|
Sorry if this has been answered before. I spent some time looking around and found lots of discussions about Spellstrike and Spell Combat but nothing that included spell trigger and spell completion items.
After playing my first game with my level 2 Magus I ran into a few questions about scrolls and wands:
1. Does a spell completion item (scroll) count as "casting a spell" for the purposes of Spellstrike? I understand that with my hands occupied with both the scroll and a weapon I would be unable to Spell Combat (unless I used a cestus or something along those lines).
2. Are you able to hold the charge of a spell cast via a scroll? I assume yes on this one, but am unsure.
3. Are you able to hold the charge of a spell trigger item such as a wand? This one I'm less sure about, but I'm leaning towards probably not. If yes, does this then allow you to Spellstrike with it?
4. Does using a wand dissipate a held charge (different spell that you cast prior to wand use)? There exists a Magus Arcana specifically designed to allow the use of wands in Spell Combat (which requires that you cast a Magus spell with a casting time of Standard Action). This seems to imply that using a wand does not count as "casting" and the mechanism that causes a held spell to dissipate is "casting a spell".
Touch Spells and Holding the Charge: In most cases, if you don't discharge a touch spell on the round you cast it, you can hold the charge (postpone the discharge of the spell) indefinitely. You can make touch attacks round after round until the spell is discharged. If you cast another spell, the touch spell dissipates.
Spell Combat (Ex): At 1st level, a magus learns to cast spells and wield his weapons at the same time. This functions much like two-weapon fighting, but the off-hand weapon is a spell that is being cast. To use this ability, the magus must have one hand free (even if the spell being cast does not have somatic components), while wielding a light or one-handed melee weapon in the other hand. As a full-round action, he can make all of his attacks with his melee weapon at a –2 penalty and can also cast any spell from the magus spell list with a casting time of 1 standard action (any attack roll made as part of this spell also takes this penalty). If he casts this spell defensively, he can decide to take an additional penalty on his attack rolls, up to his Intelligence bonus, and add the same amount as a circumstance bonus on his concentration check. If the check fails, the spell is wasted, but the attacks still take the penalty. A magus can choose to cast the spell first or make the weapon attacks first, but if he has more than one attack, he cannot cast the spell between weapon attacks.
Spellstrike (Su): At 2nd level, whenever a magus casts a spell with a range of “touch” from the magus spell list, he can deliver the spell through any weapon he is wielding as part of a melee attack. Instead of the free melee touch attack normally allowed to deliver the spell, a magus can make one free melee attack with his weapon (at his highest base attack bonus) as part of casting this spell. If successful, this melee attack deals its normal damage as well as the effects of the spell. If the magus makes this attack in concert with spell combat, this melee attack takes all the penalties accrued by spell combat melee attacks. This attack uses the weapon's critical range (20, 19–20, or 18–20 and modified by the keen weapon property or similar effects), but the spell effect only deals ×2 damage on a successful critical hit, while the weapon damage uses its own critical modifier.
1) for spellstrike - yes. Any touch spell you cast from scroll, wand or normal spells gives you a free touch attack that round - with spellstrike you can deliever it with your weapon - BUT:
Spellcombat
Don't works with scrolls, only works with wands if you have the magus arcane wand wielder
2) It works as if you had cast the spell - so yes you get a charge. And can hold it until it's discharged or you cast another spell/use another scroll/wand.
3) see above yes and yes
4) using a wand is like casting another spell...
And now some rules:
Activation: Wands use the spell trigger activation method, so casting a spell from a wand is usually a standard action that doesn't provoke attacks of opportunity
Using a scroll is basically like casting a spell [...and...]Determine Effect: A spell successfully activated from a scroll works exactly like a spell prepared and cast the normal way
1. Does a spell completion item (scroll) count as "casting a spell" for the purposes of Spellstrike?
No.
FAQ: "Unless they specifically state otherwise, feats and abilities that modify spells you cast only affect actual spellcasting, not using magic items that emulate spellcasting or work like spellcasting."
I understand that with my hands occupied with both the scroll and a weapon I would be unable to Spell Combat (unless I used a cestus or something along those lines).
Regardless of hands, Spell Combat doesn't let you activate a magic item (unless it's Use Activated as part of your weapon attack).
2. Are you able to hold the charge of a spell cast via a scroll?
Yes, it still follows the rules for touch spells.
3. Are you able to hold the charge of a spell trigger item such as a wand?
Yes, as above.
If yes, does this then allow you to Spellstrike with it?
No, neither a wand nor a scroll are casting a spell, so you cannot use Spellstrike with them.
4. Does using a wand dissipate a held charge (different spell that you cast prior to wand use)?
Not by RAW, but you may have GMs balk if you start stacking up a lot of touch effects.
No, neither a wand nor a scroll are casting a spell, so you cannot use Spellstrike with them.The Wand Strike Mage Arcana allows this for wands, there is no such equivalent for scrolls, with probably good reason.
If you mean Wand Wielder, that allows wands to be used with Spell Combat, not Spellstrike.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Using a wand is is concidered as casting a spell
Items as Spells: Does using a potion, scroll, staff, or wand count as "casting a spell" for purposes of feats and special abilities like Augment Summoning, Spell Focus, an evoker's ability to do extra damage with evocation spells, bloodline abilities, and so on?
No. Unless they specifically state otherwise, feats and abilities that modify spells you cast only affect actual spellcasting, not using magic items that emulate spellcasting or work like spellcasting.
—Sean K Reynolds, 09/01/10
Using a wand does not count as "casting a spell" for Spellstrike.
