I am playing in a campaign with a friend who has expressed that the Magus cannot use a two-handed weapon and make use of the "Spellstrike" class feature at the same time. However, I have read up on casting spells with somatic components, the issues with hands free/not, the "actions" involved with casting vs executing the free attack that comes with the spellstrike delivery of touch attacks, etc... and I don't see what the problem is.
Can someone clarify this for me? Thanks!
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Most of the time when people say that they are confusing Spellstrike with Spellcombat.
You can't use spell combat with a two handed weapon, but if you are following the rules you can use spellstrike.
Several GM use an home rule and say that you can't use the same hand to cast and attack in one round, but it is an home rule.
Spell strike is self contained:
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.
people that reference spell combat for the rules of spellstrike (unless they are using both things at the same time) are simply wrong.
That is what I gathered from it all too. Glad to hear it confirmed by at least one other person.
Yep u can, u just wouldn't be able to use all ur reg attacks while doing spellstrike meaning u cast a spell and swing ur weapon and that its. If u wasn't using a 2handed weapon u could cast a spell gain an extra attack and then do full attack rotation.
So as long as ur casting a spell and swingin once, ur within the rules. If ur casting a spell and swing ur full amount of attacks plus ur extra one, then ur not following the rules.
Usually when u tell dms that ur sacrificing full attack for a spell and 1 attack that round, they are usually very understanding. When ir casting a spell and doing ALL ur attacks though, ur breaking the rules and they are right in saying u can't.
You can cast a spell and then use a two-handed weapon just as a wizard can let go of his quarterstaff, cast a spell, and then grip the weapon again.
You can't do that with spell combat because the text specifically says your weapon must be a light or one-handed weapon and your off-hand must be free. Spellstrike, however, has no such rule.
I am playing in a campaign with a friend who has expressed that the Magus cannot use a two-handed weapon and make use of the "Spellstrike" class feature at the same time. However, I have read up on casting spells with somatic components, the issues with hands free/not, the "actions" involved with casting vs executing the free attack that comes with the spellstrike delivery of touch attacks, etc... and I don't see what the problem is.
Can someone clarify this for me? Thanks!
The way I read it is that Spell strike is just the ability to deliver a touch attack spell with your weapon and not the casting of the spell itself. Bearing this in mind the Magus would need first to cast the spell, ideally using spell combat that would allow him to have a one-handed or light weapon in the other hand, and then use spell strike to deliver its effects through your weapon.
You can use any melee weapon to deliver a spell using Spellstrike; a gargantuan Magus could pick up a T-rex corpse and use it as a club, and deliver a Shocking Grasp through the dinosaur-turned-weapon.
As others have pointed out, you cannot use Spell Combat while wielding a two-handed weapon because the ability states you must be wielding a light or one-handed weapon and have a hand free.