Simple Q&A Pathfinder (By RAW) I

[JoeYounger]

Q257

For spells like fabricate that affect 10 cubic feet per level, is that a 10' x 10' x 10' cube? Or is that 10 cubes that are all 1' x 1' x 1'?

[Larpus]

A257
10' x 10'x 10' cube.

Couldn't find it being RAW, but every single DM I've played with added an "or equivalent" clause to the area, meaning that it doesn't have to be a cube, as long as its total area doesn't surpass the cube's area.

[JoeYounger]

Thanks Larpus! We've always played with it being a 10 x 10 x 10 cube as well, but yesterday I was looking into what I could fabricate and it clicked on me that my group may have been playing "wrong" for years! lol

[Con_Brio1993]

Q258

Text of Cleave:

As a standard action, you can make a single attack at your full base attack bonus against a foe within reach. If you hit, you deal damage normally and can make an additional attack (using your full base attack bonus) against a foe that is adjacent to the first and also within reach. You can only make one additional attack per round with this feat. When you use this feat, you take a –2 penalty to your Armor Class until your next turn.

Text of Cleaving Finish:

Benefit: If you make a melee attack, and your target drops to 0 or fewer hit points as a result of your attack, you can make another melee attack using your highest base attack bonus against another opponent within reach. You can make only one extra attack per round with this feat.

The text of cleave says if the attack hits, you may make another. It doesn't mention if you drop them to 0 you suddenly lose your chance to make another. So Cleaving Finish seems redundant.

Can Cleave be used if the target is dropped to 0?

[Zherog]

A 258

Yes. Cleave's only requirement is "if you hit." Both feats could be used in the same round, even. The differences don't make one or the other redundant.

A) Cleave requires you to declare beforehand, inflicts a -2 penalty on your AC, and becomes your action for the round - just the attack and the cleave attack, you forgo your iterative attacks.

B) Cleaving Finish doesn't need to be declared, and simply gives you an additional attack if you drop your foe. Note that the additional attack is at your highest attack bonus. So, for example, if you were an 11th level fighter with this feat and dropped a foe with your third iteratiev attack, you'd get a new attack at your highest base attack bonus.

C) Note, too, that Cleave requires the extra target to be adjacent to the primary target and within your reach; Cleaving Finish, on the other hand, just requires the extra target to be within your reach.

[opinion]
Cleaving Finish is a better feat. But then, it ought to be since it has steeper pre-reqs.
[/opinion]

[Lord Tyger]

Q259:

Can the Druid Wildshape class feature be stacked? I don't mean the bonuses, obviously, a bear turning into another bear doesn't get double bear strength bonuses, but could you at, say, level eight, wildshape into a bear and then wildshape into a bird, allowing you to end the bird wildshape effect and turn immediately into a bear?

[Baka Nikujaga]

A259 -

Wild Shape (Su): At 4th level, a druid gains the ability to turn herself into any Small or Medium animal and back again once per day. Her options for new forms include all creatures with the animal type. This ability functions like the beast shape I spell, except as noted here. The effect lasts for 1 hour per druid level, or until she changes back. Changing form (to animal or back) is a standard action and doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity. The form chosen must be that of an animal with which the druid is familiar.

Source

Underlined portions of this text excerpt are not present in the original and have been placed by me as a means of emphasis.

Taking the underlined sentence, a Druid must first end the original Wildshape and then activate the second. Further, the sentence following the underlined supports this by including "to animal or back" in parenthesis; though, arguably, one could emphasize the latter sentence rather than the former sentence as a means to allow for skipping the need to return to the Druid's original form (with an added emphasis on "to animal"). However, this type of reading does not appear to be inline with the previous sentence nor the "likely" intent.

[Douglas]

A257 correction

"10 cubic feet" and "a 10 foot cube" are two very different things. 10 cubic feet is any volume that has a total size equivalent to 10 cubes that are each 1' x 1' x 1'. This could be 1' x 1' x 10', 2' x 2' x 2.5', or any other combination of dimensions you like that multiply out to the same total volume. It does not even need to be in a rectangular prism form - you could do a sphere, a giant bow shape, a crazy tangle of loose string, etc.

A 10 foot cube has a volume of 1000 cubic feet. It is also rather less flexible about how you distribute and shape the volume.

Fabricate gives 10 cubic feet per level, not a 10 foot cube per level. Sorry, but you're stuck with the smaller volume. You do at least get to shape it any way you want.

Q260

What ways are there for a Summoner who is mounted on his eidolon to give his enemies game mechanics reasons to attack his eidolon instead of him despite the Summoner's AC being lower than the eidolon's? The Summoner in question is level 11, and Synthesist is not an option.

[Kon Lesh]

Q261

Does a person under the effect of invisibility or vanish become visible if they use aid another to give an ally a bonus to AC.

[Fenryr]

A261

I say no. Invisibility says "If the subject attacks directly". Aid another says "You make an attack roll against AC 10." Who are you attacking? No one.

Q262

Boarding gaff is a double weapon. It's also a pole. Phalanx Soldier allows me to use any pole or spear in one hand as long as I use a shield. How does Two-Weapon Fighting works now? Or it doesn't at all?

[RndmNumGen]

Q262

Boarding gaff is a double weapon. It's also a pole. Phalanx Soldier allows me to use any pole or spear in one hand as long as I use a shield. How does Two-Weapon Fighting works now? Or it doesn't at all?

A262
The Boarding Gaffe would work the same way a Quarterstaff would; mainly, you can't TWF with it when wielding it with one hand(though you can still make single attacks).

[Arutema]

Q263:

Can an Oracle/Paladin with the Sickened mercy and Legalistic curse use the mercy to remove the curse's Sickened condition in the rare event she breaks her word?

[Kon Lesh]

A263

By the book, an oracle's curse cannot be removed or dispelled without the aid of a deity. So unless a deity (not one of his followers) allows it there is nothing you can do for those 24 hours except try to meet the promise that you broke.

[Larpus]

A263
Yes, but only for an hour per use.

A mercy can remove a condition caused by a curse, disease, or poison without curing the affliction. Such conditions return after 1 hour unless the mercy actually removes the affliction that causes the condition.

[Silus]

Q264

First time making a Divine Caster, so do I have to pick the spells they know as they level up, or can I mix and match daily (when I prepare spells) or on the fly (like just picking from the spell list in combat)?

[powerdemon]

Q264

First time making a Divine Caster, so do I have to pick the spells they know as they level up, or can I mix and match daily (when I prepare spells) or on the fly (like just picking from the spell list in combat)?

That depends on the class. Which are you playing?

[Silus]

That depends on the class. Which are you playing?

Druid, Decay Subdomain.

[powerdemon]

A 264
Druids know all the spells for the spell levels they can cast. You choose what spells you want to prepare each day, and how many instances of those spells. They cast similar to wizards, except they begin knowing all spells for that spell level. (some odd spells not in the Core rulebook might require some more work)

[The-Mage-King]

Q265
Does the Elf Blood racial feature of Half Elves allow them to choose human or elf favored class bonuses instead of their own? It let's them count as Humans or Elves for the effects of any effect related to race, and the alternate bonuses say "[...]available to all characters of this race[...]". so....

[Larpus]

A265
I often struggle with that bit.

So far, I was unable to find any RAW text in favor or against it, I'm tempted to say that the RAI is a "no" because that seems more likely, but from a personal interpretation of rules and mechanics, I'd say "yes" because it just makes more sense and makes the blood thing actually relevant and interesting.

[Lord Tyger]

Q 266:
Under the Beast Rider archetype for the Cavalier, it lists (among others) the Auroch as a potential mount for a fourth level medium sized character. However, it also says that 1: A cavalier's mount is treated as an animal companion and 2: That a medium sized Cavalier must choose a mount of size Large or Huge. At fourth level, an auroch treated as an animal companion is still size medium. So, can a Beast Rider choose one or not?

[Wonton]

Q 267

Can you ready a standard action and then take a free action as a part of it? For example, if you have Quick Draw, is it possible to ready an action to draw and shoot a gun?

[Larpus]

A267
Don't see why not, you're just doing your allowed amount of actions within a round, even if the order of said actions is not straight-forward.

EDIT: Only caveat is that per the RAW of readied actions, you can only ready one action; however, Quickdraw allows you to draw your weapon at any time during combat, so you don't draw your weapon as part of the readied action, but just before it takes place instead.

[deuxhero]

268
Can a Necromancer Wizard activate a Channel Focus?

[Wonton]

A267
Don't see why not, you're just doing your allowed amount of actions within a round, even if the order of said actions is not straight-forward.

EDIT: Only caveat is that per the RAW of readied actions, you can only ready one action; however, Quickdraw allows you to draw your weapon at any time during combat, so you don't draw your weapon as part of the readied action, but just before it takes place instead.

A 267 continued

Hm, I actually have a feeling that by RAW you can't. By RAW you can only ready 1 action, and most actions don't explicitly say they can be combined with other actions. Now, you could ready a move action and (as long as you have +1 BAB) draw a weapon as part of that, because that's specifically called out as being a free action that can be combined with a move action. But Quick Drawing and firing would just be separate actions. So, unfortunately, no out of combat uses like "I ready an action to draw and shoot this guy". Which is why I guess feats like Betrayer and 3.5's Flick of the Wrist were created.

Can any other rules experts confirm/deny this?

[Metahuman1]

Q 269 If I have a creature with three natural attacks and the muilty attack feat, does it add it's full Str mod to all it's attacks, or only to one of them and then half to the others?

[Silus]

Q270

If attempting a ranged combat maneuver (Like disarming or tripping with, say, a bow or firearm) do you still use your Strength modifier, or your Dex modifier?

[Larpus]

A267+
That's true, I went again over the rules in combat, there wasn't any specifics on the relationship of readied actions and free actions.

So, by strict RAW, you can only take free actions in your turn and a readied action being triggered is not considered part of your turn. So under that interpretation, it's impossible to do that; however this interpretation goes further and also renders you unable to say anything during the readied action, even a simple "Now!" to get your allies to attack wouldn't be allowed.

On a slightly more RAI level, it seems sensible that the meaning here is that you'd be able to take a free action whenever you'd be allowed to make an action bigger than immediate; but that's mostly an interpretation to allow "rule of cool" moments to be mechanically possible (such as the mentioned draw and shoot scenario).

Tl;dr...indeed, by RAW no you can't, but wouldn't be out of reality to allow such a thing (considering you have Quickdraw and all).

A268
If you mean a Wizard specialized in necromancy, no he can't as he lacks the necessary Channel ability.

A269
Multiattack only changes the penalty to attack rolls when using secondary natural weapons, so the Str penalty (half bonus instead of full) remains in effect as normal.

But on the specific question, it depends.

If, for example, it's an Alchemist with Feral Mutagen, all the 3 attacks are primary attacks, so they all have full Str damage and BAB and wouldn't need Multiattack to begin with unless you're planning on mixing weapon attacks as well.

A270
Couldn't find anything specific, but logic would say that you'd use Dex as the success of the maneuver depends on aim not power and a small FAQ on Weapon Finesse says something along the lines "if you have this feat, you trade your Dex and Str bonuses on maneuvers that actually use weapons to be made, normally only trip, disarm and sunder", which is exactly the case.

[Metahuman1]

So, if I had an Sythesist Summoner and only pick things that are listed as Primary attacks for my Eilodon, I'd still get my full Str to the attacks?

[Togath]

Q271:
Can a magus use spell strike with the cantrip "light"?