Ability Mods That Stack


Rules Questions


Greetings,

I know this has probably been asked countless times. I have been looking through the forums and they don't always seem to address my question directly.

when wearing items that improve your stats and spells. Which ones can stack so I remember which items to avoid buying or if it drops to avoid picking up when another party member can use it.

A more direct question I guess, what stacks when improving ability scores?

Silver Crusade

Look at the type of the bonus. Bonuses of the same type do not stack. Most items provide an enhancement bonus, like the belts that affect physical stats. Spells like Bear's Strength provides an enhancement bonus, and thus doesn't stack. There are spells that provide a different type of bonus, but I'll leave that to others to find.


Nightskies wrote:
Bonuses of the same type do not stack.

Except for circumstance, dodge, and racial bonuses. Granted, the odds of those showing up on magic items (excluding dodge) is vanishingly small.

And, of course, if it's untyped, it stacks with everything.

The exception being that no bonus from the same source ever stacks (two copies of a spell that grant a dodge bonus don't stack, for example).


Ok enhancement bonus is like the cats grace and the magical belts and hats. They do not stack so a +6 belt is the best you can get for that.

You have level bonuses that stack with everything at every 4th level.

Finally you have inherent bonuses from books or wishes. These do not stack so if you have three of the same +2 books the msot bonus from them is +2 so it is best to wait until you can but a big book if you wanna improve it later.

The wish test below.
•Grant a creature a +1 inherent bonus to an ability score. Two to five wish spells cast in immediate succession can grant a creature a +2 to +5 inherent bonus to an ability score (two wishes for a +2 inherent bonus, three wishes for a +3 inherent bonus, and so on). Inherent bonuses are instantaneous, so they cannot be dispelled. Note: An inherent bonus may not exceed +5 for a single ability score, and inherent bonuses to a particular ability score do not stack, so only the best one applies.

Dark Archive

On a vaguely related note, if you use a Wish or a Tome (let's say a +1), can you ever use more Wishes/a stronger Tome some time down the line (+2 or higher) or are you SoL?

Grand Lodge

Seranov wrote:
On a vaguely related note, if you use a Wish or a Tome (let's say a +1), can you ever use more Wishes/a stronger Tome some time down the line (+2 or higher) or are you SoL?

That works fine. The improved effect gives you a bigger inherent bonus which overrides the previous one.

Dark Archive

Awesome. I figured that was how it was worked, but couldn't find anything to either prove or disprove it.


PRD Wish wrote:

•Grant a creature a +1 inherent bonus to an ability score. Two to five wish spells cast in immediate succession can grant a creature a +2 to +5 inherent bonus to an ability score (two wishes for a +2 inherent bonus, three wishes for a +3 inherent bonus, and so on). Inherent bonuses are instantaneous, so they cannot be dispelled. Note: An inherent bonus may not exceed +5 for a single ability score, and inherent bonuses to a particular ability score do not stack, so only the best one applies.


Of course, if you can get your hands on another type of bonus to your stats, it will stack.
Granted, those are few and far between, but they exist (the +2 profane bonus from a succubus's gift comes to mind...)

Lantern Lodge

One of the things I notice a lot of people doing is dipping into Alchemist to get the mutagen ability. That gives you an alchemical bonus to your stats. Not sure off the top of my head what the barbarian's rage grants if you dip into that.

Sovereign Court

Barbarian Rage gets you a Moral Bonus to strength. Stacks pretty nicely with a mutagen except to rage you have to yell out, "By the powers of Velveeta!"


At one point I got curious and tried to see how high I could stack Strength.

My results are here.

If you follow the thread for a few more posts you'll see it even went up a small amount by, I think, 2 more Strength.


Amplified rage besides being a teamwork feat, also only provides a +4 bonus. Not sure where the +8 is from.


Grizzly the Archer wrote:
Amplified rage besides being a teamwork feat, also only provides a +4 bonus. Not sure where the +8 is from.

It doesn't give a +4 bonus, it increases the normal rage bonus by 4, going from +4 to +8.

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