Simple RAW Thread for 3.5: Score and Nine

[Deaxsa]

A22/23
Yes, but a dm may not like this trick. Also, don't really see the difference in the questions.

A24
Not understanding the difference between q22 and q23, I'm going to say yes. I believe that q22 is actually the intended use of the feat and q23 is a little trick where you don't end up above your HD in terms of bonuses to the animal, so it all works out.

A25
Definitely not by raw. Feel free to ask your dm to let you apply it like this, or at the minimum, take he feat multiple times, but by raw, you a) can only take the feat once, and b) can only apply it to one companion.

[Metahuman1]

Q 33: How many skill ranks per hit die to Dragon Racial Hit Dice come with?

[Andezzar]

A 33

Dragons get:
Skill points equal to (6 + Int modifier, minimum 1) per Hit Die, with quadruple skill points for the first Hit Die.

[AlanBruce]

Q. 34

Does the spell Creaking Cacophony (SpC pg. 55) force a concentration check when casting spells from wands, scrolls, or staves?

[Troacctid]

A 23 correction

No.

Natural Bond states:

Add three to your effective druid level for the purpose of determining the bonus Hit Dice, extra tricks, special abilities, and other bonuses that your animal companion receives (see page 36 of the Player's Handbook). This bonus can never make your effective druid level exceed your character level.

If the +3 from Natural Bond would make your effective Druid level higher than your character level, it does not apply. There is no exception given for cases where your effective Druid level could normally be higher than your character level without the feat.

[Andezzar]

A 22/23 Dispute

A druid of sufficiently high level can select her animal companion from one of the following lists, applying the indicated adjustment to the druid’s level (in parentheses) for purposes of determining the companion’s characteristics and special abilities.

It is not clear whether this adjustment creates an effective druid level or not. If it does even with only a -3 adjustment you cannot go over your druid level (which is at least as large as your character level)
EDL=Druid level - 3_{animal companion} + 3 _{Natural Bond} = Druid level

The beastmaster bonus explicitly states that the effective druid level can be exceeded.

If a beastmaster already has an animal companion from another class, her beastmaster class levels stack with class levels from all other classes that grant an animal companion. For example, a 5th-level druid/2nd-level beastmaster would be treated as a 10th-level druid for the purpose of improving the statistics of her animal companion (and which alternative animal companions she could select).

[Curmudgeon]

A 034 Yes.

The Dungeon Master's Guide does indeed refer to normal use of spell completion and spell trigger items as casting the spell from those items, and Creaking Cacophony covers all spellcasting. A character with Use Magic Device, who activates these items instead of casting from them, would not be inconvenienced.

[AvatarVecna]

Q35

Does an inanimate object count as flat-footed for the purposes of attacking it?

[Curmudgeon]

A 035 No.

Only creatures can be flat-footed. From the Glossary:

flat-footed

Especially vulnerable to attacks at the beginning of a battle. Characters are flat-footed until their first turns in the initiative cycle. A flat-footed creature loses its Dexterity bonus to Armor Class (if any) and cannot make attacks of opportunity.

[zergling.exe]

Q 036

Does a Knight's (PHB 2) Armor Mastery ability allow them to move at full speed in Mountain Plate (RoS)? If it does, it still doesn't allow running, correct?

[Curmudgeon]

A 036 No.

The answer is due to the specific wording of the Knight class ability.

Armor Mastery (Ex): Starting at 4th level, you are able to wear your armor like a second skin and ignore the standard speed reduction for wearing medium armor. Starting at 9th level, you ignore the speed reduction imposed by heavy armor as well.

Mountain Plate doesn't impose the standard speed reduction for wearing heavy armor; instead, it has its own nonstandard speed reduction which Knight Armor Mastery cannot ignore.

[UserShadow7989]

Q037

Does the concealment provided by the Child of Shadow stance from Tome of Battle (pg. 76) count as a shadow for the Supernatural versions of Hide in Plain Sight? What about counting as being out of natural sunlight or magical light for the purposes of some (Ex) versions of Hide in Plain Sight, like the one granted by the Dark Template from Tome of Magic (pg. 161)?

[Curmudgeon]

A 037

Child of Shadow explicitly does not enable any version of Hide in Plain Sight.

As you move, shadows flutter and swarm around you.
...
You also gain the standard benefits of concealment, but you cannot use this stance to hide in plain sight; you must still use some other terrain feature that normally allows you to use the Hide skill.

No part of the Child of Shadow's generated shadows will enable Supernatural forms of Hide in Plain Sight to work. With shadows in your square(s) not eligible, you must therefore find some other shadow within 10' to be able to use Hide in Plain Sight; usually that should not be difficult. For Extraordinary Hide in Plain Sight the situation is rather worse, because the concealment in your space is rendered ineligible to let you Hide. If you have some companion ability (usually Camouflage) to bypass the need for cover/concealment you're OK; if you don't, the stance's limitations virtually guarantee you can't use Hide in Plain Sight.

[St Fan]

Q 038

Can you use the Power Attack feat when smashing an object to increase the damage?

If yes, can you still gain the Power Attack bonus to damage with a melee weapon if you take a full-round action to line up a shot, making it an automatic hit?

[Andezzar]

A 38 Partial

Yes, once applied Power Attack applies to all attacks until the beginning of your next turn.

Yes, even on an automatic hit you will gain the damage bonus.

[Chronos]

A 37 contention:

There are ordinarily two requirements in order to be able to hide: You must have concealment, and you must not be observed. Hide in Plain Sight removes the second requirement. The Child of Shadow stance does not remove this requirement, and thus, as noted, does not enable you to hide in plain sight. The stance does, however, provide concealment, and so if you are not being observed for some reason, or if you have some other ability that removes that requirement, you can use it to hide.

[Curmudgeon]

Re: A 037 contention

The question was specifically about Hide in Plain Sight, not use of Hide without HiPS.

[Coidzor]

Q039: Where can the rules on Inherent Bonuses, how they work, and what they can stack with be found?

[heavyfuel]

A039:
As per the glossary:

A bonus to an ability score resulting from powerful magic, such as a wish. Inherent bonuses cannot be dispelled. A character is limited to a total inherent bonus of +5 to any ability score. Multiple inherent bonuses to a particular ability score do not stack, so only the best one applies.

Since the only mention of stacking is that they don't stack with themselves, normal rules for stacking applies.

[goto124]

Q40:

How does rolling initiative work? It says "an initiative check is a Dexterity check", but what does it mean?

[Andezzar]

A 40

See Ability Checks (PHB p. 66)

[Curmudgeon]

A 040

If you have no special modifiers, an Initiative roll is just a Dexterity check: roll d20 and add your DEX modifier.

initiative check

A check used to determine a creature's place in the initiative order for a combat. An initiative check is 1d20 + Dex modifier + other modifiers.

Higher initiative check numbers take their turns before lower numbers.

[St Fan]

Q 041

A question about the Dancing Mongoose maneuver from the Tome of Battle.

It says you gain one additional attack by weapon you wield, up to two, as long as you target the same opponent.

However, it doesn't specify if you need to use a full attack for this. So could it be used along with a standard action?

Also, it's a boost and not a strike, so it can theoretically be used alongside a strike. For example, could one use Wolf Fang Strike and Dancing Mongoose on the same round for 4 attacks as a standard action?

[Curmudgeon]

A 041

Additional attacks requires you to have already made one or more attacks in the round. Dancing Mongoose has no other requirements, so if you've attacked already (through whatever mechanism) and have a swift action available you can use this boost. Use with Wolf Fang Strike would be two attacks as a standard action and two attacks as a swift action (not four attacks as a standard action).

[zergling.exe]

Q 042

If a Frenzied Berserker is dominated, does the dominator have control over who the berserker targets while frenzying?

[Curmudgeon]

A 042 Maybe.

If you and the subject have a common language, you can generally force the subject to perform as you desire, within the limits of its abilities. If no common language exists, you can communicate only basic commands, such as “Come here,” “Go there,” “Fight,” and “Stand still.”

It's not possible to exercise fine control without a shared language. With such a language, specifying a target is possible.

[Andezzar]

A 042 addendum

There is also the problem the time between commands. As long as the dominated is not carrying out a command he can act as he wishes.

[Jowgen]

Q 043

I would like clarification for the "hierarchy" of RAW sources. This is how I currently understand what kind of sources take precendece over another:

1st: Official Errata
2nd: 3.5 Primary Sources (PHB, DMG, MM)
3rd: 3.5 Supplementals & Setting-specific books where the setting is concerned
4rd: 3.5 Dragon Mag and other "100% official content" label sources (Dragonlance?)
5th: 3e Supplementals & Setting-specific books where the setting is concerned
6th: 3e Dragon Mag and other "100% official content" label sources
7th: Sage FAQs (if this is even included)
8th: Third party materials (if this is even included)

Do I have the right of it?

[eggynack]

A 043

Apart from the errata, which has perfect and explicit ability to override existing text, maybe the rules compendium, which has the same ability given the lack of subscription to the argument that the premium versions of core books further override its changes, and the core books, which have some explicit claim to primary source rules, there isn't much in the way of a clear and perfect hierarchy by RAW. You just have books that are being used in a given game, and then if one of those sources contradicts another, you try to sort it out as best you can in most cases. It luckily doesn't come up a massive amount though, as supplemental works tend to stick to their own domain for the most part, usually only contradicting core when they contradict anything.

[Curmudgeon]

A 043

1st: official errata
2nd: 3.5 primary sources (PH, DMG, MM)
3rd: 3.5 D&D supplements (including setting-specific); 3.5 Dragon magazine; 3e D&D supplements (including setting-specific) with official 3.5 updates; 3e Dragon magazine with 3.5 updates (same priority)
4th: 3e D&D supplements (including setting-specific), 3e Dragon magazine (same priority) adjusted by individual DMs for their 3.5 games (see the text on page 4 of Dungeon Master's Guide)
5th: everything else is an individual DM's call, not applicable generally

Note that throughout these priority levels a new instance of something in a category (magic item, weapon property, class, spell, feat, ...) replaces the older version with the same name; see, for instance, the renamed and revised spells in Spell Compendium. Additionally, there is an official list of 3.0 Feats, Prestige Classes, and Spells which are officially replaced in 3.5 games here.

Rules Compendium's claim to priority is

• self-declared, and not backed up in any other D&D rules source
• in conflict with the Primary Sources Errata Rule
• only with respect to preexisting core books and supplements
• entirely negated by the Premium books printed after RC