latter only if you have deserts as a favored terrain).
0 Level Spells: Arcane mark, canny effort AUG, chill/warmth RR, clean RR, comrade’s trail AEST, create water, dancing lights, dawn MW, detect magic, detect poison, guidance, endure elements, ignite, keep dry AEST, keep fresh AEST, know direction, light, magic stone, mending, message, naturewatch MF, predict weather AUG, purify food and drink, ram’s might MF, read magic, resistance, scent bane AUG, seeker AUG, virtue.
1st Level Spells: Accelerated movement CAd, animate rope, arrow mind CAd, Artemis’ blessing RRO, aspect of the wolf SC, blades of fire SC, blissful sleep BEM3, bloodhound CAd, branch to branch CAd, burning brand BHM, camouflage CD, cure light wounds, darkvision, delay disease ARG, detect shapechangers RR2, disguise self, ease of breath FB, easy trail CAd, exacting shot CAd, expeditious retreat, faerie fire, feather fall, guided shot CAd, hawkeye CAd, healing lorecall CAd, hunter’s mercy MF, instant search CAd, lay of the land PnH, lightfoot MH, locate city RD, low-light vision MF, magic weapon, obliterate tracks WotC, precipitation APM, quickswim SW, rankletaste WotC, recent occupant BEM3, resist planar alignment PnH, rogue’s stab BEM3, silvered weapon Dr340, sleep, sniper’s shot CAd, stalking brand MF, surefoot SC, swift expeditious retreat CAd, tern’s persistance CAd, travelers’ mount CD, vigilant slumber CM, webfoot SW.
2nd Level Spells: Alter self, balancing lorecall CAd, beast shape I, blight enemy BHM, blood biography APG, blur, bull’s strength, clairaudience/clairvoyance, cure moderate wounds, curse of arrow attraction PHII, detect evil, divine favor, easy climb CAd, flame blade, follow aura APG, freedom of breath SSt, Gaean repast RRO, hunter’s eye PHII, hunter’s stalk RR, hunter’s moon RR2, hydrate SSt, invisibility, lesser restoration, Liliandel’s flurry RR, linked perception PHII, listening lorecall CAd, living prints MF, locate object, mass hide from animals AEST, nature’s favor CAd, near horizon CM, nondetection, scent CD, see invisibility, shield of faith, surefooted stride WotC, swift haste CAd, water breathing, whispering wind.
3rd Level Spells: Air walk, animal spy RR, avoid planar effects MP, bane of the forge RR2, beast shape II, blade storm CAd, blink, cure serious wounds, detect favored enemy CD, dimension door, dispel magic, displacement, find the gap DN, fire trap, forsestfold CD, glyph of warding, instant enemy APG, keen edge, locate creature, greater magic weapon, heal animal companion WotC, magic vestment, mark of the hunter CD, mass feather step APG, Tanil’s spectral archers RR2, wake trailing SW, wraithstrike.
4th Level Spells: Animal growth, arrow storm CAd, attune form MP, baleful polymorph, charm monster, cure critical wounds, bane bow CD, beast shape III, elemental body I, foebane CAd, detect scrying, dimensional anchor, dismissal, greater invisibility, hydra’s blood RRO, implacable pursuer CD, lesser aura of cold FB, mass camouflage CD, mass longstrider PHII, mass surefooted stride WotC, perinarch PnH, planar adaptation APG, plane shift, restoration, ricochet RR2, scrying, secret chest, sending, spike stones, stoneskin, swift lion’s charge MH, Tanil’s purging RR, telepathic bond, true seeing.
5th Level Spells: beast shape IV, control winds, elemental body II, greater dispel magic, greater glyph of warding, mass bear’s endurance, mass bull’s strength, mass cat’s grace, mass cure light wounds, mass owl’s wisdom, mass planar adaptation APG, stone tell, teleport, transport via plants, wall of thorns.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
You're correct about Bard/Sorcerer/Wizard. From my understanding, it's because prepared divine casters from prior editions didn't have a limit on spells known. 3.5 Clerics and Druids got nuts with each splatbook release. Here in this version of Kirthfinder, a caster is either spontaneous, prepared with a specified class list, or prepared with a spellbook that costs numen to expand past the default size.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
In 3.5, arcane casters could learn spells not on their spell lists, but required roleplay, finding the spells and specially studying them. Strangely, that fact seems to always be missed or forgotten.
In 3.5, arcane casters could learn spells not on their spell lists, but required roleplay, finding the spells and specially studying them. Strangely, that fact seems to always be missed or forgotten.
There's still the Expanded Arcana feat and Cross-Class Spell metamagic.
Domain Sorcerer confuses me. I'm not sure if their Eldritch Blast is an at-will or an X/day ability.