I know that this isn't the stackable kind of Ioun Stone, but I was actually wondering if one could use several to keep getting skills? They're not technically "stacking" a bonus - first one only gives the +2 to Int, but you could have one for each Knowledge skill, for example. Is that possible?
It's an expensive endeavor, but if you keep running into skills you wish you had maxed out but not enough skill points it might be viable (especially if you have a crafter handy)
I don't see why you should be able to use 2 Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stones to get a +4 Intelligence.
Are you suggesting that if you had a 2nd Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stone, it would give you +1 Skill Point/level, just not +2 Intelligence? The Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stone doesn't grant +1 Skill point/level: it only grants +2 Intelligence, and it is that Intelligence Bonus that will be giving you any Skills, if any.
So a 2nd such stone won't increase your Intellgence, since both grant Enhancement Bonuses, and Enhancement Bonuses don't stack.
You could of course get and use as many Cracked, Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stones as you pleased. Each one would give you a +1 Competence Bonus on any 1 Intelligence Skill. And that would stack with the +1 due to your Intelligence bonus from your regular S&BSIS. If you were in a campaign where low-value magic items were readily available, you could could get those for 200gp each.
Scott Wilhelm wrote: I don't see why you should be able to use 2 Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stones to get a +4 Intelligence.
Are you suggesting that if you had a 2nd Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stone, it would give you +1 Skill Point/level, just not +2 Intelligence? The Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stone doesn't grant +1 Skill point/level: it only grants +2 Intelligence, and it is that Intelligence Bonus that will be giving you any Skills, if any.
So a 2nd such stone won't increase your Intellgence, since both grant Enhancement Bonuses, and Enhancement Bonuses don't stack.
You could of course get and use as many Cracked, Scarlet and Blue Sphere Ioun Stones as you pleased. Each one would give you a +1 Competence Bonus on any 1 Intelligence Skill. And that would stack with the +1 due to your Intelligence bonus from your regular S&BSIS. If you were in a campaign where low-value magic items were readily available, you could could get those for 200gp each.
No, I'm referring to this part of the item's description:
Quote: This stone has one skill associated with it, as a +2 headband of vast intelligence. Which references this:
Quote: A headband of vast intelligence has one skill associated with it per +2 bonus it grants. After being worn for 24 hours, the headband grants a number of skill ranks in those skills equal to the wearer’s total Hit Dice. Normally you can only wear one headband, so it wasn't necessary to clarify what it would mean to have two or more for the sake of skill ranks.
Int-boosting items don't give skill points; they give you ranks in a particular skill equal to your HD (I presume this was done to keep it from becoming a logistical nightmare if you lost the headband). So say I have three Scarlet And Blue Sphere Ioun Stones. I'm asking if I get:
+2 Intelligence
3x skills with ranks equal to my HD
OR
+2 Intelligence
1x skill with ranks equal to my HD, the others either completely dormant or it possible for me to switch between which one is active.
RAW seems to imply that it's not a "bonus", so I could have 10 of these (with Craft Wondrous Item at a total of 40k) and have 10 skills all maxed out.
Okay, I see where you are going with this. I think that works to give yourself 1 maxed-out Skill/stone.
It still might be more economical to buy lots of cracked stones, though. But I guess there is no reason not to do both. The competence bonuses will stack.
The skill rank bonus is meant to be there to represent what happens when you increase your intelligence bonus. I'd think that Int bonuses overlapping would mean that the associated skill rank bonus would also overlap, but I'd concede that it might be possible to switch between them. Exactly how you'd do so is house rule territory though.
to clarify: Headband of Vast Intelligence and Scarlet & Blue Sphere Ioun Stone
(mainly restating) note the last line in the Headband description. It would clearly imply that the skills are knowledge skills. As you increase the headband bonuses additional skills are added. The bonuses that are added are priced as slotless, much like the ioun stones. The clear analogy is that ioun stones should add so long as they are not identical bonuses, as then you only get the greater effect.
+1/HD isn't "maxed out" but it is the normal maximum barring Feats and such. We are also talking Knowledge skills and they don't directly translate into character puissance.
Advice: I'd have at least 1+ rank in key skills just in case bad things happen. You might also like Lore Needle
Azothath wrote: to clarify: Headband of Vast Intelligence and Scarlet & Blue Sphere Ioun Stone
(mainly restating) note the last line in the Headband description. It would clearly imply that the skills are knowledge skills. As you increase the headband bonuses additional skills are added. The bonuses that are added are priced as slotless, much like the ioun stones. The clear analogy is that ioun stones should add so long as they are not identical bonuses, as then you only get the greater effect.
+1/HD isn't "maxed out" but it is the normal maximum barring Feats and such. We are also talking Knowledge skills and they don't directly translate into character puissance.
Advice: I'd have at least 1+ rank in key skills just in case bad things happen. You might also like Lore Needle
Maxed in as much as skill ranks, not all other bonuses. Like being 8th level and having 8 ranks in a skill, you've "maxed out" your potential skill points in it.
As far as which skills, it can be any skill - it's only when randomly found it should be a knowledge skill. I've seen them for all sorts of skills.
My skill character has at least one rank in every class skill but one, and being a bard/swashbuckler that's a LOT. I'm just wondering if you could have the extra skills or not, that's all.
Scott Wilhelm wrote: Okay, I see where you are going with this. I think that works to give yourself 1 maxed-out Skill/stone.
It still might be more economical to buy lots of cracked stones, though. But I guess there is no reason not to do both. The competence bonuses will stack.
The cracked stone is cheap, but only gives a +1, not ranks equal to hit dice. Not to mention it wouldn't be as good as a skill rank, because the competence bonus doesn't grant the extra +3 you'd otherwise get from putting one skill rank in a class skill.
FAQ wrote: Headband of Vast Intelligence: If I wear this item, do I get retroactive skill ranks for my Int increase in addition to the skill ranks associated with the item?
No. The skill associated with the magic item represents the "retroactive" skill ranks you'd get from the item increasing your Intelligence. You don't get the item's built-in skill ranks and another set to assign however you want.
posted August 2011 | back to top
As the skill associate with the item represents the retroactive skill rank you'd get for the intelligence increase, adding a ioun stone that doesn't stack and so doesn't add to your intelligence doesn't give you the associated skill.
Diego Rossi wrote: FAQ wrote: Headband of Vast Intelligence: If I wear this item, do I get retroactive skill ranks for my Int increase in addition to the skill ranks associated with the item?
No. The skill associated with the magic item represents the "retroactive" skill ranks you'd get from the item increasing your Intelligence. You don't get the item's built-in skill ranks and another set to assign however you want.
posted August 2011 | back to top
As the skill associate with the item represents the retroactive skill rank you'd get for the intelligence increase, adding a ioun stone that doesn't stack and so doesn't add to your intelligence doesn't give you the associated skill. Yeah, but it's not like the Headband or Stone don't work. They give you what they are supposed to give you. It's just that one of the bonuses--+2 Intelligence--doesn't stack. Why shouldn't the skill ranks accrue if they are different skills?
Skrayper wrote: Scott Wilhelm wrote: Okay, I see where you are going with this. I think that works to give yourself 1 maxed-out Skill/stone.
It still might be more economical to buy lots of cracked stones, though. But I guess there is no reason not to do both. The competence bonuses will stack.
The cracked stone is cheap, but only gives a +1, not ranks equal to hit dice. Not to mention it wouldn't be as good as a skill rank, because the competence bonus doesn't grant the extra +3 you'd otherwise get from putting one skill rank in a class skill. Yeah, but it's less good, but it's cheaper, and the bonus it gives stacks with the bonuses under consideration. Also, it's entirely possible that the OP's GM will rule the way Diego and other argue, in which case the cracked stones remain a good option.
Interesting thought, but I'm going to have to go with "No"
As is stated in the FAQ Diego quoted, we have a clear explanation of what the Intention is (unusually enough). The bonus skill ranks from a headband (or Ioun Stone) represent the ranks you would have gotten if your intelligence was that high to begin with. It's not a separate effect.
Scott Wilhelm wrote: Diego Rossi wrote: FAQ wrote: Headband of Vast Intelligence: If I wear this item, do I get retroactive skill ranks for my Int increase in addition to the skill ranks associated with the item?
No. The skill associated with the magic item represents the "retroactive" skill ranks you'd get from the item increasing your Intelligence. You don't get the item's built-in skill ranks and another set to assign however you want.
posted August 2011 | back to top
As the skill associate with the item represents the retroactive skill rank you'd get for the intelligence increase, adding a ioun stone that doesn't stack and so doesn't add to your intelligence doesn't give you the associated skill. Yeah, but it's not like the Headband or Stone don't work. They give you what they are supposed to give you. It's just that one of the bonuses--+2 Intelligence--doesn't stack. Why shouldn't the skill ranks accrue if they are different skills? So, the FAQ is not speaking directly to the question. The FAQ is talking about the skill points that normally come with greater intelligence in addition to the skill associated with any given Headband.
I guess the question is does an item give you a bonus if you already have an equivalent bonus that it doesn't stack with? You clearly don't actually get a +4 Intelligence instead of a +2, but just because you can't benefit from the additional +2 Enhancement Bonus doesn't mean that the magic item isn't working. I mean if I get a cold, and both of my sisters and my mother send me humidifiers to help me get better, well, I only benefit from 1 humidifier, but that doesn't mean I don't have 3. Does the bonus not exist just because you already have one?
Let's consider another example. Let's say I take the Stalwart Feat, which gives me DR/-. Let's say I'm also wearing Adamantine Armor. Would you say the Adamantine Armor is not granting me DR/- just because I'm using the Stalwart Feat?
The problem with my counter argument is that the FAQ says the skill points represent the item "increasing your intelligence," not from the item "granting you an intelligence bonus. Even if both items are granting you an intelligence bonus, they are not both increasing your intelligence.
I guess if the OP is only getting the ranks of 1 of those skills and not the other, it would usually be a simple enough matter to take one of the items off when he needs 1 skill or the other. Pull the 'Stone out when it's time to Search the room for traps; put the Stone away and let your Headband work when it's time to negotiate that cease-fire between the Dwarves and the Orcs.
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