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To me, it has always seemed that feats were meant to provide extra benefits for your characters, and that using them was a choice, such as adding metamagic feats to spells.
But some feats can adversly affect a character as well, and it is in this situation that I wanted to know whether or not the player has a choice whether or not to use it.
One feat in particular is the Acadamae Graduate feat.
The working seems to imply that is it "always on", but does it feel right to require you to use it every time you cast a conjuration summoning spell? Or can you opt not to and instead cast the summons as normal?
I would say that no you do not have to use it. It provides an option you can take when you do the action, but it is not required.
Nothing in the wording suggests that it is optional. I would say this feat is akin to Green Faith Acolyte, one of the few feats that has a negative component.
It does sound like it is required every time.
I would say you don't have to use the feat (meaning with the example you would cast the spell normally.)
I kind of see this feat as a desperation feat, for when you are in grave danger, which I find flavorful.
Also Improved Overun, which says they don't have the option to let you thru when you overrun. Seems like sometimes you would want to give them the option to let you through.
They used the word "whenever," which in this context would mean "every time." Possibly, when designing the feat they felt that part of the "cost" of having the feat should be that once you have gained the ability, you cannot turn it off.
Personally, I don't think the feat is all so gosh-fired awesome as to merit this. If you used it in my game, I'd let it be optional.
Remember, it's possible the designers simply did not proofread it well enough to notice how their language would affect usage. Sad to say, but the gaming industry is full of vague language, bad grammar, misspellings and all manner of crap wordplay.
For crying out loud, WoTC let the bad wording of the Cleave feat unexplained to ruin games for half a decade and never once apologized for the mess they created with their abysmal understanding of the English language.
(And no, "a" does not mean "as many as you want." It means "one.")
Then just move normally through their square?Also Improved Overun, which says they don't have the option to let you thru when you overrun. Seems like sometimes you would want to give them the option to let you through.
The way the feat is written, they lose the option to simply step aside. If you lose the CMB roll, you stop in the square you are in, and can't continue. Seems like there might be times, say if you are charging a giant, where it would be advantageous not to have to make the CMB roll.
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The way the feat is written, they lose the option to simply step aside. If you lose the CMB roll, you stop in the square you are in, and can't continue. Seems like there might be times, say if you are charging a giant, where it would be advantageous not to have to make the CMB roll.
Just like it would be advantageous not to have to rush the spell if you don't feel the need.