Min/Max Boards

Aw hell, I worked on dndtools.pw.  I swear I look away for a week and it dies while I'm not working.  I hope someone managed to get a siterip of it that's recent.  I put in several hours of work since it became dndtools.pw and I don't want to see it go to waste.

Uh, look at UA Spellpoints variant, compare Spell/power levels for advancement.

See how sorcerer jumps at 4th because 2nd level spells cost 3 ea? So take DB progression, compare to Sorc progression and hit the spellpoints... er power points that way. Remember that to get full effect, PPs need to be pumped in occasionally.

Hell, just add together the spellpoints to get there for each level. Here's 20th as an example:
10×1+10×3+10×5+8×7+6×9
or
10+30+50+56+54=200 spellpoints. That however is 11 maxed spells per day.

I think what I decided on is... cantrips count as a half power point, and all the other abilities gain the 'spontaneous benefit' of having them grant one additional power point per manifester level.  So a 2nd level power would grant 4 instead of 3 points.

Hello, I'm working on a psionic class variant of an existing spellcasting class (Duskblade specifically) and I wanted to know if there was any resource for how D&D 3.5e calculates how many power points a psionic character should be able to cast.  Heck, just generic rules for power points based on the maximum power level would be great.

Short answer: you only need to be 3rd level.

Long answer:  DMG, p215, last sentence of the 1st column, under "caster level"
makes it look like you need to be 20th level

Quote

For other magic
items, the caster level is determined by the item itself.  In this
case, the creator's caster level must be as high as the item's
caster level (and prerequisites may effectively put a higher
minimum on the creator's level).

but this has been changed in the errata to say you don't need to be 20th

Quote

For other magic items, the caster level is determined by the creator.  The minimum level is that which is needed to meet the prerequisites given.

You have a source for the errata?

There is a spell called Antipathy that causes the following effect:

You cause an object or location to emanate magical vibrations that repel either a specific kind of intelligent creature or creatures of a particular alignment, as defined by you. The kind of creature to be affected must be named specifically. A creature subtype is not specific enough. Likewise, the specific alignment to be repelled must be named.

Creatures of the designated kind or alignment feel an overpowering urge to leave the area or to avoid the affected item.

A compulsion forces them to abandon the area or item, shunning it and never willingly returning to it while the spell is in effect. A creature that makes a successful saving throw can stay in the area or touch the item but feels uncomfortable doing so. This distracting discomfort reduces the creature’s Dexterity score by 4 points.

Doesn't sound quite like what you are interested in, but it's something I could find.

Hello, hoping to get some kind of clear answer to this but when you cast Energy Immunity several items for several different elements, does only the most recent casting still apply and the others are lost?

Combining Magical Effects

Spells or magical effects usually work as described, no matter how many other spells or magical effects happen to be operating in the same area or on the same recipient. Except in special cases, a spell does not affect the way another spell operates. Whenever a spell has a specific effect on other spells, the spell description explains that effect. Several other general rules apply when spells or magical effects operate in the same place:

Stacking Effects
Spells that provide bonuses or penalties on attack rolls, damage rolls, saving throws, and other attributes usually do not stack with themselves. More generally, two bonuses of the same type don’t stack even if they come from different spells (or from effects other than spells; see Bonus Types, above).

Different Bonus Names
The bonuses or penalties from two different spells stack if the modifiers are of different types. A bonus that isn’t named stacks with any bonus.

Same Effect More than Once in Different Strengths
In cases when two or more identical spells are operating in the same area or on the same target, but at different strengths, only the best one applies.

Same Effect with Differing Results
The same spell can sometimes produce varying effects if applied to the same recipient more than once. Usually the last spell in the series trumps the others. None of the previous spells are actually removed or dispelled, but their effects become irrelevant while the final spell in the series lasts.

One Effect Makes Another Irrelevant
Sometimes, one spell can render a later spell irrelevant. Both spells are still active, but one has rendered the other useless in some fashion.

According to the rules it's incredibly murky what the actual answer is so I'd like a second opinion.

Hello, me and a friend of mine are discussing whether or not a Spell-Like ability (by default) has a casting time of 1 standard action unless otherwise noted in the monster's entry. 

Here's the relevant bits I could find concerning spell-like abilities:

Actions in Combat
Spell-Like Abilities

Using a spell-like ability works like casting a spell in that it requires concentration and provokes attacks of opportunity. Spell-like abilities can be disrupted. If your concentration is broken, the attempt to use the ability fails, but the attempt counts as if you had used the ability. The casting time of a spell-like ability is 1 standard action, unless the ability description notes otherwise.

Special Abilities
A spell-like ability usually has a limit on how often it can be used. A spell-like ability that can be used at will has no use limit.  Using a spell-like ability is a standard action unless noted otherwise, and doing so while threatened provokes attacks of opportunity.

Rules Compendium
Using a spell-like ability usually takes 1 standard action and provokes attacks of opportunity unless otherwise noted. If the spell-like ability duplicates a spell that has a casting time of less than 1 standard action, the spell-like ability has that casting time.

As far as I can tell it's a standard action and that's always what I worked off of.  However my friend is insisting that it runs off the base spell's casting ability as that is part of the "Unless Otherwise Noted" section of the entry, whereas as I understand it it refers to the spell-like ability's section specifically for changes to the casting time.

I'm just curious what minmax thinks but should Magic-Psionics Transparency always be treated as on or is it a bad rule that shouldn't ever be used?

You mean the pw version?

Wow..this escalated quickly. Anyways to add some more clarification(always helps) the wild shape has also been amended in tandem with being swift cast that I take on all abilities of the shape taken. I will also be able to shift into anything up to 2more HD than myself(as opposed to just the same HD). That being said what shapes at level 10 would allow me to best use this ability?

Take Surrogate Spellcasting and cast regardless of the form you assume.  Or assume a form that has hands/claws and can speak (like dragons) and retain casting anyway.

As for shapeshift into anything, does that mean anything or do you mean any animal?  Also all ability scores or all Ex/Su/SLA/etc.?


If you can turn into anything, as well as get all the powers; consider picking an outsider with racial spell casting.  Trumpet Archon has 12 hit dice, and casts as a 14th level cleric.  Another option would be a Tome Dragon of 12 hit dice, which has 9th level sorcerer casting and metamagic reduction.  Maybe later in the campaign turn into a Modron that has 20th level sorcerer and cleric casting and monk features.


Here's the Handbook I work on with eggynack, just so you know:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tvNDnsnzj4dOkkYwxl1iGTeTNnQ5PK3geufSX5DwyYo/edit

the DM isnt limiting the creatures you have access to? It sounds as if he is simplifying the build for you because your new. The Druid is probably the single most player intensive class there is.  You have spells, not the best, but a full caster nonetheless. Your magics can be very simple or extremely complex, the druid can get away, if not outright shine in a campaign with limited access to magicals. wildshape this is more complex in and of itself than any other class. SNA this by its lonesome can and often is more complex than most other classes. Then you have your natures ally basically making another pc albeit lower level.

So i think it safe to say the Druid is hands down the most complex class to play..TAKING TIME OUT OF CAMPAIGNING!!! I think your DM is trying to simplify things by pigeon holing you into a a wildshaping specialist and removing spell casting while in alternate form will certainly limit your decision making, thusly speeding things up. So all the planar Shepherds stuff probably aint going to fly!

I think DM is going for a "less is more"

Blightersbane

Planar Shepard would totally fly, Spell-Like abilities are different from spells and they always function as if they were silenced and stilled so they can be used regardless of form.