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Recently, I opened up my Ultimate Combat to show a friend the text to the spell pup shape, which I absolutely love (not for any mechanical reason, mind you). However, as I read through it a typo caught my eye (emphasis mine):
You transform the subject animal into a Small magical beast, creating a young magical version of itself for a short period of time. While in this form, the target has only 1 HD (maximum hit points), and the target takes a –4 penalty to Strength, Constitution, Intelligence and Wisdom (minimum 1). The creature also gains a +4 size bonus to Dexterity and a +2 natural bonus.
Checking online, I found that the same typo exists on the PRD. I checked the forums and couldn't find any mention of this error either. Would someone be willing to speculate on what this +2 natural bonus is to?
Recently, I opened up my Ultimate Combat to show a friend the text to the spell pup shape, which I absolutely love (not for any mechanical reason, mind you). However, as I read through it a typo caught my eye (emphasis mine):
You transform the subject animal into a Small magical beast, creating a young magical version of itself for a short period of time. While in this form, the target has only 1 HD (maximum hit points), and the target takes a –4 penalty to Strength, Constitution, Intelligence and Wisdom (minimum 1). The creature also gains a +4 size bonus to Dexterity and a +2 natural bonus.Checking online, I found that the same typo exists on the PRD. I checked the forums and couldn't find any mention of this error either. Would someone be willing to speculate on what this +2 natural bonus is to?
I would assume that is +2 natural armor bonus.
+2 natural armor bonus seems to make sense, since there are only so many sources of "natural" bonuses (natural armor being the only one). Then the question becomes "why does downsizing your pet, which usually causes a penalty to natural armor bonuses, grant a natural armor bonus." I suppose because Pup Shape is a defensive spell, so it would only seem natural to bolster AC? That doesn't make a lot of sense to me, though, given how size change rules are set up.
Maybe it's a bigger typo than we'd guessed, and they'd meant: +2 Charisma bonus? Or, Puss in Boots staredown ability (ex)?
+2 natural armor bonus seems to make sense, since there are only so many sources of "natural" bonuses (natural armor being the only one). Then the question becomes "why does downsizing your pet, which usually causes a penalty to natural armor bonuses, grant a natural armor bonus." I suppose because Pup Shape is a defensive spell, so it would only seem natural to bolster AC? That doesn't make a lot of sense to me, though, given how size change rules are set up.
I don't see it as much of a defensive spell, though that may be because I focused on the part where it says that evil creatures can still attack without any sort of save. An evil creature 'pups' your companion and wails on it, with less fear of its natural attacks.
That's what I saw, anyway.
I also think it means natural armor bonus.
I believe it is supposed to be Charisma. The short blurbs in the spell lists all say "a shorter and cuter version". Charisma does govern (in part) a creatures appearance.
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I was under the impression that the +natural armor bonus from polymorph spells *replaces* rather than stacks with your normal natural armor. Even if it didn't replace, they're both "+_ natural armor bonus", meaning that they are the same type and same type doesn't stack. This would mean that going into a pathetic form would not increase your natural armor, and might even decrease it. This might not be RAI, though.
But yeah, that bonus is obviously meant to be "+2 natural armor bonus".
I believe it is supposed to be Charisma. The short blurbs in the spell lists all say "a shorter and cuter version". Charisma does govern (in part) a creatures appearance.
Wouldn't it be a size bonus to Charisma then? In Ultimate Magic, there is a list of all bonus types, and the only "natural" which appears on it is "natural armor." A bonus to natural armor makes the most sense to me, as it is always phrased "+x natural armor bonus," at least in the context of polymorph spells.
I don't see it as much of a defensive spell, though that may be because I focused on the part where it says that evil creatures can still attack without any sort of save. An evil creature 'pups' your companion and wails on it, with less fear of its natural attacks.
That's what I saw, anyway.
I also think it means natural armor bonus.
OK, fair enough, but then what is the use of this spell? Is it just a spell to make an animal companion appear harmless? Why then would the spell include an effect that prevents non-evil, intelligent creatures from attacking it? And why does it get a natural armor bonus?
But that's getting off topic (at least, off topic for this thread). I think we've fairly convincingly teased out what this bonus was supposed to be, even if it doesn't make as much sense as I'd like it to- "+2 natural bonus" should read "+2 natural armor bonus". Thanks for all the input.
If it turned out to not be a natural armor bonus, and if it were written correctly, I would say you have a +2 natural bonus to Dexterity, as it mentions Dexterity immediately before the natural bonus. Why this would be the only mention of a natural modifier is beyond me. :P