Staff

[Lord Lupus the Grey]

Hi!

Can EVERY spellcaster use EVERY staff? Or there are divine or arcane staves? Can a wizzard use staff of healing?

Thanks!

[Mighty Beowulf]

Magic Items wrote:

Spell Trigger: Spell trigger activation is similar to spell completion, but it's even simpler. No gestures or spell finishing is needed, just a special knowledge of spellcasting that an appropriate character would know, and a single word that must be spoken. Spell trigger items can be used by anyone whose class can cast the corresponding spell. This is the case even for a character who can't actually cast spells, such as a 3rd-level paladin. The user must still determine what spell is stored in the item before she can activate it. Activating a spell trigger item is a standard action and does not provoke attacks of opportunity.

Found here.

So you can only use a staff with spells on your spell list. (So a wizard can use a staff with magic missile on it, but not cure light wounds.)

Otherwise, Use Magic Device is needed. Hope that helps.

[Lord Lupus the Grey]

Thanks! :(

[Rub-Eta]

Use Magic Device is your friend. If you don't have high CHA but high INT (like a wizard), think about getting Additional Traits to get (or pick from the start when you build your character) Pragmatic Activator .

[seebs]

Questions that may come up:

If you are a caster, and you use a staff, UMD acts "as though the spell is on your class list", so you use your caster level (if better than the staff's), and you use your casting stat modifier and feats and such to set DC.

If you are not a caster, and you use a staff, I have no idea what your casting stat is, but your caster level is probably zero so you use the staff's caster level. But staves have no provision for a default minimum casting stat, so... No idea what you get there.

Note that a staff could have some spells on your spell list and some not, for instance, a staff of clerical spells with cure light wounds, a bard can use the cure light wounds without UMD because it's on their spell list.