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My players brought up a question to me today about Blasphemy.
You see, their party is facing a group of foes. Two foes have 16th caster level blasphemy spells, usable once per day each (they're half-fiends). The party is 15th level. This makes them eligible for dazed and weakened. The foes go one after another. 1st casting produces a roll of 5. 2nd casting produces a roll of 10. Does it stack?
Are they going to reduce their strength score by 10 (if it does not stack), or 15 (if it does stack)?
I'd greatly appreciate if anyone from the Pathfinder Rules line could answer this question directly, but I'm more than grateful for everyone and anyone to chime in with their answers as well!
The weakened description says the victim's strength scores decreases by X for X rounds. This is a Strength penalty and not Strength damage and so the two effects wouldn't stack - they would overlap. If the first blasphemy hit the target for -6 Strength for 4 rounds and the second for -3 Strength for 9 rounds then the victim would be at -6 Strength for 4 rounds followed by -3 Strength another 5 rounds.
Or...if the second blasphemy hit for a greater Strength penalty, I believe it would have precedence over the first blasphemy for its duration.
Same Effect More than Once in Different Strengths: In cases when two or more identical spells are operating in the same area or on the same target, but at different strengths, only the one with the highest strength applies.
Same Effect with Differing Results: The same spell can sometimes produce varying effects if applied to the same recipient more than once. Usually the last spell in the series trumps the others. None of the previous spells are actually removed or dispelled, but their effects become irrelevant while the final spell in the series lasts.
The above are listed as general rules when applying similar spell effects to the same creature or within the same area. Applying either rule (assuming the 1st rule is referring to the variables within the spell rather than the CL; it isn't really clear) would say that the characters reduce their Strength scores by 10.
Where things get weird is if you rolled a 10 on the first and a 5 on the second. Then the above guidelines would contradict one another. As the stronger effect would be 10, but the more recent effect would be 5 and they would both seem to take precedence. Since the second rule that I quoted says:
Usually the last spell in the series trumps the others.
Usually- not always.
I would apply the stronger effect- the penalty of 10 for its duration with the penalty of 5 going into effect after the 10 runs out of duration (if there is any remaining on the 5, that is).
The argument for stacking is that it's not an actual penalty. It's just a stat reduction, and the wording of the weakened portion of blasphemy is identical in every way, except duration, to ability drain.
So, if ability drain stacks, wouldn't the weakened portion of blasphemy?
Damage and drain are cumulative and stack. A penalty never stacks (unless a specific example states otherwise - specifics override generalities).
But...if you were wanting to treat a penalty like this in similar fashion to bonuses stacking it still wouldn't. Two Bless spells don't stack (their durations overlap) so why would two Blasphemies?