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

[willpell]

Q632

Who qualifies for Human only items and abilites? Only someone whose Race is Human or anyone whose subtype is Human?

A632
The Human subtype would allow access to such widgets (unless the DM ruled otherwise; he might deem some things as being, for instance, created by the government of a Human-run nation that's at war with the Neanderthals or something, and was particularly designed not to work for anything but pureblood Humans). A better question is who exactly has the Human subtype; per RAW things like Half-Elves, Half-Orcs, Tieflings and Genasi do not, despite being born from at least one human parent, but a sidebar in Races of Destiny suggests ruling that they do get the subtype as a campaign variant. (It goes on to add that doing this would turn a Tiefling or Aasimar into a Humanoid, but wouldn't actually remove its Outsider abilities such as immunity to Charm Person, which specifically contradicts RAW, so you'll pretty much need to talk this one over with the DM and/or the entire group.)

[willpell]

Q633
Is a Darkwood Buckler or Darkwood Shield considered masterwork? In other words, can you add enchantments to it, or do you have to sell it and buy a new one that costs 150 GP more (while being completely identical since darkwood already has a reduced armor check penalty)?

[Andezzar]

Q 632 Addendum.

I'm not so much concerned about all those half-something races. It gets weird with Illumians, Mongrelfolk, Sea-kin, Sharakim, Skulk and Underfolk, all of which get the Hzumanoid Type and the Human Subtype. Those should be at least as far removed from normal Humans as the Half-Something races or those with an Outsider/dragon/whatever Ancestor.

BTW where is it specified that the racial requirements are satisfied by the subtype and not the Race?

A 633

Yes, it can be enchanted as any other Masterwork shield:

Any wooden or mostly wooden item (such as a bow, an arrow, or a spear) made from darkwood is considered a masterwork item and weighs only half as much as a normal wooden item of that type.

[willpell]

BTW where is it specified that the racial requirements are satisfied by the subtype and not the Race?

Oh. I, uh, don't know that it is, I was just making an educated guess based largely on that sidebar from ROD.

A 633

Yes, it can be enchanted as any other Masterwork shield:

Thanks. I like how they hide that information in the section on creating your own magic items, instead of putting it in the description of an existing item made from it, which isn't magical anyway.

[Curmudgeon]

A 632

The answer would depend on the specific text of the requirement. If it specifies Human race, then Human subtype is irrelevant. A qualification which requires Human race would be satisfied by subraces, like Silverbrow (Dragon Magic), Vasharan (Book of Vile Darkness), and Deep Imaskari (Underdark); and also those with the Human Blood trait, like Aventi (Stormwrack) and Neanderthal (Frostburn). It would not be satisfied by other non-Human races even if they had the Human subtype.

As for the Races of Destiny sidebar, it's largely irrelevant because most of it is optional.

VARIANT: HALF-HUMANS AND HUMANLIKE RACES
...
At the DM’s discretion, halfhuman and humanlike races can be grouped together with humans as humanoids with the human subtype (rather than their own subtype). This means that such races qualify as human for the purpose of meeting a prerequisite for a feat or prestige class, for activating a human-only magic item, for adjudicating effects that treat humans differently from other races, and the like.
...
If you choose not to offer this variant, you can achieve a similar effect with the Human Heritage feat (see page 152).

The highlighted sentence is dependent on the variant: "This means that ..." refers to the previous sentence, "At the DM’s discretion". Outside of discussion of this variant there's no statement equating Human race and Human subtype. (Human Heritage's benefit is restricted to qualification by subtype, and does not include consideration as Human for racial requirements). A random Humanoid with the Human subtype doesn't meet Human-only racial qualifications any more than a Merfolk (Humanoid with the Aquatic subtype) meets Aventi (also Humanoid with the Aquatic subtype) qualifications. "Human" by itself references the race rather than the subtype of the same name, just as "Elf" by itself refers to the race rather than the subtype.

[willpell]

But if the feat or magic item or something is poorly written and just says "Only humans may use an X", how can you tell whether it means race or subtype?

[Andezzar]

Q 634

Which races are considered as part of the Human race?

[ThatKreacher]

Q635

Does level adjustment count for getting feats, ability score improvements and the like?

[mattie_p]

A 635: No

This becomes obvious if you have Savage Species, but a level adjustment does not count towards anything that depends on hit dice, such as feats, ability score increases, or the like.

[Andezzar]

"Human" by itself references the race rather than the subtype of the same name, just as "Elf" by itself refers to the race rather than the subtype.

Have you got any proof for that? At least Able Learner gives no indication which of the two is required.

[dextercorvia]

Have you got any proof for that? At least Able Learner gives no indication which of the two is required.

Able learner specifies by being a Racial feat.

Q 636

If I apply the Skeleton template to a Half-Minotaur Orc, in what order to I apply the CR adjustments?

[KillianHawkeye]

A 636

Looking at the two templates, it is obvious that the Skeleton template must be applied after the Half-Minotaur template.

The Skeleton template issues a CR based on the base creature's Hit Dice, regardless of whatever the original creature's CR had been. It contains no modifiers for size, so even a Large half-minotaur orc skeleton would still be CR 1/3 for the orc's 1 HD.

[Curmudgeon]

A 634 (partial)

Human subraces include:

• Deep Imaskari (Underdark)
• Human (Chondathan, Damaran, Illuskan, Mulan, Rashemi, ...) (Races of Faerûn)
• Inspired (Races of Eberron)
• Silverbrow (Dragon Magic)
• Vasharan (Book of Vile Darkness)

The various Human subraces in Races of Faerûn differ almost exclusively by having access to different racial feats.

[inuyasha]

Q 635
when creating a deity what ability score array do you use (standard, heroic, etc.)

Q 636
how do you determine the CR of a deity

[willpell]

Q637
Are there 3E stats for a Squark?

[jasonmbrown]

Q638
Will A Raptor Arrow with an Augment Crystal for +1d6 damage Work? (Is there anything that says That ammunition cannot have an augment crystal?)

Related Question:
If I have 1 Raptor Arrow With an Augment crystal that adds +1d6 of an energy type. And my bow Imbues that Arrow With +1d6 From an energy type (for the sake Of future reference lets say their the same Energy type). And the bow itself has an Augment Crystal On it for another +1d6. Do they all stack making the shot do 1d8+3d6?

Basically:
I have a bow with +1 Acid and Penetration (I think thats what its called it adds +5 Damage) I want to stick Augment Crystal On my Bow, and Ammunition. Combine it with Multi/Rapid Shot For a total Of Roughly 3x2d8+6d6

Bows Acid Enchantment +1d6
Augment Crystal On Bow +1d6 (Per Arrow[2])
Augment Crystal On Arrow +1d6
Normal Damage +1d8 (Per Arrow[2])
Multishot x2
Rapid-shot x3

If not Whats the best thing I could buy That would give me High Damage I have 3000Plat.

Sorry If the questions too long, I'm still a beginner. And Need more info on my build. (I've been watching one of the other players using magic and by level 4 they were hitting with 4d6, i'm level 8 now and without the above my bow is only doing 1d8+1d6+7 and that cost me roughly 24k gold)

[Andezzar]

A 638

You cannot attach weapon augment crystals to ammunition.

[Crake]

Q639

Is it possible to trigger both modes of a ring of shooting stars by being underground/indoors at night while also being in shadowy darkness?

[dextercorvia]

Q 640

Does water block line of effect?

[Thurbane]

A 637

According to this list, no (unless it is known by another name).

[Curmudgeon]

A 639 Yes.

Both modes of operation can be active if their requirements are met simultaneously. Each individual function still requires a separate command.

A 640

Only for fire spells. See Dungeon Master's Guide on page 93.

[Andezzar]

Q 641

If you cast a maximized Flame of Faith or Blades of Fire, is the extra damage multiplied on a critical hit or is the extra damage still an extra damage die even though the value is fixed?

Q 642

Do you even get a benefit from maximizing Flame of Faith?

[Curmudgeon]

A 642 No.

Flame of Faith has no "variable, numeric effects".

A 641

Maximize Spell changes the bonus damage from a variable (die roll) number to a static value. Blades of Fire with Maximize Spell would deal an extra 8 points of damage. On a critical hit you compute all extra non-dice damage as many times as the critical multiplier indicates and add it.

[Narse]

Q 643:

I'm a new player (3.5e), and I'm attempting to create a level 4 or 5 character with a construct familiar (an Octopus), using the Construct Familiar feat from Dragon Magazine #280, page 62. However, I'm having a lot of trouble finding information on how to calculate the cost of a construct, and was wondering if anyone could help me figure out how to do so, or at least tell me what the cost of a small size octopus construct would be. Thanks.

[qwertyu63]

Q644:

If the team leader loses a prerequisite for a teamwork benefit, does the team lose that benefit?

[Curmudgeon]

A 644 Yes.

The team loses the benefit if they lack a qualified leader.

[Golden Ladybug]

Q645

Does the Improved Binding feat allow the Binder to bind additional Vestiges earlier than is indicated on the class table? For example, an 8th level Binder can bind two Vestiges simultaneously, so would a 6th level Binder be able to do the same if they had Improved Binding?

[Andezzar]

A 644 Yes.

The team loses the benefit if they lack a qualified leader.

Interesting. The team members still get the bonus from awareness, even if the leader is on another plane, but lose it if he loses his ranks in Spot/Listen.

Q 646

Is there a guide for the Levels of NPCs, especially those with levels in NPC classes? In other words is the world mostly populated by level 1 commoners or is the level 20 commoner the norm?

[Piggy Knowles]

Bumping from two pages back...

Q601: Does the spell dweomer of transference (XPH/SRD) only affect spells you cast, or does it affect any spell, no matter the source? The text of the spell seems to imply the former, but then goes on to say "any spells cast at the subject don't have their usual effect."

[willpell]

A645

Improved Binding increases your binding level solely for the purpose of what level vestiges you may bind. The number of vestiges you may bind is still determined solely by your actual binder level.