When I realized the party fighter's greatsword was dishin almost the damage of my wizards Fireball, I started gettin a lil' confused. Why does his greatsword do 4d6 damage?
It seems to me, that after adding a +1 Enchantment to a weapon, you may add as many Special Properties as you wish so long as the total enhancement isn't above 10. This, however, has led my group to taking a +1 enhancement, then say Flaming and Shocking. Is this the correct way, or have we missed some other limit on Special Properties?
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That's normal, but it seems like your encounters are all at close range. Fireball can go alot farther and hit a lot more enemies than a single sword.
Thanis, I hate to do this to you again, but you cannot stack a Headband of Vast Intelligence with a Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stone. Both provide a +2 enhancement bonus to intelligence and there is no specific statement countering that stacking restriction. In Pathfinder Chronicles: Seeker of Secrets there is the Crimson Sphere Ioun Stone which also grants a +2 intelligence bonus that is stackable with other Crimson Spheres but its cost is rediculous.
And yes, PFE is still quite good. Especially with it's protection vs mind control.
- Gauss
Thanis, I hate to do this to you again, but you cannot stack a Headband of Vast Intelligence with a Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stone. Both provide a +2 enhancement bonus to intelligence and there is no specific statement countering that stacking restriction. In Pathfinder Chronicles: Seeker of Secrets there is the Crimson Sphere Ioun Stone which also grants a +2 intelligence bonus that is stackable with other Crimson Spheres but its cost is rediculous.
And yes, PFE is still quite good. Especially with it's protection vs mind control.
- Gauss
Haha, right again. Hrm. How about a Headband of Intellect +2 and two Pearls of Power, 2nd level?
You realize that the thundering enchantment only adds 1d8 (2d8 for x3, 3d8 for x4) sonic damage on a critical hit, right? It does nothing on a normal hit.
Actually I should say "+1 thundering" since sonic has less resistance to worry about than flaming. Flaming is actually your worst choice, but it's the one everyone recognizes.
Oh my word... why was I thinking that "thundering" was just a sonic version of shock, flaming or frost?
Heck, there should be one. I guess I'd go with shock then since electric is less often resisted than cold or fire.
Thanks for the clarification.
Thanis, pearls of power have no 'stacking restriction' as they arent adding anything to your stats. Just make sure you spend the standard action to reclaim memorized spells. Sometimes people forget this. - Gauss
Really likin the Rod of Extend Spells and the Power Pearls, hell yeah. The Rod in particular gives me quite a few options, such as extended Reloading Hands (Allowing me to contribute when not casting), Extended Haste . . . Hell, I might just ask for 2 of these.
@Gauss: I actually didn't see anything in the Power Pearls description which says they require a standard action.
Thanis, pearls of power have no 'stacking restriction' as they arent adding anything to your stats. Just make sure you spend the standard action to reclaim memorized spells. Sometimes people forget this. - Gauss
Yep - use em after the fight, unless things get real hairy.
Activating any magical item is a standard action, in general (unless specifically contradicted. Gauss has the specifics on command word activation below. ; )
CRB p525 Pearl of Power: Once per day upon command.
CRB p458 Command Word: Activating a command word magic item is a standard action and does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
Thus: Pearl of Power is a standard action to activate.
- Gauss
Edit: Bah 2minute ninja by Thanis. Next time Thanis! :D
Hell, I might just ask for 2 of these.
Lesser Extend Spell rods are 3,000 gp and work on spells up to 3rd level. So you might be able to get two of those, a headband of intellect +2, and two first level pearls of power, potentially.
The fighter does suck at castin spells, for sure. I'm figurin now that wizard just isn't my play style (First one I've played) and that casters don't mesh with my group. We're in love with fast paced, running battles. Kinda neutralizes the effectiveness of a battlefield controller iffin the battlefield moves faster than my spells.
An Mergy, you're a player after my own heart. XD.
Getting back on topic, there's no reason a wizard can't fit in with a fast paced running battle. The battlefield isn't "moving faster than your spells," you just have to figure out the best way of doing what you do on the battlefield.
As somebody else pointed out, fireball isn't the only spell you have. There are other ways of controlling the field, and there are other offensive spells. Not to mention wands, staves, metamagic feats, scrolls, and all sorts of things that can help you mete out more damage per round.
Dig a little deeper.
Bruunwald: I'm very much a newb when it comes to casters. What spells, off the top of your head, would help control a running battle? Not stop (I like the running combat) but control? Thanks.
Thanis: I read up on the Arcane Schools after ya pointed them out, an' I'm pretty happy with them. Think I'll be taking Divination, if only for that initiative bonus. Plus, I tend to work with the party Gunslinger, so that Diviners Fortune could get really useful.
Ray of Enfeeblement Inflicts a 1d6+2 Strength penalty on the target with a ranged touch. Diminishes the effect of high Strength characters a bit, but on low-Strength enemies? It can knock them out of the fight if the penalty exceeds their total Strength....
Magic Circle Against Evil As Protection from Evil, but hits an area of ground rather than a single target. Perfect for point defense.
Penalties to ability scores can never effectively reduce the score to less than one, so RoE isn't going to be knocking anyone out. Ever.
Also, magic circles are cast on people, not the ground, it then follows the target around, and is thus hardly stationary.
Toss me in the company of those saying strait +X is better than elemental enhancements most of the time. It's effective against all enemies, so you don't have to worry about fighting outsiders or people under resist energy type effects. It adds to your chance to hit, which is excellent sine it either offsets the loss of power attack or simply increases your chance to hit (every miss is 0 damage). Unlike flaming and their ilk, the flat +X mods are multiplied on critical hits; which means it's better for both 2 handed bruising with power-attack, falchions, scimitars, axes, and scythes; or basically anything that involves critical hits.
There are better enhancements that aren't as easily resisted available beyond flaming and its ilk as well. Speed provides an extra attack with the weapon. Holy basically face-pounds more than half the foes in the Bestiary. Having a few different Bane enhancements on wide-reaching creature types can be nice. The collision enhancement from the 3.5 SRD and Pathfinder PRD (psionics) isn't a bad bet for those looking to add some damage either.
Flat elemental buffs suck so bad that I allowed them to stack in our tabletop games. It's entirely legal in my tabletop games to have a +1 quadra-flame longsword. That would be a +5 equivalent weapon that was a +1 longsword that dealt an extra +4d6 fire damage with every hit. I even have no problem with +1/+9d6 elemental weapons. I feel like writing that out now...
The Solar Spike (+10 equivalent Adamantine Longspear)
Aura moderate evocation; CL 10th
Slot none; Price 203,305 gp; Weight 9 lb.
===================================================================
The solar spike appears to be a normal +1 adamantine longspear etched with markings depicting a solar system. When the words "eximius ignis stellarum" are spoken by the wielder (requiring a standard action), the markings along the shaft animate to appear as if the sun at the center is exploding engulf the planets around it. In addition to this nonharmful animation, the spear itself is wreathed in white-hot eldritch fire, which does not harm the wielder or his equipment. When ignited, the fire deals an additional 9d6 points of fire damage to anything the spear strikes (this bonus damage is not multiplied on a critical hit). The flames may be extinguished by reciting the phrase "soles renatus ad pacem" as a standard action. The Solar Spike has a Hardness of 22 and 90 hit points.
===================================================================
Requirements Craft Magical Arms & Armor, fireball; Cost 103,305 gp
Ray of Enfeeblement Inflicts a 1d6+2 Strength penalty on the target with a ranged touch. Diminishes the effect of high Strength characters a bit, but on low-Strength enemies? It can knock them out of the fight if the penalty exceeds their total Strength....
Magic Circle Against Evil As Protection from Evil, but hits an area of ground rather than a single target. Perfect for point defense.
Penalties to ability scores can never effectively reduce the score to less than one, so RoE isn't going to be knocking anyone out. Ever.
Also, magic circles are cast on people, not the ground, it then follows the target around, and is thus hardly stationary.
Magic Circles can also be placed in a location, and even be used as a type of trap, if the repulsion is focused inward instead of outward.
More importantly, it doesn't require a standard action to turn on and then turn off before putting away ;)
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When I realized the party fighter's greatsword was dishin almost the damage of my wizards Fireball, I started gettin a lil' confused. Why does his greatsword do 4d6 damage?
It seems to me, that after adding a +1 Enchantment to a weapon, you may add as many Special Properties as you wish so long as the total enhancement isn't above 10. This, however, has led my group to taking a +1 enhancement, then say Flaming and Shocking. Is this the correct way, or have we missed some other limit on Special Properties?
Alright, what I thought mages and clerics were for was almost a straight line of having AoE (Area of Effects) and healing with the cleric healing domain. What this allows the mages to do if for example, cast Fireball at a hoard of enemies and weaken them to when the fighter's time arises, he can smack down all the opponents that you just nailed. For example, I am playing in a 10th level campaign with my Character. He is a Two Handed Fighter that stacks his stuff with power attack and a Large Lucerne Hammer giving him 3d6 + 25 points of damage at a -2 penalty to attack rolls for being a large weapon. And we have healers and suck and we're going up against cheesed up Hook Mountain Ogres. With that, having AoE's was the best thing for me because they had I think 200 - 250 hit points per ogre and there were 3 of them. (We almost had a TPK because one of our newer player shouted in the dungeon @.@ ) AoE's and Healing were the best thing and yet, we survived because we played it smart and killed all the creatures. All I'm getting at, is that sometimes, the spellcasters are the support classes, the enthrall, they entangle, they compel, ect... and the do all of this to help the fighters out. So, if your fighter is doing 4d6 points of damage + maybe 6 or 7. He's doing it correctly, as well as the magical properties. I have corrosive now on my Lucerne Hammer so I do 4d6 points of damage instead of 3.
I didn't have time to read over everything here, but just to reply to the OP...
Generally speaking, melee types that are built for offense will do more damage, on a regular basis, than a fireball that hits just one bad guy (or even two). AoE spells like fireball shine when you can catch 4+ bad guys in them and the damage adds up. If you hit 4 mobs at level 5, and 1/2 make their saves, you've done 15d6 overall...and it just goes up with more mobs. Against spread out targets, using a flaming sphere on round 1 with other damaging spells like Scorching Ray can allow you to 7d6/round or so.
As some have pointed out, though, a mage that focuses solely on damaging spells may be selling himself short. In many instances, a well placed stinking cloud or pit trap can totally turn the tide of battle. In fighting a group of wizards, my bard's Mass Distracting Cacophony was essential in turning the tide of the battle.
Ray of Enfeeblement Inflicts a 1d6+2 Strength penalty on the target with a ranged touch. Diminishes the effect of high Strength characters a bit, but on low-Strength enemies? It can knock them out of the fight if the penalty exceeds their total Strength....Penalties to ability scores can never effectively reduce the score to less than one, so RoE isn't going to be knocking anyone out. Ever.
Fair enough - Not as great a spell as I had thought, then. Decent, but the others I suggested are probably better in most situations. A -4 penalty on Strength rolls (assuming a maximum roll on the penalty) can definitely help, but it's not going to change the tide of battle.
Like most mage spells, it's definately one of those situational deals. My party fought a huge black scorpion. It's full attack was enough to kill a party member if it rolled high enough, and the fighters were forced to do full round defense just to survive. The Quickened Ray + the rogues STR damage from his one full round sneak attack he got in really helped to taken down scropy's offensive power so the fighters could do something other than "Full Round Defense" hahahahaha.