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Before I spend a bunch of money, wanted to double-check this. It looks like I can have as many pearly white spindle aeon stones as I want and each will add +1 caster level.
Pearly White Spindle: This aeon stone increases your caster level by 1. This affects only calculations that directly refer to your caster level, such as caster level checks and spells with a duration of 1 round/level.
When multiple bonuses apply to the same value, different types of bonuses all apply, but in most cases bonuses of the same type do not add together (or “stack” with each other), unless a source specifies otherwise. (For an exception, see Circumstance Bonus below.) Bonuses that do not list a bonus type do stack, both with each other and with all typed bonuses. Such bonuses, often referred to as “untyped” bonuses, are among the most utilitarian of all bonuses in the game.
While I think that does work rules as written, that seems like a lot of money to throw down for very little benefit.
What are you looking to do with a higher caster level that can't be done with an armor upgrade or even a pile of spell gems?
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Most of the time the only benefits are range, duration, and CL checks. That's nice but I too am of the opinion that stacking it up doesn't give you huge benefits.
Until you get to the higher levels where the wealth scale goes crazy.
I have been playing a scrapper technomancer (focusing on the "junk" spells, junkbots, junksword, etc.) and realized they are some of the only spells that reliably get better with CL. Junk armor was the one that caught my eye. A 17th level light armor costs around 250,000 credits. If you got 10 aeon stones instead, you'd be CL27. EAC 27, KAC 29, Max Dex +7 from the armor. I haven't done the math all the way out yet, but I estimate that if you bought aeon stones every time you would have bought new armor the break-even point is somewhere around 13th or 14th level.
It may not be the greatest use of credits, but I thought it could be fun for my "I do it all with magic" character.
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I also recall seeing somewhere a ruling that untyped bonuses from the same source don't stack -- and many GMs are likely to rule that multiple Ioun stones of the same type do not stack unless there is specific rules language that says otherwise.
I would be inclined to go along with that because there is otherwise no limit other than money to CL -- and if you are considering buying a second Ioun stone of this same type, the money limits are starting to break down anyway.
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I'd call it the same source, no stacking.
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I also recall seeing somewhere a ruling that untyped bonuses from the same source don't stack -- and many GMs are likely to rule that multiple Ioun stones of the same type do not stack unless there is specific rules language that says otherwise.
That's definitely a rule in PF1, but I couldn't find it in Starfinder when I thought of this idea. Anyone able to find it?
Even in PF1, there was always debate about what exactly counted as "the same source." I think I remember a post from a designer or developer after being asked how anyone could reach the mass cure critical wounds cap of CL40. The response included the phrase "bucket of orange prism ioun stones." Can't find it now, though.
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There's that spell that gives you a natural attack that scales with level, too. Or the fact that a multiclassed spellcaster stacks their levels together for total caster level.
Stacking Ioun Stones does strike me as "too good to be true". At that point you're spending a set amount of money on something that replaces your two biggest scaling equipment costs.
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There's that spell that gives you a natural attack that scales with level, too. Or the fact that a multiclassed spellcaster stacks their levels together for total caster level.
What is this spell you speak of? Biotic taclash and junksword both get a bonus to damage from CL but the damage dice are fixed by the spell slot you use to cast it. Can't find a spell that gives a natural attack or anything where the dice scale by CL.
I'm not seeing how the multiclassed stacking is affecting things. A technomancer 7/mystic 7 with three pearly white spindles would have a CL of 17. So would a technomancer 14 with three pearly white spindles.
Stacking Ioun Stones does strike me as "too good to be true".
And this is why I was checking on the boards.
1. It appears that the untyped bonuses from pearly white spindle aeon stones stack just fine.2. But that means cost of spindle bonuses stay linear while costs for increasing other equipment (weapons and armor, mainly) are exponential.
3. But is that actually a problem? I mean, we're talking levels in the teens before you can afford more than one aeon stone. Above 15 before there's a significant difference. And things are getting silly at that point anyway.
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My 10th level Xenodruid has one right now (early access from a Chronicle), and has the credits for two more, so while that is "high"ish, it's enough to be disruptive if I decided to go that route.
Even having just the one gets a lot of attention. Just last game someone asked me, "Wait, how does your Life Bubble last 11 days? This is a 7-10 Scenario. Are you Level 11?"
There's that spell that gives you a natural attack that scales with level, too.What is this spell you speak of?
Which, coincidentally, that same Xenodruid used to cast, until she picked up the Augmentation that gives you tusks (both seemed appropriate for a Half-orc).
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There's that spell that gives you a natural attack that scales with level, too.What is this spell you speak of?Which, coincidentally, that same Xenodruid used to cast, until she picked up the Augmentation that gives you tusks (both seemed appropriate for a Half-orc).
Interesting. The reason I didn't find it is that the spell just says that the damage is based on your level, not your caster level. I'm not being pedantic here, there are quite a few spells such as gravitational singularity or battle junkbot that have mechanics based on your class level instead of your caster level. Looks like carnivorous could use a clarification.
Anyway, I'm going to shut up for a while and see if anyone can find something saying that untyped bonuses from the same (or similar) sources don't stack.
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Well then the spindle would be useless, since stats like Duration are "1 round/level", Ranges are "close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)", and Targets are "one creature/level".
EDIT: actually if you scroll all the way down to the bottom of THIS page it adds that "The word “level” in the short descriptions that follow usually refers to caster level."
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EDIT: actually if you scroll all the way down to the bottom of THIS page it adds that "The word “level” in the short descriptions that follow usually refers to caster level."
That's the last sentence on page 335 of the CRB. It is from the section on SPELL LISTS. It's not referring to the full text of the spells but to the short descriptions in the class spell lists. Things like
Haste: One creature per level moves and acts faster.
And of course the word "usually" is in that sentence.
It looks to me like there was a really conscious effort made in the CRB to game out the options and use alternatives to CL in places where a boosted CL might make things out of scale. Mystic Cure uses Wisdom modifier for bonus healing. Make whole uses your technomancer level when determining if you can restore magical properties.
After thinking it over for a while, I can only come up with four current spells where stacking up aeon stones might disrupt the game. Junk Armor, junksword, biotic taclash, and (maybe) carnivorous. All of them, however, have drawbacks.
Junksword and biotic taclash - these spells stack up very favorably against basic melee weapons. The max damage dice is 6d6 for a junksword 6. That could really start to get out of scale above 17th level. "Lets see, I could trade up to Solar Flare Ignurso Knuckles. Costs about 250,000 credits. Average of 10.5 more damage per hit. Or I could buy 10 pearly white spindles for 250,000 and get 15 more damage per hit." However they don't stack up nearly as favorably against advanced melee weapons. The breakpoint there is 19th or 20th level. (Of course that means getting advanced melee weapon proficiency and specialization). The other drawback is that you can't use weapon fusions on these two spells (or carnivorous).
Junk armor - this is the first one that caught my eye and the only one that can get really out of scale at 17th level or above. The drawback is similar to the weapon spells: you can't use armor upgrades.
Dispel magic gets absurdly good with 5 of those things tacked on