| CJRodgers |
I'm currently running a soulknife that's using the Augmented Blade archetype and will soon be taking the Strategos prestige class. Due to the interaction between the class features, I came up to something of a quandary: What happens with the ammunition?
Specifically the interaction is between Psicrystal Augment from Augmented Blade and Bladed Collective from Stategos.
Psicrystal Augment
At 1st level, the augmented blade learns how to attach her psicrystal to a weapon and cause it to bond to the item as a move action (reclaiming the psicrystal is a free action). Some weapons become covered in a thin sheen of crystal, for other augmented blades the entire weapon becomes psychic energy - the result is the same regardless of the cosmetic appearance.Once bonded, this psicrystal augmentation allows for the bonded weapon to be used with blade skills and is treated as a masterwork item when augmented.
Weapons created through temporary means (such as the call weaponry power, or the flame blade spell) may not be bonded with the augmented blade’s psicrystal due to their ephemeral nature.
If the augmented blade is ever separated from her weapon (or an item augmented by her psicrystal), the psicrystal stays with that object(s) as long as the item stays within range of the augmented blade and his telepathic link (one mile) with the psicrystal. At any time, the augmented blade can cause the psicrystal to abandon them item as a free action within that range
and command her psicrystal as normal.Starting at 3rd level, the bonded weapon gains a cumulative +1 enhancement bonus that increases every odd level thereafter that they may spend on an actual enhancement bonus or on weapon special abilities. An augmented blade’s level determines her maximum enhancement bonus (see Table: The Soulknife as per the enhanced mind blade class feature for melee weapons or see Table: The Soulbolt as per the enhanced soul bolt class feature for ranged weapons). The augmented blade may (and must, when her total enhancement is higher than her maximum bonus) apply any special ability from Table: Weapon Special Abilities instead of an enhancement bonus, as long as she meets the level requirements. This overrides any magical or psionic enhancements that may already be on this weapon, but the weapon retains any material or masterwork bonuses it may have. An augmented blade can choose any combination of weapon special abilities and/ or enhancement bonus for attack and damage rolls before assigning any special abilities each time that the augmented blade uses this ability. This replaces the Form Mind Blade and Enhanced Mind Blade class features, but counts as Form Mind Blade and Enhanced Mind Blade for prerequisites or requirements.
Bladed Collective
2nd level, the strategos is capable of manifesting his mind blade through his collective - striking from unexpected angles or lending his mind blade to his collective. As a standard action the strategos may manifest a mind blade in the square of an ally in his collective and attack as if he were standing in that position. This mind blade dissipates after the attack. This attack may be combined with other abilities that augment attacks, such as psychic strike damage, feats, martial maneuvers or other such abilities.[...]
It is further clarified how Augmented Blade and Bladed Collective interact here
Exotic Soulknives with Bladed Collectives
For soulknives with more exotic forms of mind blades (augmented blades, deadly fists, feral hearts, psychic armories, and rage blades), mind blades that are delivered from the collective function as followed. Augmented blades lend small fractions of their psicrystals that form either ghostly versions of the weapon used by the soulknife or lend their psicrystal in tiny fragments to their allies to enhance their own weapons as if the augmented blade had used their weapon augmentation on it. Deadly fists and feral hearts simply lend their natural weapons to their allies or create phantom claws or fists to attack enemies. Psychic armories direct weapons from their panoply to be used by their allies or manifest weapons around their allies to attack. Rage blades cannot share their wrath augments or their rage blades at all—they can only share their normal mind blades due to the possible psychic pollution that could come from sharing their rage.
Between these two abilities, I would be able to make any weapon a mind blade and use it to attack from a collective member's space.
However, if I apply this to a bow or other ammunition-using weapon, a slight issue arises. The ammunition itself is indirectly augmented by the basic property of magical ranged weapons.
There are 3 possible interpretations here, as far as I can see:
Copies of both the weapon and the ammunition appear to attack from an ally's space via Bladed Collective.
A copy of the weapon appears but you consume one of your ammunition as if attacking normally. [This seems like the most balanced option.]
A copy of the weapon appears, but has no ammunition since the ammunition, despite being bestowed with the magical properties of the weapon, is not itself a mind blade.
Anyone have any thoughts over which is likely to be the RAI?