Compiled 3.5 Revisions

coyote6 said:

Specifically, if you take +50% from cold, and make your save for half against a cone of cold, do you take 75% or 100% of normal damage?

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We'll see what they say; it should be 75% no matter how you slice it, though. The damage potential increases to 150%; save for half is 75%. Alternately, you save for half damage (50%), but of the damage taken, it does an additional +50% damage (.5 * 50% = +25%) for 75%.

the Eldarin a new creature in the MM.

(Andy wrote 'Eladrin', but that seems like a mistake.)

There is a full stat block for one dragon of each type, but no tactics round-by-round.

The Flesh Golem Manual is a new magic item in the DMG, most likely along with the Clay, Stone and Iron manuals.

At some mid-level, a Horizon Walker gains Terrain Mastery. From this we can gather that the HW deals with terrains and not planes.

At some mid-level, a Thaumaturgist gains Contingent Conjuration.

A Blackguard frost giant is in the MM, as an example of advancing a creature by class (similar to the Mummy Lord).

from Andy Collins

Olgar Shiverstone said:

g. Weapon of speed enhancement: “Grants one extra attack at full BAB when making a full attack. Not cumulative with similar effects.”

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If this is the case I hope they dropped it down from a +4 enhancement equivalent! It becomes a pretty paltry benefit compared with brilliant energy, dancing etc. I'd have thought that it was back down in the land of +2 equivalent... But I wouldn't hold my breath on that one!

Cheers

Olgar Shiverstone said:

We'll see what they say; it should be 75% no matter how you slice it, though. The damage potential increases to 150%; save for half is 75%. Alternately, you save for half damage (50%), but of the damage taken, it does an additional +50% damage (.5 * 50% = +25%) for 75%.

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D&D multiplication rules -- x2 x2 = x3, not x4; x1.5 x1.5= x2, not x2.25.

So x0.5 x1.5 would equal x1, not x0.75.

The question is, does that rule apply? It seems like it should, but the results aren't intuitive, and it's not clear to me whether it applies to multiplying things by half.

coyote6 said:

D&D multiplication rules -- x2 x2 = x3, not x4; x1.5 x1.5= x2, not x2.25.

So x0.5 x1.5 would equal x1, not x0.75.

The question is, does that rule apply? It seems like it should, but the results aren't intuitive, and it's not clear to me whether it applies to multiplying things by half.

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I'm sure that this wouldn't be the case. The D&D "add multipliers" rule applies when stacking effects, but here there is just the plain +50% to damage and then a saving throw to halve that.

That is, if you are purely responding to Olgar.

If your question is more relating to "what happens to an empowered fireball that hits a white dragon... +100% on the damage, or +50% (empowered) and then +50% (vulnerability) on top of that. In that instance I'd say that the ordinary D&D multiplier rules would logically apply

Cheers

Maybe we just add half the total number of dice?

6d6 fireball, +50% ... roll 9d6 damage, save for half?

I find it funny that Andy thinks that we are too stupid to do a +3/2 ratio for power attack but that we're smart enough to do exactly the same calculation on the higher numbers associated with elemental spell damage.

This just in (insert teletype background sounds) ...

The assassin becomes a spontaneous caster.

Only fighters get the Tower Shield feat for free.

t. The Perform skill now has subcategories (like knowledge):
Act
Comedy
Dance
Keyboard instruments
Oratory
Percussion instruments
String instruments
Wind instruments
Sing


hh. Several spells have changed schools. Teleportation spells are now Conjuration (Teleporting) instead of Transmutation. Spells that utilized fear or curses have tended to get shifted to Necromancy. The power word spells are now Enchantment. The symbol spells are all either Enchantment or Necromancy.

ii. Days spent in item creation need not be consecutive. Your wizard can spend a couple days on a magic sword, go adventuring, then come back and finish it a week later.

(I feel a little better about assassins casting, now -- at least no spellbooks. Fighters get a nice bump with the free tower shield feat, too -- even with the -2 "to hit", +4 AC or total cover, which negates IPS, is pretty good, and everyone else has to pay for it. We're also seeing more evidence in a shift in the balance of power of spell schools.)

More:

s. More on DR: A creature with DR no longer automatically ignores the same types of DR with its attacks. When carried to the extreme in this new system, that creates some really strange effects. (For instance, skeletons have DR n/bludgeoning, but don't deal damage as bludgeoning weapons.)

Instead, the MM sets forth specific rules for how creatures can bypass the DR of other creatures.

1) A creature with DR bypassed by a specific type of weapon damage (bludgeoning, piercing, slashing) doesn't have any special ability to bypass other DRs. Skeletons can't hurt other skeletons any better than anyone else can.

2) A creature with DR bypassed by a certain material (adamantine, cold iron, silver) doesn't have any special ability to bypass other DRs. Lycanthropes can't hurt other lycanthropes any better than anyone else can.

3) The natural attacks of a creature with DR bypassed by magic weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of bypassing DR. Same for epic. Gargoyles can hurt other gargoyles as if all their natural weapons were magic.

4) A creature with DR bypassed by a certain alignment (chaotic, evil, good, lawful) doesn't necessarily have any special ability to bypass other DRs (but see #5, below). Devils can't hurt other devils any better than anyone else can.

5) The natural attacks AND weapon attacks of a creature with an alignment subtype (Chaotic, Evil, Good, Lawful) can overcome damage reduction as if those attacks and weapons had an alignment (or alignments) matching the creature's subtype(s). Fiends are really good at hurting celestials, and vice-versa.

6) A creature with DR that can't be bypassed (DR n/-) has no special ability to bypass other creatures' DR. Barbarians can't hurt other barbarians any better than anyone else can.

Each and every creature in the MM that has some ability to bypass DR includes a specific notation to that effect, so that DMs don't have to remember these rules except when creating new monsters.

ii. Teleport is limited to 100 miles/level.

jj. Meteor Swarm: the spell creates four 6d6 fireballs that can be targeted separately (each exploding in a 40-foot-radius spread). You can also fire each meteor at a particular target; a successful ranged attack deals 2d6 bludgeoning damage and allows no save against the resulting fireball. Assuming no special resistance or vulnerability, that's a best-case scenario of 32d6 damage, no save, to a single target and 24d6 damage, Reflex half, to everything within 40 feet.

kk. Enlarge: Enlarge person now increases a humanoid creature's size by one category. This gives the creature +2 Str, -2 Dex, affects its size modifier to AC & attacks, etc., etc. A Medium creature enlarged to Large would have a 10-ft. face and a 10-ft. reach. It doesn't grant the full benefits of a size increase associated with monster advancement, such as Con and natural armor boosts

Some other minor tidbits, in addition to those items added this AM (above):

The upper healing limits on these [mass cure] spells are higher: 1d8+25 for MCLW, 2d8+30 for MCMW, 3d8+35 for MCSW, and 4d8+40 for MCCW. Mass Heal is 9th level, but not spontaneously castable.

The Archmage’s Spell Power ability is a true caster level increase, and the effects aren't unintended. It'll help duration, range, damage, dispel checks, spell penetration checks, and any other factor based on caster level.

Natural Spell

From Andy's Boards:

The 3.5 druid doesn't want Eschew Materials, she wants Natural Spell.

This feat allows a character to complete verbal and somatic components while in wild shape, and lets her use material components and focuses even if such items are melded within her current form.

And it's not a metamagic feat, so there's no spell slot adjustment.
Andy Collins
Senior Designer
Wizards of the Coast Roleplaying R&D

An even bigger improvement over the existing one.