How is Contact Other Plane useful?

[Jack_Simth]

Ok, so ignoring the side argument, and assuming that DM will not allow me to take 10 *which he will not*

What are my best ways to get my Int check up so I can reliably make the DC 14 for intermediate deities?

I'm starting at +5
Fox's Cunning +6
Mechanus Mind +8

Can anyone think of any way for me to make up that difference?

Side note: It cannot require the aid of another person, although I have some UMD so low level spells of other classes are feasible.

In theory I think my familiar might be able to help, but his int is at a -1 so his aid another check wouldn't be too likely to help...

What you do:
Polymorph Any Object on your familiar, to turn it into a very high-Int creature. The Sarrukh (serpent kingdoms) has an Int of 30.
Then add Fox's Cunning and Mechanus Mind to your familiar (which will stack with the Int of the Sarrukh), and use Share Spells to cast Contact Other Plane directly on the familiar. That gives your familiar a check of... what, +14? ... which means the familiar can ask a Greater Deity without problems 95% of the time (needs a 2), and an Intermediate Deity 100% of the time (DC 14) (and if your familiar loses, well, you can still cast).

[Sith_Happens]

Or, rerolls. Lots of rerolls.

[Jack_Simth]

Or, rerolls. Lots of rerolls.

Hmm... yes, a luckblade is handy, especially as you know the DC going in and don't need to wait for the DM to call the result. But turning your familiar into a super-intelligent oracle is just hilarious.

[Story]

Insight of Good Fortune gives you another reroll as I mentioned before. So will Fatespinner 4 or Planar Touchstone: Cat/Luck.

But you can easily get a +16 bonus with Fox's Cunning + Adept Spirit + Mechanus Mind, so it doesn't really matter anyway.

[Duke of Urrel]

Here's another question for your DM. Suppose you cast the Contact Other Plane spell, you fail your Intelligence check, your Intelligence and Charisma scores are reduced to 8, and you lose your spellcasting ability. Can you restore your abilities and your spellcasting ability with the help of the Heal spell (or the Greater Restoration spell, the Limited Wish spell, the Miracle spell, or the Wish spell) – just as you could reverse the effect of the Feeblemind spell? Or is this reduction in two of your mental ability scores for one week or more the effect of a divine intervention with no cure known to mortal magic?

This is a question that I would like to submit to the Playground, too.

[Story]

Well Wish can reverse it via the undo misfortune ability if cast soon afterwards.

[Duke of Urrel]

Here's one more thing to ask your DM.

With the Contact Other Plane spell, you can contact a particular alternate plane of existence to "receive advice and information from powers there." That's powers in the plural. So unless you're ambitious (or desperate) enough to address a single particular deity on an Outer Plane, why can't you contact one of the lower-level alternate planes and pose one and the same question to several extraplanar beings? I see nothing in the spell's description that prohibits this. You can't use the Augury spell or the Divination spell in this manner, because with either one of these spells, asking the same question more than once is doomed to elicit the same answer every time, but the Contact Other Plane spell is not subject to this rule, as far as I can tell.

For example, if your caster level is 12, you can ask six questions. Suppose you contact one of the Elemental Planes to keep the risk of reduced Intelligence and Charisma down to a minimum. What's to stop you from asking the same question six times, each time directing your question to a different elemental being? That way, you get six answers, and at least one is likely, by pure random chance, to be the truth. Indeed, you may get several truthful responses. It may also be possible to make a Sense Motive check to detect an intentional lie (because elemental beings, after all, probably don't have as much Bluff skill as deities), which narrows down your possibilities even further.

[StarStuff]

Most of the previous answers suck and lack creative utility. I play a high elf conjurer at CL15. Contact Other Plane is part of my pre-adventure check list. Sample questions include:

1. Can the tarrasque reflect spells?
2. Does the tarrasque have less than 700HP?
3. Where is Elminster's spellbook?
4. Where can I bind an imp familiar?
5. Will there be clouds above the battlefield? (Druid wants to know if she should prepare Call Lightning)
6. Is my fiance cheating on me?
7. Should I prepare counterspell or dispel magic for the dungeon ahead?
8. Which plane will I go to when I die?

Nothing in the description says the answer Must be "Yes," "No," "Irrelevant," or some derivative. You can also consider this a free use of Sending for any caster you've met in the game.

If your DM is running a module, CoP is for preparing the right spells. If your DM is running random encounters and treasure charts, use CoP to create a quest for a specific magic item/spellbook.

I recommend you prepare a preflight check list - that's a list of every interaction the DM should know about in advance. Have an answer for "what would I do if I had a day/hour/minute to prepare?" Keep in mind, some spells are better cast at night, like CoP. Playing a wizard is very time consuming for other players. Conceptually, your check list is like getting consent from the DM without retconning and breaking the fourth wall. That's probably my favorite aspect of CoP - it keeps me honest. Reading the monster manual entry for a creature you just stumbled across in a module is cheating. But if you use divination magic with intention, it makes sense that you know so much about each monster.

If your DM decides against take 10, find a CL6 paladin to cast by while he sleeps. Aura of Protection + High Int + Proficiency = insanity aversion.

Last note: this spell is why I will never doff my Amulet of Proof Against Detection and Location.