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That's an interesting question sir. I would think that you would need to have the wisdom, cause that's the stat the scroll is based on (unless it's an oracle specific spell, in which case CHA would be the stat), as it's assumed that clerics create the bulk of divine scrolls.
Unless I am mistaken, in PFS scrolls are not "divine" or "arcane" - so when you pick up a scroll of CLW for example, both a Bard (arcane) and a Cleric (divine) can read/use it.
I also do not think they are tied to a selected caster stat such as wisdom, otherwise my Cleric with the 7 INT would have trouble casting the scroll of Dim Door (normally a wizard spell) - even though it is on his spell list (Travel Domain).

Vrog Skyreaver |

it's true that there is no difference between arcane or divine; it's also true that spells are assumed to be made by clerics, druids, or wizards, with cleric scrolls being made by clerics, and so on.
As far as using scrolls with spells from domains go, you have to meet the following criteria, The short form answer is that you can't cast them if they are made by wizards and you don't have the requisite ability score. Find the long form answer below:
according to the PRD section on scrolls:
1) you can only use arcane scrolls if you are an arcane caster, or divine scrolls if you are a divine caster (overwritten by PFS specific ruling);
2) you have to have the spell on your spell list;
3) you have to meet the minimum ability score requirements.
assuming you have all 3 of the above (2 in PFS), AND you are of the level required to cast the spell, then you can use the scroll without issue. if you meet the above requirements, and are not high enough level, you have to make a caster level check with a DC equal to the scroll's caster level +1. If you fail, you have to make a DC 5 wisdom check or have a scroll mishap (there's a list of things that the GM can do). A 1 always fails that wisdom check, regardless of modifiers.

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That's an interesting question sir. I would think that you would need to have the wisdom, cause that's the stat the scroll is based on (unless it's an oracle specific spell, in which case CHA would be the stat), as it's assumed that clerics create the bulk of divine scrolls.
I am extrapolating from the fact that I can use arcane scrolls outside of UMD, based on the fact that they are on my list as a Sorcerer, with only a caster level check. I am not certain if that is correct, hence the question.
To be honest, it hadn't even occurred to me before reading this thread. I had planned to add owl's wisdom to my list of spells known for just this contingency (UMD on divine only scrolls), but if I can use Charisma instead, it will make things like scrolls of breath of life or Heal much better purchases. Otherwise, it becomes a strictly out of combat option until I can afford a lesser quicken rod, and First Aid gloves go back on my purchase list.

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Cleric Domains, Sorcerer Bloodlines, Witch Patrons and Oracle Mysteries all add spells to a character's class list.
If you're a Cleric with the Travel Domain you do not need to make a UMD check to cast Dimension Door from a scroll.
This has been reinforced by both JJ and SKR several times. If you don't believe me, seek out their comments in the Rules Forum. It's been brought up ad nauseum and it needn't be debated again here.

Vrog Skyreaver |

I actually did a forum search through the rules section and the only thing that I could find that they say is that spells from domains are considered part of your spell list for purposes of activating a scroll. they say nothing about changing the attribute type needed to cast the scroll (wisdom changing to cha for a oracle), cause the rules clearly say otherwise, and that's what we're discussing here.

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I actually did a forum search through the rules section and the only thing that I could find that they say is that spells from domains are considered part of your spell list for purposes of activating a scroll. they say nothing about changing the attribute type needed to cast the scroll (wisdom changing to cha for a oracle), cause the rules clearly say otherwise, and that's what we're discussing here.
My question is, how do you determine what attribute type is used for scrolls that can be either?
Pick up scroll of protection from evil - does it use WIS? or INT? (or some other stat?)

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I wonder if this FAQ would be relevant to the scrolls question? Its along the same lines I am guessing.
Obviously the linked one about Oracle's using cleric spells.
edit: Ah I misunderstood your question, Nosig. Yeah I think thats a grey area. Wouldn't it follow the rules of scroll creation though, Cleric->Wizard->Druid. So it'd use Wisdom first right? I guess it could be marked for spells that are the same spell level for either class if it was created by Wizard or Cleric.

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I wonder if this FAQ would be relevant to the scrolls question? Its along the same lines I am guessing.
Obviously the linked one about Oracle's using cleric spells.
edit: Ah I misunderstood your question, Nosig. Yeah I think thats a grey area. Wouldn't it follow the rules of scroll creation though, Cleric->Wizard->Druid. So it'd use Wisdom first right? I guess it could be marked for spells that are the same spell level for either class if it was created by Wizard or Cleric.
and that's my question then. If the spell scroll could be created by more than one class, do we use that order? then, to use Vrog Skyreach post above...
according to the PRD section on scrolls:
1) you can only use arcane scrolls if you are an arcane caster, or divine scrolls if you are a divine caster (overwritten by PFS specific ruling);
2) you have to have the spell on your spell list;
3) you have to meet the minimum ability score requirements.
assuming you have all 3 of the above (2 in PFS), AND you are of the level required to cast the spell, then you can use the scroll without issue. if you meet the above requirements, and are not high enough level, you have to make a caster level check with a DC equal to the scroll's caster level +1. If you fail, you have to make a DC 5 wisdom check or have a scroll mishap (there's a list of things that the GM can do). A 1 always fails that wisdom check, regardless of modifiers.
Because #1 doesn't apply (we don't know if the scroll is devine or arcane) then we default to Cleric in the case of spells on both Cleric and Wizard lists - such as protection from evil. This means that a wizard trying to use a scroll of it would:
#1 have an exception to this requirement "(overwritten by PFS specific ruling)";
#2 have the spell on his spell list;
#3 Need a Wisdom of 11 (as it is defaulting to a scroll from a cleric).
In other words, it appears that a Wizard without enough wisdom could not use a scroll of any spell that also appears on the cleric list (at the same level). He passes conditions #1 & #2 but fails #3, so cannot cast the spell. And, realizing that this also includes spells that are Domain spells... This looks like a problem to me... what am I missing here?

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I think this in turns goes back to using Use Magic Device, here is a relevant passage from the uses of UMD:
"Emulate an Ability Score: To cast a spell from a scroll, you need a high enough score in the appropriate ability (Intelligence for wizard spells, Wisdom for divine spells, or Charisma for sorcerer or bard spells). Your effective ability score (appropriate to the class you're emulating when you try to cast the spell from the scroll) is your Use Magic Device check result minus 15. If you already have a high enough score in the appropriate ability, you don't need to make this check."
So if we can satisfy conditions #1 and #2 then we have to use UMD to satisfy the condition of #3
I think its a significant oversight as to how scrolls work but this passage of UMD seems to agree with our conclusion, that a wizard trying to cast Protection from Evil from a scroll needs a Wisdom of 11.

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I think this in turns goes back to using Use Magic Device, here is a relevant passage from the uses of UMD:
"Emulate an Ability Score: To cast a spell from a scroll, you need a high enough score in the appropriate ability (Intelligence for wizard spells, Wisdom for divine spells, or Charisma for sorcerer or bard spells). Your effective ability score (appropriate to the class you're emulating when you try to cast the spell from the scroll) is your Use Magic Device check result minus 15. If you already have a high enough score in the appropriate ability, you don't need to make this check."
So if we can satisfy conditions #1 and #2 then we have to use UMD to satisfy the condition of #3
I think its a significant oversight as to how scrolls work but this passage of UMD seems to agree with our conclusion, that a wizard trying to cast Protection from Evil from a scroll needs a Wisdom of 11.
Who created the scroll does not matter in PFS for anything but determining the price, spell level, and caster level of the scroll. If it's on the Sorcerer spell list, you can cast it as a Sorcerer and use Charisma as you casting stat. If it's on the Oracle spell list, you can cast it as an Oracle and use Charisma as your casting stat. If it's on the Bard list, you can cast it as a Bard and use Charisma as the casting stat, etc. As the Emulate an Ability Score text above states, you can emulate a Sorcerer to activate a scroll and use Charisma as the ability score. It says nothing about a Sorcerer having to have created the scroll. An arcane scroll that is on both the Wizard and Sorcerer list can be activated by either class, and thus can be activated using either Intelligence or Charisma.
EDIT: Also, the earlier linked FAQ has nothing to do with using a scroll. It is referring to a few specific situations where a spell calls out adding the bonus or modifier from a specific stat, like Spiritual Weapon does for Wisdom. Just because Spiritual Weapon adds your Wisdom Bonus to hit, it does not make Wisdom the casting stat for an Oracle who casts Spiritual Weapon. The casting stat for a class is whatever stat is called out in the Spells section of their class description, and that is the stat they use when activating scrolls on their class list.

Vrog Skyreaver |

that was my logic on it as well codanous. I'm just not sure if there is a hierarchy of who makes scrolls, other than the fact that druids, clerics, and wizards are the most common creators, then everyone else who has a spell specific to their class list.
It's only in PFS that the difference between arcane and divine scrolls are ignored (although it's definitely a common sense sort of rule.

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Let's try this again...
"Emulate an Ability Score: To cast a spell from a scroll, you need a high enough score in the appropriate ability (Intelligence for wizard spells, Wisdom for divine spells, or Charisma for sorcerer or bard spells). Your effective ability score (appropriate to the class you're emulating when you try to cast the spell from the scroll) is your Use Magic Device check result minus 15. If you already have a high enough score in the appropriate ability, you don't need to make this check."
A spell is a wizard spell if it appears on the Wizard Spell list. If it appears on the Wizard Spell list, then a Wizard can cast it if he has a high enough Intelligence.
A spell is a sorcerer spell if it appears on the Sorcerer Spell list. If it appears on the Sorcerer Spell list, then a Sorcerer can cast it if he has a high enough Charisma.
Nowhere in the passage from UMD does it say who created the scroll matters.
At this point, this really needs to be flagged to be moved to the Rules forum, because it is not a PFS specific question. The only effect PFS has is that a scroll is counted as both arcane and divine. Otherwise, this is a more general rules question of which ability score applies when activating a scroll.

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I'm not sure what you're going for with your argument. Are you trying to point out poor wording in the PFS FAQ or the Core Rule Book that you would like to see clarified, or do you actually believe that a Wizard must have a high enough Wisdom to use a scroll of a spell that happens to also be on the Cleric spell list?
Outside of PFS, scrolls found in modules and APs don't specify the class of the creator of the scroll. They'll only specify arcane or divine. If the class of the creator of the scroll affected which stat to use when activating the scroll, don't you think it would need to be listed?
I will grant that the wording in the Core Rulebook under Scrolls could be clearer, but it's a perfectly valid interpretation of "requisite ability score" to assume that it means "for your class" and not "for the class that created the scroll."
Choosing the second interpretation despite the anecdotal evidence that creator class is not listed outside of PFS means that you are saying that PFS has one rule, that scrolls are both arcane and divine, designed to allow more characters to use an item and another rule, the order of determining which class made a scroll, which was made primarily for determining the cost of the item, that allows fewer characters to use it. I just don't see the logic in that.
The much simpler interpretation is, if you would otherwise be capable of casting the spell, then you can use the scroll without having to use UMD.

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it does actually matter, because the DC of the scroll is set by the creator, which is based on the stat that they use to cast spells. Therefore, it makes sense that the stat in question is the one that you need to cast the spell from the scroll.
No, the DC of the scroll is the minimum possible; for example, a first level spell requires a minimum of 11 in the appropriate ability score, making the minimum modifier a +0, so the DC is 11.
Literally the ONLY thing the scroll's creator matters for is the caster level (and, outside of PFS, whether the scroll is arcane or divine, of course).
Note that the PRD explicitly states that staves are an exception, meaning they took spell trigger items into account when that rule was written, and thus almost certainly took spell completion (ie, scrolls) into account, as well, so yes, this DOES apply to scrolls.
As to which ability score to use, although he's not the guy in charge of the core rules, James Jacobs has a very relevant quote on the matter:
MichaelCullen wrote:An arcane scroll doesn't know the difference between who created it's classes and who's using it's classes. And so it'd be treated as a scroll for that character's class. A sorcerer casts a spell from a scroll and treats it as if a sorcerer created the scroll for those purposes. It's just easier bookkeeping.James,
If a sorcerer attempts to use a scroll created by a wizard, assuming that the spell appears on both lists and the sorcerer is of the appropriate level does the sorcerer have to make a UMD check in order to "Emulate Ability Score" if his intelligence is not 10 + spell lvl? Or does a sorcerer use his charisma in this situation.The relevant text from the skill description is:
Use a Scroll: Normally, to cast a spell from a scroll, you must have the scroll's spell on your class spell list. Use Magic Device allows you to use a scroll as if you had a particular spell on your class spell list. The DC is equal to 20 + the caster level of the spell you are trying to cast from the scroll. In addition, casting a spell from a scroll requires a minimum score (10 + spell level) in the appropriate ability. If you don't have a sufficient score in that ability, you must emulate the ability score with a separate Use Magic Device check.
Now, in the case of using a scroll not on your spell list, you have to emulate a class that CAN use said scroll, but nothing anywhere ever states you have to emulate the class of the creator.
In this case, the sorcerer could very well choose to emulate an oracle, and if we apply JJ's ruling, an oracle would use their Charisma for the scroll, thus the sorcerer would likely only have to emulate the class, not the ability score.

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So, as I understand it, when using the scroll, my Sorcerer would not actually be using the Activate a Scroll bit of the UMD school, but rather Emulate a Class Feature, with that feature being Oracle divine spell casting. The DC is the same, since the required caster level is the same to cast the scroll, 9, so DC 29 for a Scroll of Breath of Life, but as I meet the required ability score mod, there is no need for an additional check to cover that.
Use a Scroll: Normally, to cast a spell from a scroll, you must have the scroll's spell on your class spell list. Use Magic Device allows you to use a scroll as if you had a particular spell on your class spell list. The DC is equal to 20 + the caster level of the spell you are trying to cast from the scroll. In addition, casting a spell from a scroll requires a minimum score (10 + spell level) in the appropriate ability. If you don't have a sufficient score in that ability, you must emulate the ability score with a separate Use Magic Device check.
I think this sounds like one of those things that I should discuss with the GM at whatever table I sit down at before I use it.

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It is all covered under "Use a Scroll" exactly as you quoted above. The DC is equal to 20 + caster level of the scroll.
If your sorcerer has a Charisma of 16, say, then he could cast 2nd-level oracle scrolls with a DC 22 UND check.
He could cast 8th-level sorcerer scrolls but these require a Cha of 18. He would need to make a UMD check with a DC of 15 + 18 = 33, using the "emulate an ability score" aspect of UMD.
He could also cast 8th-level oracle scrolls. These require two UMD checks: one at DC 28 for casting a spell not on his spell list; the other at DC 33 to emulate a Charisma of 18.

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**stuff**
Actually, I was going from memory, but seeing as you just provided it, let's take a look at what UMD says about this.
Use a Scroll: Normally, to cast a spell from a scroll, you must have the scroll's spell on your class spell list. Use Magic Device allows you to use a scroll as if you had a particular spell on your class spell list. The DC is equal to 20 + the caster level of the spell you are trying to cast from the scroll. In addition, casting a spell from a scroll requires a minimum score (10 + spell level) in the appropriate ability. If you don't have a sufficient score in that ability, you must emulate the ability score with a separate Use Magic Device check.
First of all, UMD explicitly covers how to use it in conjunction with activating a scroll, so no, you can't backdoor it via "emulating a class feature". Of course, as you pointed out, the DC is the same, so it makes little difference.
Second, let me requote a specific part of that.
Use Magic Device allows you to use a scroll as if you had a particular spell on your class spell list.
Bolded for emphasis. By using UMD, you are acting as if the spell in question is actually on your spell list, so the "appropriate ability" is the same ability that you use for spells that actually are on your list. For example, a wizard attempting to use a scroll of Cure Light Wounds would use his Intelligence, because that's the ability he uses for his spells.
This does bring up another question, though: what ability score would a non caster have to use to activate a scroll? The rules don't actually spell that out, seeing as they don't actually HAVE a defined "appropriate ability", but in that case, as a GM, I would rule that you actually would have to emulate the spellcasting class feature, so you would need to pick a class that has the spell on it's class list, and use that class's casting ability score, complete with additional UMD check, if required. Thus, a non caster using a scroll of Cure Light Wounds could use Int (witch), Wis (cleric/druid/inquisitor), or Cha (bard/oracle), but a scroll of Shield of Faith would require Wis (cleric/inquisitor) or Cha (oracle).

Gwen Smith |

This does bring up another question, though: what ability score would a non caster have to use to activate a scroll? The rules don't actually spell that out, seeing as they don't actually HAVE a defined "appropriate ability", but in that case, as a GM, I would rule that you actually would have to emulate the spellcasting class feature, so you would need to pick a class that has the spell on it's class list, and use that class's casting ability score, complete with additional UMD check, if required. Thus, a non caster using a scroll of Cure Light Wounds could use Int (witch), Wis (cleric/druid/inquisitor), or Cha (bard/oracle), but a scroll of Shield of Faith would require Wis (cleric/inquisitor) or Cha (oracle).
I would say that you would follow the priority list for spell services:
If it's on the wizard list, use Int, on the cleric or druid list, use Wis. If it's not on any of these lists, find the list with the lowest applicable caster level, and use the stat for that class.
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I would say that you would follow the priority list for spell services:
If it's on the wizard list, use Int, on the cleric or druid list, use Wis. If it's not on any of these lists, find the list with the lowest applicable caster level, and use the stat for that class.
My question is, why using Wis for a scroll of Cure Light Wounds more "acceptable" than using Int or Cha? The scroll doesn't care which a caster uses, why should it care what a non-caster uses?

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SCPRedMage wrote:This does bring up another question, though: what ability score would a non caster have to use to activate a scroll? The rules don't actually spell that out, seeing as they don't actually HAVE a defined "appropriate ability", but in that case, as a GM, I would rule that you actually would have to emulate the spellcasting class feature, so you would need to pick a class that has the spell on it's class list, and use that class's casting ability score, complete with additional UMD check, if required. Thus, a non caster using a scroll of Cure Light Wounds could use Int (witch), Wis (cleric/druid/inquisitor), or Cha (bard/oracle), but a scroll of Shield of Faith would require Wis (cleric/inquisitor) or Cha (oracle).I would say that you would follow the priority list for spell services:
If it's on the wizard list, use Int, on the cleric or druid list, use Wis. If it's not on any of these lists, find the list with the lowest applicable caster level, and use the stat for that class.
but what if it is on all those lists? or on the wizard list AND on the cleric list.