D&D® Game Rule Frequently Asked Questions

Table of Contents Character Classes

Foreword ..................................................................1 Does Death Touch, the granted power of the death domain, have a
saving throw?
Character Classes .....................................................1 No, it does not.
Character Races .......................................................4
Combat and Initiative...............................................4 When using the granted power from the Luck domain, do you
have to decide to make the reroll before you find out what the result
Equipment and Magic Items ....................................9 is, or do you get know if you’ve failed or not before deciding to
Feats .......................................................................11 reroll? For example if I roll an 18, but I need at least 19, do I get to
Miscellaneous ........................................................13 know that an 18 is a failure, or do I have to decide before then?
Technically, you have to decide to reroll before you know if you’ve
Monsters.................................................................15 succeeded or failed; that’s why the power description says you’ve got to
Multiclassed Characters .........................................16 keep the reroll even if it’s worse than the original roll. It’s incumbent on
Skills ......................................................................17 the DM to allow a player at least a moment to decide whether to use the
ability. If the DM simply blurts out the result immediately, it’s okay to
Spells......................................................................18 let the player reroll.
Sword and Fist .......................................................25
Psionics Handbook ................................................26 What, exactly, is a bard’s countersong effective against? Will it
work on effects that don’t allow saving throws? Will it work against
Defenders of the Faith............................................30 a thunderstone?
Countersong works on sonic magical effects — that is any spell,

Foreword supernatural ability, or spell-like effect that has the sonic or language-
dependent designator. But not against extraordinary abilities and non-
magical sound, such as a thunderstone.
If you have a question about the D&D game rules, chances are that you’ll
Since countersong allows you to use the bard’s Perform check result
find them within this FAQ. There are several sections, as you can tell
as your saving throw result, it is not effective against spells or effects that
by the Table of Contents that we’ve included in this PDF. If you have a
have no saving throw to begin with.
question that isn’t answered here, please contact custserv@wizards.com
and ask away! You can also contact the Sage, Skip Williams, by writing
Do you need to be able to hear a bard’s countersong to benefit
to him at these handy locations:
from it?
No, you have to be within 30 feet of the bard (the countersong follows
Email: thesage@wizards.com
the rules for a spread) and be subjected to an effect that the countersong
Mail: “Sage Advice” c/o Dragon Magazine
can counter (see previous question). Note that if you’re deafened, you
1801 Lind Ave. S.W.
probably aren’t subject to anything the countersong can counter.
Renton, WA 98055
I don’t see any limit on the number of sneak attacks a rogue can
We will be updating this FAQ over time, and each version will have a
make in a round. Suppose a high-level thief is hiding. Two villains
date stamp on it so that you know which version you have.
walk within 5 feet of her. Can the rogue use an attack of opportunity
Date Compiled: 10/8/2001
as a sneak attack and then, assuming she gets initiative, make as
many sneak attacks as she has attacks? Can she sneak attack each
U.S. CANADA, ASIA EUROPEAN HEADQUARTERS of the villains? What if the rogue has a bow? If she has Rapid Shot,
PACIFIC & LATIN AMERICA Wizards of the Coast, Belgium
does this increase the number of sneak attacks she can make?
Wizards of the Coast, Inc. P.B. 2031
P.O. Box 707 2600 Berchem A rogue deals extra damage with a sneak attack anytime the target
Renton, WA 98057-0707 Belgium is denied Dexterity bonus to AC or anytime the rogue flanks the target,
(Questions?) 1-800-324-6496 +32-70-23-32-77 no matter how many attacks the rogue makes. These conditions are not
likely to occur during an attack of opportunity, but if they do (such
Based on the original DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® game by E. Gary Gygax as when the rogue is unseen), the rogue gets her sneak attack bonus
and Dave Arneson and on the new edition of the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS damage. The same holds true for ranged weapons (but see the next ques-
game designed by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Rich- tion), provided that the rogue is within 30 feet of her target. Note that
ard Baker, and Peter Adkison. sneak attacks are never possible when the rogue cannot see her target.
D&D, DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, and DUNGEON MASTER are registered
trademarks owned by Wizards of the Coast, Inc. Since undead are immune to critical hits, I assume a ranger whose
All Wizards characters, character names, and the distinctive likenesses favored enemy is undead never gets a damage bonus against undead.
thereof are trademarks owned by Wizards of the Coast, Inc. I had been leaning toward giving the damage bonus anyway. All
This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States undead are critical proof, most are also immune bluff checks, and
of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material the Wilderness Lore skill wouldn’t be to useful against undead,
or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written either (“Flee! These are zombie squirrels!”) It seems to me that
permission of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. choosing undead as a favored just seems exceptionally weak com-
This product is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, pared to other the choices.
organizations, places, or events is purely coincidental. Undead are indeed immune to critical hits and are also immune to
©2001 Wizards of the Coast, Inc. All rights reserved. Made in the sneak attacks and the ranger’s favored enemy bonuses (the same holds
U.S.A. true for constructs, elementals, and oozes). Rangers who choose these
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types of creatures as favored enemies are giving up power (the design- leg) is used. The wording that appears in the book suggests that off-
ers did this intentionally). Oozes probably are the weakest choice, since hand strikes are possible for an unarmed monk, just unwise. How
these creatures are all mindless and thus hard to bluff (Sense Motive would making an off-hand unarmed attack affect the monk’s flurry
against an ooze tends to be pointless), but the ranger still gets a bonus to of blows ability?
Listen, Spot, and Wilderness Lore checks against the creature—keep in There’s no such thing as a monk making an off-hand unarmed attack
mind that you make Wilderness Lore checks to track a creature. (because monks are already using pretty much their whole bodies for
unarmed combat). For unarmed monks, the flurry of blows ability
Is it true that a paladin without a positive Charisma modifier replaces off-hand unarmed attacks.
cannot use lay on hands?
Yes. A paladin’s Charisma bonus governs the lay on hands ability. If Can monks deal subdual damage with unarmed strikes without
you don’t have a Charisma bonus, you don’t lay on hands, so be sure to grappling? If so, do they suffer a –4 attack penalty, as with any other
assign good Charisma scores to your paladin characters. normal-damage attack?
Usually, a monk’s unarmed strikes deal normal damage, but a monk
The section on alignment in the cleric class description (pages can choose to deal subdual damage instead with no penalty on her attack
29–30 in the Player’s Handbook) says most clerics of Heironeous, roll. A monk has the same choice to deal normal or subdual damage
god of valor (who is lawful good) are lawful good themselves, but while grappling (see Grapple, on page 137 of the Player’s Handbook).
some are lawful neutral or neutral good. This seems to conflict with
the statement that a cleric may not be neutral unless his deity is neu- Does a monk or other character with the Improved Unarmed
tral. I don’t understand what this restriction was intended to be. Strike feat provoke an attack of opportunity when starting a grap-
In this case, “neutral” means neutral on both the good-evil axis and ple?
on the law-chaos axis or “true neutral” (Player’s Handbook, page 89). Yes. Grabbing and holding on to a foe is a tad more risky than just
A cleric’s alignment must be the same as his deity’s alignment or within hitting the foe.
one step of his deity’s alignment; that is, adjacent (but not diagonally
adjacent) to the deity’s alignment on the alignment chart, (see Table Does the monk’s Wisdom-based bonus to armor class prevent a
6–1). The true neutral alignment is an exception. You can’t have a true rogue from using the sneak attack ability against (like the uncanny
neutral cleric of a deity who is not true neutral. Note that St. Cuthbert, dodge ability)?
a lawful neutral deity, allows only lawful good or lawful neutral clerics, No. If monks got uncanny dodge or the equivalent of that ability the
even though the lawful evil alignment is within one step of St. Cuthbert’s class description would say so.
alignment.
A monk doesn’t get to add her base attack bonus to her unarmed
The Players Handbook says ex-clerics lose all class features; pre- attack bonus does he? I was a little confused when reading the sec-
sumably clerics don’t lose their armor and shield proficiencies, or tion in the monk class description about flurry of blows. It talks
their weapon proficiencies (except those granted as domain powers), about a 6th-level monk with two unarmed attacks at +7 and +4. The
both of which are listed as class features. chart shows a monk at 6th level getting two attacks at +4 and +1.
Armor, shield, and weapon proficiencies are indeed class features for No, you don’t add a monk’s base attack bonus to the monk’s unarmed
clerics and for any other class. Nevertheless, you’re correct. Ex-clerics attack bonus. Use the Base Attack column on Table 3–10 when a monk
lose spells, domain powers (including domain-based weapons), sponta- uses a weapon and use the Unarmed Attack column when the monk
neous casting, and power over the undead. They retain proficiency in attacks without a weapon.
simple weapons and all types of armor and shields. The flurry of blows example in early printings of the Player’s Handbook
is erroneous; actually it’s based on an unpublished version of Ember, our
Can true neutral clerics of true neutral deities, such as Fhar- iconic monk, who has some extra bonuses figured into her attack values
langhn, cast any Chaos, Evil, Good, or Law spell? Does a true neu- (this has been corrected in more recent printings). A 6th-level monk with
tral cleric’s choice of whether to turn or rebuke undead affect what no extra bonuses normally gets two unarmed attacks at +4/+1 (not +5/+2
spells she can cast? as shown in the example). If she uses flurry of blows, she gets an extra
True neutral clerics can cast any spell with the Chaos, Evil, Good, unarmed attack at her highest attack bonus, but all her unarmed attacks
or Law domain, provided the spell in question is on the cleric spell list suffer a –2 penalty, which gives her three unarmed attacks at +2/+2/–1.
(see pages 160–163 in the Player’s Handbook) or in one of the cleric’s
chosen domains. The cleric’s choice of whether to turn or rebuke undead I would like to know if the base attack bonuses and the unarmed
affects does not affect what spells she can prepare, but it does affect what attack bonuses stack for monks. I could not find anything in the
spells she can cast spontaneously, as noted on page 32 of the Player’s description and at higher levels these bonuses seem like they could
Handbook. be excessive if they do stack.
Do not add values from the Base Attack Bonus column on Table 3–10
Page 90 in the Player’s Handbook has a rule that says the various to those on the Unarmed Attack Bonus column. Use the Base Attack
racial deities can only have clerics of the correct races. For example, Bonus when the monk makes an armed attack and the Unarmed Attack
only dwarves can be clerics of Moradin. Does this rule also apply to Bonus column when the monk makes an unarmed attack (see next ques-
other divine spellcasters, such as rangers and paladins? tion).
No. The rule is only for clerics. Technically, the rule governing cleric
alignments on page 30 of the Player’s Handbook also only applies the Does a monk always have to use his unarmed attack bonus when
clerics. Paladins and rangers, for example, can have alignments consid- making an unarmed attacks? What happens when a 10th-level
erably different from the deities they serve (though paladins by practical fighter picks up one level of monk? Does the character now have an
necessity serve good deities, usually lawful good deities). attack bonus of +0 when making unarmed attacks?
No, a monk does not always have to use his unarmed attack bonus
Can a monk get an extra unarmed attack each round by making when making unarmed attacks. The monk can use his best available
an off-hand attack? The monk class description says making an off- attack bonus (and number of attacks) along with his unarmed damage
hand strike makes no sense for a monk fighting unarmed. Presum- or use just his unarmed attack bonus and unarmed damage. For exam-
ably, this means that monks are always considered to be using their ple, 10th-level fighter/1st-level monk has a base attack bonus of +10/+5,
primary hand when striking unarmed, regardless of which arm (or which is much better than a 1st-level monk’s +0. The character can make
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two unarmed attacks and still use his 1st-level unarmed damage of 1d6. The Player’s Handbook mentions that sorcerers can obtain spells
You seem to be confused by the text dealing with multiclassed monks from other sources, which implies that they can choose spells from
on page 55 of the Player’s Handbook. This text merely points out that a beyond the sorcerer/wizard spell list. Does this mean sorcerers can
monk has the option to use only his unarmed attack bonus for unarmed access divine magic as well?
attacks if doing so wold give him more attacks. For example, a 1st- No. The text in question (on page 50 of the first-printing Player’s
level fighter/10th-level monk has a total attack bonus of +8/+3 (+1 for Handbook) is an error left over from an earlier draft of the rules. The
being a 1st-level fighter, +7 for being a 10th-level monk). When attack- error has since been corrected. Sorcerers are limited to spells on the
ing unarmed the monk can make two attacks a +8/+3 or the monk can sorcerer/wizard list. Note that other books add spells to the sorcerer/
use just his 10th-level unarmed attack bonus of +7/+4/+1 since that gives wizard list and sorcerers certainly can use those.
the monk more attacks.
Good clerics can lose a prepared spell to spontaneously cast any
I can find no where in the Players Handbook a mention of a cure wounds spell. Can any good cleric do this even if healing is
monk’s unarmed strike having a critical of ×2. However, on the not one of his chosen domains? If so, why is there even a healing
monk character sheet it lists it that way. What is the correct value? domain?
Also, when does an unarmed attack score a threat? A cleric’s domains have nothing to do with spontaneous casting, only
Any weapon (including an unarmed strike and a monster’s natural the cleric’s alignment matters (in the case of neutral clerics, it’s the dei-
weapon) threatens a critical on an attack roll of 20 and inflicts ×2 ty’s alignment that matters), see page 32 in the Player’s Handbook.
damage on a confirmed critical hit unless some other value is listed. There’s a healing domain because many deities concern themselves
with healing. Extra cure spells aren’t the only benefit clerics with the
How long does it take a monk to use the wholeness of body abil- healing domain get. They get a caster level boost when casting their
ity? Is it treated as a spell-like ability for use in combat? Does it healing spells (making them slightly better healers than other clerics).
function in antimagic fields? Also, their domain spells 5th level and higher not cure wounds spells, so
Wholeness of body is a supernatural ability. Supernatural abilities other clerics cannot spontaneously cast them.
don’t work in antimagic fields and do not provoke attacks of opportunity.
Using a wholeness of body is a standard action (using any supernatural Can a Diviner prepare detect magic as a bonus spell, because it’s
ability is a standard action unless it description specifically says other- a detection spell, or is it a universal spell and therefore not a divina-
wise). tion?
The detect magic spell belongs to the universal school, not the divina-
The description of the ranger class says rangers cannot use cannot tion school, so diviners can’t claim it as a bonus school spell.
use double-headed weapons when using their two-weapon fighting
ability. What, exactly, is a double-headed weapon? The glossary has Can masters who possess spell-like or supernatural abilities share
an entry for a double weapon, but not for a double-headed weapon. those abilities with their familiars (or paladins’ mounts)? Can the
Is a quarterstaff a double-headed weapon? master share any spell she receives? Or just spells she casts.
Though the ranger class description refers to a double-headed weapon, Master and familiar (or paladin’s mount), can share only spells the
the correct term is “double weapon” (a “double-ended” weapon also master casts on herself (that is, the master must cast the spell and select
is a double weapon). All double weapons are shown on table 7–4. If herself as the target). Only spells can be shared, not spell-like, super-
the weapon has two damage ratings separated by a slash it is a double natural, extraordinary, or natural abilities.
weapon. A quarterstaff is a double weapon.
One can use both ends of a double weapon just as if they were two The list of familiar abilities says the familiar uses either the skills
weapons, or just one end (if you use one end in two hands, you get listed for the kind of animal familiar is or the master’s skills, which-
one and half times your Strength bonus to damage). Rangers, however, ever are better. What are “better” skills? How can you compare
cannot use double weapons with their special two-weapon fighting abili- skills?
ties, not even quarterstaffs. If the master has it and the familiar doesn’t, it’s “better,” and the
familiar can use it provided that it is physically able to do so. (It would
The Player’s Handbook says a sorcerer class casts arcane spells by be hard for a cat, for example, to use a Craft skill). In this case, use the
virtue of raw magical talent or a gift, as opposed to the wizard’s aca- master’s skill ranks and the familiar’s relevant ability score.
demic, systematic approach. If this is the case, can a sorcerer cast a If the master and the familiar both have the same skill the familiar
spell that requires a material components or a focus without using uses the master’s skill ranks, or the familiar’s, whichever are higher.
the components or focus?
No, a sorcerer has a natural talent or gift for arcane spells, but that The Player’s Handbook says a familiar gets half the master’s hit
talent or gift only allows the sorcerer to cast a spell without preparing points. What, constitutes the master’s hit points? Does the master
it ahead of time. If you were to watch a wizard and a sorcerer casting Constitution adjustment apply? What about the Toughness feat?
the same spell, you could not tell just by looking which was the sorcerer What about temporary hit point increases such as aid spells or extra
and which was the wizard (not even a successful Spellcraft check would hit points from temporary Constitution increases such as the endur-
reveal that). The sorcerer uses all the components the spell requires ance spell?
(verbal, somatic, and material) and uses them the same way a wizard The familiar gets half the master’s (undamaged) hit points, rounded
does. Of course, the sorcerer can use a feat to make a component unnec- down. Constitution bonuses and the Toughness feat count, as does any
essary, such as Still Spell to eliminate a spell’s somatic component. other permanent hit point gain (such as from gaining a level or a perma-
nent increase in Constitution). Temporary hit point gains don’t affect the
Are sorcerers, bards, and clerics using spontaneous casting able familiar’s hit points.
to use the Quicken Spell metamagic feat?
They can, but there no point in their doing so. A sorcerer or bard who The rules say a barbarian must spend 2 skill points to gain the
uses a metamagic feat on a spell must cast the spell as a full-round action ability to read and write any language he is able to speak. Is this per
(or the normal casting time plus an extra full-round action if the spell’s language, or once for all languages? What happens if a barbarian
casting time normally is longer than 1 action). Clerics using spontane- becomes multiclassed?
ous casting must follow the same rule. This rule makes Quicken Spell When the barbarian spends 2 skill points, he becomes literate in every
worthless for these characters. language he speaks and in any language he learns to speak in the future.
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 Barbarians who become multiclassed automatically become literate attack? My DM believes that a foe who is aware of the rogue can
in all languages that they currently speak and in any future languages protect herself and is not subject to sneak attacks. I disagree.
they learn. Whenever a rogue attacks an opponent who is flanked or denied a
Dexterity bonus to AC (such as when caught flat-footed), the rogue’s
The other players in my group insist that my lawful good cleric attack is a sneak attack. It makes no difference how many attacks the
cannot cast the 1st-level doom spell. Is that correct? I know my char- rogue makes or whether the opponent is aware of the rogue or not. (Note
acter can’t cast inflict light wounds, but where is the rule that says I that opponents who are not subject to critical hits, such as constructs,
can’t cast doom? elementals, oozes, plants, and undead, are not subject to sneak attacks.)
There is no such rule. Perhaps your other players are thinking about Note that in earlier versions of the game only the first attack a rogue
the general one that bars clerics from casting certain spells that have an made in a round could be a sneak attack. That is no longer the case.
alignment designator (see Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells on
page 32 in the Player’s Handbook). Doom, however, has no alignment When can a monk add his Wisdom modifier to Armor Class? I
designator, and a cleric of any alignment can cast it. can understand that it’s added to the Armor Class (normal), Armor
The inflict light wounds doesn’t have an alignment designator, either, Class (flat-footed), and Armor Class (touch attack). Is this also taken
so any cleric can cast that as well. What your lawful good cleric cannot into account when the monk is carrying either a Moderate or Heavy
do is use the spontaneous casting rule to cast inflict light wounds. As a load? What if the monk is surprised or caught flat-footed?
good cleric, you can spontaneously cast only cure spells. The monk’s Wisdom modifier to Armor Class applies all the time
(except when the monk is helpless).
The granted powers for some of the cleric domains (such as Travel

Character Races
and Magic) specifically say effectiveness is linked to your cleric level.
Other granted powers (such as Protection and Strength) do not;
they just say “your level”. In the case of a multiclassed cleric, would Why do half-orcs suffer a net penalty of –2 to their initial ability
domain granted powers that don’t specify “cleric” level be based on rolls?
character level instead? You refer, I presume, to the half-orc’s racial ability adjustments of +2
A cleric’s domain abilities are class abilities and as such are based on Strength, –2 Intelligence, and –2 Charisma (add up all those numbers
cleric level only. and you do indeed get a net –2). The game’s designers decided that a +2
bonus to Strength scores more than outweighs the –2 penalty to Intelli-
I was wondering if a cleric would be able to turn an outsider such gence and Charisma, especially considering the half orc’s 60-foot dark-
as a lawful good cleric attempting to turn a demon? Under the old vision and favored class of barbarian. The numbers don’t always tell the
rules, you could do that (with difficulty), but I can’t find any rules whole story.
for it in the core books.
Turning only affects undead. Some cleric domains allow you turn, I’ve noticed that it is possible for some races to obtain Strength,
rebuke or, command creatures other than undead, see pages 162–166 in Dexterity, or Constitution of 20, yet there are no modifiers for that
the Player’s Handbook, but no domain grants that power over good, evil, particular score. What would they be respectively?
chaotic, or lawful outsiders. An ability score 20 or 21 has an ability modifier of +5 (see Table 2–1).
You could reintroduce this power into your campaign by creating a Note that in the current rules all ability scores use the same chart for
new feat or by creating a prestige class. bonuses and penalties.

When you have a domain power that lets you turn or rebuke
something other than undead, does using that power count against
your daily uses of power to turn undead as a cleric? Can you trade a
Combat and Initiative
use of undead turning for a use of another turning, or vice versa? Is the refocus combat maneuver intended for the next combat round
No on all counts. A domain turning ability is separate from the cleric’s only? Do you reroll initiative the next round? I can see this being
undead turning ability. You track the daily use of each separately and you abused by most all character’s who do not gain a very good initiative
can’t trade uses between abilities. for the combat session — they can refocus and possibly win initia-
tive for the rest of the combat.
Say you have a cleric with access to the domains of both Sun and When you refocus, you spend your entire round refocusing; you
Water. If the cleric used a turning attempt to try to turn a fire-based cannot act or move (you can’t even move except for a 5-foot step). You
creature, could he use a greater turning (the Sun domain power) do not reroll initiative next round; your initiative is treated as though
to destroy the creature? The greater turning description says it you’ve rolled a 20 on your initiative check. Though many people seem
destroys undead creatures instead of turning them. Can this be used to think refocus is great option, it’s seldom—if ever—worth doing (see
for other things a cleric can turn, such as the power granted by the next question).
Fire or Water domain?
The greater turning only affects undead, not other creatures the cleric What’s the use of the refocus action when you can ready an action
might be able to turn. and go at the highest person’s initiative?
If your initiative number is not the “highest” and you wind up hold-
What happens when undead are destroyed in a turning attempt? ing a readied action until a person with a higher initiative number
Is there a difference between undead destroyed in a regular turning acts, you’re effectively giving up your action so you can go earlier in
attempts and undead destroyed by greater turning? a later round, which is pretty much the same as refocusing. In some
In either case, the creatures’ bodies are destroyed and reduced to dust rare instances, refocus could be better, because it can set your initiative
or ashes. DMs can describe the process any way they like. I suggest an number fairly high, and that could be an advantage if new foes enter the
effect just like the destruction spell: The creature is slain and its remains fight. In general, you’re right though. Refocus is mostly a “feel good”
are consumed by holy fire. option, as in: “I’ve refocused and now look at what a great initiative
number I have!”
Say a rogue attempts to perform a sneak attack on a target and In the game’s cyclical initiative system, it’s almost always to your
the target is flanked and engaged with another character, but aware advantage to act as soon as you can and refocus actually delays your
of the rogue. Does the rogue get the extra damage dice for the sneak action by forcing it into the next round. Using delay or ready is just
4
about always smarter than refocusing. About the only time refocus isn’t If you use a light weapon on your other hand, the attack penalties
a foolish thing to do is when you’ve got absolutely nothing useful to do are slightly lower, see Table 8–2 in the Player’s Handbook (and the text
anyway. accompanying it) for details.

The 2nd Edition AD&D® game had a rule that allowed charac- Does someone who readies a weapon against a charge get his
ters with multiple attacks to attack before foes who were only enti- Strength modifier to attack and damage?
tled to single attacks, but the rule also made them wait to make the Yes. Attacking a charging opponent with a readied weapon is a melee
second and later attacks until their foes had acted at least once. The attack and all the rules for melee attacks apply.
all-out attack action seems to break that rule. Is this correct?
Yes, it is. If you choose the all-out attack action, you make all your Can someone who charges get an attack of opportunity if some-
attacks during your turn, not matter how many attacks you have or what one moves through his threatened area later that round?
your position in the initiative order is. Your multiple attacks do not Yes. Charging imposes an Armor Class penalty, but it doesn’t keep
change your initiative number. you from threatening an area or making attacks of opportunity.
Note that all-out attack does not allow a move (except for a 5-foot
step), which usually means that a character with a high initiative number Can someone who has been tripped or is otherwise prone get an
will not be able to use it until the second round of a combat. attack of opportunity if someone goes through his threatened area?
Just being prone doesn’t prevent you from threatening the area around
How can I get away from someone without them getting an attack you or making attacks of opportunity. Any attacks of opportunity a prone
of opportunity against me? creature makes suffer the –4 attack penalty for being prone.
Once you factor in the effects of skills and spells, the game offers a
plethora of ways to escape unharmed. Even if you don’t have a spell or Can someone take an action and then instead of moving after the
skill to get you out of trouble, you can disengage from an opponent and action go on the ready to move? A typical use for this would the
not receive an opportunity attack just by moving. If all you do during our wizard who gets ready to run away after casting her spell if someone
turn is move (not run), the first 5-foot square you leave is not considered comes after her.
threatened and nobody can get an attack of opportunity against you. If You can ready any partial action. You can’t take a standard action,
you later move through another threatened area, however, you are sub- such as casting a spell, and ready an action (readying is a standard action
ject to attacks of opportunity (if your opponent has reach, forget about all by itself). Note that you can take a move after any standard action, so
getting away with drawing an attack of opportunity). you can cast a spell and move away. So, if you want to get out of Dodge
Even if you take advantage of this rule, you’ll need to have a better after casting a spell, you’ve got to do it right after you finish the spell.
movement rate than your opponent or move someplace where your
opponent can’t follow to get clean away. Can you ready the coup de grace action?
No. A coup de grace is a full round action and you can only ready
If I want to disrupt someone’s spell, do I have to deal damage on partial actions.
the same initiative number as the caster (by using a readied action)
or can I deal damage to the enemy spellcaster anytime during the If a melee attack causes a saving throw every time it damages an
round before the spell is cast? opponent (a monster with a poisonous bite, for example) and the
Damage a spellcaster suffers before his turn doesn’t affect his spell- attack is a confirmed critical hit, are two saves rolled because there
casting unless it come in the form of continuing damage, such as from are two damages rolled?
Melf’s acid arrow (see the Concentration section of Chapter 10 in the A critical hit doesn’t deliver any extra poison; however, there are spe-
Player’s Handbook and the description of the Concentration skill in cial attacks that do have extra effects with critical hits. These include
Chapter 4). You can use a readied action to try and disrupt the spell- energy drains, ability drains, and most kinds of ability damage that are
caster, but you might not need to. Spellcasting provokes an attack of not dealt through poison. See the introduction to the Monster Manual or
opportunity unless the spellcaster successfully casts on the defensive Chapter 3 of the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide.
(see the Magic Actions section of Chapter 8). Perhaps the best way to
disrupt an opponent’s spells is to grapple him. Suppose there’s a combat on a turret or parapet 5 feet above a
lower turret or parapet. What happens when a character makes a
My wizard cast a spell in combat and drew an attack of opportu- 5-foot step off the upper turret, falling 5 feet? Is there an attack of
nity. The attack missed. Does my wizard still have to make a Con- opportunity in there somewhere? Can you withdraw and not take
centration check to cast the spell? an attack of opportunity when vertical movement is involved? Or do
No, the attack of opportunity must hit to force a Concentration you have to “jump” the equivalent of 10 feet to go 5 feet back and 5
check. feet down, thus making the movement more than 5 feet and provok-
ing an attack of opportunity?
If I’m fighting with two weapons and I have multiple attacks (say, I suppose you could call the movement you’ve described a 5-foot step.
two at +6/+1), do I then have three attacks per round or do I use the If the character in question was right at the edge of the drop-off, you
second weapon for the +1 attack? How do I calculate the bonuses could say that he’s moving 1 diagonal to the lower surface (the first diag-
(assuming I don’t have Ambidexterity or Two-Weapon Fighting)? onal you use during a move counts as 5 feet). In this case the character
Do I use the +6 or the +1 for calculating the penalty for the addi- could still attack or take another action and would not provoke an attack
tional attack? of opportunity when withdrawing (because when your only movement is
A second weapon gives you one extra attack each round at your best a 5-foot step, that movement does not provoke an attack of opportunity).
attack bonus. You make your normal number of attacks with your pri- If there was a battlement or something that the character has to step over
mary hand and one attack with your other hand, When you use an extra before dropping down, of if there is more than 5 feet of space between
weapon, however, all the attacks you make suffer a penalty. If you don’t the character and the drop-off, then the move isn’t just a 5-foot step.
have the Two-Weapon Fighting or Ambidexterity feats, all the attacks However, the character still can withdraw from the fight by doing noth-
you make with your primary hand suffer a –6 penalty and the attack you ing except moving (in this case, jumping off the battlement is move-
make with your other hand suffers a –10 penalty. Assuming no other ment). When all you do is move, the first 5-foot area you leave is not
bonuses, the character in your example would make two attacks with her considered threatened.
primary hand at +0/–5 and one attack with her other hand at –6.
5
 I can’t find any rules on a partial charge. I would assume that it is No, negative levels don’t affect a creature’s spell resistance; however,
just a charge at half the speed of normal, but I don’t know where I an attacker’s level check to overcome spell resistance is subject to nega-
can find that information. So what exactly is a partial charge? tive levels. The attacker has accumulated. For example, an 18th-level
A partial charge is a charge you take as a partial action. It works just character with four negative level rolls 1d20+14 to make a level check.
like a regular charge, except that you can only move your speed—not up
to twice your speed as in a regular charge. Most poisons, including the poison spell, cause ability damage
once, and then again around a minute later. Do you have to make the
Is it possible to prepare a partial charge, move, turn, and then second save even if you succeeded the at the first? Is this the general
execute the charge? Do I get a 5-foot step in between my move and rule for poisons—always two saves?
my charge? Can I squeeze an extra 5 feet of movement out of each Yes, always two saves vs. poison; one save when the creature is poi-
round by moving as a partial action, then taking a 5-foot step and soned and one save at the end of the onset time (even if the first save is
attacking as a partial action? successful).
No in all cases. When you charge, all your movement must be in a
straight line (and in the same direction), any movement you make before When you attack with two weapons, how do you figure out the
a partial charge counts against you. attack bonus for the second weapon? The Improved Two-Weapon
You don’t get a move-equivalent action plus a partial action as your Fighting feat gives you two extra attacks with your second weapon.
turn. You get either a standard action (which does not allow a 5-foot How do you figure out the attack bonus for those attacks?
step), a full-move action (which allows a 5-foot step if the action itself An attack with a second weapon uses the wielder’s base attack bonus,
doesn’t include movement), or a partial action (which also allows a plus all applicable modifiers; some penalty for attacking with two weap-
5-foot step if the action doesn’t include movement). ons always applies (see pages 124–125 in the Player’s Handbook).
If you’re using Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, you figure the attack
If character is paralyzed, then recovers during the same encoun- bonus for first attack exactly as for regular two-weapon fighting; the
ter, do you keep the same initiative or roll a new one? attack bonus for the second attack is 5 points less than for the first
If by the “same encounter” you mean the same battle in which the attack.
character was paralyzed, the character keeps the initiative number. The
same is true for a magically held character or a character reduced to Does moving away from an opponent who threatens you (which
negative hit points. The character hasn’t actually left the battle, the char- is a move action) to load a crossbow (which is a move equivalent
acter just did not get to do much when her turns came up. There may be action) provoke an attack of opportunity (assuming you complete
cases when a character really has effectively left the battle. For example, your initial move action in a space that isn’t threatened)? I realize
say a character fails a save against a hold person spell and the rest of the act of loading a light crossbow alone provokes an attack of
the combatants keep moving while fighting, leaving the held character opportunity (assuming someone threatens the loader). I would think
behind. If the held character decided to rejoin the fray after the spell that if a character moves away from a threatened area to load a
wears off, treat her as a new combatant (see New Combatants Enter the crossbow, that character would be taking a double move action and
Fray in Chapter 3 of the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide). not suffer an attack of opportunity.
In this case, you do indeed provoke an attack of opportunity when you
There’s a footnote for the “draw a weapon” action on table 8-4 leave the first threatened space if you move more than 5 feet. Taking
that says you can combine this action with a regular move. Correct a move plus a move-equivalent action is not a double move action;
me if I’m wrong, but I assume that means you can draw your a double move action is moving twice your speed. Move-equivalent
weapon at the same time your character moves. If so, does that actions are so named not because they’re exactly the same as moving,
mean that drawing your weapon becomes a free action and you can but because you can perform then and still do something that you nor-
still make your attack when you reach your destination or does it mally would combine with a move, such as firing the crossbow you have
take the place of your attack? just reloaded.
If you have a base attack of +1, you can move and draw a weapon as
part of that same move action. This lets move, draw, and attack once at If a spellcaster is casting a full-round or longer spell, does she pro-
the end of your move. Note that the draw is technically not a free action; voke an attack of opportunity only when she begins casting or does
it’s a bonus action that you can take as part of your move action, so you anyone who gets near her get an attack of opportunity? What hap-
also could take at least one free action (see Table 8–4) in addition to pens when a new round starts?
moving, drawing, and attacking. Taking the cast spell action while threatened provokes an attack of
opportunity. The character takes that action at the start of the spell’s
Would you also tell me what the restrictions are on a partial casting time, during her turn in the initiative order. Foes who did not
charge? I cannot find the information anywhere. threaten the caster when she took the action don’t get attacks of oppor-
You can make a charge as a partial action (such as when you surprise tunity, even if they subsequently threaten the character. Note, however,
a foe and would like to dash in for a quick attack). See the footnotes to that any damage the caster suffers during the casting time requires a
Table 8–3 in the Player’s Handbook for more information. Concentration check, so that foes who move up an attack can still disrupt
the spell.
Is lowering your spell resistance a free action? If yes, can you
lower it automatically when your ally the priest comes over to you to Suppose a wizard is in melee with a fighter. If the wizard takes
cure you, or should you have done at your last initiative? a move and casts a spell, the fighter gets an attack of opportunity
It’s a standard action (see page 82 of the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide), as the wizard leaves. Would that cause a Concentration roll for the
you must wait until your turn to take a standard action (though you or spell?
your ally can use a prepared action or a delay to deliver a cure spell in a No, because the wizard is not casting the spell when the attack of
timely fashion). opportunity occurred.

Is spell resistance affected by negative levels such as those from an Suppose the fighter in the previous question had readied an action
enervation spell? For example, if I hit a white dragon an with ener- to follow the wizard, could the fighter skip the first attack of oppor-
vation and inflict four negative levels is the dragon’s spell resistance tunity to make one when the wizard actually casts the spell?
now four points lower?
6
 Yes, but note that the wizard could opt to cast defensively and would Magical attacks that fill areas (bursts, cones, cylinders, lines, emana-
not provoke an attack of opportunity if the attempt succeeds. (If the tions, and spreads) are subject to all the rules for cover on page 133 of
attempt failed, the wizard would lose the spell.) the Player’s Handbook. Note that spread effects might be able to reach
around the shield; if so, the shield provides only one half cover.
Is it possible to ready an action as follows: If the wizard casts a
spell, I attack him; if he leaves, I follow. Or is that condition not spe- If a character has a shield (any shield), does the character get the
cific enough? Armor Class bonus from it if surprised or flat-footed?
It’s actually over specific, because you’re really specifying two differ- Being flat-footed doesn’t remove Armor Class bonus from a shield.
ent conditions and two different actions here. The ready action allows
you to specify one partial action and the condition under which you Is a spellcaster who chooses to cast defensively considered to be
will perform the action. You could simply ready an attack on the wizard fighting defensively with a +2 Dodge to AC and a –4 to attack? Does
whenever he casts a spell, and this would allow you to do any number the result of the character’s Concentration check before casting a
of things, including attack, take a 5-foot step and attack, or even make a spell make a difference?
partial charge and attack. In such a case, you would not get an attack of No, and no. To fight defensively, you have to use the full attack action.
opportunity on the wizard when he cast the spell, but you would force a If you cast a spell, you use the cast a spell action.
Concentration check if you damage the wizard.
If I cast a ray spell (ranged touch attack) at a foe who is engaged
I’m a little unclear on how the tower shield works. I assume if in melee with an ally of mine, do I suffer the standard –4 penalty for
you crouch behind it you can get total cover against ranged attacks. firing a ranged weapon into melee?
If you plan to peek around and, say, throw a javelin, how much Yes, and there may an additional attack penalty if the target has cover
cover does it provide against enemy missiles? How much cover does from your ally. If your ally provides cover to your target, the ray could
a tower shield provide against melee attacks? strike your ally (see Striking the Cover Instead of a Missed Target on
The tower shield gives cover against both ranged and melee attacks. It page 133 of the Player’s Handbook).
also can provide cover against spells and other magical attacks—see the
next question. I understand that if an opponent is grappled and pinned that
To determine how effective a tower shield is, you have to know where opponent is not helpless and therefore not subject to a coup de
it is in relation to the character trying to use it, just like any other form of grace. But if that same opponent was rendered unconscious could
cover. If you think of the tower shield user occupying a square, the user you perform a coup de grace as an unarmed attack? If so, what
can place the shield either along one of the square’s sides or at one of the would the damage be?
square’s corners. Placing the shield along a side gives total cover against You are correct, pinned characters are not helpless and are not subject
attacks that come from or through the square across from that side, half to coup de grace. You can use an unarmed attack for a coup. The target
cover from attacks coming from or through squares at the adjacent cor- has to save as noted on page 133 of the Player’s Handbook. Note that
ners, and no cover against attacks coming form anywhere else. you can deal normal damage with an unarmed attack by taking a –4 pen-
The user also can place the shield at a corner of his square at a alty to the attack (you automatically hit during when you deal the coup,
45-degree angle or at a shallower angle. If placed at a 45-degree angle, so the penalty isn’t relevant). If you choose to deal real damage, you’ll
the shield gives total cover against attack coming from or through the eventually kill a helpless foe even if the foe keeps making successful
square at the corner, half cover against attacks coming from or through saving throws.
the squares next to the adjacent sides, and no cover against tacks from
anywhere else. A shallow angle gives total cover at the corner, as Will a character ever die from environmental effects such as heat,
described above, three quarters cover along one side, and quarter cover cold, starvation, or suffocation? These effects deal only subdual
along the other side. damage.
Each round on his turn, the tower shield user decides where to place Once a creature is rendered unconscious by an environmental effect
the shield, and there it stays until the user’s next turn. When the user isn’t , that effect begins dealing normal damage instead of subdual damage.
engaged in combat, he decides where the shields will be as he’s walking The DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide includes this rule for heat and cold (see
around; when combat starts, he cannot change the shield’s location until page 86), but it also applies to thirst, starvation, suffocation, and smoke
his turn. inhalation.
When the shield user attacks, his foes get the same cover that the
shield would give him against them. What are the effects of fighting underwater?
To resolve ranged attacks or melee attacks made with reach, draw a Here’s some rules WotC’s Jonathan Tweet and I cooked up.
line from the center of the attacker’s square to the center of the defend- If you don’t have a swimming speed (or a freedom of movement
er’s square. The defender gets the cover from whatever square the line effect), you suffer a –2 penalty to attacks and damage when underwa-
passes through. If the line passes through more than one square the ter. Any slashing weapon, blunt weapon, claw attack, or tail attack also
shield covers, use the highest cover value. inflicts half damage (subtract the 2 points first, then take half of the rest
and round down). Remember that a successful hit still inflicts at least 1
Will a tower shield protect against dragon’s breath, magical rays, point of damage.
and the like? Can the user automatically make a save against a fire- Even if you have a swimming speed, you inflict half damage with
ball or even take no damage if taking total cover behind the shield? slashing or blunt weapons (but not claws) unless you have a freedom of
It depends on the type of magical attack. The shield is a piece of the movement effect.
user’s equipment and attacking a creature’s equipment is the same as
attacking the creature. Does a stunned character always drop anything he is holding?
If the magical attack has the shield user as a specific target (that is it Yes, stunned creatures drop what they’re holding, as noted the Play-
does not merely affect the area that contains the shield user but is aimed er’s Handbook glossary (page 282).
right at the shield user), the shield has no effect. All rays fall into this
category, as does any spell that has a Target entry in its header and any Is it possible to flank an opponent when you’re using a reach
spell that has an Effect entry and affects creatures (provided, of course, weapon, such as a halberd, from more that 5 feet away? What about
that the attacker can and does choose the shield user as a target). with ranged weapons?
7
 You can flank any opponent within melee reach, even if you use a limbs as primary weapons and the bite as a secondary, even when the
reach weapon to put the foe within reach. If you’re out of melee reach bite deals more damage. Creatures are usually much more adroit with
and you have a ranged weapon, you cannot flank an opponent. their claws than with their mouths.
Natural weapons don’t give creatures multiple attacks for similar rea-
Can you attack through an ally’s square with a reach weapon? sons. A bear or a lion doesn’t make a series of quick nips with its mouth;
Would the target have cover? Could you hit your ally? it chomps down hard and tears. Also, natural weapons aren’t as quick or
You can attack through another creature’s square with a reach weapon. as handy as manufactured weapons, so they can’t get a high attack rate.
It doesn’t make a difference if it’s ally or foe. Your target gets cover from It’s not hard to imagine a high-level fighter making multiple swings with
the intervening creature. If the intervening creature and the target are a sword in the course of a six-second melee round, but it would be pretty
the same size, the target has 50% cover (+4 to AC) and is not subject to wild to see a dragon the size of a freight train snapping away like some
attacks of opportunity from you. If you miss, there is no chance that you kind of scaly buzzsaw.
will strike the intervening creature.
In my gaming group we have come across the slam ability that is
When firing a ranged weapon, does the –4 attack penalty for firing used by monsters, but we have not been able to find in print what
into a melee apply when only one combatant can make melee attacks exactly a slam is. We assume that it is a attack with enough force
due to differing melee reach? For example, if an ogre (10-foot reach) that can knock someone down. If that is the case, what is the typical
is fighting a human (5-foot reach) that is 10-foot away, and an elf DC of a slam attack?
fires an arrow at the ogre, is that firing into a melee? If no, then It’s a blunt attack, like a punch or slap (see page 7 in the Monster
what if the human was using a longspear? Would natural reach be Manual). A slam attack doesn’t imply any sort of ability to knock down
handled differently than reach from a weapon? opponents. If a creature has such an ability, it will be noted in the combat
If your target is at east 10 feet away from its nearest melee opponent, section of the creature’s description.
you don’t suffer the –4 attack penalty (see page 124 of the Player’s
Handbook). Do piercing weapons cause one-half damage or no damage to
skeletons? The Player’s Handbook indicates the latter, but the Mon-
If a character charges a foe who has a reach weapon (such as a ster Manual indicates the former, as do some modules.
longspear) set to receive a charge, does the creature receiving the Skeletons take half damage from piercing or slashing weapons.
charge get an attack of opportunity? Does the character with the
spear get to attack for being set to receive a charge and get an Since any giant is much larger than human (from 10 feet to 20 feet
attack of opportunity before the charging character gets to make taller) and its base speed is higher, when a giant takes a “5-foot step”
his attack? What about a creature with reach who has prepared to how far does it move?
receive a charge? Five feet. When a creature takes a 5-foot step, it moves 5 feet, regard-
Preparing an action doesn’t affect who you threaten or impair your less of its size or speed, hence the maneuver’s name.
ability to make attacks of opportunity. If a character with a reach weapon
(or creature with natural reach) prepares an attack, the creature makes My monk recently got lucky and inflicted a stunning blow on a
the prepared attack when the first foe comes within reach. If the foe pesky displacer beast. On my next turn I went into full coup de
survives the prepared attack and leaves the 5-foot square where the pre- grace mode on the creature. My DM ruled that even though a coup
pared attack was delivered, it draws an attack of opportunity from the de grace hits automatically, I still needed to roll to see if I hit the
creature because it’s leaving a threatened space. creature because its displacement was still in effect. Was that right?
The DM is always right. Your DM, however, seems like a much more
How do attacks work for monsters with two primary attacks, generous individual than myself. First, a stunning attack from a monk
such as a bear? The first attack listed is supposed to be the primary leaves the creature stunned for one round. By the time it was your turn
and the bear’s first is 2 claws +6 melee. The secondary attack as the again, the displacer beast wouldn’t have been stunned anymore. Second,
bite +1 melee. Are the two claw attacks rolled as a single attack at stunned creatures aren’t helpless; they can’t take any actions and they
+6, or is it two rolls for the two claws, each at +6? If it’s two attacks, lose their Dexterity bonus to AC (which makes them subject to sneak
then does the bear need to use the full attack action to get both claw attacks), but they are not subject to coups.
attacks? Also, why are both claws at +6, and not +6 and +1? Why Finally, a coup de grace requires a fairly precise hit (that’s why it takes
don’t monsters get multiple attacks like characters do? a full-round action to do it), so I wouldn’t allow a coup against any crea-
The basics of monster attacks are explained in the Attacks section of ture that has concealment or that imposes a miss chance on the attacker,
the introduction to the Monster Manual (page 7). A bear, or any other just as with a sneak attack (see pages 47 and 48 in the Player’s Hand-
creature, has to use the full attack action to get more than one attack in a book).
round (hydras are an exception). A bear has two primary natural weap- Your DM was completely right on one count: a live displacer beast is
ons — both claws. If the bear uses the full attack action, roll two claw displaced, even if unconscious, otherwise helpless, or stunned.
attacks, each at +6, and one bite attack at +1. If both claws were part of
a single attack, the attack entry would read “claws +6 melee” as they do The introduction to the Monster Manual says a creature with the
for the raven (see page 201 of the Monster Manual). improved grab ability can take a –20 penalty to grappling checks
Both claws have a +6 attack bonus because both claws are primary to avoid being treated as grappled and so keep its Dexterity bonus
weapons. Natural weaponry does not follow the same rules as manu- to Armor Class and continue to threaten the area around it, among
factured weaponry. First, creatures with multiple natural weapons are other benefits. How long does the –20 penalty last? And how long is
generally hardwired to use all of them simultaneously (as opposed to a the creature not considered grappled?
human, who has no natural weaponry at all and doesn’t fight well with- Any creature can opt to take –20 on a grapple check to avoid the more
out special training). unpleasant aspects of grappling (such as losing your Dexterity bonus
A creature is assigned primary and secondary attacks that reflect its and being subject to sneak attacks from rogues), not just creatures with
natural ability and style fighting. Consider a giant octopus lashing with the improved grab ability.
all eight tentacles. An octopus doesn’t have a one primary tentacle and Once you decide to take the –20 penalty, the penalty applies to all
seven “off” tentacles. It does have a secondary attack: a bite. Note that grapple checks you make until your next turn. Should you succeed at
most creatures that have clawed limbs and a bite usually have all their a grapple check and actually establish a hold on an opponent despite
8
the penalty, you are not considered grappled (if you fail to establish a time the item was made, and no lower than the minimum level required
hold, you wouldn’t be grappling in any case, unless someone grabbed to cast the spell effect the item generates or the spell used to create the
and held you). On your next turn, you can stop taking the –20 penalty item.
(which could help you maintain your hold or pin your opponent), but if The DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide has default caster levels for magic
you do, you are considered grappled until it’s your turn again, at which items. Until then, just assume that an item’s caster level is the minimum
point you can either let go or start taking the penalty again. required to cast the effect the item generates, plus 1. For example a fire-
ball requires a 5th-level wizard, so a fireball from a wand is cast at 6th
Exactly how and when does a creature with the improved grab level. Note that the 2nd Edition AD&D game used preset caster levels
ability deal damage to an opponent? The material at the beginning for all magic items, if you’re converting from that set of rules to the new
of the Monster Manual doesn’t seem to match the material in the rules, use the old caster levels. Those caster levels are as follows: Wand
various monster descriptions. How does the constrict ability affect a 6th-level; staff 8th-level; potion 12th-level; other item 12th-level; arti-
creature’s ability to deal damage while grappling? fact DM’s discretion, usually 20th-level.
Improved grab lets you attempt to grapple a foe after you have made
a successful melee attack with a natural weapon, which is usually either If my character has a robe of the archmagi and is in the area of
a claw or a tentacle (the creature description says which natural weapon effect of a holy aura spell, does my character now have a 42 spell
can be used for improved grabs). On the first round of grappling, the resistance?
grabbing creature inflicts damage normally with a successful melee hit. No. The general rule against stacking similar effects applies here; the
If the creature then decides to grab and it wins the ensuing grapple check character gets only the best spell resistance. Against most effects, the
(see page 137 in the Player’s Handbook for the grappling procedure), it character uses the spell resistance of 17 that the robe of the archmagi
inflicts no extra damage unless it also has the constrict ability. If it can provides. Against evil spells or effects from evil opponents, the character
constrict, it inflicts constriction damage when it wins the grapple check. uses the spell resistance of 25 that the holy aura spell provides.
If the creature begins its turn with an opponent in its grasp, the crea-
ture can just hold on or it can attempt another grappling check. If it Do I have to roll three times when attacking with three shuriken,
elects to grapple again and it succeeds, the natural weapon the attacker or just once? If I have to roll three times, are there penalties on the
used in the improved grab inflicts normal damage on the opponent. If the second and third attacks? If I only have to roll once, is there any
attacker also has the constriction ability, it inflicts constriction damage reason why I would throw fewer than three shuriken?
in addition to natural weapon damage. When you throw three shuriken, make a separate attack roll for each,
even though it counts as one attack. There’s no attack penalty for the
How does the swallow whole ability work? Can a creature with extra two shuriken.
this ability try to swallow someone immediately after biting? The
Monster Manual says a swallowed creature can cut its way out with Can a rogue sneak attack with three shuriken if he is within 30
a Tiny or Small slashing weapon. What happens if the creature is feet of a target? If each hits, does each gain the sneak attack bonus?
Large? Can it use a bigger weapon? A short sword is a piercing You apply sneak attack damage only once per attack. If you use one
weapon, but it is a sword. Can you cut your way out with a short attack to throw three shuriken, you get to apply sneak attack bonus
sword? damage only once. Sneak attack damage—and a ranger’s favored enemy
A creature with the swallow whole ability must first grab a foe with bonus damage—apply only to one of three shuriken that you throw. You
its mouth. On the first round it bites and inflicts bite damage, then tries do not have enough precision with the extra shuriken to get bonus sneak
to grab its prey as noted in the answer to the previous question. On the attack or favored enemy damage.
creature’s next turn, it can attempt to grapple again. If it succeeds, it
inflicts bite damage and swallows the foe. Mighty bows give a Strength bonus to damage, but what happens
Being swallowed has various consequences, depending on the crea- when a character with insufficient Strength tries to use one? Can the
ture doing the swallowing, but a swallowed creature is considered grap- character use the bow without a damage bonus? Can the character
pled, while the creature that did the swallowing is not. A swallowed even draw the bow? What about stringing the bow? Can a person
creature can try to cut its way free with any light piercing or slashing without sufficient Strength to use a mighty bow even string it?
weapon, or it can just try to escape the grapple. If the swallowed creature For any bow, you apply your Strength modifier to bow damage or you
chooses the latter course, success puts it back in the attacker’s mouth, apply the bow’s maximum Strength, whichever is lower. A normal bow
where it may be bitten or swallowed again. is effectively a mighty bow (Strength 10). Individual DMs who recall the
tale of Ulysses vs. Penelope’s suitors might wish to implement a house

Equipment and Magic Items

rule that limits a weak character’s ability to string or fire a mighty bow,
but there is no official rule that keeps weak characters from stringing or
Do magic weapons have to be masterwork weapons first? If so, why using mighty bows.
don’t the masterwork and magic bonuses stack?
Yes, you have to have a masterwork weapon before you can enchant If you use only one end of a double weapon, but you use it in
it. Masterwork and enhancement bonuses don’t stack because they’re two hands, do you get one and a half times your Strength bonus to
the same basic type of bonus; they both make a weapon handier and damage like you get for a normal weapon used in two hands?
more effective. Yes. Note, however, that if you’re in the habit of always using a
double weapon in this fashion you’re better off just using a two-handed
Can a normal weapon be used for awhile, then be made into a weapon.
masterwork weapon?
No. I suppose a used weapon could be taken apart and melted down to The rules say you can use a double weapon as if fighting with
provide materials for a new masterwork weapon though. The resulting two weapons. It does not clearly state whether or not Two Weapon
masterwork weapon would not be any cheaper to make. Fighting and Ambidexterity bonuses apply to these weapons. Could
you please clarify this for me.
At what caster level do potions, wands, and the like operate? They do. Using both ends of a double weapon works exactly like
At whatever caster level the character who made the item decided to fighting with a one-handed weapon in your primary hand and a light
set. An item’s caster level can be no higher than its creator’s level at the weapon in your off hand (see Double Weapons on page 125 in the Play-
er’s Handbook).
9
 Do you have to actively wield a weapon of defending to use its Just what does a Small character have to do to use a bastard
power? Or could you hold a longsword of defending in your left sword? I have gotten the impression that a halfling can use a bastard
hand, not use it to attack (so you are not actually using the two sword as a two-handed weapon provided that she has a Strength
weapons) and still wield a sword in your right hand without penal- score of 13 or better and she takes Exotic Weapon Proficiency (bas-
ties? Or is the defending bonus considered part of the normal par- tard sword). Correct?
rying that happens in the background? There is no Strength requirement to use a bastard sword. A bastard
Using a weapon of defending works just like the Expertise feat (you sword is a Medium-Size weapon. It follows all the rules for Medium-
have to use an attack or full attack action, see previous question). You Size weapons, except that a Medium-Size creature wielding the sword
can’t use the weapon like a shield; if you hold the weapon in your off in one hand suffers a –4 attack penalty with it unless she has Exotic
hand and claim a AC bonus for it, you suffer all the penalties for fighting Weapon Proficiency (bastard sword). A Small creature using the sword
with two weapons, even if you don’t actually attack with the weapon. in two hands is just like a Medium-Size creature wielding it in one hand.
So, your halfling (or gnome) suffers a –4 attack penalty when using
I’ve noticed in the new DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide that a ring of the sword two-handed and suffers no attack penalty if she has Exotic
regeneration can regenerate lost body parts or organs, but it does Weapon Proficiency (Bastard sword) and uses two hands; because the
not specifically say it brings the wearer back from the dead. The sword is Medium-Size, a Small character cannot use it one-handed.
description does say that the ring can regenerate any organ or body
part, so presumably it could regenerate the wearer’s head or heart. The illustration of the repeating crossbow on page 101 of the
If it can do that, why can’t it bring the wearer back from the dead? Player’s Handbook seems to indicate that this weapon can only
The ring only works for a living wearer (see the first line of the item be fired with two hands, but there’s no mention of this in the weap-
description). The ring can regenerate a head or heart, but only if the on’s description on the opposite page. Does the repeating crossbow
wearer is still living after losing the head or heart (for example, a multi- require two hands to use? Are there circumstances under which it
headed creature could survive the loss of a single head). can be fired in one hand, as with all other crossbows?
You can shoot a repeating crossbow one handed, once, just like a light
The whip is considered a ranged weapon. As far as I can tell, that crossbow. You need two hands to hold the repeating crossbow and pull
means that striking with a whip provokes an attack of opportunity! reloading lever, and you need two hands to load a new case of bolts into
Surely that’s not correct? I have a hard time believing that swinging the crossbow.
a whip opens up my defenses that much more than, say, swinging
a spiked chain. That also means that a whip wielder can’t use the The description of the shuriken in the Player’s Handbook says you
whip (as an attack or opportunity) to trip that orc when it tries to can’t apply your Strength bonus to shuriken damage. Can you use
run past. the +2 damage bonus from specialization if you’re specialized with
Using a whip indeed provokes an attack of opportunity. It takes more shuriken?
time and effort to crank up a whip attack than it does to, say, pull a cross- Yes, you can apply the damage bonus for weapon specialization in
bow trigger. (With the exception of the sling, most ranged weapons are shuriken, but only if the target is within 30 feet. Only the first shuriken
a tad handier and quicker than a whip more than 15 feet long.) A spiked you throw in an attack gets the bonus damage. As “Sage Advice” noted
chain is a melee weapon and considerably less ponderous that a whip in issue #276, only one of shuriken thrown in an attack has any real
(mostly because it’s much shorter). degree on precision, the other one or two are just along for the ride.
No, you can’t make an attack of opportunity with a whip, but you
could prepare a whip attack or delay attacking until a foe comes within Is the throwing rate for throwing shurikens always 3 shuriken a
range. round, or is that 3 per normal attack? (So if you have 3 attacks, you
can actually throw 9 shuriken?)
The descriptions for light and heavy crossbows in the Player’s You throw 3 shuriken as a single attack. If you’re allowed more than
Handbook say a character can fire one of them with each hand. The one attack each round you could throw more than three shuriken; how-
hand crossbow description, however, makes no mention of such an ever, unless you have the Quick Draw feat, you’ll need an action to draw
action. Is this penalty the same for hand crossbows, or is such an more shuriken and one attack is all you’ll get.
action implicitly prohibited (which seems extremely odd)?
Heavy and light crossbows are two-handed weapons that can be fired The bead of karma from the necklace of prayer beads allows divine
(but not loaded) with one hand at an extra penalty (–4), provided the spells to be cast at +4 caster level and the effect lasts 10 minutes.
wielder is of sufficient size. Firing off a crossbow in each hand is even How does this work, exactly? How do you tell when the 10 minutes
more difficult (–6 for the primary hand and –10 for the off hand, or –6 starts? Also does this mean spells with durations longer than 10
for each hand if the shooter has Ambidexterity). The hand crossbow is a minutes lose the +4 bonus after the 10 minutes is up? What about
one-handed weapon and there is no penalty for using a hand crossbow in spells cast into spell storing items during the 10 minutes, do they get
one hand. Note that since a hand crossbow is Tiny, a Diminutive creature the effect once the 10 minutes is over?
would need two hands to use it. In such a case, treat one-handed use just A bead of karma is activated with a command word. You use an action
like a light crossbow used one-handed. to activate the item, and for the next 10 minutes any divine spell you
Small or Medium-size characters can fire a hand crossbow from each cast functions at +4 caster level. Any aspect of the spell that depends
hand according to the normal rules for attacking with two-weapons, usu- on caster level (usually range, duration, damage, or any combination of
ally the shooter will suffer –4 for the primary hand and –8 for the off the three) increases accordingly. An affected spell gets the benefit for its
hand (–4/–4 with Ambidexterity), see pages 124–125 in the Player’s entire duration, even if that duration is more than 10 minutes.
Handbook. Note that the Two-Weapon Fighting feat is for melee and Storing a spell is not the same as casting it for purposes of using the
does not reduce the penalties for using two ranged weapons. bead, and the spell is stored at your regular caster level. Spell effects you
cast from a device are not affected by the bead, even if you stored them
The Player’s Handbook says it takes 1 day to scribe a scroll per yourself while the bead was functioning.
1,000 gp of the scroll’s market price. Since the price for a scroll is
caster level times spell level times 25 gp, a 1st-level spell scribed on a For magic items that store spells (scrolls, potions, runes, wands),
scroll only costs 25 gp. How long does it take to scribe the scroll? I assume the spell’s saving throw DC is determined by the caster’s
The minimum time to create any magic item is one day; see page 242 relevant ability score (Wisdom, Intelligence, or Charisma), and feats
in the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide. such as Spell Focus, provided that the person who made the item
10
is also the person using the item. What happens if the item creator number of missiles. A spell such as sleep, on the other hand, truly affects
is different from item user? Also, is it possible for characters other a variable number of targets, 2d4 HD worth of creatures. An empowered
than the item creator to provide a spell for an item. How is the sleep spell affects 2d4×1.5 HD worth of creatures.
saving throw DC for the spell determined then?
The saving throw DC for any spell effect generated from a magic The description for the Enlarge Spell feat says an enlarged spell
item is equal to 10 + 1.5 times the spell level, rounded down (see has its range doubled. The description also says that a spell whose
Saving Throws Against Magic Item Powers on page 176 of the DUNGEON area or effect is determined by its range (such as bless or a cone
MASTER’s Guide). This applies no matter who makes them item and no spell) has the dimensions of its area or effect increased proportion-
matter who uses the item. ally. The lightning bolt spell has a range of 100 feet + 10 feet per
caster level if it is 5 feet wide. If the area is 10 feet wide, the range
Does magic armor reduce the chance for spell failure? Does it is 50 feet + 5 feet per level. If a 6th-level wizard throws an enlarged
weigh the same as nonmagic armor? Does it encumber as much? lightning bolt that is 10 feet wide, is the bolt produced 10 feet wide
Being magical doesn’t reduce armor’s arcane spell failure chance, by 160 feet long or 20 feet wide by 160 feet long? What happens
weight, or encumbrance. Note, however, that magic armor is master- when you use Empower Spell feat on a lightning bolt? Empower
work, which reduces the armor’s check penalty by 1; see page 113 in the Spell increases all variable, by one-half. So how wide and long is an
Player’s Handbook. empowered lightning bolt?
The width the caster chooses determines a lightning bolt’s range. If
Does the magical armor bonus provided by the mage armor spell the lightning bolt is enlarged, it has double the range, but the width
or bracers of armor stack with nonmagic armor? Would they stack remains unchanged. So, if a 7th-level wizard casts a enlarged lightning
with each other? Would they stack with magic armor? Would it bolt that is 10 feet wide, the lightning bolt’s range would be 170 feet (5
stack with a magic or nonmagic shield? Why or why not? In the pre- feet×7=35 feet + 50 feet base range=85 feet, doubled to 170 feet). If the
vious edition of the game, the mage armor spell description specifi- same caster chose a 5-foot bolt, its range would be 340 feet. Note that a
cally said the spell didn’t stack with armor or other defensive spells. 6th-level wizard could not cast an enlarged lightning bolt, because doing
Why doesn’t the current version of the spell so state? so would require a 7th-level spell slot and a 6th-level wizard doesn’t
Because it doesn’t have to. A mage armor spell provides an armor have one of those.
bonus, as do bracers of armor. Two armor bonuses do not stack, so a The Empower Spell feat only affects randomly variable aspects of a
mage armor spell does not stack with bracers of armor. Nor will a mage spell (see the second to the last line of the feat description). A lightning
armor spell or bracers of armor stack with a shield, which also provides bolt’s range is configurable, but not “variable” for purposes of Empower
an armor bonus. Note that the armor bonus from a shield stacks with the Spell. A lightning bolt’s damage is “variable,” and an empowered light-
armor bonus from a suit of armor you wear, but that’s a special property ning bolt inflicts 1.5 times damage (apply the multiplier before rolling
of shields and an exception to the stacking rule. Neither the mage armor saving throws).
spell nor bracers of armor are suits of armor, so the armor bonus from a
shield does not stack with either of them. Can characters apply the Improved Critical feat to unarmed
strike?
How many characters can fit inside the barrier generated by a Yes, an unarmed strike or other natural weapon is a “weapon” for pur-
cube of force? Is the barrier centered on the character who activated poses of the Improved Critical feat (and for most other purposes).
the cube, or does the cube user just have to be somewhere inside the
barrier? Why would a fighter ever take the Quick Draw feat?
The barrier is a 10-foot cube, so four Medium-size or Small charac- So he can draw a weapon quickly. Actually, this feat is particularly
ters will fit inside in most circumstances. Each such character takes up a useful to fighters of 6th level or higher because the feat makes drawing
space 5feet square, at least when they are moving or fighting (see Table a weapon a free action. That means the fighter can draw a weapon and
8–7 in the Player’s Handbook). still use the full attack action.
If you’re not using a grid and miniature figures, the cube of force user
is at the center of the effect, and the user’s allies simply crowd around. If you successfully trip an opponent during an overrun, do you get
If you are using a grid and miniature figures, the effect is 2 squares long a free attack if you have the Improved Trip feat?
and two squares wide, and the center is any corner of the square where No. The Improved Trip feat gives you a free attack only if you use
the cube of force user stands (the cube user picks the corner). a melee attack to trip a foe and you succeed (in effect this replaces the
attack you used to make the trip with an attack that can deal damage).
The description for dust of appearance says when you throw a When you’re overrunning, you’re making a trip as part of the move por-
handful of the dust into the air, you coat nearby objects and crea- tion of a charge, not as a melee attack. You can, however, end your
tures with the dust, just like a glitterdust spell (a 10-foot spread). charge and use your normal attack against an opponent you’ve knocked
Does dust of disappearance work the same way? down during an overrun.
No. One application of dust of disappearance coats one Small or
Medium-size creature. One application can cover two Tiny, four Dimin- If I have Martial weapon Proficiency, Weapon Focus, or Weapon
utive, or eight Fine creatures. It takes two applications of dust of disap- Specialization with a longbow, can I also use a composite longbow?
pearance to cover a Large creature, four applications to cover a Huge Officially, any weapon that gets its own entry in Table 7—4: Weapons
creature, eight applications to cover a Gargantuan creature, and 16 appli- in the Player’s Handbook requires a separate proficiency, focus, or spe-
cations to cover a Colossal creature. cialization. For example, the game has four kinds of bows: shortbows,
composite shortbows, longbows, and composite longbows. Individual

Feats
DMs might want to experiment with weapon groups, but such house
rules are appropriate only for proficiency, not focus or specialization.
Since an empowered spell affects half again as many targets as its
normal version, why doesn’t a 5th-level wizard’s empowered magic All the item creation feats have prerequisites of “x spellcaster
missile fire off more than three missiles? level”. Do spellcaster levels from different spellcasting classes stack?
Because the Empower Spell feat increase a spell’s variable, numeric In other words, is a Wiz4/Sor4 an 8th level or 4th level spellcaster?
effects. In the case of magic missile, that’s the spell’s damage, not the Spellcasting levels don’t stack; if a prerequisite is x spellcaster level
you need x levels in a spellcasting class to meet the prerequisite.
11
 Say an 11th-level wizard has an Intelligence of 15. Can the wizard vide dodge bonuses to Armor Class. Dodge bonuses, unlike most other
prepare a teleport spell (5th-level spell) enhanced with the Silent bonuses in the game, stack (see page 119 in the Player’s Handbook). If
Spell metamagic feat and thus use a 6th-level spell slot that the char- the character in the previous example decided to fight defensively, she
acter (thanks to low Intelligence) could not use to prepare a 6th-level would add another +2 bonus to Armor Class (for a total of +4) and an
spell? extra –4 attack penalty, which would reduce her attacks to +1/–4 and
Using a metamagic feat makes the spell occupy a spell slot of +1. The combination of Expertise and defensive fighting isn’t very effi-
higher level, but it does not actually change the spell’s level (except cient.
for Heighten Spell, which does increase the spell’s level). So long as If the character in the example also had 5 or more ranks in the Tumble
the wizard in question has enough Intelligence to cast the spell at its skill, her dodge bonus from fighting defensively would be +3 instead of
actual level (15 for the 5th-level teleport spell) the character can cast the +2, and her total Armor Class bonus would be +5.
metamagic spell. Note that the character doesn’t have to use metamagic Since Expertise is not the same as fighting defensively, your Tumble
to use the 6th-level spell slot; the character can simply prepare any lower ranks don’t help you when you use Expertise without also fighting
level spell in the slot. defensively.

Do I have to make an attack in order to use the Expertise feat to Can you use the Weapon Finesse feat while fighting with two
improve my Armor Class? weapons? If so, can both weapons benefit from the feat (provided, of
No, you don’t have to attack, but you do have to choose the attack course, the feats were taken as needed)? The text seems to indicate a
or full attack action. That is, you can declare an attack or full attack, free hand is needed for balance. But then it turns around and gives
claim the AC bonus, and then not make the attacks to which you are a specific penalty for having a shield in the hand.
entitled. You cannot use Expertise with the total defense action (or any Yes, you can use Weapon Finesse when fighting with two weapons.
other action except attack or full attack). If you have Weapon Finesse with both weapons, you get the benefit for
both weapons.
Does the Armor Class bonus from Expertise apply to the whole A shield throws you off balance when fighting with Weapon Finesse
round, or just from the moment when I start swinging? For exam- (you have to apply the shield’s check penalty to your attack rolls). Weap-
ple, I want to use a standard action to run past some bugbears and ons don’t have check penalties and don’t interfere with Weapon Finesse.
hit the goblin shaman behind. Can I apply the Expertise bonus to Of course, if one of your weapons is a shield (such as a spiked buckler),
the bugbears’ opportunity attacks? then you’ll suffer the shield’s armor check penalty to all your attacks—
The AC bonus—and the attack penalty—applies from the moment even the ones you make with the shield.
you use it (on your turn), until it’s your turn again. Suppose the character Some DMs may want to use a house rule that imposes a check pen-
in the example above chooses to allocate 3 points of attack bonus to AC; alty for holding something really heavy in your off hand, say –1 per five
the character gets a +3 AC bonus against the bugbears’ attacks of oppor- pounds.
tunity and suffers a –3 attack penalty against the bugbear shaman. If the
bugbear shaman chooses to cast a spell later in the round (before it’s The description for the Spring Attack feat says the attacker’s
the character’s turn to act again) and provokes an attack of opportunity movement during a springing attack does not provoke an attack
from the character, the character also suffers a –3 penalty to the attack of opportunity from the defender. Does this mean a character with
of opportunity. Spring Attack can disregard the problems associated with approach-
ing and attacking an opponent with reach? This could be a huge
My group’s having some difficulty with the Expertise feat. What benefit. Does the Spring Attack feat help you run away? Or must
happens when you use Expertise along with Two-Weapon Fighting? you move both before and after your attack to avoid attacks of
Do you get the Armor Class bonus from Expertise once for each opportunity?
weapon? Once for each attack? What if you use the total defense When you use Spring Attack to attack a foe, your movement during
option or the fight defensively option? (Or is Expertise just another your turn does not provoke attacks of opportunity from that foe, even if
way of fighting defensively?) If you have five or more ranks in the your movement takes you through several squares the foe threatens (as
Tumble skill, you get a bonus to defensive fighting or total defense. would be the case for an opponent with reach).
How does that work with Expertise? When or how often you move during your turn is irrelevant, but you
Any attack bonus you devote to defense with the Expertise feat (up to must make an attack to get the benefit. Only the opponent you attack
your base attack bonus or +5, whichever is lower) applies as a penalty to becomes unable to respond to your movement with an attack of oppor-
all the attacks you make until it’s your turn again—including attacks of tunity; that opponent’s allies suffer no such restriction.
opportunity. You get the defense bonus only once, no matter how many
attacks you make or how many weapons you use (it, too, remains until When a sorcerer or bard uses a metamagic feat, it requires a
it’s your turn again). For example, a 9th-level fighter with a base attack full round action, or an extra full round action of the spell already
bonus of +9/+4 has Expertise, Two-Weapon Fighting, and Ambidexter- required a full round action. However, what if a bard or sorcerer
ity. If the character uses a light weapon in her off hand, she’ll get 3 used two or more metamagic feats on a single spell? Does the delay
attacks, each at a –2 penalty: +7/+2 with her primary hand and an extra keep stacking and make the spell go off several rounds later, or is
attack with her off hand at +7 . If the character claims a +2 bonus to this penalty for any number of metamagic feats used in a round?
Armor Class from Expertise, her attack bonuses become +5/+0 and +5. No, the delay is for one or more metamagic feats applied to a single
As “Sage Advice” has pointed out before, you can’t use Expertise and spell, not for each metamagic feat applied to a spell.
total defense at the same time. (You can use Expertise only as part of the
full attack or attack actions.) Do the Whirlwind Attack and Cleave feats stack? For example,
You can fight defensively only when you use the full attack action or can I use Cleave to get extra attacks if a Whirlwind Attack kills one
attack action (see page 124 of the Player’s Handbook), but if you do, of my targets?
you can use Expertise along with it. (Because fighting defensively is You can Cleave only once a round. If you have the Great Cleave feat,
mentioned in the Expertise feat description on page 82 of the Player’s however, you can cleave each time you drop an opponent, even when
Handbook, some people think Expertise is just a better way of fighting the opponent drops in a Whirlwind Attack. (When a foe drops, resolve
defensively, but that’s not true). When you use Expertise and defensive the extra cleave attack before finishing the rest of the attack rolls in the
fighting together, you simply add up all the Armor Class bonuses and Whirlwind Attacks).
attack penalties. Note that both Expertise and defensive fighting pro-
12
 Does the Extra Turning feat work for a neutral or evil cleric who ating magic items and the cost for doing so, see pages 241–246 in the
has the power to rebuke undead? DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide.
Yes, clerics who rebuke undead can use the Extra Turning to gain four
more uses of the rebuke power each day. Note that true neutral clerics Does a quickened spell still require the components it usually does
either turn or rebuke undead; they cannot have it both ways. For exam- (verbal, somatic, and material )? For example, can a silenced or
ple, a true neutral cleric who has chosen to rebuke undead can choose grappled wizard still cast a quickened dispel magic?
the Extra Turning feat to gain four extra uses of the rebuke power each Quicken Spell makes a spell quick; you still need all the components
day, but he cannot use Extra Turning to get four uses of the turn power. normally required for a quickened spell. If you want help casting spells
while grappled, you need Still Spell. If you want help casting spells
If a cleric with an elemental domain or the plant domain takes the while silenced, you need Silent Spell.
Extra Turning feat, does the feat add to all turnings and rebukings?
The rule is pretty clear; the Extra Turning feat applies to turning Does casting a quickened spell provoke an attack of opportunity?
undead (see pages 32 and page 42), not to other kinds of turning. Can a counterattack or counterspell be readied against a quickened
That said, there’s no compelling reason to limit Extra Turning to undead. spell or is it too quick to identify or counter?
I recommend that DMs allow characters to apply the Extra Turning to A quickened spell still provokes an attack of opportunity (but you can
other types of turning. Each time you take Extra Turning, you apply it to cast a quickened spell defensively). A quickened spell can be counter-
either undead, or to another kind of turning your character can perform. spelled using the normal rules.
You don’t increase both by picking the feat once. If you have the Sun

Miscellaneous
domain, any turning successful attempts you make against undead still
destroy those undead.
We’ve noticed a number of times where you can divide a number
How many attacks would a character with the Whirlwind Attack and round the quotient up or down, but the rules doesn’t say what
feat get if she were attacking with two weapons? What if she has to do. Is there a general rule that we’ve overlooked?
Ambidexterity and Two-Weapon Fighting? What if she also as Indeed there is. You’ll find it on the first page of the glossary (page
Improved Two-Weapon Fighting? 275) in the Player’s Handbook. Always round a fraction down (even if it
If you don’t have Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, you get one attack is bigger than one half) unless the rules tell you to round up.
against every foe within 5 feet, plus one attack for the second weapon.
The Ambidexterity and Two-Weapon Fighting feats reduce your penal- If you go from a medium load to a heavy load, your movement
ties, but they don’t give you any extra attacks. doesn’t change. Why is this—everything else changes?
If you have Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, you get one attack Because a really heavy load just doesn’t affect your speed that much.
against every foe within 5 feet, plus two attacks with the second If will affect your ability to accelerate, maneuver, or stop, which is why
weapon. the heavily loaded creature’s maximum Dexterity bonus goes down and
In either case, must use your primary hand for the Whirlwind Attack its check penalty goes up. Essentially, the creature can lumber along at a
(though you can decide which weapon will be “primary”). Note that pretty good clip once it gets going.
your two-weapon attack penalties apply to every attack you make during
the Whirlwind Attack. Is a natural “20” always a hit and natural “1” always a miss
when using weapons? Is a natural “20” always a success and natu-
First, suppose I don’t have Ambidexterity, and I attack with my ral “1” always a failure when rolling a saving throw? Is a natural
off hand. Do I lose half my Strength bonus to my attack roll and “20”always a success and natural “1” always a failure when rolling
my damage roll, or just my damage roll? Second, please tell me that an ability check or a skill check?
Ambidexterity negates the damage penalty for off-hand attacks. If On an attack roll or a saving throw, a roll of “20” on the die is always
not, why not? a success and a roll of “1” is always a failure. This represents the inher-
Your full Strength bonus applies to off-hand melee attack rolls, only ently chancy nature of combat; it hs innumerable variables that are com-
your damage bonus is reduced for the off hand. pletely beyond the acting character’s control. In the case of attack rolls,
Your damage bonus from Strength is always reduced with your off common sense must prevail. A roll of “20” cannot produce a hit when
hand, even if you have the Ambidexterity feat. Ambidexterity negates a hit is not possible (such as when a target is beyond the attacker’s
the penalties for making off-hand attack, but the damage reduction is melee reach or beyond a ranged attack’s maximum range). Some cir-
not a “penalty,” it’s a rule that governs how Strength bonus to damage cumstances always produce a hit or a miss no matter what the attack roll
works. If you use two hands to attack, you get one and half times you is. For example, an attack against a concealed target has a flat chance to
Strength bonus to damage. In the case of a two-handed weapon, you produces an automatic miss (see Table 8–10 in the Player’s Handbook),
multiply your Strength bonus by 1.5 (and round down to the nearest no matter what the attack roll is. Likewise if you’re using the coup de
whole number). If you’re using two weapons, you apply the full damage grace rule or take a full round to line up a melee attack on an unattended
bonus to the primary hand and half the bonus (rounded down to the near- object, you always hit.
est whole number) to the secondary hand. Saving throws are similar to attack rolls in that there’s always a little
If the game did not have this rule you’d actually get more benefit from something beyond the character’s control. Like combat, there are cases
a high Strength score from using two small, lighter weapons than you where the roll is irrelevant, even if it’s a “1” or “20.” Creatures that are
would for using a really big heavy weapon in two hands. immune to an attack never have to roll saving throws against that attack.
Likewise, if a spell or attack form doesn’t allow a saving throw in the
The description of the Scribe Scroll feat says the base price of a first place, you can’t roll a saving throw and hope to get a “20.”
scroll is its spell level multiplied by its caster level multiplied by 25 Skill checks are not subject to automatic success or failure. Some
gp. It goes on to say that a character must spend 1/25 of the base tasks are just too easy for failure or too hard for success (most people
price in XP and 1/2 the base price in raw materials. My question is, don’t fail once on every 20 attempts to tie their shoes). Ability checks
are 0-level spells off limits or are they free due to the fact that any are likewise not subject to automatic failure or success (no matter how
number multiplied by 0 equals 0? lucky you are, you’re just not going to kick down a castle wall). If the
Treat any level 0 spell as level 1/2 for purposes of assigning a cost DM feels that chance might affect the outcome, a saving throw or attack
to a magic item (this makes the base price of creating a scroll of roll is probably more appropriate.
one 0-level spell 1/2 × 25 × caster level). For more information on cre-
13
 Just how much temporary ability damage can a character heal level in a class, you have to meet any requirements the class may have),
in a day? Suppose my character has fought a battle with a couple though the character could earn a level in another class instead.
of shadows and also has been poisoned a few times. The character
has suffered 4 points of Strength damage, 3 points of Constitution Does a character with a low Strength score really deal more
damage, and 1 point of Wisdom damage. The character regains damage with his off hand? The rules say you apply half your
1 point of ability damage in a day, so what do the character’s abil- Strength bonus to an off hand attack. Also, you get one and a half
ity scores look like after 1 day? If my character gets bed rest and times your Strength bonus when using a two-handed weapon. So
regains 2 points of ability damage, what happens then? does a character with a Strength penalty deal even less damage with
In one day of light activity (no combat or spellcasting), the character a two-handed weapon? I am similarly confused over Dexterity mod-
heals 1 point for each damaged ability. After one day of bed rest the ifiers and Armor Class.
character regains 2 points to each damaged ability. A bonus is a positive modifier and a penalty is a negative modifier
(there are no negative bonuses or positive penalties in the game). When
Can a paralyzed person voluntarily stop breathing if submerged attacking with an off hand or with a two-handed weapon, you suffer your
to avoid drowning? full Strength penalty. When surprised, you lose your Dexterity bonus,
Yes. A paralyzed creature is unable to move or take physical actions, but you retain your Dexterity penalty.
but holding one’s breath is not a physical action for game purposes.
Do inherent bonuses stack? Let’s say a fighter with a Strength
Are fear effects persistent if the frightened or cowering character score of 16 finds a +1 manual of gainful exercise or simply wishes
goes to negative hit points and then is raised to positive hit points? for a +1 inherent bonus to Strength. What happens if the character
Yes. Losing consciousness doesn’t break a fear effect. later receives a +2 manual of gainful exercise?
Inherent bonuses don’t stack. The character in your example would
The rules on page 153 of the Player’s Handbook say a character benefit only from the larger +2 inherent bonus and would have a Strength
who is resurrected immediately loses a level of experience, or a point score of 18.
of Constitution if the character is 1st level. If a multiclassed charac-
ter is brought back to life, (for instance, a 5th-level fighter/4th-level When you gain skill points or a feat, do you have to spend the
wizard) does the character get to choose which level is removed? Or points or choose the feat right away? Is there any way to save skill
is it the highest level that the character has attained? Would this points or feats?
level loss immediately result in the –20% XP loss if the levels dif- You have to spend skill points or choose feats as soon as you get
fered by more than 1? them.
You lose the highest level; this may actually remove an XP penalty There’s no reason for DMs to be absolute about this. If you’re run-
(by making character’s class levels more even). ning a campaign and one of your players just can’t decide right away,
it’s okay to let the player wait awhile, but the character must spend the
When a character loses a level, how do you lose levels in an aban- points or choose the feat before the character in question gains another
doned class? For example, what happens to an ex-paladin or and ex- level (just delay all the benefits for the new level until the player spends
bard? Can you lose levels of experience in a class whose abilities you the points or chooses the feat).
no longer have access to?
Yes, you can lose these levels. The loss works just like any other level It seems that when a creature is burdened (carrying a medium or
loss (hit points, skills, saves, attack bonus and any other benefits the heavy load) its movement is reduced. But what is the formula for
level grants are reduced accordingly). In most cases, the character will that reduction? Is it simply reducing the speed by 10 feet? (For crea-
not be able to regain the lost class level by earning experience (to gain a tures with base speeds of 40 feet and 30 feet that works.) Or does the

Speed Table
Base Speed 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 15 10 5
Encumbered Speed 70 65 60 50 40 35 30 20 15 10 5 5

One Minute (Local)

Current Speed* 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 15 10 5
Walk 1,000 900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 150 100 50
Hustle 2,000 1,800 1,600 1,400 1,200 1,000 800 600 400 300 200 100
Run (´3) 3,000 2,700 2,400 2,100 1,800 1,500 1,200 900 600 450 300 150
Run (´4) 4,000 3,600 3,200 2,800 2,400 2,000 1,600 1,200 800 600 400 200

One Hour (Overland)**

Current Speed* 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 15 10 5
Walk 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1.5 1 0.5
Hustle 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 3 2 1

One Day (Overland)

Current Speed* 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 15 10 5
Walk 80 72 64 56 48 40 32 24 16 12 8 4

*Use normal or encumbered speed, whichever applies to the creature.

**Overland movement is measured in miles.

14
 The Monster Manual entries for cloud giants and storm giants
creature loses some fraction of its speed? How does this encumbered have a curious note under their skills and feats sections. They say
movement affect a creature’s speed on the local or overland scale? that these two kinds of giants have EHD as though they were large
Encumbered movement is explained on page 142 in the Player’s creatures. What does “EHD” mean?
Handbook (Table 9–2). You can figure out any creature’s encumbered The abbreviation EHD means extra hit dice, which affects the number
movement by comparing base speed to Table 9–2 (which shows base of skills and feats a creature has; see page 11 of the Monster Manual.
speeds of 20 and 30 feet.) To find encumbered speed for other creatures,
just add up the values for slower creatures. For example a creature with Would all of the unarmed strikes by a vampiric monk be con-
speed of 60 moves twice as fast as a creature with a speed of 30, so its sidered slam attacks and inflict negative levels? Would the vampire
encumbered speed is 40 feet. Common encumbered speeds are listed on monk use its slam damage rating or its monk unarmed damage
the page before. You can use the same method to find a creature’s speed rating?
on the local or overland scales. Common local and overland speeds are Creatures with level-draining ability drain levels only once per action,
also listed on the page before. so if they manage to get multiple attacks, only the first hit in a series of
hits inflicts a negative level. (Note that a hasted creature inflicts a nega-

Monsters tive level with a hit during its regular action and another negative level
with a hit during its extra partial action).
At what age do red dragons get their eyebite powers? What about As “Sage Advice” has pointed out before, creatures with monk levels
their suggestion or discern location powers? How often can they use can combine their natural weapons and their monk unarmed attacks in
discern location? any way they see fit. For example, the monk could use either its slam
All the red dragon’s spell-like abilities, and the ages when the dragon damage rating or its monk unarmed damage rating, as it chooses. In
gets them, are shown in the table on page 68 of the Monster Manual. The either case, it can drain energy as noted earlier. If the vampire wishes to
dragon gets its suggestion power at old age and it works 3 times a day. use its monk unarmed attack rate, it must use only its monk attack bonus,
The discern location power is available at great wyrm age and works however.
once a day. Red dragons don’t get the eyebite power; the reference to
eyebite in the text of red dragon description is an error. Say a monster has a challenge rating of 5. How many 5th-level
characters should that be a challenge for?
If a dragon casts enlarge on itself and it grows enough to qualify Four 5th-level characters That’s the definition of challenge rating, see
for the next size category, does it get the damage ratings for that pages 100 and 101 in the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide.
size? What about other dragon powers?
An enlarge spell cast on a dragon works like an enlarge spell cast on What if the character was a Large creature before turning into a
any other creature. The dragon gets a +1 bonus to Strength for every ghoul? Would the large ghoul’s claws and bite deal more damage?
20% of enlargement. It gets no other benefits from the spell. What about Strength?
Use the rules for increasing a creature’s size on page 12 of the Mon-
The retriever, being a construct, is immune to subdual damage. ster Manual. Since a standard ghoul is Medium-size, a Large ghoul
Its regeneration ability converts all hit point damage it suffers would gain +8 Strength, –2 Dexterity, +4 Constitution (irrelevant in this
into subdual damage, unless the damage is from a blessed or holy case because undead have no Constitution scores), and +2 natural armor.
weapon. Some have interpreted this to mean that a retriever suffers The large ghoul also suffers a –1 size penalty to attacks and AC, but
no damage from any attack that is not made with a blessed or holy because it is a large (tall) creature, it gains natural reach of 10 feet.
weapon. Is this interpretation correct?
The retriever should have fast healing, not regeneration. Why there are no templates for undead other than vampires,
ghosts, and liches. What about ghouls, wraiths, and wights?
The regenerating celestials (planetar and solar) do not have any Victims transformed by these creatures lose their old identities (but
text saying what attack forms (if any) inflict normal damage on see next question) and become standard examples of the creatures that
them. Was this an oversight? If so, what attacks inflict normal attacked them.
damage on them?
Planetars and solars have fast healing, not regeneration. They can Just how smart (or stupid) are creatures that lack Intelligence
reattach lost limbs. scores? Can they open doors, use equipment, or carry things? Can
they be bluffed or intimidated?
The kyton description says that it takes normal damage from fire, Intelligence in the D&D game measures a creature’s ability to think,
acid, and blessed weapons. However, kytons have damage reduc- learn, and remember. A creature without an Intelligence score can do
tion 20/+2. With other regenerating fiends, the weapon has to be of none of those things. It can’t figure out puzzles, learn to do tricks, or
sufficient power to defeat the damage reduction before it can deal remember anything. On the other hand, every creature has a Wisdom and
normal damage. Should this be the case with the kyton? Also, holy a Charisma score, so it can perceive and react to its surroundings and it
weapons were not mentioned in the kyton’s regeneration section; knows (though perhaps only on an instinctual level) that it exists.
was this an oversight (as holy weapons are mentioned with every A living creature without an Intelligence score, such as a monstrous
other regenerating fiend)? spider, functions as a biological robot programmed to eat, mate, and pre-
Any blessed or holy weapon of +2 or better enhancement can deal serve itself, usually in that order. The spider is competent to survive in
normal damage to a kyton. its normal environment and to fulfill its biological niche as a predator. It
is hardwired to hunt, defend its territory, and avoid hazards such as fires,
Pit fiends are listed as having damage reduction 25/+2. However, falls, or rushing water. It cannot recognize or deal with anything that its
their regeneration section says they take normal damage from evolution has not prepared it to handle. A spider cannot, for example,
blessed or holy weapons of at least +3 enchantment. Usually, the figure out how to open a door (though if it sees prey escaping though a
minimum power of a weapon that can defeat the regeneration is the door it may push on through by dint of sheer strength) nor can it recog-
same as that needed to defeat the damage reduction. Is one of these nize and attack a party’s wizard (though it might show a preference for
a misprint? unarmed or unarmored prey).
Yes, the pit fiend’s damage reduction should be 30/+3. Unliving creatures with Intelligence scores are slightly more sophisti-
cated, because they usually are created through some kind of magic and
15
so they come equipped with more programming. A golem, for example, I have a multiclassed character with the Uncanny Dodge class
can be assumed to have the sort of basic knowledge that its creator takes ability and the Deflect Arrows feat. Can she deflect arrows on a sur-
for granted, such as the ability to open doors or tell a plate from a bowl. prise round if she’s the one surprised?
It, too, is competent to function in its environment, but in this case, the No. You’re flat-footed when you’re surprised and you can’t deflect
environment is its creator’s. arrows when you’re flat-footed. Uncanny dodge lets you use your Dex-
The spell or ritual that creates a construct or an undead creature also terity bonus while flat-footed, but it doesn’t keep up from becoming flat-
provides the person who cast the spell or performed the ritual the power footed. Note that uncanny dodge also does not allow to make attacks of
to command the creature. The creature has no intellectual ability to com- opportunity while flat-footed.
prehend its orders, but its master has enough control over it to compel
it to fulfill them anyway. A construct or an animated undead can fulfill I plan on playing a multiclassed character. Does it matter which
any of the commands listed for animal companions of page 46 of the class I pick first?
DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide, except for Track (and the creature can even do Not really, but which class comes first can have a big impact on the
that if it has the Track feat or the scent ability). In addition, these crea- character. For example, a character gets the maximum result for her first
tures can be ordered to carry any object they can pick up and to follow hit die, so sometimes it is advisable to make that first die as large as pos-
other short commands such as “march west of two days and then attack sible, especially if you plan to have the character fight often (a few extra
the first creature you meet.” hit points also will make it more likely that the character will live to
Nonintelligent undead creatures also retain the barest trace of their see 2nd level). On the other hand, a character’s initial allotment of skill
former lives. So, for example, a skeleton ordered to carry a torch will points is quadrupled for his first character level, so if you’re interested in
carry it overhead and if ordered to carry a basin of water or bucket will having a lot of skills, put the class that has the most skill points first.
carry it level so the contents don’t spill out. Constructs have a similar Consider these two versions of a fighter/rogue, level 1/1: Assuming
ability, based on the creator’s knowledge. the character has an Intelligence and Constitution scores of 12, the char-
Most attempts to bluff creatures with Intelligence scores are doomed acter would have 21 skill points and 13 to 18 hit points (average of 15)
to fail, simply because these creatures have no ability to communicate. if he was a fighter first. If the same character was a rogue first he would
You can use Bluff to perform a feint against a creature with no Intel- have 39 skill points and 9 to 18 hit points (average of 13).
ligence, but that’s about all. Creatures without Intelligence scores are If one of your character’s classes is paladin or monk, you’ll face mul-
essentially fearless, so they cannot be intimidated. ticlassing restrictions. Once you quit the paladin or monk class, you
can’t go back. Don’t put the paladin or monk class first unless you’re
willing to either wave the class goodbye or stick with it for a good while
The Monster Manual lists the heavy horse and heavy war horses
(either option is slightly easier with a human character).
as having a base speed of 50 feet. Yet page 143 of the Player’s Hand-
Your first class also will determine how old your character is (see
book says a heavy horse has a base (unburdened) movement of 40
Table 6–4 in the Player’s Handbook).
miles per day (which equates to a speed of 50) and a heavy warhorse
has a base (unburdened) movement 32 miles per day (which equates
A sorcerer can have only so many spells. What if the sorcerer is
to a speed of 40). Which is correct?
also a wizard? Would she be able to use the spells from her spellbook
The Monster Manual is correct. Both the heavy horse and the heavy
as sorcerer spells? Or can she only use her sorcerer spell slots to cast
warhorse have the same base speed and daily movement rate (50 feet, 40
spells she knows as a sorcerer? Can she transcribe spells she knows
miles a day).
as a sorcerer into her wizard spellbook?
You keep a separate list of spells for each class. A sorcerer/wizard
Multiclassed Characters could not use a spell from her wizard spell book in a sorcerer spell slot
unless she also had the spell in question as part of her sorcerer repertoire.
How does a multiclassed character add skills? All of the examples The same holds true for any other multiclassed spellcaster. Likewise,
use single-classed characters. So what happens when Leopard, a the character must use spells from her spellbook to fill her wizard spell
rogue with an Intelligence score of 14, switches to a fighter after 1st slots and she cannot use a spell she knows as a sorcerer as a wizard spell
level? This would make Leopard a 1st-level fighter/1st-level rogue, unless that spell is also recorded in her spellbook.
right? Does he get 2 skill points for being a fighter, plus 2 points A wizard/sorcerer cannot simply transcribe spells from her sorcerer
for Intelligence? Does he get 4 skill points for being a warrior-type repertoire into her spellbook. The character must find the spell on a
character (as barbarians and rangers do)? Does he get quadruple scroll or in another spellbook, pick it up when she gains a new level, or
skill points for being 1st level? And if Leopard is a human, does he research the spell from scratch.
get his +1 skill point for being human again?
Leopard gets 2 skill points for gaining a fighter level, +2 points for Suppose Odo is an 11th-level conjurer and 3rd-level bard, with
his Intelligence, and +1 point for being human. You multiply a charac- 18 Intelligence and 16 Charisma. He finds a ring of wizardry that
ter’ allotment of skill points by four only when the character chooses doubles 1st-level spells. How many 1st-level spells can he prepare?
his initial set of skills at 1st level; as a 1st-level fighter/1st-level rogue, The ring doubles the 1st-level arcane spells from each class. Bonus
Leopard is a 2nd-level character. When adding a class level, you always spells from school specialization or high ability scores are not doubled
add the allotment of skill points for that class, as shown on Table 4–1 in (see the last sentence of the first paragraph in the item description).
the Player’s Handbook, plus any adjustments for race and Intelligence Note that Do does not prepare his bard spells (but the ring still doubles
scores. If Leopard had added a level of ranger or barbarian, he would his 1st-level spells because bards are arcane spellcasters). As a 3rd-level
have added 4 points for his class, plus 3 points for Intelligence and race. bard, Odo has two 1st-level spell slots. The ring doubles that to 4 slots.
Odo’s 16 Charisma gives him one bonus 1st-level spell, for a total of five
I have a multiclassed dwarf who is a 6th-level fighter and a 1st- 1st-level bard spell slots.
level rogue. I want to pick up a level of cleric. Am I correct in As an 11th-level wizard, Odo has four 1st-level spell slots, which the
thinking that my character doesn’t incur any XP penalties because ring doubles to 8. As a conjurer, Do gains a bonus 1st-level conjuration
fighter is her favored class and his other classes are within a level of spell, and his 18 Intelligence gives him another 1st-level spell of any
each other? school, for a total of ten 1st-level wizard spell slots.
Yes, you are correct. The levels a character has in a favored class don’t As noted in the previous question, Odo’s bard and wizard spell slots
count when determining if the character suffers an XP penalty for multi- are not interchangeable.
classing.
16
 Can you raise a skill as a cross-class skill if you have it already as rogue’s weapon list? For instance, can a fighter/rogue make a sneak
a class skill or vice-versa? For example, can a 3rd-level wizard with attack with a broadsword?
6 ranks of Concentration take a level as a fighter and raise Concen- A rogue can use any kind of weapon in a sneak attack (see the limits
tration as a cross-class skill? If the skill wasn’t maxed out would in the sneak attack description on page 47 of the Player’s Handbook).
it matter? Is a skill’s maximum rank dependent on the character’s
class level or the character level? I’m thinking about making a wizard character multiclassed by
A multiclassed character’s maximum rank in a skill is based on class adding a level of cleric. The wizard has a familiar. When the wizard
level; class level plus 3 if the skill is a class skill for any of the charac- starts gaining levels as a cleric, can the familiar deliver cleric spells
ter’s classes, or half that if the skill is cross class for all the character’s that have touch range?
classes (see page 56 in the Player’s Handbook). If the character already is at least a 3rd-level wizard, the character’s
A 3rd-level wizard/1st-level fighter has a maximum rank of 7 (4+3) has the touch ability and the familiar can deliver any spell with a range
in Concentration or in any other skill that’s a class skill for a fighter or of touch that the master casts, no matter what class the spell is from. The
for a wizard. The character in your example would have to pay two skill familiar also can share any spell the master casts (subject to the limits
points for one rank of Concentration since he’s buying the rank with of that ability). The character’s cleric levels, however, don’t increase the
fighter skill points. familiar’s natural armor, Intelligence, or special abilities.

How are feats handled for multiclassed characters? Say I have a Can a multiclassed character who can cast both divine and arcane
character who is a fighter/wizard. I understand that every charac- spells use the spells from one class to affect spells from another
ter, regardless of class, receives a new feat every three levels. What class? For example, can a cleric/wizard cast spectral hand and use it
about bonus feats from a class? A fighter gets a bonus feat at 1st to deliver a cleric spell with a touch range?
level and every two levels. Wizards receive Scribe Scroll at 1st level Unless the spell description specifically says it works only on a cer-
and a bonus feat every five levels. Would all these bonus feats stack? tain kind of spell, it will work on any spell the character casts. The spec-
Would the aforementioned fighter/wizard receive all these feats? tral hand description says the spell works on any touch range spell of 4th
Every character gets one feat for every three character levels (charac- level or lower; the effect is in not limited to arcane spells.
ter level is the sum of all your class levels). Characters get bonus feats
from their classes according to their class levels. For example, a 5th- Would it be possible to multiclass as two different types of cleric
level fighter/5th-level wizard would have 4 feats for her class levels (you and gain four domain powers?
get a feat at 1st, 3rd, 6th, and 9th levels), plus 3 extra fighter feats (at No, you can take a class only once.
1st, 2nd, and 4th level), plus 2 wizard feats (Scribe scroll 1st level and a
bonus feat at 5th level), for a total of 9 feats.
Can multiclassed spellcasters combine their levels to satisfy the
level prerequisites for item creation feats? For example, the Forge
The descriptions for the human and the half-elf list the favored
Ring feat requires a spellcaster of level 12+. If I am a 6th-level cleric/
class of each as “any” and explain that multiclassed humans ignore
6th -level wizard do I qualify, or would I need to be 12th level in one
their highest-level classes when determining if they suffer experi-
or the other?
ence penalties. Half elves have the same ability. Can a human or
You need to have the listed number of levels in a single spellcasting
half-elf choose to ignore his lowest-level class, as the “any” would
class. In the case of Forge Ring, you need 12 levels in a spellcasting
imply, or must he ignore his highest-level class? If he must ignore his
class. Note that if you have a prestige class that improves the spellcast-
highest-level class, would a human 8th-level monk/7th-level paladin
ing ability of another class, you use your effective caster level to meet
then be stuck with a –20% experience penalty if he then becomes a
the prerequisite. For example, a 10th-level wizard/2nd-level loremaster
barbarian, even though a half-orc 8th-level monk/7th-level paladin
is a 12th-level spellcaster and meets the prerequisite for Forge Ring.
would receive no experience penalty in the same situation?
Yes, the human in your example would indeed suffer an experience
penalty (as would a half-elf in the same situation). In this case, “any”
means there is no single class these races favor. If humans and half-elves
Skills
were free to pick any favored class they wanted, and were free to change We’re confused as to which skills you can take 10 and take 20 on.
that choice whenever it suited them, that’s what the rules would say. Can we take 10 or take 20 on a Hide check, for example?
But multiclassed humans and half-elves both ignore their highest level Taking 10 is a way to eliminate chance from a skill check; you can
classes instead. Note that a multiclassed human or half-elf with only two take 10 pretty much anytime you’re using a skill and there are no distrac-
classes never has to worry about an experience penalty. Adding a third tions. Taking 20 represents using a skill over and over again until you
class, however, takes some planning if one wishes to avoid an experience succeeds (that’s why taking 20 uses up so much time). You can’t take
penalty. 20 if there’s a consequence for failure. Since failing a Hide check means
you’re spotted, you can’t take 20 on a Hide check. In general, you can’t
If you become a multiclassed character by adding a prestige class, take 20 on any check that is resolved with an opposed roll.
do you have to keep the two classes at roughly even levels to prevent It might be possible to take 10 on a Hide check. For example, sup-
an experience penalty? pose a sentry looks around for a suitable place to hide at the beginning of
Taking a prestige class doesn’t cause an experience penalty; see page his watch and then settles in. Since the sentry is not trying to hide from
27 in the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide. anyone in particular, the DM might very well allow the sentry to take 10
on the Hide check.
Can you take levels in more than one prestige class? How do all
these levels affect your experience? If my PC spots a mold that causes damage, what is the DC for me
You can take any number of prestige classes, provided that you qual- to figure out what kind of mold it is? Would it be Wilderness Lore
ify for them. Prestige classes do not impose multiclass experience penal- or Knowledge (nature)? What is the difference between these two
ties (see previous question), no matter how many prestige classes you skills? It seems that anything Wilderness Lore can do, Knowledge
have. (nature) can do better since you can figure out many more things.
With Wilderness Lore, you can avoid getting lost—but it seems that
Can a multiclassed rogue or a rogue with additional weapon with Knowledge (nature), you would know what the procedure is for
proficiencies perform a sneak attack with a weapon that’s not the getting out of trouble in a natural setting.
17
 Neither Wilderness Lore nor Knowledge (nature) lets you recognize frightening individual than your average gnome farmer wielding a
monsters. Wilderness Lore might let you recognize the area containing cob of corn. Is there a reasoning behind this or is this something due
the mold as hazardous (by spotting bones or by noticing that the local for a rules patch?
animals seem to avoid it). The Wilderness Lore DC for recognizing such No “rules patch” is planned.
a hazard is at least 15, and a DC of 20 would be more appropriate since You can however, give the half orc in your example a +2 check bonus
dangerous mold is hardly a run-of-the-mill hazard. In any case, the mold (or more) for a favorable circumstance. In some cases, you can even
would have to be in a wilderness setting for the Wilderness Lore skill to allow the half-orc (or any other character) to use an ability modifier
be of any use in recognizing the mold as a hazard. other than Charisma for Intimidate checks. For example, if the half-orc
It’s possible that a character with the Knowledge (nature) skill might decides to tie a knot in a horseshoe to intimidate someone, you can use
happen to know something about a killer mold. Noting a killer mold (or the character’s Strength modifier instead (see Skills with Different Abili-
any other harmful creature that is not obviously dangerous) has a DC in ties on page 91 of the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide).
the 20 to 30 range; the rarer the creature, the higher the DC.
Knowledge (nature) is not a substitute for the Wilderness Lore skill. I’m confused about the Sense Motive skill. It is not clear when
Indeed, even today the great outdoors is sprinkled with the broken, the DM secretly rolls a check for the player, and when the player
frozen, starved, or dehydrated bodies of folks who thought they knew actively decides to use it as a conscious choice. For opposed Bluff
what they were doing outside, but really didn’t. A character with the checks, it’s obvious that the DM secretly rolls for the player. How-
Knowledge (nature) skill might have some book learning that suggests ever, for hunches and for interacting with enchanted characters,
the proper course of action in a wilderness setting, but a Knowledge skill who rolls? Does the DM secretly roll when a player encounters an
does not impart much in the way of practical know-how (see the next enchanted NPC, or does the player tell the DM he thinks the NPC
question). At best, a successful Knowledge (nature) check will grant a is enchanted and wants to check? The issue I have with many of the
+2 circumstance bonus when making Wilderness Lore checks; the DC skills is that they state “the player can roll a skill check,” when sev-
of the Knowledge check will depend on the how difficult the DM thinks eral times what I feel it means to say is “the DM secretly rolls a skill
the question is, but it should always be at least 15. check for the player” (for opposed rolls like Spot and Listen).
In general, the player rolls the check whenever actively using any
What are the differences between a Craft skill, a Profession skill skill. The DM usually rolls the check secretly in circumstances when
and a Knowledge skill? the character might happen to notice something without really trying,
A Craft skill involves a character making something with her hands or anytime the DM wants to keep what’s really going on a secret. For
(usually also with tools, but not always). The relevant ability for a Craft example, the character listens at a door, and the DM rolls the Listen
skill is Intelligence, mostly because one must remember and use the check secretly so that the player doesn’t know if there’s really no noise
right materials, procedures, and techniques and apply them in the proper there or if he just got a bad roll. Exactly when to let the player roll and
order. when to roll secretly is a matter of judgment and personal preference—
A Profession skill also involves specialized knowledge and tech- that’s why the game has a DM.
niques, but usually does not involve working with the hands. The rel-
evant ability for a Profession skill is Wisdom because it usually requires The description of the Escape Artist skill gives conflicting bonuses
the character to apply her skills in an abstract, indirect, or speculative to the DC for escaping from a rope restraint. The small table says
manner. Stonemasonry is a Craft, but architecture is a Profession. A Pro- the bonus is +20 to the binder’s Use Rope check. The paragraph
fession skill also implies a broader, less concrete know-how than a Craft immediately below that says the binder gets a special +10 bonus on
skill does; a stone mason can build a stone house, but not a wooden one. her Use Rope check. Which is correct?
An architect can design a house made out of almost anything. Note that The binder gets a +10 bonus. This error was correct in the second
the Wilderness Lore skill could be called Profession (Outdoorsman), but printing of the Player’s Handbook.
the design team decided to break it out into its own skill because it was

Spells
much more likely to see use in play than other Profession skills.
A Knowledge skill involves academic learning, usually with little
practical training. The relevant ability for a Knowledge skill is Intelli- Is it possible to use a spell such as detect magic or detect evil to detect
gence because it involves the memorization and recall of facts. A char- an invisible foe?
acter with Knowledge (geology) knows her stones, but would be hard Yes, but not very efficiently. Let’s say a character uses a detect magic
pressed to carve a statue, build a stone bridge, or dig a mine. A Knowl- spell; the spell reveals nothing about the invisible foe unless the char-
edge skill allows a character to recall facts that might be relevant in a acter happens to aim the spell the area containing the invisible foe. If
particular time and place, but it does not impart any special ability to put the foe is using an invisibility spell, a spell-like invisibility power, or a
those facts to practical use. For example a character lost in the woods supernatural invisibility power, the detect magic spell merely reveals that
might use a Knowledge (nature) skill to recall that moss usually grows there is magic somewhere in the area. The detect magic caster has no
the thickest on the north side of trees. But Knowledge (nature) probably idea where the magical aura is, what sort of creature or object bears the
will not reveal when moss does not grow thickest on the north sides of aura, or if the aura is in motion or not.
trees (which is all the time in some locales). Nor will the Knowledge One round later, the detect magic user can search for magical auras
(nature) skill help the character remember the direction to the nearest again. If the user manages to aim the spell at the invisible foe again,
settlement or allow the character to make sure she walks in a straight line detect magic spell will reveal the number of magical auras on the foe and
when moving cross country. the strength of the strongest aura (because the user has scanned the same
subject for two consecutive rounds). The detect magic user still has no
Does a double move count as a normal move for purposes of tum- idea exactly where the foe is, what the foe is like, or whether the foe is
bling? moving.
You can tumble once a round as a part of your movement. If you make After another round goes by, the detect magic user can scan for magi-
a double move, you can tumble once during that round. cal auras once again. If the user is lucky enough to catch the invisible
foe for a third time, she will have scanned the same subject for three
Half-orcs have a –2 to penalty to their Charisma scores and this consecutive rounds. The detect magic spell now reveals the strength and
makes sense given their lack of charm and their brutal social graces. location of each aura. The detect magic user still does not “see” the
However the Intimidate skill is based on Charisma and this means foe and does not know whether it’s moving or not (she only knows the
that a half-orc barbarian wielding a bloody double axe is a less
18
strength and locations of magical auras during her turn in the initiative In the case of touch-range spells, the duration refers to how long the
order). In this case a “location” is the 5-foot square that contains the magic lasts once you touch the target (though there are one or two odd-
aura. If the creature or item bearing the aura takes up more than one balls, such as shocking grasp, that are described in a slightly different
square, the detect magic user can get some idea of its size (see Big and way). When you cast a spell with touch range, you can try to touch
Little Creatures in Combat in Chapter 8 of the Player’s Handbook). It a recipient on the same round you cast the spell (see Touch Spells in
is possible for the detect magic user to attack the location of one of the Combat on page 125 of the Player’s Handbook).
auras the spell has revealed. If the spell revealed auras in different loca- If you do not touch a recipient on the round you cast the spell, you
tions, the detect magic user still might not choose the right location to hold the charge until you do touch a recipient or until you cast another
attack. Even if she does, the foe has 100% concealment and the attack spell; see Touch Spells and Holding the Charge on page 151 of the Play-
has a 50% chance to miss no matter what the attack roll is. er’s Handbook.
Remember that all of the foregoing depends on the detect magic spell In the case of the chill touch spell, the spell remains until you make
user scanning the invisible foe for three consecutive rounds. If the detect your allowed number of touches (you lose one charge each time you
magic user guesses wrong about where to scan even once, she’ll have to touch something) or until you cast another spell.
start the process of zeroing in on the invisible foe all over again.
If the duration of a chill touch spell is instantaneous, how long
Can I use spell immunity to make myself immune to the detect does the damage and Strength loss from the spell last?
magic spell? How about other spells such as see invisibility or dispel A chill touch spell’s effects are instantaneous, but they have lasting
magic? consequences. There are many such example in the rules. A fireball
No. Spell immunity gives the subject an unbeatable SR vs. the speci- spell, for example, creates an instantaneous burst of fire, but the damage
fied spell. Since none of the spells named here are subject to spell resis- it causes remains behind after the spell’s magical effect is gone. Normal
tance, spell immunity is useless against them. damage from a chill touch (or a fireball) spell remains until healed or
cured. The Strength damage heals at the rate of 1 or 2 points each day, or
What happens when a character who has received a freedom of until restored, just like any other kind of temporary ability damage; see
movement spell jumps or falls into water? My DM seems to think Healing Ability Damage on page 129 of the Player’s Handbook (also the
that the character falls straight through the water and goes “splat” question on healing ability damage, above).
on the bottom. My DM explains that the spell eliminates all water
resistance, which prevents the character from swimming or float- If I’m caught in a web spell, but I’m at the edge of the area of
ing. effect, can someone else outside the web melee with me without get-
While the DM is always right, he’s followed a faulty line of reason- ting entangled? What if they stick a spear at me? Does the spear get
ing here. It’s always a bad idea to use scientific—or pseudo scientific— caught automatically, or just if it misses me?
reasoning to adjudicate spells. In this case, your DM has erroneously I’m assuming that by the “edge” of a web effect, you mean that there
supposed that water resistance has something to do with buoyancy. is not 5 or more feet of webbing between you and your opponent, leav-
Buoyancy depends on the water literally pushing something up toward ing you sort of embedded in one side of the mass of webbing. You are
the surface, and a freedom of movement spell doesn’t prevent that any subject to attack, you get no cover from the webbing, and you are entan-
more that it prevents a floor from pushing up against a character’s feet gled (–4 to your effective Dexterity score).
and keeping him from falling through it. (You might not be in the habit Only creatures that are in the web’s area of effect when the spell is
of thinking of floors as “pushing” anything, but that is the way modern cast can become stuck in the webs, and then only if they fail their Reflex
physics describes any object or body resting on any surface; the object saves. Your opponents can whack away at you without fear of getting
pushes down and the surface pushes back with equal force.) stuck themselves, no matter what weapons they use.
In any case, the freedom of movement spell (and its cousin from earlier
editions, the free action spell) has nothing to do with eliminating water You’re poisoned with something that causes ability loss, then
resistance or friction; it allows normal movement and attacks even under you’re healed by a heal spell. Since all the poison does is cause abil-
conditions in which normal movement and attacks are not possible, such ity damage, was the poison cured by the heal or will it continue to
as underwater or when webbed, held, or entangled. Exactly how the cause damage since heal doesn’t cure poison?
spell accomplishes that is unrevealed—that’s what makes it magic. Your Actually, a heal spell does remove poison; see the third sentence in the
DM would have been on firmer ground (as it were) if he had claimed spell description. A poison, however, deals damage until its onset time
that falling is a form of “normal movement” that water usually prevents. (usually 1 minute) is over or the poison is removed, even when all the
That, however, is not the case. “Normal movement” in water is swim- damage the poison has caused has been removed. For example, a char-
ming or walking along the bottom. When a character under a freedom acter suffers 2 points of temporary Strength damage from a poison and
of movement effect enters water, he makes a Swim check; if he fails, he the character receives a lesser restoration spell before the poison’s onset
cannot move, and he sinks if he fails by 5 or more. Note that failing to time is over. Even if the spell cures all the Strength damage, the charac-
make progress or sinking are both “normal movement” in this instance. ter has to make a another saving throw against the poison when the onset
time expires because lesser restoration doesn’t remove poison.
Are elves treated differently than the other races when it comes to
raise and resurrection type spells? Can a monster’s spell-like ability counterspell a character’s
No. In previous versions of the D&D game, elves were hard to bring spell?
back from the dead, but that is no longer the case. Note that spells such A spell-like ability cannot be counterspelled, nor can it be used as a
as raise dead can now bring any living creature back from the dead, not counterspell.
just humans and humanlike creatures.
In the description of the summon monster I spell, there’s a sen-
Most touch-range spells have instantaneous durations. So how do tence that says in the last round of the duration of the spell, the mon-
they work? Is the action that you use to cast the spell the same action ster “acts normally.” Does this mean that the monster acts normally
that you use to touch someone? The chill touch spell is particularly for the type of monster it is (that is, no longer under the control of
hard to use. If it has an instantaneous duration, there is no way the the summoner)?
caster could get multiple attacks; however, it is obvious that you are No, it means that there are no special limits on what the creature can
supposed to get more than one touch with it because of the number do during the last round of the spell. It takes a normal round’s worth of
of targets. actions, then disappears.
19
 Can a monk or other character use an unarmed strike to deliver An animate rope spell will help you tie up someone with the whole
a spell with touch range? If so, how do you resolve the attack? rope, but it won’t help you use a whip to disarm or trip someone.
Yes, you can use an unarmed strike to deliver a touch spell. Since cast- You can cast animate rope on a whip (it’s sufficiently ropelike to
ing a spell is a standard action, you usually have to wait until your next receive the spell). You can then use the whip to make an entangle attack
turn to make the unarmed attack. Resolve the unarmed attack exactly on a foe (which would be better than simply tossing the whip at a foe
the same way you resolve any other unarmed strike. The attacker has to if you had Weapon Focus with the whip), but you must you let go of
beat the defender’s Armor Class with all adjustments, including armor the whip before the target attempts the save against the spell (because it
and shield, added in (the attacker is trying to land a damaging blow, takes the whole “rope” to make the entangle attack).
not just touch the opponent). If the attacker doesn’t have the Improved
Unarmed Strike feat, the attack draws an attack of opportunity (striking Can a stoneskin spell keep you from being poisoned? Say a giant
for damage exposes the attacker to more risk than merely touching the scorpion stings me when I have a stoneskin spell. Am I poisoned
opponent to deliver a spell). If the attack is a hit, the attacker deals if the attack doesn’t deal me any damage because of the damage
unarmed damage and discharges the spell. If the attack is a miss, the reduction from the spell?
attacker is still holding the charge. Whenever damage reduction from any source completely negates the
damage from an attack, it also negates most special effects that accom-
What happens when I’m using a personal range spell, such as pany the attack, such as injury type poison (which is what a scorpion
stoneskin, and I take over a body using magic jar? What happens has), monk’s stunning, and injury-type disease. Damage reduction does
if I take over a body with magic jar and then cast a personal range not negate touch attacks, energy damage dealt along with an attack (such
spell? as fire damage from a fire elemental), or energy drains. Nor does it affect
A personal range spell goes where you go. When you take over a body poisons or diseases delivered by inhalation, ingestion, or contact. See
with magic jar, any personal range spell you had before the takeover the section on damage reduction in Chapter 3 of the DUNGEON MASTER’s
goes with you and you can continue to use it in the body you have taken Guide for more details.
over. When you leave the body, all your personal range spell effects go
with you, including any you cast while in the body you’ve taken over. The continual flame spell is listed as an Illusion (Figment). It pro-
vides real light. However, page 158 of the Player’s Handbook says
How many hit points do you have when you take over another figments and glamers are unreal and cannot produce real effects.
body with a magic jar spell? What if the body you take over is dam- Specifically, they cannot illuminate darkness. Am I missing some-
aged? thing, or is there an error?
In the case of magic jar, hit points go with the body. When you pos- There’s an error; continual flame is an Evocation, not an Illusion (Fig-
sess a body, you have whatever hit points that body has at the time. ment). The rest of the spell description is accurate, however. The flame
from a continual flame spell doesn’t generate any heat, doesn’t consume
Why does bull’s strength have a saving throw (albeit the harmless oxygen, cannot burn anything, and cannot be smothered or quenched.
kind) when cat’s grace and endurance don’t?
It’s an error. All three of these spells should have the same saving Dancing lights also is an Illusion (Figment) and is described as
throw entry: Will negates (harmless) providing illumination like a torch. This seems to raise the same
issue as above.
Can a creature with a gaze attack—say, for purposes of discus- Yes, dancing lights also is an Evocation (Light) spell, not an Illusion
sion, a medusa—use its gaze attack when under the influence of a (Figment).
change self spell? Alter self? (The answer is obviously “no” when
polymorphed, as the gaze is a supernatural ability.)
I can use locate object to find a general item, such as a jewel. I can
Change self and alter self do not prevent the use of supernatural abili-
use it to find specific items. Can I use it to find particular types of
ties. Nevertheless, glamers can disrupt gaze attacks. You’ve got to be
items, such as an emerald worth at least 1,000 gp? The spell says
able to see a medusa’s eyes or face to be subject to its gaze. An invisible
that I need a clear mental image of a “specific” item to find it. Then
medusa can’t petrify you, and neither can a medusa who has assumed a
it says I must have seen a “unique” item in person in order to locate
form that’s no longer recognizable as a medusa. Of course, if the medusa
it. Is there a difference between a “specific” item (requiring only a
assumes a form that has a gaze attack of its own, the gaze still works (a
mental image) and a “unique” item (requiring one to have seen it
medusa masquerading as a basilisk can still petrify you). You are correct
with one’s own eyes)?
about a polymorphed medusa; polymorphed creatures cannot use their
The spell allows you to look for three different classes of objects:
supernatural abilities.
General objects (Platonic objects): You can look for something such
as a chair or a stairway, or a gem. If you do, you get the nearest object
DRAGON #268, page 25, says a wall of force spell remains in place
of the specified type.
regardless of the caster’s wishes unless he or she uses dispel magic.
Specific objects: The monetary value of a gem is somewhat arbitrary,
The description of the wall of force spell in the Player’s Handbook,
and it won’t suffice for a locate object spell. You can search for an emer-
however, says wall of force is dismissible and that it is not subject to
ald or one of a specific size and weight, and if you have the Knowledge
dispel magic. Which is right?
(gems) skill or the Craft (gemcutting) skill or maybe even the Appraise
The Player’s Handbook is right on both counts. Wall of force is dis-
skill, you probably know enough to specify the size or weight that cor-
missible and it is impervious to dispel magic, even dispels from the
responds to the gem value you want. If you just search for an emerald,
wall of force caster. While you automatically succeed on dispel checks
you’ll get the closest emerald, now matter what its size or weight. If you
against spells you have cast yourself, a successful dispel check has no
specify a size or weight, and you have a clear mental image of such an
effect on a wall of force.
emerald, you’ll get the closest emerald of that size or weight, but the
spell will not find any other emeralds that might be within range. You
Would an animate rope spell placed on a whip grant any bonus to
cannot specify a range of sizes and weights, because that will not allow
disarm or trip attempts made with the whip? Could I cast animate
you to develop a clear mental picture of a single emerald.
rope on a whip, attack with the whip on my next attack with the
Unique objects: You can look for a particular emerald (such as the
intent of having the whip enwrap my foe (letting go of my end if the
one in the king’s ring, for example), provided you’ve seen that that par-
save was failed), rather than making a ranged touch attack to throw
ticular emerald before.
the whip?
20
 When a spell description, such as divine favor or greater magic The 1st-level sorcerer/wizard spell true strike gives a +20 attack
weapon, says the spell gives a bonus for every 3 levels (or some other bonus on the user’s next attack, but only for the duration of the
number of levels), do you round up or down? For example, divine spell, which is 1 round. First off, is +20 correct? Even if for only
favor gives a +1 luck bonus per 3 caster levels; do you get +2 at caster one attack, +20 seems like a major bonus for a 1st-level spell. Also,
level 4 or caster level 6? if I’m understanding initiative properly, the spell would expire on
If a spell gives a bonus per X caster levels, divide the caster’s level by your initiative the following round. Would you be able to gain the
X and round down to determine the bonus (you always round down in bonus on that attack then? For example, if I have a wizard who
the D&D game unless you’re specifically told to round up). You’d have moves his 30-foot speed and casts true strike (a one action spell),
to be a 6th-level caster to get a +2 bonus from divine favor (note that the would he get the +20 attack bonus the next round when he moves
spell always gives a bonus of at least +1). another 30 feet and stabs a foe with his dagger?
Yes, true strike grants a +20 bonus to your next attack.
How come when you dispel fly the user doesn’t drop like a stone? In the D&D game, a “round” begins on your turn and ends when
If it’s dispelled shouldn’t it be dispelled? it’s your turn again. In the case of true strike, the spell lasts until you
A fly spell is “dispelled when dispelled”. Dispel magic ends a spell make a single attack or one round passes. If you can’t attack until the
just as if its duration had run out (see the first paragraph of the dispel round after you cast the spell, your first action on the next round must
magic spell description, second sentence). When a fly spell’s duration be to attack, or you lose the benefit of the spell. The character in your
runs out, the user falls gently to the ground. example would have to attack before he moves on the round after he
casts the spell to benefit from the spell.
Since spellcasters can now cast a critical spell with all touch and
rays that cause damage, what about Melf’s acid arrow? Assuming If you use the true strike spell and you get a threat, does the
that you cause a critical, does the spell cause 4d4 every round or +20 bonus from the apply to the critical confirmation roll? Would
only on the first round? What about rays that cause ability damage, the +20 bonus apply to the extra attacks you get from the Cleave,
such as ray of enfeeblement? Can you roll a critical with that spell as Great Cleave, or Whirlwind attack feats?
well, and thus cause the target to lose a whole pile of Strength? Can When you roll to confirm a critical, you use whatever bonuses
I take the Improved Critical feat for touch attacks or ranged touch applied to the attack roll that made the threat, no matter where those
attacks and expand my critical range for such spells? bonuses came from.
If you score a critical hit with Melf’s acid arrow, only the initial True strike affects only one attack (rolling to confirm a critical is not
damage gets boosted with a critical hit. So, the critical hit deals 4d4 a separate attack for this purpose). If you make multiple attacks in a
points of damage, and the acid deals 2d4 points each subsequent round round, your bonus from true strike applies only to the first attack you
(while the acid lasts). make, no matter how you managed to get multiple attacks.
Any spell that requires an attack roll can score a critical hit. A critical
hit with a ray of enfeeblement spell would cause a Strength penalty of Are bonus spells for high ability scores cumulative in the D&D
2d6 points, plus 2 points per 2 caster levels (maximum +10). as they were in 2nd edition AD&D game?
You cannot choose Improved Critical for a type of attack; you must No, each line on Table 2–1 gives you the all bonus spells you get for
choose a particular weapon. You could choose Improved Critical for a a particular ability score.
particular spell, such as shocking grasp or ray of enfeeblement.
On page 148 of the Player’s Handbook, under Casting Time it
The description of the identify spell says you only get the weakest says you must make all pertinent decisions about a spell (range,
power of each item. But what if you cast identify more than once? target, area, effect, version, etc.) when you begin casting. However,
What if you have less items than your caster level would allow you to on the same page under Aiming a Spell it says you do not have
identify? Can you never identify more than the basic enchantment? to select your target until the moment you finish casting the spell.
You’ll get the same result (the item’s weakest power) with each use Which is it?
of the identify spell on a particular item. Other spells, such as analyze You have to make all the decisions required to complete the spell
dweomer, will give you more information. when you begin the spell, just as noted under the Casting Time head-
ing—except the spell’s target. The process is analogous to loading a
Is it correct that all cones are as wide at any point as they are long gun. You have to decide what kind of ammunition to load before you
at that point? can aim and pull the trigger, but you don’t have to pick a target until
Absolutely (this makes cones much easier to adjudicate in play). you’re ready to pull the trigger.

The shocking grasp spell’s description says you get a +3 attack If my character casts a sleep spell, do I get to decide who is
bonus if you use the spell to attack a foe who is wearing metal armor. affected? For example, if friendly characters are in the area the
Isn’t this a bit illogical since the spellcaster ignores the armor for the spell effects, can I opt to only affect enemies? Do I ever get to
purpose of hitting the foe with this kind of spell? Doesn’t this take decide who is affected by my character’s spells? In spell descrip-
the armor out of the equation? tions where it is not specifically spelled out, is there a way to
No. The metal attracts the electrical discharge from the spell and adjudicate whether or not a caster can choose to just affect his
makes the target even easier to hit than normal (the target still does not enemies?
get the benefit of armor, natural armor, or a shield). A sleep spell affects 2d4 hit dice worth of creatures within a 15-foot
burst; creatures with fewer hit dice are affected before creatures with
Can a spellcaster, arcane or divine, cast a spell requiring somatic more hit dice. The caster can place the burst so friendlies are not inside,
or material components if he has a weapon in one hand and a buck- but that’s the only control the caster has over who is affected.
ler in the other? A small shield? A large shield? To determine how much control the caster has over a spell’s target-
No in all cases. You must have at least one free hand to use a somatic ing, start by looking at the header information for the spell. If the spell
component (see page 151 in the Player’s Handbook). You could drop has an “Effect” or “Area” entry, it affects creatures within the area
the weapon (or the buckler or shield) as a free action and then cast the of effect and the caster can’t influence who the spell hits (except by
spell. choosing the spell’s area or point of origin).
If the spell has a “Target” entry, usually the caster can decide who
receives the spell (see pages 148–149 in the Player’s Handbook), but
21
read the target entry carefully; sometimes it specifies something about aura, but it does not have an invisibility aura. Such a character or item
the target that you can’t control. For example, the teleport spell targets can be detected with detect magic, but not very efficiently.
the caster and all objects and willing creatures the caster touches. If the Note also that many “sentient objects” are not objects at all, but
teleport caster is touching something, that something is automatically a creatures of the construct type. The intelligent items described in the
target of the spell (unless it is a creature and unwilling to take the trip). DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide, for example, have Intelligence, Wisdom, and
Charisma scores and are therefore creatures (see Abilities on page 10
The Player’s Handbook says a spell’s range is the maximum dis- of the Monster Manual), and spells that only work on items, such as
tance from the caster that the spell’s effect can occur. It also says Nystul’s undetectable aura, don’t work on them.
that if any portion of the spell’s area would extend beyond the
range, that area is wasted. Does that mean that if a character casts If a wizard casts shocking grasp, grabs at his target, and misses,
a fireball so that it’s point of origin is at the spell’s maximum range, would the spell still be active or will it have dissipated harmlessly?
the area that would be affected by the fireball would only be the Once you cast a touch spell, the spell effect remains, untriggered, until
hemisphere from the point of origin back toward the caster? Would you touch something with your hand or until you cast another spell (see
half the spell’s volume be wasted? Touch Spells and Holding the Charge on page 151 of the Player’s Hand-
Yes, part the fireball is wasted. No portion of the fireball’s spread can book).
be out of the spell’s range. You can’t squeeze a few extra feet of range
out of a spell by placing the spell’s point of origin at maximum range. When a character casts chill touch, the caster’s hand glows blue
Note that this is a departure from the way previous editions of the game and a successful touch attack with the hand causes damage and per-
did things. haps Strength damage, too. Could a character have chill touch in
effect and use a weapon in the other hand? If so, would the normal
Many spells in the Player’s Handbook list areas of effect by saying penalties for attacking with two weapons apply?
something like one target per level, no two of which can be more Chill touch follows all the rules for holding the charge on a touch spell
than X feet apart. What exactly does this mean? The description of (see previous question) except that a chill touch spell has one “charge”
the mass invisibility spell really confuses me. This spell says there can per caster level. Each time you touch anything with your hand, you lose
be no less than 180 feet between any target and the nearest other one charge off the chill touch, but anything you already had in your hand
target. That makes the spell’s area of effect potentially very large. when you cast the spell doesn’t count as being touched. You can’t have
When a spell has a target entry that says no two targets can be more two chill touch spells running at once, because if you cast a spell while
than X feet apart, it means no more than X feet can separate any two holding a charge, the whole spell you’re holding dissipates.
targets (all the targets also must be within range, see previous question). Otherwise, you can indeed use the hand bearing the chill touch effect
For example, the magic missile spell has a target entry that says the spell as a weapon. When you’re using the two-weapon fighting rules, your
effects up to 5 creatures, no two of which can be more than 15 feet apart. own hand is a light weapon for you.
That means that no more than 15 feet can separate any two creatures
affected by the spell. It might be helpful to think of a sphere with a diam- My new Player’s Handbook shows the range for the fireball spell
eter (not a radius) equal to the listed distance. For example, all creatures as a base 400 yards! Shouldn’t this be base 100 yards, like lightning
targeted by a magic missile must fit within a sphere with a diameter of 15 bolt?
feet or less. The rules don’t describe spells like magic missile this way No. Fireball is a long-range spell, so its range is 400 feet + 40 feet per
because that tends to make people to think of it as an area spell rather caster level (not yards). This is longer than the range for a lightning bolt,
than a targeted spell. (The design team learned this the hard way during which is medium-range (100 feet + 10 feet per caster level).
playtesting.) Older versions of the game listed ranges yards, but the current rules
In any case, the mass invisibility spell has a target entry and a special list all ranges in feet.
condition for maintaining the spell’s effect once a target has received the Note that a lightning bolt spell creates a stroke of electricity that
spell. These two things seem to be confusing you. When the spell is cast, extends from the caster to the maximum range of the spell (space permit-
no two targets can more than 180 feet apart. Once you have received ting). This is very different from the way the spell used to work in older
the spell, however, you must remain within 180 feet of some other spell versions of the game. In the previous edition, a lightning bolt was very
recipient or you break the effect for yourself (any other recipient, not like a fireball; it produced a small missile that detonated and generated a
the most distant other recipient); this allows all the spell’s recipients to stroke of electricity 40 or 80 feet long. The new version of the spell has
spread out after receiving the spell. a shorter overall range, but produces a much longer bolt (300 feet long
for a 20th-level caster).
When you cast Nystul’s undetectable aura, what spells does it pro-
tect against? Does it protect the targeted item against only detect
Does the fireball spell expand in confined spaces as it did in previ-
magic or will it also protect a sentient item against detect thoughts?
ous versions of the game? If not, how does it interact with creatures
What about invisible items? If the spell is cast on an item enchanted
in total cover or around corners? According to table 8–9 on page 133
with the invisibility spell, will it be impossible to detect the item?
of the Player’s Handbook, total cover has no saving throw bonus. But
I have a friend who believes that if you cast Nystul’s undetectable
if a fireball expands around a corner like the diagram on page 204
aura on an invisible item, spells such as see invisibility will not be
what sort of save bonus would a creature around the corner get?
able to locate the item since its aura, and therefore the item, remain
No, a fireball does not have a fixed volume that fills up a confined
beyond the means of detection. For that matter, what does the magi-
space as it did in older version of the game. It does follow the rules for
cal aura consist of? Is a sentient weapon’s intelligence located within
a spread (see page 149 in the Player’s Handbook), which means it can
the aura? And lastly, will Nystul’s undetectable aura protect the tar-
reach round corners.
geted item from spells such as detect evil?
In general, you use Table 8–9 in the Player’s Handbook to determine
Nystul’s undetectable aura masks an item’s magical aura, which is
saving throw bonuses from cover. Trace line of effect from the spell’s
the aura a detect magic spell detects. The spell does not block any other
point of origin to determine what sort of cover might be available and
aura. The only divination spell (detect magic is a universal spell, see pre-
use diagrams on page 133 of the Player’s Handbook to determine the
vious question) Nystul’s undetectable aura affects is identify; the iden-
degree of cover. There’s no saving throw bonus listed for total cover
tify user must make a Will save to determine the item’s actual power.
because if you have total cover against a spell, the spell can’t affect you
Note that detect magic reveals active or residual magical auras, not the
at all.
effects magic produces. An invisible character or object has a magical
22
 When you’re hit by a spread, you cannot claim total cover if the spell’s If a character has multiple attacks and becomes hasted, he would
effect can reach you somehow. Determine the degree of cover by how only receive one extra attack per round? What if he had two weap-
small a constriction the spread has to pass through to reach you. For ons? Would he get two extra attacks (one with each weapon)? Also
example, if you’re peering around the corner when a fireball hits, the what happens when a character has two weapons and uses the
best you can claim one-quarter cover. If you’re completely behind the attack or charge action rather than the full attack action. Does the
corner, but otherwise in the open, the best you can claim is one-half character attack once with each weapon or just once?
cover. If you’re around a corner and halfway behind a door, you can You can attack only once with a partial or standard action, no matter
claim three-quarters cover. If the fireball comes at you through an arrow how many weapons you have. You’ve got to use the full attack action
slit, you can claim nine-tenths cover. (a full-round action) to get any additional attacks to which you may be
entitled.
Older editions of the game listed the silence spell in the Alteration
school, but now silence is part of the Illusion school. Does this mean Can the 0-level light spell be cast on an opponent’s eyes (perhaps
that anyone in the area of effect can try to disbelieve the spell, negat- as a touch attack)? There is no spell resistance to this new version
ing most of its effect for enemy spellcasters? of the light spell, and so this could be an effective use of the spell to
No, if you could disbelieve a silence spell, its save listing would be blind someone. However, I feel this was not in the spirit of what was
“Will disbelief.” Silence removes all noise in its area and nobody gets a intended for the spell.
save against that. If the spell is actually targeted on a creature or on a You’re right. The spell doesn’t work on creatures, only objects. You
creature’s equipment, that creature gets a Will save to negate the spell. If can’t cast the spell on a point in space, either; it has to be an object.
the save succeeds, the spell fails and the area is not silenced. Note that casting a spell on a creature’s equipment is the same as cast-
ing on the creature. In this case, you can cast the spell on an object in a
A shield spell is supposed to protect you from attacks launched creature’s possession if the creature is willing, but not if it is unwilling.
from half the battlefield, with the caster on the dividing line. How is
that supposed to work in play? If a character encounters a figment (Illusion) of a monster and
The effect is somewhat similar to a tower shield, except that the spell decides to attack, what are the odds of a character striking the fig-
doesn’t interfere with your attacks and you are protected against attacks ment? I realize that according to the new rules for figments, if the
launched from a much larger area. character strikes an illusory creature, and the spellcaster does not
If you think of the shield spell caster as standing in a square, the spell cause the creature to react in an appropriate manner, the character
effect can be placed so that it lines up with one side of the caster’s square will realize the monster is an illusion (incontrovertible evidence).
and extends out infinitely to the left and right. The spell gives cover However, what does the character need to roll on attack dice to hit
against any attack that has to cross that line. The spell effect also can be the illusion in the first place? In addition, during this fake-combat,
placed on a diagonal so that it covers two sides of the caster square, in how many disbelief rolls will the character get, anyway?
which case the line extends away like steps in a staircase. Since the creature isn’t real, the attack roll is irrelevant. If you want
to make an attack roll anyway, give the figment an Armor Class of 10,
Can the shield spell add to the Armor Class bonus from the mage adjusted for size. After each attack, allow a save for disbelief whether
armor spell or a suit of armor? How about a regular shield? What the character hits or not. The very act of attacking means the character is
about the shield spell and bracers of armor? interacting with the illusion. A hit will not necessarily lead to automatic
A shield spell provides a cover bonus to Armor Class, which stacks disbelief if the caster is around to make the illusory creature react. The
with most other defensive bonuses (everything except other cover caster could, for example make the illusion roll with a blow and emerge
bonuses), including armor bonus from any source. with a mere nick, or even without scratch.

Can you cast two shield spells and cover yourself against attacks With the wish spell, one of the things you can wish for is an inher-
from anywhere on the battlefield? ent bonus of +1 to an ability score. With many wish spells cast in
No. The spell’s target is you (the caster), so when you cast it you get rapid order, you can get a +2 to +5 inherent bonus. Is this bonus
a disc of force you can use for defense. If you cast the spell a second applied to the ability score itself? Or is it a bonus only applied to
time, you still have a (single) disc of force you can use for defense. If rolls that ability modifies?
the spell’s target was the disc (or if the spell was an area of effect spell) An inherent bonus applies to the ability score. For example, if a char-
you could have more than one, just like you can summon more than one acter with a Strength score of 14 gains a +1 inherent bonus to Strength,
monster or create more than one wall of force. The target is you, how- the character’s Strength increases to 15. Apply the ability’s new ability
ever, so you can have only one shield spell running at a time. modifier to all rolls the ability affects.

I have always assumed that a fireball caster is not affected by his

The haste and mass haste spells allow their subjects an extra par-
own work, but another player pointed out that the spell description
tial action. Spellcasting is a partial action. Does this mean that a
doesn’t actually say that. What’s the verdict?
hasted spellcaster can cast two spells in a single round?
If you place the fireball so they you’re within the spread, you get
Yes, a hasted cleric or wizard with the quicken spell feat could cast
burned. Note that the spell produces a ball of fire that fills a 20-foot
three spells in a round, one as a standard action, the quickened spell as a
radius spread. If you place the spell so that the spread’s point of origin
free action, and a third spell as her extra partial action.
is more than 20 feet away from you, you won’t be caught in the spread.
In previous editions of the game, a fireball always filled a fixed volume
When an opposite spell is used to negate an effect that is already
and the effect would always fill that volume if it could, this often caused
in place (such as using slow spell to counter and dispel a haste spell),
the caster to be caught in the effect. The current version of the spell
is the success of the dispel automatic, or is a level check required?
doesn’t do that; it follows the rules for a spread effect on page 149 of the
Does the subject or the caster of the spell being countered and dis-
Player’s Handbook.
pelled get a saving throw?
Two opposite spells simply negate each other. No dispel check is
The fireball spell can inflicts 1d6 points of damage per caster level,
required, no saving throw is allowed, and spell resistance does not
to a maximum of 10d6. The delayed blast fireball spell deals 1d8
apply.
points of damage per caster level but there is no maximum listed. Is
there a maximum?
23
 The delayed blast fireball description in the first printing of the Play- If the spell has an Effect entry and normally requires an attack roll
er’s Handbook is wrong. The spell inflicts 1d6 points of damage per against a specific target, you still can hit an unseen target, provided you
caster level, to a maximum of 20d6. This has been corrected in the have an unobstructed line of effect. To strike the unseen target, use the
second printing. rules for attacking an invisible target. That is, to have any chance of suc-
cess, you must select a particular 5-foot-sqaure area to attack. If the area
One of the protection from evil spell’s effects grants the subject a you select does not contain a subject, you miss with the spell. If the
+2 deflection bonus to Armor Class and a +2 resistance bonus on area you’ve selected does contain a subject, you still have a 50% chance
saves. Both these bonuses apply against attacks made by evil crea- to miss the subject. If you beat the miss chance, you can roll a normal
tures. To cast a spell isn’t an attack action but a magic action. Does attack against the subject and the subject is affected by the spell if you
that mean that the bonus from protection from evil applies only if the hit. See page 78 in the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide for more details on the
caster of the spell has to make a touch attack or ranged touch attack procedures for attacking invisible foes.
to affect the protected target? Or does it apply to any spells cast by
evil creatures? On page 149 of the Player’s Handbook, the diagram and accom-
A spell is an “attack” whenever its target, area, or effect includes a panying notes indicate that Mialee can’t target creature #1 because
foe. See Special Spell Effects on page 152 of the Player’s Handbook. she does not have a line of effect. The diagram seems to indicate
It’s possible that both the Armor Class and the save bonus from pro- that Mialee can’t target the creature because it’s under partial cover
tection from evil could apply to the same effect. For example, the disin- (50%, it appears) from a wall. So, does the same apply to a bugbear
tegrate spell produces a ray that requires a ranged touch attack, so the standing behind a small stalagmite (to its knees), for 25% cover?
protection from evil spell’s deflection bonus to Armor Class applies to Cover of less than 100% does not block line effect. Look at the dia-
that attack if the spell’s caster is evil. Disintegrate also allows a Fortitude gram on page 149 again. Creature #1 doesn’t have 50% cover from
save. If the caster is evil, a protection from evil spell provides a saving Mialee, it has 100% cover (even though the disk sticks out a little, the
throw bonus as well. creature isn’t really that big). Mialee can’t cast a spell at the creature, nor
can she fire an arrow. If Mialee was standing 5 feet farther to the right,
If I get hit by a fireball spell while I’m using a mirror image spell, the creature would have only 50% cover, and Mialee could attack with
do all my images disappear? The spell as written in the book seems an arrow at a penalty or with a magic missile at no penalty at all.
to imply that they survive but it would seem to me that any area
effect damage should wipe them all out. Suppose a character is in the back of a party and decides to target
Area spells don’t destroy the figments created by the mirror image an enemy with a spell. There are several allies and enemies between
spell, but targeted spells do. To determine if a spell is “targeted” look at the spellcaster and the target. Does the caster have a clear line of
the information that proceeds each spell description. If there is a Target effect to the target?
or Targets entry, the spell is targeted. A spell also is “targeted” if it has Creatures don’t block line of effect. They do provide cover, so they
an Effect entry and the effect is a ray or something else that requires a can interfere with rays and other spells that require attack rolls.
melee or ranged attack to strike a foe, such as the missile created by the
Melf’s acid arrow spell or the beam of fire from a flame blade spell. The description for the desecrate spell says all Charisma checks
made to turn undead within the spell’s area suffer a –3 profane pen-
If you cast the mass heal spell during combat, can you choose alty. Does this penalty apply to the turning damage roll (2d6 +level
which creatures are affected or does the spell affect everyone in the +Charisma modifier) or just the turning check roll?
area, friend and foe? Just the turning check. A turning damage roll is subject to Charisma
Look at the summary information at the beginning of the spell. If the modifiers, but it is not a Charisma check. The turning check itself, how-
spell has a Target or Targets entry, the caster chooses who receives the ever, is a Charisma check and is subject to the penalty.
spell; see page 148 in the Player’s Handbook.
If the spell has an Effect or Area entry, the caster usually can decide Can a spellcaster use a shocking grasp spell on a metal object the
where to place the area or effect, but every subject that is within the character is holding when casting the spell? For example, could the
selected Area or Effect will be affected, no matter what the caster wants. spellcaster cast shocking grasp with sword (metal) in hand, and then
As noted in the previous answer, there are some Effects, such as rays, strike, dealing sword and spell damage at the same time?
that allow the caster to select specific subjects. No, if the caster touches an object, she’ll discharge the spell into that
In any case, mass heal has a Target entry, so the caster can select who object and waste the spell. Objects the caster has in hand already aren’t
is affected (but note that the caster cannot select targets more than 30 electrified, so the caster has to touch a creature or object herself to dis-
feet apart). charge the spell.

Do you need to see the target of spells such as chain lightning, fire- The descriptions for spells such as summon monster or summon
ball, and blade barrier? Could you target people inside a fog cloud, nature’s ally say the summoned creature disappears at the end of the
obscuring mist, or deeper darkness area without being able to see spell’s duration. What if a druid cast summon nature’s ally, then cast
them? animal friendship on it and befriended it? It would still disappear,
If the spell has a Target entry, you must be able to see or touch the right, but would it attempt to find the druid? Is there an unstated
subject to use the spell. The chain lighting spell has a Target entry, so range from which the spell draws the creature?
you must be able to see or touch your target to use the spell. If a spell Summoned creatures aren’t really present, they dissolve at their origi-
has an Area or Effect entry (fireball has an Area entry, blade barrier nal location, appear where summoned, then reform at their original loca-
has an Effect entry) instead of a Target, you don’t actually have to see tion after the spell ends (see page 157 in the Player’s Handbook). If slain
your subjects. You can simply state where the Effect or Area will origi- while summoned, it takes them a day to reform. In any case, they suffer
nate and any subject you happen to catch within the Effect or Area will no lasting effects (for good or for ill) from any summoning episode. If
be affected by the spell. If you can’t see the point where the area or a character uses a summon nature’s ally spell to summon an animal,
effect will originate, you must specify exactly where that point lies. For the caster could indeed cast an animal friendship spell on it. When the
example, you can say your fireball spell will detonate exactly 30 feet summon nature’s ally spell ends, however, the animal is gone, and it is
away from you at the height of your shoulder. You need an unobstructed no longer affected by the animal friendship spell. The animal’s Hit Dice
line of effect between you and the point of origin you specify (see page also no longer count against the limited number of Hit Dice the caster
150 in the Player’s Handbook). can affect through animal friendship.
24
 What happens when a character targets a polymorphed creature half unholy damage. Neutral clerics would deal either holy or unholy
with scrying? Suppose someone kills someone else and assumes the damage, depending on whether they turn (holy damage) or command
victim’s form with a polymorph self spell. A character then uses scry- (unholy damage) undead.
ing to find the victim. Does the scrying show an image of the victim
(unknown to the scryer that it is really an impostor), or does it come I just noticed that my Monster Manual says slain outsiders cannot
up with nothing? What if that same person scryed for the impostor? be raised or resurrected by anything short of a wish or miracle spell.
Would it show the imposter in his assumed form? However, among the various spell descriptions only the raise dead
Being polymorphed doesn’t change your identity—you’re still you. spell has specific prohibitions on which types of creatures it can be
Scrying effects tuned to your own identity can still locate you. They also used upon. The others (resurrection, true resurrection) say the spells
can locate you when they’re keyed to assumed identity, too, depending can torestore life and complete strength to any deceased creature
on the scrying character’s knowledge of you. (except that the creature cannot have died of old age). Which of
In the example situation, a scrying attempt directed at finding the these is correct? For instance, could a 20th-level monk (with the per-
impostor in his true identity will reveal the imposter in his assumed fect self ability) be resurrected, or would a wish be necessary?
form. Someone scrying for the victim would locate the victim’s dead Constructs, outsiders, and elementals cannot be raised or resurrected.
body. Someone who knows the imposter only in his assumed identity Undead cannot be raised (but they can be resurrected if they’re willing
can scry for him and locate him in that identity. to return to life). The words “any deceased creature” in the resurrection
Note that the difficulty of a scrying check depends on how well the and true resurrection spell descriptions are incorrect. High-level monks
scrying character knows the subject. If you know the subject only in an can be raised or resurrected, however (they get an exception because
assumed identify, you can claim firsthand knowledge of the subject at they start life as mortals.)
best, so your scrying check will have a DC of at least 10 (see page 247

Sword and Fist

in the Player’s Handbook).

Can someone using a discern location spell find someone using How is the ghostwalker’s painful reckoning power supposed to
mind blank spell? work? Sword and Fist says that you get this bonus after you lose 50%
No. While the discern location spell description contains some pretty or more of your hit points in an initial encounter. Does this mean
strong language about the spell’s ability to overcome effects that block that if my character is at 50% or less hit points in the middle of a
scrying of divinations, the general rule in the D&D game favors defense fight, I get this bonus for the remainder of the fight? Would I also get
over offense, so mind blank’s ability to block scrying and all forms of the bonus if one or the other party flees and the fight happens with
divination trumps discern location’s ability to penetrate such defenses. the same foe again at a later date? If so, do I have to wait until I drop
Blocking spells of 7th level or less, however, are still ineffective against to 50% of my hit points or less before I get the bonus? How many
discern location. “initial encounters” can be stacked up? I can count numerous times
that one party fled a battle only to have it happen at a later time in
If a cleric casts spell immunity and chooses, say, fireball, would the the campaign, and these were fairly numerous. I could see this rule
spell stop a heightened fireball? Or a fireball that has been subjected getting abused if used in this fashion. What kinds of things is the
to another metamagic feat? bonus effective against? What other bonuses does the painful reck-
Yes, a fireball that has been modified by metamagic is still a fireball. oning bonus stack with?
The metamagic fireball also can be counterspelled by a normal fireball. If the ghostwalker finishes an encounter and has lost 50% or more his
hit points during that encounter, he forever after gets his painful reckon-
If a character fails her saving throw against a disintegrate spell, ing bonus against the foe or foes he faced in that encounter, provided the
are all her items disintegrated with her? ghostwalker is alive when the encounter finishes. The DM has to decide
No. When a character fails a saving throw against a spell or other when the encounter is “finished,” but if one side or the other flees, that’s
magical attack, all her items survive unless the spell or attack descrip- pretty much the end of the encounter. The bonus does not automatically
tion says otherwise or the character rolls a natural 1 on the save. If the apply whenever the ghostwalker’s hit points fall below 50%
character rolled a natural 1 on the save, one item the character wore or Once a ghostwalker gains a painful reckoning bonus against a par-
carried is affected by the spell or attack (see Table 10–1 in the Player’s ticular foe, he can’t gain it again against the same opponent (though if
Handbook and the accompanying text for details). The exposed item the ghostwalker goes up a level his Painful Reckoning bonus goes up
must make its own saving throw against the spell or attack. against all foes). He does not, however, have to wait until his hit points
fall below 50%, he gets the bonus whenever he faces the foe again.
The Player’s Handbook says the maximum that anyone can be A painful reckoning bonus applies to Armor Class, attack, and damage
enlarged is 50%. Are duergar restricted to this maximum, too? rolls, as noted in the class description. It stacks with all other bonuses
Yes, the duergar’s enlarge spell-like ability works just like the spell. except itself. Note that the Armor Class bonus applies against touch
attacks and when the ghostwalker is caught flat-footed or otherwise
Would a spell like magic missile be subject to the miss chance denied his Dexterity bonus.
from a displacer beast? The magic missile description says it auto-
matically hits the target. The Pain Touch feat from Sword and Fist makes an opponent the
Miss chances of any kind don’t apply to spells that don’t require user has stunned with a successful stunning attack nauseous as well.
attack rolls (though in most cases you have to see the target to aim the What is a “stunning attack” and what good is making a foe who’s
spell at it). A displacer beast gets a +2 resistance bonus to saves against already stunned nauseous?
any targeted spell, but magic missile doesn’t allow a save. In this case, “stunning attack” is a successful use of the Stunning Fist
feat from the Player’s Handbook or the monk’s stunning attack power.
Half the damage from a flame strike spell comes from divine Opponents who fail their saving throws are stunned 1 round, as normal,
power. I have seen claims that this damage is holy damage (which then nauseated for 1 round after that (see page 280 in the Player’s Hand-
would defeat a fiend’s regeneration). Is this correct? book for the effects of nausea).
No. If the spell inflicted holy damage, the spell description would say
so. It inflicts fire damage and “divine” damage that is not subject to pro- The prerequisites for the Pain Touch feat are base attack bonus
tection against fire. It would not be a bad house rule to say that good +2 or more, the Stunning Fist feat, and a Wisdom of 19+. The Stun-
clerics deal half holy damage with the spell and that evil clerics deal
25
ning Fist feat itself requires an attack bonus of +8 or higher, so take as free feats? The Player’s Handbook has a list, but Sword and
aren’t the Pain Touch prerequisites in error? Fist does not mention that they are added to that list.
In this case, no. The monk’s stunning attack counts as a “virtual” That’s because none of them have been added to the list.
Stunning Fist feat and any monk with a base attack bonus of +2 or more
and a Wisdom of 19 or higher can qualify for Pain Touch. How often can you attempt Feign Weakness against one oppo-
nent? Does the Bluff check take a standard action or is it a free
How does the Circle Kick feat work for a monk or other char- action?
acter with multiple attacks? Or for a monk who uses a flurry of You can use Feign Weakness as often as the DM lets you. You might
blows? Does each successful unarmed attack roll allow a second want to add a +5 to the foe’s Sense Motive check for the second and
attack against a different opponent? further attempts against the same foe on the same day.
A character using Circle Kick makes one attack. If this single attack Using Feign Weakness is a standard action, just like a feint (see the
hits, the character makes a second attack at the same attack bonus as the Bluff skill description on page 64 of the Player’s Handbook), expect that
first. if you succeed you get to make your attack immediately.

How does the Dirty Fighting feat work with multiple attacks? Does the fighter with the Knockdown feat get a free attack from
Just as with Circle Kick (see previous question), a character using Improved Trip against a creature that he trips due to a knock-
Dirty Fighting makes one attack and adds an extra 1d4 points of damage down?
if the attack succeeds. Dirty fighting is not effective against opponents No.
that are not subject to critical hits.
Dirty Fighting isn’t a bad deal if you’re allowed only one attack a If you have the Prone Attack feat, can you regain your feet as a
round, but it’s not a great option for high-level characters. You might free action if you don’t attack?
consider an Improved Dirty Fighting feat: Technically, Prone Attack only lets you get up for free if you make
a successful attack. I suppose you could claim to attack the floor (using
Improved Dirty Fighting [General] the strike an object rule) and then get up if you hit it; remember that any
You are a master of the brutal and effective fighting tactics of the streets attack automatically fails if you roll a 1. In any case, you have to at least
and back alleys. use the attack action to get up, so you can make only a single move after
Prerequisites: Base attack bonus +6, Dirty Fighting getting up.
Benefit: When you perform the full attack action, you can give up your
regular attacks and instead make one melee attack at your full base What classes from the Sword and Fist book, if any, can combine
attack bonus. If successful, your attack deals extra damage, as follows: their attack bonus with monk attack bonus for purposes of getting
multiple unarmed attacks?
Base Attack Extra damage The classes that let you freely multiclass with monk (the red avenger
+5 to +9 +2d4 and the weapon master), and the drunken master, who gains multiple
+10 to +14 +3d4 unarmed attacks at the monk’s favorable rate can combine them.
+15 to +19 +4d4
+20 or more +5d4
Is there any limit to how many 5-foot steps a master samurai can
Can a rogue use Dirty Fighting in the same round as a sneak make when using the supreme cleave ability? The Cleave feat says
attack? you can attack another creature in the immediate vicinity when you
No. Both rely on the ability to smack the foe where is really hurts. drop a foe with a melee attack. What is the definition of “immediate
vicinity?” How does that change when using supreme cleave?
How does the Lightning Fists feat work with multiple attacks or A character can take only one 5-foot step each round, and then only if
flurry of blows? Can you combine Lightning Fist with a flurry of the character has not otherwise moved during the round. Supreme cleave
blows? lets you step between cleave attacks, but you still can step only once.
Lightning Fists works exactly like a flurry of blows, except that you In the case of Cleave, “immediate vicinity” means within melee reach.
add two extra attacks and you suffer a –5 penalty to all your attacks. A character using supreme cleave can first take a 5-foot step to deter-
Lighting Fists actually isn’t a very good option unless the opponent is mine who is within melee reach before choosing a target for a cleave
really easy to hit or you can expect to deal a lot of damage with each hit attack.
(or both). You cannot use Lightning Fists and flurry of blows at the same
time.
Psionics Handbook
If you have the Snatch Arrows feat, can you use it only once a Most of the psionic powers and feats that improve the user’s
round, like the Deflect Arrows feat? Or can it be used multiple times Armor Class seem to create a sort of force field around the user. So,
in a round? will they afford the user protection from touch attacks or ranged
As the feat description says, Snatch Arrows works exactly like Deflect touch attacks?
Arrows, except you catch the missile instead of just deflecting it. You can A touch attack or ranged touch attack bypasses any armor bonus or
try to catch one missile each round, and if you do so, you cannot also try natural armor bonus. Incorporeal touch attacks bypass armor and natural
to deflect a missile that same round. armor bonuses, except for armor bonuses that come from force effects.
The Inertial Armor feat and the ectoplasmic armor power do indeed
Say my monk has the Snatch Arrows feat and the Throw Any- use psychic force. The armor bonuses work against incorporeal touch
thing feat. Can I catch an arrow or bolt and throw it back at the attacks, but not other touch attacks (and their descriptions note this
attacker? fact). Powers that provide natural armor bonuses, such as lesser natural
No. The Throw Anything feat allows you to throw a weapon. Ammu- armor, are not effective against any kind of touch attack. Powers that
nition is not a “weapon” for this purpose. Nor can you throw something improve Armor Class, but do not provide armor bonuses work against
that is not a melee weapon, such as a bow or crossbow. all kinds of touch attacks. For example, the combat precognition power
provides a +1 insight bonus to Armor Class, and it is effective against
Which of the various new feats from Sword and Fist can fighters touch attacks of all kinds.
26
 Does the Inertial Armor feat or the inertial barrier power block The attacker gets a Fortitude save against the Stand Still effect, but
the disintegrate spell or disintegrate power? (In earlier editions of the if the attacker fails the save, the attacker has to stop moving and
psionics rules, inertial barrier was effective against disintegration.) thus loses the charge attack, right?
What about the ectoplasmic armor power? Does it have any effect Yes, you can use Stand Still and Hold the Line to stop charge attacks,
against the disintegrate spell or disintegrate power? so long as your opponent doesn’t outreach you. (If your opponent has a
No in all three cases. Both the disintegrate spell and disintegrate longer reach than you do, the opponent can attack you without entering
power produce rays, which are ranged touch attacks. As noted in the pre- the area you threaten.)
vious question, touch attacks ignore the armor bonuses that the Inertial
Armor feat and ectoplasmic armor power provide. On page 75 in DRAGON #281, it says that if you are nonpsionic
An inertial barrier stops blows, cuts, and slashes, but not rays or other character, the only attack you have to fear is the Mind Blast because
touch attacks. The inertial barrier power, however, provides damage the Will save DCs for all other attack modes are –8 or –9 against a
reduction of 10/+5. Damage reduction can stop normal or subdual nonpsionic defender. I cannot find this rule anywhere in the Psionics
damage from an incorporeal touch attack, but not energy drain or other Handbook. Could you tell me where it states this?
touch-delivered spell-like or supernatural effects. For example, a spec- Check out table 4–1 on page 42, specifically the “nonpsionic buffer”
tre deals 1d8 points of damage with its incorporeal touch attack. If the line.
spectre touched a character protected by an inertial barrier, the touch
would not inflict any damage, but the character still would be subject to Once a character has used all her power points, can the character
the spectre’s energy drain ability. use nonpsionic buffer defense if subjected to a psionic attack? What
if the character is multiclassed and has one or more nonpsionic
The description of the Inertial Armor feat says that the armor classes? Can she use a nonpsionic buffer then?
bonus provided by the feat does not stack with the armor bonus No. Only nonpsionic creatures can use the nonpsionic buffer line. If
provided by a shield or regular armor. Can a character who takes you’re psionic and you fail to mount a defense for any reason, you have
this feat stack the armor bonus from bracers of armor with Inertial to use the “flat-footed or out of power points” line from Table 4–1.
Armor? What about natural armor? What about the ectoplasmic
armor power? Suppose a psionic character has power points and has not been
Two armor bonuses don’t stack (except the armor bonus from one caught flat-footed — can he elect not to use a psionic defense against
shield and one suit of armor you wear). The Inertial Armor feat, the ecto- an attack and simply make an unadjusted will save against the
plasmic armor power, bracers of armor, shields, and suits of armor all attack? Could the character still use the Psychic Bastion feat in this
provide armor bonuses, so their effects do not stack. Note that ectoplas- circumstance?
mic armor power is something you wear, so it does stack with a shield. As noted in the previous question, you have to use the “flat-footed or
Natural armor bonuses do stack with armor bonuses, so the Inertial out of power points” line from Table 4–1 if you don’t mount a defense
Armor feat and the lesser natural armor power stack. against a psionic attack. If you’re not flat-footed, you could use the
Armor Class bonuses that are not armor bonuses, such as the insight Psychic Bastion feat. If you’re caught flat-footed, you can’t mount a
bonus from the combat precognition power, stack with other armor defense.
bonuses, as do deflection bonuses, such as the bonus from a ring of pro- You can use the Psychic Bastion feat anytime you’re conscious and
tection. have at least 3 power points to spend.

Can you spend extra points on the Psionic Fist feat and deal Since unarmed attacks also count as weapons, the manifester’s
extra damage? Could you, for example, pay two power points for body can also be subject to the metaphysical weapon power right?
an unarmed strike that deals an extra +2d4 damage? Also, the feat If so, would the entire body of the manifester glow with pale silver
description says you can hold a “charge” for a maximum of rounds radiance?
equal to your Strength modifier +1 or until your next attack, which- The metaphysical weapon power works on weapons, not creatures.
ever comes first. What if you’ve got a negative Strength modifier? You cannot use the power on a creature to give its unarmed attacks
The Psionic Fist feat allows you to spend one point to gain an extra or natural weapons an enhancement bonus. You can, however, use the
1d4 points of damage on your unarmed strikes. You can spend only one power on intelligent weapons (which are creatures of the construct type).
point on the feat at a time. If you’re holding a charge and you spend You cannot use metaphysical weapon on constructs that are not intel-
another point, the effects don’t stack, but the maximum time you can ligent weapons. If you do use metaphysical weapon on an intelligent
hold the charge is measured from the time you spent the extra point. weapon, the enchantment bonus from the power does not stack with the
The prerequisite for the Psionic Fist feat is a Strength score of 13 or enchantment bonus the weapon already has, or with any other enchant-
more (Strength modifier +1). If your Strength score ever falls below 13, ment bonus that might be applied to the weapon.
you can no longer use the feat because you no longer meet the prerequi-
site (see page 77 in the Player’s Handbook). Is there any limit on how many power points one can spend on the
psychofeedback power in a given round? High level psions can have
Am I right in assuming that with the Combat Reflexes feat, the hundreds of power points and could potentially spend all of them
Stand Still feat can be used multiple times in a round against sepa- to accomplish some incredible feats or to create some truly terrible
rate opponents, even when flat-footed? save DCs. Is this as it was intended or is there some limit to how high
Yes, you can use Stand Still whenever you make an attack of oppor- this number can go?
tunity. The Combat Reflexes feat gives you extra attacks of opportunity There’s no limit on the number of points you can spend on psy-
each round and lets you make attacks of opportunity even when flat chofeedback. If you want to blow all your points to get a really big modi-
-footed, so if you have that feat, you can use Stand Still when you’re flat- fier, you can. If you do, you’d better hope you don’t have to deal with
footed. any psionic combat while your points are depleted.

Suppose a character has Stand Still, Combat Reflexes, and the Can the float power be used on the manifester?
Hold the Line feat from Sword and Fist. Hold the Line allows the The power’s target can be any object or creature whose weight does
character to make an attack of opportunity when the character is not exceed 300 pounds per caster level. Such a target could be the mani-
charged. So, Stand Still can be used to keep the charging attacker in fester, provider the doesn’t exceed the weight limit.
our example from entering the area the character threatens, right?
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 Can you perform psychic chirurgery on yourself? What would the would mean the character had to give up 7 bonus points when it
effects be? moved from 8th to 9th level, for an 8th-level psion with an 18 attri-
The power can target any living creature within range If you’re a bute has a “7” shown. Is that the intention of the chart?
living creature and you’re capable of manifesting the power, the target No, add up everything on the line for the ability score in question (see
can be yourself. You can repair damage to yourself in the same manner page 8 in the Psionics Handbook) . A psion with a primary attribute of
as you can repair damage to another creature. 18 gets 16 bonus power points if the character is 7th-level or higher.
Removing a compulsion from yourself can be tricky. Most compul-
sions, such as a suggestion, confusion, or dominate person, simply force When using Table 4–43 in the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide to gener-
you to obey and you are powerless to resist so long as the compulsion ate an NPC, how do you determine the highest level psion or psychic
remains in effect. Some circumstances may allow you a new save vs. the warrior?
compulsion, but in such cases you make the new save and if you’re suc- Roll 1d4+community modifier for either class.
cessful, the compulsion is broken or you fail and you remain powerless
to resist. In either case, psychic chirurgery is irrelevant. Do psionic attacks provoke attacks of opportunity? What about
Some compulsions have long-term effects that leave you fairly free to defenses? The Psionics Handbook is vague on this point. If they do,
act as you wish, such as the quest spell. You can remove such effects by how do you determine the DC for Concentration checks that are
performing psychic chirurgery on yourself. required when a psionic creature suffers damage from an attack of
Technically you choose to use psychic chirurgery on yourself to trans- opportunity?
fer your own knowledge to yourself. Doing so, however, doesn’t benefit Psionic powers and psionic attacks are spell-like abilities and pro-
you in any way. Your transferred knowledge doesn’t stack. voke attacks of opportunity just as other spell-like abilities do. Psionic
defenses are spell-like but do not provoke attacks of opportunity.
Are the skate, see sound, psychofeedback, and improved vigor To determine the Concentration DC for psionic abilities, use the Con-
powers available to psychic warriors? The first three powers aren’t centration skill description form page 19 of the Psionics Handbook. If
included on the psychic warrior list, but their descriptions say the power in question is an attack mode and the DC has a level-based
they’re psychic warrior powers. The improved vigor power is on component, use the following values (which are derived from the attack
the psychic warrior list, but psychic warrior isn’t mentioned in the modes’ power point costs): mind thrust, 1; ego whip, 2; id insinuation, 2;
power description. psychic crush, 3; mind blast, 5.
All four of these powers are available to psychic warriors. For example, a character uses mind blast and provokes an attack of
opportunity, which hits and inflicts 10 points of damage. The Concen-
Can you use the Trigger Power feat on a power that has been tration DC is 25 (base of 10, + 10 for the damage dealt, + 5 for mind
enhanced with a metapsionic feat? For instance can you trigger a thrust’s effective level.)
maximized version of ultrablast?
Well, you can’t use Trigger Power on ultrablast because it’s a 7th- There are no lists of the powers available to the prestige classes in
level power and you can only use the feat on a power of 3rd-level or less. the Psionics Handbook. Is this an omission or is it assumed that they
Otherwise, yes, you can trigger a metapsionicly enhanced. Your reserve simply continue to discover powers from their previous list or lists?
has to match the enhanced power’s increased cost. Note that there is a The prestige classes in the Psionics Handbook use the psion power
limit to how much you can enhance a power with a metapsionic feat; the list.
total cost can’t be higher that your psionic character level minus one (see
page 23 of the Psionics Handbook). Most of the prestige classes in the Psionics Handbook have a pre-
requisite of a certain number of base power points each day, which
Some psionic monsters are very powerful psionically, but they does not include bonus power points. Do power points from the
don’t use psionic power points. Can these creatures use feats or Inner Strength feat count as bonus power points or base power
magic items that require reserve power points? Also can they use points?
feats or other things that cost power points to use? The monster The Inner Strength feat provides bonus power points, not base power
section in the Psionics Handbook says they use psionic powers and points.
combat modes for free. It doesn’t mention anything else, such as
psionic feats. Can a psion or psychic warrior ever drop a power in order to
A creature has no psionic power points (reserve or otherwise) unless learn a new one? For example, when the character is nearing her
it also has a psionic character class. This is true even for creatures with next level, can she willingly “unlearn” a power, advance a level and
the psionic template. now fill that vacant power slot with a new power?
A creature always can make use of any feat or power creature’s No, you can’t “forget” powers (but see next question).
description says it can use, and if it has the psionic template, it can make
use of the psionic abilities mentioned in the template. If the creature’s Is a character who has been affected by the 9th-level power apopsi
description gives it access to a psionic feat, it can use the feat, even (permanently lose 1d4 psionic powers), now able to learn 1d4 new
though it has no reserve points (and it can use the feat even if it does not psionic powers? In other words, does the use of apopsi erase a char-
meet the feat’s prerequisites). For example, a blue benefits from the Iner- acter’s discovered power slots, free up those power slots, seal off the
tial Armor feat even though it has no reserve power points and can freely mind’s access to those powers, or does something else happen? And
use the charm person, far hand, and finger of fire powers. It also can how does psychic chirurgery restore these powers? Does it reimprint
use the ego whip, mind thrust, empty mind, and mental barrier psionic the mind with the erased powers? Does it unseal the mind’s access
combat modes without expending points. The creature, however, cannot to the erased powers? Would a psychic chirurgeon need to know the
use psionic abilities or feats that are not included in its description or in erased powers in order to restore them?
the psionic template because it has no power points. Nor can the creature The powers and their slots they once occupied become inaccessible
use magic items that require a power point reserve. to the character (they’re still there, but they’re useless). If the character
gains a level, the erased powers still count against the total number of
Table 1–2 in the Psionics Handbook shows bonus points for psions. powers the character can know.
I created a 10th-level psion who happened to have an 18 in the pri- Psychic chirurgery simply restores access to the inaccessible powers;
mary attribute. The table suggests that a 10th-level psion would the chirurgeon doesn’t need to know the erased powers to make the
receive no bonus points, a “—” is shown. This seems unfair, for it repair.
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 Page 140 of Psionics Handbook says that because undead have no on to say that if you have more than one divine spellcasting class you
Constitution scores, they cannot use psychometabolic powers. How- can choose which one you apply it to.
ever, on page 8 it shows that the score tied to psychometabolism is The divine oracle and sacred exorcist are the only two classes in
Strength. Is one of these entries an error? Constitution does govern Defenders of the Faith that don’t specify how you can use the added
psychokinesis. Are undead creatures banned from both disciplines? spellcasting levels. You can add the spellcasting level to an arcane spell-
Undead creatures cannot use psychometabolic powers (they don’t casting class if you like.
have any metabolisms). However, an undead creature can use psychoki-
nesis powers despite its lack of Constitution. It uses its Charisma score Many of the prestige classes in Defenders of the Faith have the
as the key ability score when manifesting psychokinesis powers. ability to cast divine spells, but their levels don’t stack for spells-
per-day calculations. Even though both classes are casting the same
Normally a weapon with the psychic property can go up to only a spells, and all are divine spells, should you still record the available
+4 enhancement bonus. If a psionic weapon with a +1 enhancement spells separately? A similar situation exists for clerics and paladins
bonus was also a psychic weapon, would it have a maximum of +5 (and, for that matter, wizards and sorcerers.)
instead of +4? You keep a separate list of spells for each class when you’re a mul-
No, the enhancement bonus from the psychic property does not stack ticlassed spellcaster. The spellcasting abilities from your classes don’t
with the weapon’s basic enhancement bonus. Note that the weapon has stack in any way. For example, if you’re a 5th-level cleric and 5th-level
to have at least a +1 enhancement bonus to receive any special property wizard, your caster level is 5 in each class.
at all.
Although the description of the psychic property might seem to sug- The descriptive paragraph for the sacred fist prestige class in
gest otherwise, a psychic weapon always uses its basic enhancement Defenders of the Faith mentions that they can cast only spells with a
bonus or the bonus from its psychic property, whichever is greater. If range of touch; however, this is not mentioned in the Class Features
you actually enchant the weapon to +5 in the first place, the weapon section. The Code of Conduct section mentions only a prohibition
has that +5 enhancement bonus no matter what the wielder’s power against weapons and medium and heavy armor. The Spell List sec-
reserves. tion mentions the restriction to spells with a range of touch or per-
sonal, but seems to imply that only spells gained as a sacred fist

Defenders of the Faith

have this restriction. Does it apply to all spells a sacred fist character
can cast, even those that were gained as another class? Also, does a
When an arcane spellcaster gets access to the spells from one of sacred fist lose his class abilities if he uses spells (arcane or divine)
the prestige domains from Defenders of the Faith, do those spells from other classes that have a range other than touch or personal?
become arcane spells? If so, doesn’t that mean that any arcane Sacred fists can use whatever spells they have freely, whatever their
caster can learn them? range entries. Sacred fists cannot use weapons; spells are not “weapons”
An arcane caster who gains access to the spells in a prestige domain for purposes of the sacred fist’s code of conduct. Passing references to a
can cast those spells as arcane spells, but they’re still divine spells as far ban on ranged spells are unwanted artifacts from an earlier version.
as the rest of the multiverse is concerned.
An arcane caster with access to a prestige domain could use spell trig- The sacred fist seems to be the only prestige class in Defenders
ger items that use spells on the prestige domain list, but could not read of the Faith that gives access to an additional domain but does not
divine scrolls with those spells on them. If an arcane caster put a prestige add levels to an existing spellcasting class to determine the number
domain spell on a scroll, it would be an arcane scroll, and only another of spells per day. Does this mean that the domain spells follow the
arcane caster with access to that domain (or a character with the Use progression of the sacred fist class? For example, say that Lyrian is a
Magic Device skill) could use the scroll. cleric (Fharlanghn) 5/sacred fist 4 who chose the Celerity domain as
Sorcerers or bards who get access to a prestige domain add the a sacred fist; would he be able to cast Air Walk (Celerity 3) because
domain’s spells to the lists of spells they know, and wizards who get he can cast 3rd-level spells as a cleric 6, or would he be restricted
access to a prestige domain add the domain’s spells to their spellbooks. to cat’s grace (Celerity 2) because he is only a sacred fist 4? What if
These spells do not get added to the bard or sorcerer/wizard class list, Lyrian was a cleric 1/fighter 4/sacred fist 4?
and other bards, sorcerers, or wizards cannot learn them without first When you add a domain as a sacred fist, you add that domain to
gaining access to the prestige domain. your sacred fist spellcasting ability. You get the granted power from the
domain. As a divine spellcaster who is not a cleric, you get one extra
Page 77 of Defenders of the Faith says you get another spell of each domain spell each day for each level of spell you can cast as a sacred
level when you gain a prestige domain. Does this extra spell have to fist (see the discussion of prestige domains on page 77 of Defenders of
be a domain spell? That is, could a wizard cast an extra magic mis- the Faith). Since both versions of the character in your example have 4
sile each day, or could he only cast an extra domain spell? sacred fist levels, the character would gain the 1st- and 2nd-level Celer-
Only paladins, rangers, and other divine casters, such as sacred fists, ity spells (blur and cat’s grace) as domain spells.
get an extra spell slot, and this slot has to be filled with the prestige
domain spell from that level. Arcane casters don’t get any extra spell Does the sacred fist’s unarmed damage stack with the monk’s
slots each day. Clerics still have only one slot at each spell level for a unarmed strike damage? Does the sacred fist’s puissant fists ability
domain spell, but they get an extra domain from which to choose their stack with the monk’s ki strike ability?
domain spells. A monk/sacred fist uses her sacred fist unarmed damage or the monk
unarmed damage, whichever is better. Likewise, the character uses her ki
If you have levels in both a divine spellcasting class and an arcane strike or puissant fist ability, whichever one bypasses the most damage
spellcasting class, do you get to pick which one a prestige spellcaster reduction.
class would stack with? Suppose Sheree has two levels of wizard
and five levels of cleric and she decides to take a level of warpriest Does the sacred fist’s evasion and uncanny dodge abilities stack
(giving her access to the Glory domain). Can she choose to stack the with the abilities of the same name that a character might have from
warpriest level with the wizard? another class?
In most cases, the prestige class specifies how you can use the added If the sacred fist already has these powers from another class, he can add
spellcasting level. The warpriest specifies divine spellcasting, but goes his sacred fist levels to the existing class levels (or vice versa) to deter-
mine when he gets them and how powerful they are.
29
 The sacred fist’s spell list includes spells of level 0 thorough 5, yet
the class table only shows spells of level 1 to 4.
The level 0 and level 5 lists are errors.

The description for the hospitaler prestige class in Defenders of

the Faith first says a hospitaler gains levels as a cleric for purposes of
spell-casting as well as full access to all cleric spells, and then later
it says the hospitaler levels are simply added to pre-existing caster
levels (under Spells per day). Which one is right?
The first entry (Spells) is incorrect. Use the second entry (Spell per
Day) instead. In addition, Table 3–7 should have a Spells per Day
column, which should read “+1 level of existing class” at each level.

The table for the hospitaler prestige class shows the ability to turn
undead at 1st level. However, the class description has no mention of
this ability. Does it stack with pre-existing turning ability, or is it a
misprint and an ability not available to the class?
Hospitalers gain the ability to turn undead at 3rd level, not 1st level.
The character turns undead at her hospitaler level, –2. This stacks
with undead turning from other classes; add the character’s hospitaler
level, –2, to the class level for any other class that have turning ability.
For example a 6th-level cleric/4th-level hospitaler turns undead as an
8th-level character. Note that paladins also use their class level –2 to
determine their undead turning level, so a 6th-level paladin/4th-level
hospitaler turns undead as a 6th-level character.

There is a sidebar titled Ghosts and Vampires on page 67 of

Defenders of the Faith. The sidebar says a master of shrouds can
choose to summon these creatures in place of those master of
shrouds could normally summon. However, the number summoned
is not shown, and this ability is not referred to in the main text for
the prestige class. How many vampires or ghosts are summoned?
The sidebar in question shouldn’t be there at all (if was supposed to
be cut from the book). You can ignore the sidebar, or you can assume
that the character can summon ghosts or vampires of the same CR as
the other undead the character can summon and in the same numbers.
Each use counts against the character’s total summoning limit for the
day. Because both ghosts and vampires are template creatures with vari-
able abilities, you’ll need to create statistics for the creatures ahead of
time.
Note that a master of shrouds summons undead three times a day plus
Charisma modifier (minimum once), and that the character’s level deter-
mines how powerful the undead creatures summoned can be (that is, a
10th-level master of shrouds with an 18 Cha summons undead 6 times a
day, not 24 times a day as some people seem to think the text implies).

The description for the battle rod on page 25 of Defenders of the

Faith mentions that the item gives allies a +2 morale bonus but does
not specify what this bonus affects.
Saves against fear effects.

The knight of the chalice prestige class from Defenders of the

Faith specifically says the class has powers that affect demons. Does
this exclude devils or does demons in this sense mean all lower
planar creatures (demons, devils, etc.)?
It means demons (denizens of the Abyss). If the power worked against
all so-called lower planar creatures, the text would say so, or it would
use the term “fiends.”

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