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Hi,
I think I am not getting something regarding the following two issues:
Spell DC's-if a Spell DC is calculated by adding 10 to your primary stat. and that is it, then are not Spell DC's going to be static? Therefore, is not a 1st level spell going to have the same DC as a 7th level spell?
Spell Points-they are often the same number as your primary stat. bonus, in addition to any extra spell points from feats. For example, the Bard's Inspire Heroics Power is rated as being a Power 4*; and so if it requires 4 Spells Points to use, even with a few more Spell Points from feats, are you not going to consume a lot of your Spell Points in a power that will only modify Inspire Courage for one round? Is that correct?
*Does the Power rating stand for what your character level must be before you cast it or does it stand for the spell level that you can cast before you can access the Power?
Thank you.
Hi,
I think I am not getting something regarding the following two issues:
Spell DC's-if a Spell DC is calculated by adding 10 to your primary stat. and that is it, then are not Spell DC's going to be static? Therefore, is not a 1st level spell going to have the same DC as a 7th level spell?
Spell Points-they are often the same number as your primary stat. bonus, in addition to any extra spell points from feats. For example, the Bard's Inspire Heroics Power is rated as being a Power 4*; and so if it requires 4 Spells Points to use, even with a few more Spell Points from feats, are you not going to consume a lot of your Spell Points in a power that will only modify Inspire Courage for one round? Is that correct?
*Does the Power rating stand for what your character level must be before you cast it or does it stand for the spell level that you can cast before you can access the Power?
Thank you.
I'll admit, this is one part of the book that needs a little more explaining -- it's so obvious, we existing players keep missing it. I know I missed the same thing on calculating ACs when I was trying to figure out what happens when an untrained wizard wears armor.
Per page 291, Spell DCs are calculated the same way as spell rolls, +10 to the number. YOur proficiency mod is what's being used, which includes level. So it's not just 10 + your Stat mod, it's 10 + stat mod + level.
So that color spray's save at spell level 1, for a 10th level caster with an 18 INT, is DC (10 + 4 for INT + 10 for level) = 24. That same wizard, casting a fireball, has a spell save DC of 24. Level figures into almost everything, really.
As for Powers, Couple of things to remember:
- Powers are not spells.
- Powers have a "spell level" listed (Inspire Heroics is Power 4) for purposes of figuring out things like dispelling effects, etc. It has nothing to do with the number of spell points cost when using it.
- Inspire Heroics (from what I can see) can only be taken with a Level 8 Bard Feat, so Inspire Heroics being Power 4 is appropriate.
- Look at the Bard feat where you got a specific power from in order to find the spell point cost. In this case, Inspire Heroics costs 1 spell point per use. Most powers cost 1 spell point, but look at the source you got it from to be sure.
-NOTE you can only cast this AFTER an inspire courage, and when you do, it's a verbal action, but it's free (looking at the icon on the power description).
- The spell point pool starts equal to your key ability (CHA in this case). As you said, everything that gives you a new power usually adds some more points to you pool. Inspire Heroics adds two additional points.
I hope this helps some. Some of these mechanics are SO self-evident, they're hiding in plain sight. :) I think in some ways they're TOO self-evident, and need more explanation (for me, at least).
DCs are: 10 + Stat modifier + proficiency (which equals level + proficiency mod)
So an optimized 20th level caster has a DC of (10 + 7 + (20 + 3)) = 40. The Arcane sorcerer has a power to increase that by 1, and the specialist Wizard has a feat to increase that by 2 once per day. The wizard also has a feat to reduce conditional save bonuses (which are everywhere at high level) by 1, which is nearly the same as a constant DC increase.
Note that the level 20 Balor and Pit Fiend in the bestiary have a 55-70% chance to save against you at that level, assuming you don't have any of those booster feats and don't debuff in advance. Good luck out there.
DCs are: 10 + Stat modifier + proficiency (which equals level + proficiency mod)
So an optimized 20th level caster has a DC of (10 + 7 + (20 + 3)) = 40. The Arcane sorcerer has a power to increase that by 1, and the specialist Wizard has a feat to increase that by 2 once per day. The wizard also has a feat to reduce conditional save bonuses (which are everywhere at high level) by 1, which is nearly the same as a constant DC increase.
Note that the level 20 Balor and Pit Fiend in the bestiary have a 55-70% chance to save against you at that level, assuming you don't have any of those booster feats and don't debuff in advance. Good luck out there.
Excellent points RE: the Expert/Master/Legendary bonuses and any conditionals from class abilities.
It does remain to be seen how well the Enemy DCs scale vs. Player Characters at highest levels - I do kind of like that the Players will want to buff the heck out of themselves before taking on a high level foe, even something equivalent like a Pit Fiend.