Simple RAW Thread for 3.5: 30. Really? 30?

[Jormengand]

Q 280

Is there any way to change a psion's primary ability score to wisdom?

[Thurbane]

Q 281

This may be a little broad for this thread, but anyway: are there any feats a Human could take with their 1st level bonus feat that would provide a lasting benefit that would endure after undergoing the Dragonborn ritual (and losing the feat)?

[KillianHawkeye]

A 281 (partial?)

The only one I can think of off the top of my head would be Able Learner, which reduces the cost of cross-class skill ranks. Even if you lost the feat at a later time, it wouldn't change how many skill ranks you have. I suppose any feat that lowered the cost for certain skills, or one that let certain skills always count as class skills, would also count (if there are any).

[Troacctid]

A 281 partial

You lose a feat when you go from human to dragonborn, but it doesn't have to be the same feat you originally took as your human bonus feat. So if you were, say, a Ranger, you could keep your human bonus feat and lose Track or Endurance instead. Or if you took Vow of Poverty, you could lose one of the bonus exalted feats and keep the vow itself.

[Curmudgeon]

A 281 partial

A Human martial adept could take Martial Study for a discipline outside their class list at level 1, and then later Martial Stance for a stance from that discipline. During the Rite of Rebirth they could choose to lose Martial Study. Since a stance is a special type of maneuver, Martial Stance then provides its own prerequisite.

[Razanir]

Q 282

Disguise lists a -5 to DC for minor details only, but +2 for different race, sex, or age group. I know the +2 penalties stack with each other, but do they also stack with the -5? So if I'm just using Disguise to look like girl-me, would it be -3? (+2 for different sex, but -5 for mostly minor details)

[marphod]

A 281 Additional:

There are several feats that can be used as alternatives for prerequisites. For instance, Dodge, Desert Wind Dodge, Midnight Dodge, and a feat from Races of the Wild with a name I'm forgetting. If you took Dodge, then feats depending upon Dodge, and then got one of the alternatives, you could then trade away Dodge and keep all your other feats. There are similar cases (Stone Power and Power Attack; Shadow Blade and Weapon Finesse), and there may be cases where a class feature can be used instead of a feat for a pre-req, but I'm not recalling any.

[marphod]

A 282

Yes.

DC modifiers and Check modifiers are not typed and stack when appropriate. For disguise, the Familiartiy modifier doesn't stack -- you use the most appropriate familiarity, but minor details is a separate issue from gender/race/age category.

Whether a gender swap is minor detail or not will depend on what the character looks like normally. A fairly androgynous character would only need minor details. For a character with overly accentuated gender characteristics, it wouldn't.

[Metahuman1]

Q 283: If a Cleric takes 1 level of Prestige Ranger, does he automatically gain Access to Ranger Spell casting, or does he have to wait till he takes his 2nd level of Prestige Ranger to Advance his Cleric Casting by 1 level in order for that to happen?

[Andezzar]

A 283

The prestige ranger class does not grant any ranger casting it only advances the spellcasting of another class.

If you mean spells that are only on the ranger spell list, it is even later than 2nd level:

In general, any character who enters one of these prestige classes should gain access to spells unique to that class's spell list, at the same levels indicated for the standard class.

The standard ranger gains 1st level spells at level 4, 2nd level spells at level 8 and so on.

Has Q 279 just been missed or does no one have an answer?

[Jormengand]

Has Q 279 just been missed or does no one have an answer?

Same for Q 280. I'm guessing the answer's "No", but still.

[Bronk]

Same for Q 280. I'm guessing the answer's "No", but still.

A280: No

There is a third party feat called 'lost traditions' from Bastard and Bloodlines, but even that is only for spellcasters.

[torrasque666]

Reasking Q 263

Q 263: Would combining Tashalatora and Psionic Fist cause the class to stack twice?

[Thurbane]

Q 284

If a character takes the Martial Stance or Martial Study feats, he must meet the prereqs of the maneuver he acquires. Does this include initiator level? For instance, to acquire Disarming Strike (a Warblade 2 strike) through the Martial Study feat, does the character need to have an IL of 3 or higher (as a Warblade would to take it)?

[marphod]

A 284

Yes. You need a sufficient Initiator Level to select a Maneuver, regardless of how you gain it.

See Selecting Martial Maneuvers and Table 3-1 on page 39 of the Tome of Battle.

[Andezzar]

A 284 Contention

It's not that simple.

When you gain this feat, you can select any stance from a discipline in which you already know at least one maneuver. You must meet the normal prerequisite of the stance.

Select any maneuver from the chosen discipline for which you meet the prerequisite.

The choice of maneuver is only restricted to those of which you meet the prerequisite. There is no maneuver that has a minimum initiator level as prerequisite. These specific feats override the general rule, because they allow you to select a maneuver/stance that you otherwise would not be able to select. So any restrictions on that choice must be explicit.

[Curmudgeon]

Re: A 284 Contention

It's not that simple.

The choice of maneuver is only restricted to those of which you meet the prerequisite. There is no maneuver that has a minimum initiator level as prerequisite.

The rules disagree with you. From page 39 of Tome of Battle:

MULTICLASS CHARACTERS

Even when you gain levels in a class that does not grant martial maneuvers, your understanding of the martial disciplines still increases. A highly skilled fighter has the basic combat training and experience needed to master advanced maneuvers. If you are a multiclass martial adept, and you learn a new maneuver by attaining a new level in a martial adept class, determine your initiator level by adding together your level in that class + 1/2 your levels in all other classes. Look up the result on the table below to determine the highest-level maneuvers you can take. You still have to meet a maneuver’s prerequisite to learn it.

For example, a 7th-level crusader/5th-level swordsage has an initiator level of 9th for determining the highestlevel maneuvers he can take as a crusader. As a result, he can take 5th-level crusader maneuvers. As a swordsage, his initiator level is 8th, allowing him to take 4th-level swordsage maneuvers.

This process applies to all of a character’s levels, whether they are in martial adept classes or other classes.

As noted in the last line, this is a general rule for selecting maneuvers, and is independent of whether the character has martial adept class levels. Martial Study and Martial Stance are mechanisms for acquiring maneuvers without martial adept class levels, and this rule applies if you are acquiring a maneuver with a level in a non-adept class.

[Andezzar]

The feats however say that you select any maneuver/stance for which you meet the prerequisite. They do not say they you select one of the maneuvers normally avalaible to characters of your IL for which you meet the prerequisite. Any maneuver/stance means any maneuver/stance. So the minimum initiator level is waived.

The process mentioned in the last line only applies to "learn(ing) a new maneuver by attaining a new level in a martial adept class". That rule says nothing about learning a maneuver by selecting a feat. So we have to go with the description of the feat which says any maneuver/stance.

I wish it weren't so, but I just don't see any evidence for the MIL applying to the feats.

[Curmudgeon]

The feats however say that you select any maneuver/stance for which you meet the prerequisite.

There is no rule saying that a feat's prerequisites must all be designated in the feat itself.

Prerequisites

Some feats have prerequisites. Your character must have the indicated ability score, class feature, feat, skill, base attack bonus, or other quality designated in order to select or use that feat.
...
A feat may have more than one prerequisite.

In fact, there are plenty of examples to the contrary. Epic feats require character level 21, or Dragon type and at least Old age. Only intelligent characters of Good alignment and the highest moral standards can acquire Exalted feats. Only intelligent characters of an Evil alignment can use Vile feats. Ancestor feats may only be selected at 1st character level. These prerequisites are not listed in the individual feats, but are stated separately. Minimum Initiator Level is a separately designated prerequisite for feats which grant access to maneuvers.

[Andezzar]

Where does it say that the MIL is a prerequisite for those two feats? [Epic], [Exalted] and [Vile] categories are described with their respective prerequisites. AFAICT the MIL only applies to acquiring"a new maneuver by attaining a new level in a martial adept class" acquiring a new maneuver through a feat is something else.

The prerequisite mentioned in the feats' descriptions is the prerequisite of the maneuver/stance not of the feat.

[Curmudgeon]

Re: A 284

Where does it say that the MIL is a prerequisite for those two feats?

It's necessitated by the D&D Glossary definition of the term:

prerequisite

A requirement that must be met before a given benefit can be gained.

Select any maneuver from the chosen discipline for which you meet the prerequisites.

There is no rule that the term "prerequisite" must be used when establishing a prerequisite, and still you must meet all prerequisites when selecting Martial Study. As I noted previously (bolded quote), the minimum IL requirement applies to all of a character’s levels, whether they are in martial adept classes or other classes. That means the rule applies when you acquire a maneuver in a non-adept level via Martial Study.

You keep asking for specifics when there are general rules which apply, which I've cited. General prerequisites remain in effect unless they are specifically overridden. You haven't cited anything which overrides these general rules.

[Andezzar]

A feat is not a level (whether initiator or otherwise), so the bolded part does not apply. Selecting a maneuver with a feat is not learning it by attaining a new level in a martial adept class, so that part does not apply to the selection process when taking one of those feats either.

The general rule is:

As you gain levels, you have the option to select higher-level maneuvers. Your level in a martial adept class determines the highest-level maneuvers you can select.

So generally a character cannot learn any maneuver he wants from the list but only those that a) have a sufficiently low level b)are of the correct discipline c) the character fulfils the prerequisite (as mentioned in their respective entries).
Now Martial Study allows you to pick any discipline (regardless of your classes) and select any one of its maneuvers of which the character meets the prerequisite, not only those of sufficiently low level.

[AmberVael]

Don’t:
Post to debate the answers given.

Dispute Resolution Procedure:
If you dispute someone’s answer – meaning that they got it wrong in a critical fashion – post your answer and suggest that the original questioner start a thread to discuss it further if they want it hashed out.
If someone disputes your answer, don’t respond. Just wait to see if the original questioner starts a new thread to discuss it.

Come on guys, take this to another thread.

[kkplx]

Q 285

If a creature has resistance 10 to Cold, does it stack with a casting of resist energy that also provides resistance to cold 10?

[Andezzar]

A 285

No:

This resistance does not stack with the resistance that a spell might provide.

[Starkeeper]

Q 286.a

How do cross-class skills "interact" with Item Familiars?

e.g. If a Wizard were to put three points into UMD, would it be +3 or +1.5? By investing three points, the Wizard gets a bonus one, would that point be worth +1 or +0.5 if it were also applied to UMD?

Q 286.b Assuming that the previous answers are +1.5 and +0.5, if the Item Familiar from the previous example is inherited by a character that has UMD as a class-skill, what happens? Would they remain at half-point value or would they go up to +3 and +1?

[AmberVael]

Q 286

A) The skill bonuses you get for investing skills are based on skill ranks assigned to the Item Familiar rather than skill points. Cross class skills improve by 0.5 ranks per skill point, so you'd need to spend 6 skill points on cross class skills to get 3 skill ranks, which would then give you a +1 bonus if they were assigned to Item Familiar (as opposed to investing in class skills, which would require 3 skill points for 3 ranks and thus a +1 bonus from item familiar). Note that the bonus you get from invested ranks is the same number regardless of what you apply it to though- the bonus is not halved by being applied to a cross class skill, and does not need to be assigned to a skill you have invested points from.

The relevant quote:

Whenever a character with an item familiar gains skill points, he may choose to put some or all of those skill points into his item familiar. He assigns the skill points normally, but notes that they now reside in the item familiar. For every 3 ranks he assigns to the item familiar, he gains a +1 bonus that he can apply to any single skill.

B) Just to be perfectly clear, there would be no change in the amount of bonuses a character would gain since the amount of ranks invested are the same.


Edit: I understand that some of this might be a bit confusing (the rules of item familiars are a bit... weird) so if you feel you need clarification, I encourage you to post a full thread on the subject to get a larger discussion and more details.

[Starkeeper]

A 286

I understand that some of this might be a bit confusing (the rules of item familiars are a bit... weird) so if you feel you need clarification, I encourage you to post a full thread on the subject to get a larger discussion and more details.

No this is crystal clear now, the main issue was me overlooking the difference between Skill rank and Skill point, thank you very much!

[kkplx]

Q 287

A talisman of undying fortitude renders your immune to several things for 3 rounds. How do the following things interact with it:

Are these suppressed, healed, or not affected at all:
- The character has suffered ability score damage before using the talisman
- The character has suffered ability score drain before using the talisman
- The character has suffered an ability score penalty before using the talisman

What happens to an ongoing magical effect like a spell that renders you nauseated - is the spell cancelled, or does it continue to run, but you ignore its effects for the duration?

What about poisons and diseases? See above for already suffered ability score damage, but whath appens to the poison's secondary save and the disease in general (IF the save does not fall within the 3 rounds of duration of the talisman)? Are they suppressed for the duration or cured altogether?

[Andezzar]

A 287

Ability score loss (i.e. damage or drain) is an instantaneous effect. So the talisman does not interact with it at all.

The description of the talisman does not say either that it removes penalties. So any pre-existing penalty will persist.

Q 288

How often can you activate the Talisman of UNdying Fortitude? only once, once per day or as many times as you like?