How does an Arcanist's School Understanding work?

[Brenden Falke]

I'm working on an Arcanist, and looking at the School Understanding exploit. I find its wording and function a little ambiguous, and searching on here for similar threads only showed me a few short debates but no conclusion.

School Understanding wrote:

School Understanding: The arcanist can select one arcane school from any of the schools available to a character with the arcane school wizard class feature, but does not have to select any opposition schools. The arcanist gains one ability of that arcane school as though she were a 1st-level wizard, using her Charisma modifier in place of her Intelligence modifier for this ability. The ability must be one gained at 1st level and is limited in its use per day to 3 + the arcanist's Charisma modifier. As a swift action, the arcanist can expend 1 point from her arcane reservoir to bolster her understanding, allowing her to treat her arcanist level as her wizard level for the purpose of using this ability for a number of rounds equal to her Charisma modifier (minimum 1). During this time, she also gains use of the other ability gained at 1st level for her selected school. She does not gain any other abilities when using this exploit in this way, such as those gained at 8th level.

The confusing bit is this: The ability must be one gained at 1st level and is limited in its use per day to 3 + the arcanist's Charisma modifier.

Does this mean that I can only choose the level 1 school abilities that are limited in their use (as most schools have one active and one passive ability), or does it mean I must choose a level 1 school ability, and when I have done so that I can use that 3+CHA times a day? I feel the latter is the more likely interpretation, based on the wording in this sentence.

I am personally hoping that it is legal to pick Divination for School Understanding, and then pick up the Forewarned ability:

Forewarned wrote:

Forewarned (Su): You can always act in the surprise round even if you fail to make a Perception roll to notice a foe, but you are still considered flat-footed until you take an action. In addition, you receive a bonus on initiative checks equal to 1/2 your wizard level (minimum +1). At 20th level, anytime you roll initiative, assume the roll resulted in a natural 20.

In my personal interpretation of School Understanding, I am able to pick this ability, and because it is always on, I always get +1 to my initiative, and can always act in the surprise round. Then, at most 3+CHA times a day, I can boost my initiative with 1/2 my Arcanist level as well as gaining Diviner's Fortune which is the other level 1 ability for this school.

Am I right or wrong?

To recap:
1) Can an Arcanist pick either of the level 1 school abilities with School Understanding, or only the activated one?
2) If an arcanist can pick either, if he picks one that is passive/always-on, does that remain so? If not, how does this affect the surprise-round mechanic of Forewarned?

[Melkiador]

It's vague, but in the best case, I'd say that you can use the benefits to surprise and initiative only for the limited number per day. This would mean that every time you roll initiative or get surprised, you choose to use this ability as a "not an action" action.

[Decimus Drake]

Have you considered the school savant archetype?

[Azten]

It really isn't vague at all.

Is Forewarned a 1st level ability? Yes.
Is it limited in use? No.

So you can't take it with School Understanding.

[noretoc]

Melkiador is right. You pick a first level ability, and regardless of the use allowance for the power, you can only use it a limited number of times a day. If the limit was part of the restriction on the powers you could choose, you would not be able to choose any, since there are no school powers that can be used "3 + the arcanist's Charisma modifier" per day.

[Melkiador]

Azten wrote:

Is it limited in use? No.
So you can't take it with School Understanding.

This may have been the intention of the ability, but nowhere in the text does it actually limit your choice to limited use abilities.

[Azten]

Hmm. I see that now. That's very interesting...

[Melkiador]

It's probably an oversight, so I'd ask your DM. The ACG is infamous for having incompletely written abilities. And the errata didn't fix all of them.

[Squiggit]

Melkiador wrote:

This may have been the intention of the ability, but nowhere in the text does it actually limit your choice to limited use abilities.

What's the duration on Resistance if you pick Abjuration? On the bonus to physical ability scores if you pick Transmutation?

[Melkiador]

Squiggit wrote:

Melkiador wrote:

This may have been the intention of the ability, but nowhere in the text does it actually limit your choice to limited use abilities.

What's the duration on Resistance if you pick Abjuration? On the bonus to physical ability scores if you pick Transmutation?

I suppose you'd be limited to anytime you would benefit from those abilities.