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

[NoACWarrior]

Q 630

Actually a series of questions on how Snap Kick, AoOs, Decisive Strike, and the Monk's Unarmed Strike interact with each other.

Assuming a Monk 2 dip:

Q 630-A
Snap Kick says that it's an unarmed strike that deals Base damage + 1/2 Str, however, the monk's Unarmed Strike state that " There is no such thing as an off-hand attack for a monk striking unarmed. A monk may thus apply her full Strength bonus on damage rolls for all her unarmed strikes.". Which takes precedence?

Q 630-B
When using the Decisive Strike ACF with Snap Kick, do I still make a single attack at 2x damage, an attack a 2x + a normal Snap Kick, or both attacks at 2x damage?

Q 630-C
When I hit someone during an AoO, do I use my Snap Kick? It is an unarmed attack after all.

A 630-A Snap kick does, in that it is a bonus special attack, you do exactly how much damage snap kick says for the bonus special attack.

A 630-B Decisive Strike ACF makes all of your other attacks done before the start of your next turn also do double damage, and by RAW that includes ALL of your attacks done, even special attacks.

A 630-C By RAW, whenever you make a melee attack with one or more melee weapons you always get a free snap kick special attack, the listed attack types in the feat description are not exclusive. You don't have to hit a person with the AoO in order to get the snap kick special attack, you get it right when you exercise the AoO.

Q 631

If you are wearing a magical vest can you wear armor over it and still get the benefits from the vest?

A 631 Yes. The vest is worn underneath armor and takes up the chest slot for magic items. Armor takes up the "armor slot".

[NoACWarrior]

Q 632

There are several abilities that give you "an additional attack at your highest attack bonus" (haste, snap kick etc.). Does that mean, that if you are affected by such an ability the extra attack also gets the +20 of True Strike?

You swordsaged' me on 630 and 631!

A 632 True strike only affects the next single attack roll - so the bonus attack wouldn't get the +20 to hit from true strike. IF you use a single attack roll against several targets, you could get the benefit of true strike for each of the separate targets due to the wording of true strike.

[dascarletm]

Q633: If a warlock under an invisibility effect attempts to take an ioun stone that is currently being used, does that break the invisibility?

[Nettlekid]

Q634
Are there any items, spells, or effect which allow you to return a false result to a Detect Thoughts spell or a Read Thoughts power? Not just being immune to it, but returning false thoughts. Much like a DC 100 Bluff check, but within the reach of non-Epic characters.

[TuggyNE]

A626: Yes.

Every time you have a chance to spot something in a reactive manner you can make a Spot check without using an action.

Every time you have a chance to hear something in a reactive manner (such as when someone makes a noise or you move into a new area), you can make a Listen check without using an action.

DC 15: Identify a spell being cast. (You must see or hear the spell’s verbal or somatic components.) No action required. No retry.

In most cases, making a Knowledge check doesn’t take an action—you simply know the answer or you don’t.

Some skill checks are instant and represent reactions to an event, or are included as part of an action. These skill checks are not actions.

Parallels in the text are underlined.

---

A633: Yes. Assuming it requires a successful touch attack to grasp the stone, this is an attack directed at an attended object, and breaks invisibility.

[Andezzar]

A 626 the other one Clarification

A626: Yes.

What does the fact that listening/spotting/identifying a spell is not a Free/Immediate/Swift/Move/Standard/Full-Round Action have to do with who rolls the dice? Does your DM roll saves and AoOs as well? None of those require any of the six actions.

Again I'm not aware of any rule requiring the DM to roll any of those checks.

[TuggyNE]

A 626 the other one Clarification
What does the fact that listening/spotting/identifying a spell is not a Free/Immediate/Swift/Move/Standard/Full-Round Action have to do with who rolls the dice? Does your DM roll saves and AoOs as well? None of those require any of the six actions.

Again I'm not aware of any rule requiring the DM to roll any of those checks.

Re: A626: There is, as far as I know, no such rule, but since the question was chiefly about whether the skills in question are treated "analogously" (they are) and secondarily about whether the players are always entitled to such rolls whether or not they ask for them (they are), that is what I based my answer on.

[Curmudgeon]

Re: A 626

As far as I can tell it is not RAW for the DM to roll any checks by the PCs, even though it is done sometimes.

Citations to the contrary:

The DM secretly makes both the Decipher Script check and (if necessary) the Wisdom check, so that you can’t tell whether the conclusion you draw is true or false.

Check: Your DM makes the Disable Device check for you secretly, so that you don’t necessarily know whether you’ve succeeded.

Your DM makes your Forgery check secretly, so that you’re not sure how good your forgery is.

Your DM may decide to make the Listen check for you, so that you don’t know whether not hearing anything means that nothing is there, or that you failed the check.

Your DM may decide to make your Sense Motive check secretly, so that you don’t necessarily know whether you were successful.

Your DM rolls your [Read Lips] check secretly in this case, so that you don’t know whether you succeeded or missed by 5.

Your DM should make this check secretly, so that you don’t know whether the rope will hold your weight.

The DM has the option to make any reactive (no action) checks by the PCs so as not to burden the players with information their characters would not be aware of, and also the option to make these checks without rolls by using "take 10" procedures. Beyond these options, the DM has RAW requirements to make some rolls for the PCs, as cited above.

[Skevvix]

Q635

Does the spell Brambles work on an Elvencraft(RotW) Composite Longbow since it can be used as a quarterstaff as well?

[Kornaki]

Q636
Can you use free actions while doing an immediate action? The question came up in the Class and Level Geekery thread. The main points of contention
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/actionsInCombat.htm

When a character’s turn comes up in the initiative sequence, that character performs his entire round’s worth of actions.

says that the general rule is that actions only occur during your turn (immediate actions have an explicit statement that they are not bound by this rule). The free action rule states

You can perform one or more free actions while taking another action normally.

So the two sides of the argument are that if you are taking an immediate action normally (i.e. whenever you want), you can take free actions as well, versus your whole round's worth of actions only occurs on your turn, and free actions do not have a more specific statement to disregard that. Is one of these obviously correct?

[Andezzar]

A 636

There is no conflict with the general rule, because both immediate and free actions have specific rules. One or more Free Actions can be performed while taking another action. An Immediate Action is an action and can be performed outside your turn. Thus it can be accompanied by Free Actions

[Tlehmann23]

Q 777

Can a War Chanter attack and keep singing in the same round?

[MichaelGoldclaw]

Q778

Is there any necromancy prestige class that allows a Good alignment?

[Skevvix]

Q639

Where is the "text trumps Table" rule at?

[Curmudgeon]

A 635 Ask your DM.

While in theory a spell enhancing a melee weapon would apply to one with dual ranged and melee use, there are two specific provisions about this combination which make its use RAW dubious.

Magical enhancements to an elvencraft bow only affect its use as a bow. Enhancements to the melee capabilities of the weapon must be added separately.

This spell works only on melee weapons with wooden striking surfaces. For instance, it does not work on a bow, an arrow, or a metal mace.

A 639

That exact phrase does not appear in an official WotC rule; it's just a paraphrase of the highlighted sentence below.

Errata Rule: Primary Sources

When you find a disagreement between two D&D® rules sources, unless an official errata file says otherwise, the primary source is correct. One example of a primary/secondary source is text taking precedence over a table entry. An individual spell description takes precedence when the short description in the beginning of the spells chapter disagrees.

Another example of primary vs. secondary sources involves book and topic precedence. The Player's Handbook, for example, gives all the rules for playing the game, for playing PC races, and for using base class descriptions. If you find something on one of those topics from the Dungeon Master's Guide or the Monster Manual that disagrees with the Player's Handbook, you should assume the Player's Handbook is the primary source. The Dungeon Master's Guide is the primary source for topics such as magic item descriptions, special material construction rules, and so on. The Monster Manual is the primary source for monster descriptions, templates, and supernatural, extraordinary, and spell-like abilities.

This text, or others with slightly different wording, appears in the Errata files for many D&D books. (This particular one comes from the Book of Exalted Deeds Errata file, the first one (in alphabetical order) in my directory of such files.)

[Skevvix]

Thank you Curmudgeon, that's exactly what I was looking for!

[thethird]

Q 779 Since mysteries count as arcane spells unless your shadowcaster level is high enough to make them count otherwise, and assuming your shadowcaster level isn't high enough for that to happen, can you use any of the PrCs that add spells known to your spell list to add them? Similarly assuming that you are an epic character who selects spell knowledge as one of your epic feats can you learn mysteries that way?

[Yogibear41]

Q641

If a favored soul casts Righteous Might does he get to decide which type of damage reduction he receives or does he not gain the damage reduction at all because he does not channel positive or negative energy?

[Curmudgeon]

Q 779 640 Since mysteries count as arcane spells ...

A 640 No, and no.

This equivalency is only one way: mysteries count as arcane spells, but that doesn't make arcane spells count as mysteries. Benefits to knowledge of arcane spells do nothing for your mysteries.

Q780 641

If a favored soul casts Righteous Might ...

A 641

You gain damage reduction 3/evil (if you normally channel positive energy) or damage reduction 3/good (if you normally channel negative energy).

Single-classed Favored Souls do not channel either positive or negative energy, so they do not satisfy either conditional clause. They receive all other applicable benefits of Righteous Might.

[Yogibear41]

That is what I thought/was afraid of. Thanks.

[thethird]

A 640 No, and no.

This equivalency is only one way: mysteries count as arcane spells, but that doesn't make arcane spells count as mysteries. Benefits to knowledge of arcane spells do nothing for your mysteries.

Q 640 (Clarification) But it is a method to learn a spell (or a arcane spell); if as you say the mysteries count as spells wouldn't that work? I mean you are 21 lvl sorcerer selecting your 21st lvl feat, you take spell knowledge. Can you learn the mysteries that count as arcane spells? What does it matter that arcane spells don't count as mysteries?

[Eaglejarl]

Q642

If you are standing inside a Mage's Magnificent Mansion and the door is open, can you cast spells out?

Q643

Is there a list of Hardness / Hit Points for gold? Or anything other than this list: http://www.d20srd.org/srd/exploration.htm

[Andezzar]

A 642

No. The interior of the mansion is an extradimensional space. Spells cannot cross from one plane to another. Even transdimensional spell interestingly does not allow casting out of an extradimensional space into realspace.

[Chronos]

A 638:

Is there any necromancy prestige class that allows a Good alignment?

One might quibble about what counts as a "necromancy prestige class", but Master Specialist has no alignment requirement, and can specialize in necromancy.

[Eaglejarl]

Q644

Aside from vampires and lichs, are there any undead with spell casting ability?

[Andezzar]

A 644

Vampires do not have any inherent spellcasting ability, to become a lich the previously mortal character needs spellcasting and keeps it. Both advance by class level though and thus can keep and/or get spellcasting. Several other undead (ghosts and mummy lords for example) also advance by class levels and thus can be spellcasters. AFAIK there is nothing preventing a DM giving other intelligent undead (INT>2) class levels.

Q 645

If a creature has a HD advancement that increases its size, but instead acquires class levels to have the same amount of HD as required for the size increase, does it become bigger? E.g. regular Solar (22 HD) with 12 class levels.

[Xaroth]

Q 645

If a creature has a HD advancement that increases its size, but instead acquires class levels to have the same amount of HD as required for the size increase, does it become bigger? E.g. regular Solar (22 HD) with 12 class levels.

A 645

If you're meaning a Solar with Barbarian 12 or something along those lines, then No. I'm not sure exactly how to explain it, but here's my best shot: If you have two empty glasses and you pour water into one of them, will the other one fill up even when you're not pouring water into it?

Q 646

Can a Half-Dragon template be applied to a dragon that has a type-changing template applied to it? i.e. Half-Dragon Vampiric Red Dragon

[Andezzar]

A 645

If you're meaning a Solar with Barbarian 12 or something along those lines, then No. I'm not sure exactly how to explain it, but here's my best shot: If you have two empty glasses and you pour water into one of them, will the other one fill up even when you're not pouring water into it?

I know that is the way it is supposed to work but do the rules actually say so?

A 646

Generally yes, as long as long as the templated dragon still is eligible to take the Half-dragon template. The example you gave does not work at all though. A dragon cannot become a vampire

"Vampire" is an acquired template that can be added to any humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature (referred to hereafter as the base creature).

Even if such a creature were possible, it would not be eligible for the half-dragon template:

"Half-dragon" is an inherited template that can be added to any living, corporeal creature (referred to hereafter as the base creature).

And I'm not even mentioning that inherited templates logically should be applied before acquired ones.
BTW the rules do not forbid a Blue Half-Dragon whose other half is a Red Dragon (see above).

[Xaroth]

I know that is the way it is supposed to work but do the rules actually say so?

I'll leave this for the more experienced members of the GITP community to answer, I'm not certain if it's officially stated in the rules. I'd say ask your DM, it seems like a DM-dependant variable to me.

A 646

Generally yes, as long as long as the templated dragon still is eligible to take the Half-dragon template. The example you gave does not work at all though. A dragon cannot become a vampire
Even if such a creature were possible, it would not be eligible for the half-dragon template:
And I'm not even mentioning that inherited templates logically should be applied before acquired ones.
BTW the rules do not forbid a Blue Half-Dragon whose other half is a Red Dragon (see above).

Vampiric Template for dragons (Draconomicon pg. 195) is what I was referring to, not the Vampire template.

So basically anything that doesn't require the dragon to die would still work?

[Andezzar]

So basically anything that doesn't require the dragon to die would still work?

Pretty much. Templates that make the dragon incorporeal (even without turning it undead) would not work. Constructs shouldn't work either.