Spheres of Power Ask Me Anything #2

[RedMop]

Q362 with the Deathful Magic boon does non-lethal damage such as the damage caused by the Draining Casting drawback give you the bonus to caster level?

A362: I'm guessing no. Non-lethal does not reduce your HPs. It is not "real" damage.
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/gamemasterin...nlethal-Damage

Q363 how long does the fatigued and exhausted conditions from the Overcharge boon last?

A363:
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/gamemasterin.../#TOC-Fatigued - 8 hours of rest needed to clear this.
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/gamemasterin...#TOC-Exhausted 1 hour of rest reduces this to fatigued.

[rs2excelsior]

Q363 how long does the fatigued and exhausted conditions from the Overcharge boon last?

A363 I'm not associated with SoP, but by default the fatigued and exhausted conditions last until you rest. I'd assume that was the case unless otherwise specified.

EDIT: Ninja'd, and by a more complete answer at that. Didn't see there was another response on the next page.

[RedMop]

A363 I'm not associated with SoP, but by default the fatigued and exhausted conditions last until you rest. I'd assume that was the case unless otherwise specified.

EDIT: Ninja'd, and by a more complete answer at that. Didn't see there was another response on the next page.

I happened to be making a character using that very boon when I saw the post. It helped. I ended up taking Empowering Abilities instead as I don't have (or need) many spell points.

[Slavezero]

what was the ruling for Draining Casting when healing from the non-lethal? do you heal nonlethal damage at the rate of 1 hit point per hour per character level like normal or was it decided that you need to get 8 hours of rest? if it's the 8 hours why was that chosen rather then the 1 per hour per level? since with a full caster the 8 hours rest seems crippling

[RedMop]

How about Q361? Does Telekinetic Maneuver to grapple do anything besides use up a standard action? If so, can I concentrate on that as a move action to maintain?

Q361: Does Grapple even work with Telekinetic Maneuvers? It has no option mentioned to concentrate, so that could mean that is instantaneous, and thus, the grapple does nothing. The target would be grappled during the time you are actually doing the maneuver, but it ends right after that.

Thoughts?

[Rungo]

Hello, I have some questions regarding the Blaster's Variable Barrel Geometry trick and the Improved Energy Blade feat. Any answers would be much appreciated.

As a standard action, you may make a single weapon attack in conjunction with making a destructive blast. Any creature damaged by the attack is also struck by the destructive blast.

As a full-round action, you may apply a (blast shape) talent you know to a single blast from your arm cannon. Your damage increases to 1d6 per class level for this blast. Any spell point costs of the (blast shape) talent must be paid as normal.

Q364: Can I select Energy Blade as the blast shape for Variable Barrel Geometry, adding a regular Destructive Blast to a single Arm Cannon shot as a full-round action? (The same question also applies for Energy Leap and other Blast Shapes that mention some form of action in their description.)

You may activate the Energy Blade talent as a swift action when making a melee or ranged weapon or natural weapon attack, but not a touch attack. The next successful attack deals your destructive blast damage in addition to its normal damage.

Q365: Is the bolded passage intended to forbid using Improved Energy Blade in combination with spells with a range of (touch), or with anything that makes a touch attack at all? In the latter scenario, what happens if you use it on a firearm? Does it magically become unable to trigger the Destructive Blast when you use it within the first range increment (thus turning it into a touch attack), but not outside of it?

[legomaster00156]

You may only place one brand on any given target, and attempting to place a brand on an already branded target requires a magic skill check, with success replacing the previous brand with the newest one.

Does this mean someone else's Branding Taboo would be replaced, or only one of your own?

[AmberVael]

Q 366 Does this mean someone else's Branding Taboo would be replaced, or only one of your own?

A 366
There can only be one Branding Taboo on a target, regardless of who put it there.
Mostly, I didn't want it to be possible to forbid someone from all forms of action with a bunch of different taboos. It would kinda break the design.

[mrguymiah]

Q367: Is there anything that'd allow me to cast destructive blasts with telekinetically held objects as the origin point? (Ignoring the case of Puppeting yourself.)

I'm trying to build a telekinetic musician that uses instruments to deal sonic damage. The best way, I figure, to spoof this would be to simply cast a sonic destructive blast from telekinetically held items as an origin point (as I can't find any other way to make instruments capable of such attacks).

[meemaas]

Q367: Is there anything that'd allow me to cast destructive blasts with telekinetically held objects as the origin point? (Ignoring the case of Puppeting yourself.)

I'm trying to build a telekinetic musician that uses instruments to deal sonic damage. The best way, I figure, to spoof this would be to simply cast a sonic destructive blast from telekinetically held items as an origin point (as I can't find any other way to make instruments capable of such attacks).

There is the option of using Object Transformation on Conjuration companions with the Destruction Sphere and using those as your instruments.

[Slavezero]

Q368 what was the ruling for Draining Casting when healing from the non-lethal? do you heal the nonlethal damage at a rate of 1 hit point per hour per character level like normal or was it decided that you need to get 8 hours of rest? if it's the 8 hours why was that chosen rather then the 1 per hour per level? since as a full caster the 8 hours rest before you can cast without killing/knocking yourself out seems crippling

[Genth]

Q369

Does the Armorist Blaster's Arm Cannon count as a sphere ability every time it is used? Mostly asking in relation to the Draining Casting tradition - if one took it, would one be forced to pay the Draining Casting price every time they used their arm cannon weapon?

[stack]

Q369

Does the Armorist Blaster's Arm Cannon count as a sphere ability every time it is used? Mostly asking in relation to the Draining Casting tradition - if one took it, would one be forced to pay the Draining Casting price every time they used their arm cannon weapon?

A369: Well, the wording there is definitely unclear with regards to draining casting. The intent is that you are using a sphere effect and would thus incur drawback penalties, though in this case if I was DM I would probably only trigger drawbacks once for a full attack.

[kkplx]

If a spherecaster creates an effect with a duration other than concentration, does the effect remain after their death? What about unconsciousness?

If a spherecaster has summoned a companion and the caster dies, does the companion disappear/die? What about unconsciousness or being turned to stone, etc.?

[EldritchWeaver]

Q370: If a spherecaster creates an effect with a duration other than concentration, does the effect remain after their death? What about unconsciousness?

If a spherecaster has summoned a companion and the caster dies, does the companion disappear/die? What about unconsciousness or being turned to stone, etc.?

A370: If you have an effect, which you use concentration on, but can't concentrate on, the effect ceases. Effects with non-concentration durations keep on running until their duration runs out. The only rule, which states differently, is when a summoned creature casts something. If it is dismissed, all non-instantaneous effects cease automatically.

[Rungo]

Now that the talents from Spheres Apocrypha are on the wiki, I would like to ask for a clarification on the Energy Rift Blast Shape.

You may shape your destructive blast into a deadly edge, creating a rift in space that expels its energy. Choose the corner of a square, then draw a straight line between that corner and any point within 10 ft. + 5 ft. per 5 caster levels of it. The entirety of this line must be inside your range. Everything within a square the line passes through is affected by your destructive blast. Targets in the area can attempt a Reflex save to take half damage.

Q371: How is 'passes through' defined in this context? Can you follow an edge of a square, or do you need to enter its interior? And if so, do you have to fully pass through opposite borders or does 'clipping corners' and merely entering count?

Example 1: Assuming I am a CL1 caster, I draw a 10ft line as shown in red. What squares do I affect? All four, or none at all?

+-+-+
|A|B|
+-+-+
|C|D|
+-+-+

Example 2: Again as a CL1 caster, I draw a 10ft line from the red corner towards the green corner. Due to that nasty old Greek Pythagoras, the distance between the corners is slightly over 10ft so I don't reach the green corner. C is almost certainly affected, but is B?

+-+-+
|A|B|
+-+-+
|C|D|
+-+-+

Example 3: The same situation as in Example 2, but this time the line goes 'through' A and B. As a result, the line never passes opposing edges of A and only goes partway through B. Are either of these squares affected?

+-+-+
|A|B|
+-+-+
|C|D|
+-+-+

.
.
PS: I'd also appreciate an answer to Q364 and Q365 if possible.

[stack]

Hello, I have some questions regarding the Blaster's Variable Barrel Geometry trick and the Improved Energy Blade feat. Any answers would be much appreciated.


Q364: Can I select Energy Blade as the blast shape for Variable Barrel Geometry, adding a regular Destructive Blast to a single Arm Cannon shot as a full-round action? (The same question also applies for Energy Leap and other Blast Shapes that mention some form of action in their description.)

A364: Energy blade would work that way. Energy leap is an odd visual, but I suppose you can pull yourself through your gun. I wouldn't recommend immediate action blast shapes though, the full round action would be inefficient.

Q365: Is the bolded passage intended to forbid using Improved Energy Blade in combination with spells with a range of (touch), or with anything that makes a touch attack at all? In the latter scenario, what happens if you use it on a firearm? Does it magically become unable to trigger the Destructive Blast when you use it within the first range increment (thus turning it into a touch attack), but not outside of it?

Intended to block various abilities to resolve an attack against touch AC. I would allow you to target normal AC with a gun in the first range increment to let it work with firearms, but RAW you can't.

[kkplx]

@stack, since I was the GM initially disallowing this combination on my player (energy blade), could you explain how and why these can be combined?

Energy Blade (blast shape)
As a standard action, you may make a single weapon attack in conjunction with making a destructive blast. Any creature damaged by the attack is also struck by the destructive blast.

VS

Variable Barrel Geometry:
As a full-round action, you may apply a (blast shape) talent you know to a single blast from your arm cannon. Your damage increases to 1d6 per class level for this blast. Any spell point costs of the (blast shape) talent must be paid as normal.

One has you spend a standard action to get one attack, the other has you spend a full round action to get a single attack with your cannon.
How can they be combined, considering you cannot fulfill the energy blade condition of a standard action when you use VBG?

[AmberVael]

A371 Energy Rift is identical to the standard Line area, except the one change that it doesn't have to start adjacent to you. So this is really just elaborating on how line areas work.

Ex 1: As your line enters into no squares, it will technically affect no squares. You're basically threading the needle. That said, I'd rule that it hits any larger creature that straddles those squares.

Ex 2: You'd affect C and B. You don't have to go fully through a square to affect it.

Ex 3: A and B are both affected. You don't have to pass through opposing edges, you just need to have you line enter a square.

Here are some of my own illustrations on how it works:

Spoiler

Show

So, the real component of a line area is, well, the line. When you use a line effect, you are making an actual, geometric line. All this extrapolation on squares is an attempt to translate it into the natural grid of D&D. The short of it is - if your line touches an enemy, you've hit them. Enemies entirely occupy squares, so if your line occupies a square, you've hit your enemy.

So, in these diagrams the caster is the black circle, your line is the red line, and any squares your line affects on the grid are pink.


This first example shows that you have to actually enter a square to affect it. Passing near the edge of a square is not enough - which is why only the two diagonal squares are hit.


That said, you don't have to completely cross a square between opposing faces to affect it. This example shows that even if your line is cutting across a corner, or ends partway into a square, it still affects that square.


And here's just one simple one to show how the standard "straight" line is technically set up.

Also, as I brought up earlier, lines are made in three dimensional space. We're not making a plane here, just a line.

Lastly, a really great example of how lines work is the video game, FTL: Faster Than Light. Beam weapons work exactly how line areas work in D&D.

[Rungo]

A364: Energy blade would work that way. Energy leap is an odd visual, but I suppose you can pull yourself through your gun. I wouldn't recommend immediate action blast shapes though, the full round action would be inefficient.

Thanks, that was the result I was hoping for. And now I feel an odd need to make a character that shoots itself at enemies...

<Answer>

Thanks for the clarification. The specific wording of the talent had me wondering, but I guess it should just be considered "a 10ft (+5ft per 5CL) Line effect that starts at a corner within your range." That makes it much simpler.

[stack]

@stack, since I was the GM initially disallowing this combination on my player (energy blade), could you explain how and why these can be combined?

Energy Blade (blast shape)
As a standard action, you may make a single weapon attack in conjunction with making a destructive blast. Any creature damaged by the attack is also struck by the destructive blast.

VS

Variable Barrel Geometry:
As a full-round action, you may apply a (blast shape) talent you know to a single blast from your arm cannon. Your damage increases to 1d6 per class level for this blast. Any spell point costs of the (blast shape) talent must be paid as normal.

One has you spend a standard action to get one attack, the other has you spend a full round action to get a single attack with your cannon.
How can they be combined, considering you cannot fulfill the energy blade condition of a standard action when you use VBG?

"The arm cannon is a ranged weapon that makes ranged touch attacks"
Any time you can make a weapon attack, you can make an attack with the arm cannon. Energy blade allows making a weapon attack. Variable Barrel Geometry lets you use a blast shape. The combination is a bit odd but I don't think it is a problem.

Full round, 1 attack w/ arm cannon (1d6+1d6 @ 5 +1d6/4 thereafter), add 1d6/level. Ends up at 25 die at level 20, which isn't that much compared to a focused Destruction user. Full-attacking with the arm cannon does the same if you have haste, plus forces more separate saves.

[kkplx]

@stack, my issue is with the dissonance between a standard action and full round action cost paid in the same round.

Does the variable barrel geometry allow you to ignore all costs of shape talents other than spell points?

[stack]

@stack, my issue is with the dissonance between a standard action and full round action cost paid in the same round.

Does the variable barrel geometry allow you to ignore all costs of shape talents other than spell points?

A normal destructive blast is also cast as a standard action, just like energy blade. No blast shapes carry a casting time of greater than a standard action (1 is immediate (Retributive Blast ) and 1 has an immediate action option (Rebuff). Energy aura has a move action cast.

If there was later published a blast shape that had a base casting time of longer than a standard action, it would be a problem.

[inuyasha]

Q372 I'm still deciding on how to handle this if it ever came up, but how have any of you dealt with using damaging illusions against the party?

I wouldn't want to be overkill, but by saying that every sword-hit from an illusory orc does 7 points of nonlethal, the players would get a bit suspicious.

[kkplx]

Q372 Quick question regarding invisibility:

You may also place an illusion on a creature or object that makes it harder to see. Rather than make a Will save to disbelieve, creatures must make Perception checks to detect the hidden creature or object. Objects have a flat Perception DC equal to 10 + their size bonus + your caster level, while creatures gain a bonus to their Stealth checks equal to your caster level. In addition, since they are invisible, creatures may make Stealth checks even while being observed and do not require cover to retain or initiate Stealth. Even when detected by another creature, an invisible creature gains a +2 bonus to attack rolls against sighted targets and ignores their Dexterity bonus to AC. Attacks against the invisible creature have a 50% chance they will simply miss, even if the attack has targeted the correct square.

So as I see it, instead of the +40 flat bonus to stealth, it is a bonus equal to your caster level.
If a creature beats the affected ally's stealth, they know of their presence.

Do they also KNOW where the ally is? or do they have to beat the stealth by 20 to get to that point?

IF they know where the ally is hiding, is there any way a creature relying on normal senses can target the individual covered by invisibility, or will they always suffer the 50% miss chance?

[Dr_Dinosaur]

Q373: If you were going to use Sphere of Power in Starfinder (and had already made the other needed adjustments), would you roll Spell Points into Resolve or keep them as two separate pools?

[A.J.Gibson]

Q373: If you were going to use Sphere of Power in Starfinder (and had already made the other needed adjustments), would you roll Spell Points into Resolve or keep them as two separate pools?

Given that spell slots are a separate resource from resolve, I would think spell points would be as well.

[LudoDiamonte]

Q374 not sure if this has been answered else where. But with sphere specific drawbacks would they negate the spell point cost of the bonus talent gained?

Ex focused shape drawback into energy bomb talent for destruction sphere.

[stack]

Q374 not sure if this has been answered else where. But with sphere specific drawbacks would they negate the spell point cost of the bonus talent gained?

Ex focused shape drawback into energy bomb talent for destruction sphere.

A374: Sphere-specific drawbacks have no impact on the spell point cost of the bonus talents. This may limit the attractiveness of some options.

[kkplx]

Q 375

If you have Counterspell mastery, can you counterspell a spell cast by an invisible creature?

I.e. you heard the spell, identified it, you know where the creature is possibly, but you cannot see it - can you still counterspell the spell?