Simple Q&A D&D 3.5 (by RAW) XVIII

[Ursus the Grim]

Q95
In pathfinder is there anyway to make a scimitar on a finessable weapon replace Strength with dexterity to damage?

A95
Yes, with the Scimitar.

Dervish Dance (Combat)
You have learned to turn your speed into power, even with a heavier blade.

Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Weapon Finesse, Perform (dance) 2 ranks, proficient with scimitar.

Benefit: When wielding a scimitar with one hand, you can use your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on melee attack and damage rolls. You treat the scimitar as a one-handed piercing weapon for all feats and class abilities that require such a weapon (such as a duelist’s precise strike ability). The scimitar must be for a creature of your size. You cannot use this feat if you are carrying a weapon or shield in your off hand.

There are a few more ways if you can use 3.5 material, but I am assuming that is not the case.

Edit: Source is the online SRD, original source appears to be the Inner Sea World Guide.

[Hazzardevil]

A95
Yes, with the Scimitar.



There are a few more ways if you can use 3.5 material, but I am assuming that is not the case.

Edit: Source is the online SRD, original source appears to be the Inner Sea World Guide.

Sorry, I had a spelling error there I meant to ask:

Is there a way to make a scimitar or a finessable weapon replace strength with dexterity on damage rolls. Like how Shadow Blade does it.

Edit: I am stupid and didn't read the feat description properly.

[Ursus the Grim]

Edit: I am stupid and didn't read the feat description properly.

Nah, its a complicated feat and does a couple things. Its easy to overlook, and I had a feeling I was misreading your question too.

[supermonkeyjoe]

Q96
Can you teleport through a prismatic wall? The 6th indigo layer says it stops all spells but since teleportation is travel through the Astral plane and none of the layers of a prismatic wall are force effects then it shouldn't affect you.

[dextercorvia]

A 96

I'm not sure if through is the correct preposition, but there is no problem Teleporting around a Prismatic Wall.

[Douglas]

A96

Yes, provided that your means of teleportation does not require line of effect from starting point to destination. Dimension Door and Teleport work just fine. Shadow Jaunt does not.

The Astral plane is not the same as the Ethereal plane, so whether it's a force effect or not is irrelevant. Incidentally, all abjuration spells have the same extends-from-material-to-ethereal property as force effects and Prismatic Wall is an abjuration, so that's another reason why it not being a force effect doesn't matter (for this purpose, it still makes a difference for incorporeal creatures).

[Curmudgeon]

Improved Uncanny Dodge does not grant immunity to sneak attack, it grants immunity to flanking.

Actually, Improved Uncanny Dodge is more specific than that.

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex)

A rogue of 8th level or higher can no longer be flanked.

This defense denies another rogue the ability to sneak attack the character by flanking her, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than the target does.

If the attacker has 4+ Rogue levels over the defender, Improved Uncanny Dodge doesn't prevent the defender from being flanked or from suffering sneak attack damage, so it's a packaged immunity: flanking and sneak attack are denied together. Lightbringer Penetrating Strike is also rather more specific about when it does and doesn't overcome sneak attack immunity.

Note that this benefit does not extend to creatures that ignore sneak attack damage because you cannot flank them.

Improved Uncanny Dodge does not ignore sneak attack damage because you cannot flank the target; rather, it ignores sneak attack damage because you don't have enough Rogue levels to be allowed to flank the target.

Since Lightbringer Penetrating Strike works against defenders immune to sneak attack for reasons other than simply being unflankable, overriding that Improved Uncanny Dodge sneak attack immunity should at the same time override the Improved Uncanny Dodge flanking immunity.

Either way, it's an all-or-nothing conflict. I can see support for both positions. It's worth bringing up to your DM.

[HappyBlanket]

Q 97

Ride (Dex)
If you attempt to ride a creature that is ill suited as a mount, you take a -5 penalty on your Ride checks.
Check
Typical riding actions don’t require checks. You can saddle, mount, ride, and dismount from a mount without a problem.
Special
If you are riding bareback, you take a -5 penalty on Ride checks.

A few related questions.

A) Does d&d specify what is and what isn't a mount? What are the restrictions in regards to size, shape, etc?
B) Since it doesn't require a check, can any character ride any mount without needing to roll, provided none of the specific checks in the srd are invoked?

[Curmudgeon]

A 97

A) In the real world, only a very few species are domesticable as mounts. For instance, while horses and zebras share similar physical characteristics, you just cannot train a zebra to be ridden. Movies like Sheena where zebras appear to be used as mounts make use of horses with painted stripes. (Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel has an interesting treatment on how the availability of both plant and animal species tailored societal development in different parts of the Earth, in case you're interested.) In the simplified world of D&D, an animal is a suitable mount if it's successfully undergone "Train for purpose: Riding" with the necessary Handle Animal check. ("Rear a Wild Animal" may be necessary first; check the individual monster entries and talk to your DM about that.) Additionally, a mount must be able to bear the weight of the rider, and be at least one size larger.

B) If the creature qualifies as a regular mount, anyone of suitable size (at least one category smaller, and within the mount's weight limit) may ride non-strenuously without checks. If the mount is irregular, the DM may require checks.

[Keld Denar]

A 97

A mount has to be at least 1 size larger than you. There really aren't any rules as far as a mount being required to have a certain shape, but anything that isn't a horse or horselike probably requires an exotic riding saddle. A mount acts on your intiative, and is generally something that will take actions as you direct. Highly intelligent things (like other players) may not be suitable mounts unless they submit to your direction.

If you are simply riding a mount, no, no checks are needed. If you are riding a mount in combat, checks may be needed to guide the mount with your knees, fast mount/dismount, avoid attacks, etc.

[Hazzardevil]

Q98
Is this Magus the same as the Magus in Ultimate Magic?

[dextercorvia]

Is this Magus the same as the Magus in Ultimate Magic?

This is pathfinder question. I'm fairly certain that has its own thread.

[Hazzardevil]

This is pathfinder question. I'm fairly certain that has its own thread.

I presumed that pathfinder came under 3.5 since it is in the 3.5 section.

[Curmudgeon]

I presumed that pathfinder came under 3.5 since it is in the 3.5 section.

No, Pathfinder is a different animal entirely. 3.5 may have been the jumping-off point for that game, but it's become considerably different. While it's in the same D&D 3e/3.5e/d20 forum here at GitP, this thread is particular to just D&D 3.5.

[UserClone]

I presumed that pathfinder came under 3.5 since it is in the 3.5 section.

AFAIK, this presumption is correct.

[Hazzardevil]

Q99 (I'm asking a lot of questions today, and this one is a 3.5 one for you haters of paizo)
Is there any way to get the benefits of wearing a shield, (Like gaining flaming and abilitys like that,) On a swordsage without losing the wisdom bonus to AC?

[DeltaEmil]

Q 100

Does the Heal skill affect the amounts of hit points regained while wearing a ring of sustenance?
Do you still need to rest for a full day to gain the 4-times benefit of a long-term care Heal result while wearing a ring of sustenance?

[HappyBlanket]

I kinda figured. I knew there had to be more to the Mount rules; I just couldn't for the life of me find them.

Q101

Kinda expanding on my prior question regarding Mounts. Making it specific to my particular situation.

A) Are there any rules not present on this page pertaining to construct sculpting?

B) Would there be any problems with using Craft to sculpt my Large Astral Constructs into suitable mounts? Noting that Astral Constructs can be commanded mentally.

[Elric VIII]

Q 102a

Is this 3.0 or 3.5 psionics?

Q 102b

Is there anywhere that further details the cost and how to aquire the Crystal Armor/Weapons mentioned in the above link?

[Kefkafreak]

A102a

Looks like very late 3.0, as it was written in April 2003 and the 3.5 PHB wasn't released until July.

[Hazzardevil]

Q103
In the spell monstrous Physique it says the following:

When you cast this spell, you can assume the form of any
Small or Medium creature of the monstrous humanoid type.

Does this mean I become a monstrous humanoid like with the spell polymorph?

[supermonkeyjoe]

Q104

following on from Douglas' reply to my previous question:

... Incidentally, all abjuration spells have the same extends-from-material-to-ethereal property as force effects and Prismatic Wall is an abjuration...

Is this correct? it's the first I've heard of it and if so where is this stated? I can't see it in the SRD entry for abjurations or etherealness.

[Douglas]

A104

The source for this is here, 5th paragraph, 2nd sentence. "Gaze effects and abjurations also extend from the Material Plane to the Ethereal Plane."

[OMG PONIES]

Q105: Can a warblade learn a maneuver he already knows via a Crown of White Ravens, thus gaining a second use per encounter with no need to recover? Alternatively, if a Warblade learns a new maneuver via a Crown of White Ravens, can he later learn the same maneuver when he levels up?

My gut instinct is no, but I'm missing it in the RAW. Citations would be much appreciated.

Q106: Do multiple intelligent items add their Ego together, or does a character with multiple intelligent items make independent Will saves against each one when acting contrary to the item?

[mootoall]

Q 107

When calculating Initiator Level, do Initiating classes stack for determining max maneuver level known? E.G. a Warblade 1/Swordsage 2 would be capable of learning 2nd level Swordsage manuevers?

[Douglas]

A107

No, or at least not any more than other classes do. Initiator base classes count full for their own initiator level and half for any other base class. A Warblade 1/Swordsage 2 has a Warblade IL of 2 and a Swordsage IL of 2.5. Both of these are insufficient to learn level 2 maneuvers.

[Elric VIII]

Q 108

Are there any psionic powers that give bonuses on knowledge checks or skill checks in general (aside from the Knowledge Mantle power)?

[Keld Denar]

A 105

You can only ever learn a maneuver once. Period. If you have an item that gives you the maneuver known, then it overlaps with the existing maneuver known and is redundant rather than addative. If you have an item for a maneuver, and later learn that maneuver as a class feature or from a feat, the item would again be redundant.

A 106

The rules don't mention ego stacking. In light of that, I think the most appropriate resolution would be to resolve each ego seperately. In the even that two seperate intelligent items impress their will upon you, the only thing that comes close to describing the outcome is the Combining Magical Effects paragraph about two casters exerting mind control over a target. The subject would attempt to please both masters, but in the event that their wills are contradictory, the controllers of the effect (the intelligent magic items) would roll an opposed Cha check to see who's will is stronger.

[UserClone]

RE: A 105

Citation, please?

[Zom B]

Q109a: Rolling up a Warlock, and it says that at first level they know one least invocation. On the table, I see that at 2nd level you know a 2nd invocation. Other than the mention of what grade the invocation you take at 1st level has to be, I see nothing telling me when I can move on to higher grade invocations. It looks like I can skip straight to Dark Invocations at 2nd level. Anyone see what page (and section) describes when the new grades come?

Q109b: The text says that when I learn a new invocation (which looks like at every even numbered level) I can also choose to swap one out. On the table, it lists points where you can swap one out at 6th, 11th, and 16th levels. Are these extra swaps or are these the only swaps? Or do you not actually know any new invocations until 6th, 11th, and 16th level and the Invocations Known column is not supposed to be there?