As the title suggests, can we make a static variable into a random variable?
This is a thought experiment involving the empower metamagic feat, a wayfinder, an orange prism ioun stone, and the resonant power of the wayfinder ioun stone combination.
Empower Spell
You can increase the power of your spells, causing them to deal more damage.
Benefit: All variable, numeric effects of an empowered spell are increased by half including bonuses to those dice rolls.
Saving throws and opposed rolls are not affected, nor are spells without random variables.
Level Increase: +2 (an empowered spell uses up a spell slot two levels higher than the spell’s actual level.)
Orange Prism in a Wayfinder
Orange prism: Every time the bearer casts a spell, roll 1d4–2 and add this (and the +1 caster level granted by the normal power of the ioun stone) to his caster level. If this modified caster level is too low to cast the spell, the spell fails and is lost.
Constant Variables of a Spell not normally modified by the empower feat:
-----Caster Level
-----Range
-----Saving Throws
-----Opposed Rolls
Random variables of a spell normally modified by the empower feat:
-----Random damage (plus any bonus applied to them)
With the addition of the resonant bonus of the orange prism ioun stone in the wayfinder, the caster level becomes a random variable.
example: CL 20 + 1d4 -1 or CL 1d4+19.
Would this then qualify the caster level of the spell to be modified by the empower spell feat due to it now being a random variable? If so, then that means this combination allows the use of the empower feat on any spell because they now all have a random variable.
To reiterate the question:
Does the resonate power of the orange prism ioun stone in a wayfinder cause the caster level to become a random variable that can be modified by the empower metamagic feat?
I'd say that variable bonuses don't count as "variable numeric effects of the spell".
And/or that the Empower metamagic "works first", before outside effects like equipment, so at the time the spell gets empowered, the caster level isn't variable yet.
But I don't think there are any official rulings on the interaction between the two.
First, you can Empower any 7th level or lower spell. If the spell doesn't throw multiple dice it won't have any effect, but you can waste 2 spell levels on adding a Metamagical Feat to any spell if you want to.
False, with the magical lineage trait you can apply the empower metamagic feat to any 8th level or lower spell, albeit just one at a time until you retrain it.
Second, the 'variable' parts of the spell get a 50% increase. So you get an extra 50% of the dice and its mods. In this case, 1/2 times 1d4-2 because this is the part that variable. This part gets rolled and added to the caste level, not the entire caster level is a bonus to this dice roll! Even the +1 the Orange stone normally gives is outside of this roll because that is the way its stated.
And 50% more of 1 dice is...nothing. Fractions round down. This is the reason nobody empowers magic missile because it has no effect. It isn't a 5d4+5 blast of missiles, its 5 1d4+1 missiles.
The caster level increase is part of the spell when it’s cast. So only spontaneous casters would get the most benefit from the interaction if it worked as stated in the OP.
Let’s look at the magic missile example since that seems to be a goto.I’ll use a sorcerer with the orc bloodline for fun: Their magic missile now does 1d4+2, so when empowered it would be (1d4+2)*1.5 so anything between 4 – 9 damage per missile. Furthermore at level 15 when you have spell perfection added in, the empowered magic missile now deals 2d4+6, the new damage is now anything between 8 – 14 damage per missile.
However a better example of a spell using the amount of work based on the caster level would be stone shape. The target of the spell: Target stone or stone object touched, up to 10 cu. ft. + 1 cu. ft./level.
If the OP question worked as mentioned the work done would be (CL)*1.5 or if you had spell perfection (CL)*2. If we look at the CL 20 example, the targeted amount affected by stone shape is now: (29 - 32 cubic feet)*(1.5 or 2 depending).
The target of stone shape is only affected by the caster level of the spell. Which the item combination has now made random.
And the last reason this won't work, is because the Wayfinder's resonance ability isn't part of the spell. It is triggered by attempting to cast a spell, but it is an item bonus that may very well cause you to fail casting spells that are on the edge of your ability to cast. This isn't a modification of the spell, but an item property that activates when you attempt to cast a spell. Claiming that Empowered should affect this is like claiming that an Empowered spell cast while you can roll 2d20 to hit and take the best result means you should roll 3d20 and take the best result instead when the multiple dice isn't from the spell you are casting in the first place, or that sneak attack dice added to spell damage should be Empowered at well. (yes, you can add sneak attack damage to a spell if you qualify to make a sneak attack. And those dice just get added to the end of any adjustments the spell would get. The sneak attack dice are only affected by things that affect the sneak attack dice)
The resonance ability affects the caster’s caster level. The caster level is then, as you say, needed to determine if you can cast the spell, which is why I used a level 20 caster as an example for the purpose of keeping the minimum caster level at 19, but that’s beside the point.
The empower spell would not affect your d20 example, just like it doesn’t affect the number of magic missiles you get or the number of scorching rays someone would get.Sneak attack damage to the roll would however be affected by the empower metamagic feat, because it is a bonus to the damage variable and here is a quick link for you. You’d still have to qualify for the sneak attack however.
So to recap: unless the metamagic feat itself says the spell isn't a valid target, you can add it to any spell. Even if it does nothing. In this case, it will do nothing. Both because its not enough dice, and because its not part of the spell.
So now with prepared casters out of the running because they’d have to prepare the metamagic feat before the casting, the original question remains for spontaneous casters.
I would argue that the caster level is indeed part of any spell you cast because it is needed for multiple variables based off of your caster level even if the spell description doesn’t explicitly say so. Ie: range, number of missiles, rays, damage dice, number or rerolls, ect.@Rajnish
I would agree with you, but the variable happens at the time of casting, and I also couldn't find an official ruling or another thread that had something similar.
Caster Level is not a variable of the spell, it is of the caster.
While the orange prism ioun does create a random variable effect (an adjustment to the caster level) when a spell is cast that variable is certainly not an effect of the spell, rather it is an effect of a magical item that affects the spell.
@CraziFuzzy, Azothath, and Dave Justus
I will agree with you, the caster level determines the effects of the spell but it is not in and of itself an effect of the spell.
@Meirril
If you could provide a link to the list of excluded feats for the spell perfection feat, that would be most appreciative. Further inquiry for this argument however detracts from the original question of the title. Thank you.
As for the original question and intent of the thread, I would have to say that it has been answered and no longer needs to be addressed at this time. Thank you.
First, you can Empower any 7th level or lower spell.
A greater metamagic rod of empower spell says different. :-)
Second, the 'variable' parts of the spell get a 50% increase. So you get an extra 50% of the dice and its mods. In this case, 1/2 times 1d4-2 because this is the part that variable. This part gets rolled and added to the caste level, not the entire caster level is a bonus to this dice roll! Even the +1 the Orange stone normally gives is outside of this roll because that is the way its stated.
And 50% more of 1 dice is...nothing. Fractions round down. This is the reason nobody empowers magic missile because it has no effect. It isn't a 5d4+5 blast of missiles, its 5 1d4+1 missiles.
As you later stated, the 1d4-2 is not a variable numeric effect of the spell, but an effect applied to your caster level from an item.
You don't get 50% more dice, you get 50% more value. Empower Spell works fine on Magic Missile.
/cevah
Empower spell works on magic missile, but not on the item so each missile doing 1d4+1 damage would have it's damage increased by 50%.
So if each missile rolled 4 points of damage then each missile would then do 6 points of damage.
And if I could release 5 missiles it would come out to 30 points of damage.