Components - on the other hand...

A Material or Focus component is required to be "in hand" in order to cast a spell. This is specifically stated in the description of casting while grappling.

(It is normally a free action to "prepare components for casting", but a full round action to do so while grappling.)

A Somatic component requires the caster to have "one free hand".

So, if a cleric wishes to cast Hold Person (V, S, DF), he must have his Divine Focus "in hand", and he must have "one free hand" for the gestures.

That's two hands.

Now, if he has a Rod of Absorption "in hand", he can use the energy of the rod to cast a prepared spell without expending the slot, provided the material components are present.

Presumably, this means that he must have his Divine Focus "in hand", the Rod of Absorption "in hand", and "one free hand" for the gestures.

That's three hands.

And yet Jozan (who has only two hands) uses the Rod to cast Hold Person in the example in the DMG.

Thoughts?

-Hyp.

You only need one hand for both material and somatic components?

I rule that the S and M/F/DF components are done with the same hand. In your example, the required gesture would involve presenting the holy symbol, or some such.

If separate hands were required, most casters would need to have two hands free to cast anything at all. That doesn't seem the intent, especially for clerics, who tend to cast in melee fairly often.

I'm not sure we should be limiting ourselves to 1 object "in hand" per hand. Personally, I could easily hold a rod and a holy symbol in the same hand while I reached in a pocket and extracted some gum arabic if needed.

After all, he isn't using the holy symbol or rod as a weapon. He just has them "in hand".

I once read a ruling back in the 3.0 days, either from the Sage or the FAQ, that stated that you don't need the divine focus to be in your hand, but "handy". You could just have it hanging around your neck, as long as it was visible.

wocky said:

I once read a ruling back in the 3.0 days, either from the Sage or the FAQ, that stated that you don't need the divine focus to be in your hand, but "handy". You could just have it hanging around your neck, as long as it was visible.

Click to expand...

Except that the grappling rules specify that you can only cast a spell while grappling if your material or focus components are already "in hand", not just visible.

A holy symbol around your neck shouldn't suddenly lose its effectiveness just because someone's grabbed your leg... which suggests that it needs to be in hand any time you cast.

-Hyp.

We've always played it that the somatic and material / focus parts are done with the same hand.

For foci, you do something with it (present it forefully, wave it around, etc.). For components perhaps the components is thrown intot he air where it turns into dust, which you then swirl around with your hand.

If it didn't work that way, nobody could cast Acid Arrow unless they had three hands, since they'd need one for the component, one for the focus, and one for the somatic component. That was just the first example int he SRD, I'm ure there are tons more spells that ould be uncastable if you couldn't combine components into a single hand.

I hate material components and so do most people I've gamed with. I understand needing components for powerful spells, that seems to have some flavor but most components are just kinda lame. Really, who is gonna keep a spider living on them all the time? If components were implemented realistically they would be useless in combat situations, not to mention the reasoning that prompted this thread. Who is gonna reach into his robe, find the jar with the spiders (or batfur or whatever), unscrew the lid, grab one of the 10 spiders in there, carefully replace the lid so the others dont get out, put it back and then cast a spell with an orc running at you? By the way you're doing this one handed since you have a staff in your other hand. Not to mention that any decent wizards would have so many components on them you would need a wallmart-like inventory system just to find anything.

In every campaign I've played in we have almost always treated casters as having eschew materials, long before that feat came out and detailed it.

James McMurray said:

If it didn't work that way, nobody could cast Acid Arrow unless they had three hands, since they'd need one for the component, one for the focus, and one for the somatic component.

Click to expand...

Well, I have no problem with someone holding powdered rhubarb leaf, an adder's stomach, and a dart in one hand. But the specifically need "one hand free" for Somatic components... and if they're holding powdered rhubarb leaf, an adder's stomach, and a dart in one hand, then that hand isn't free...

-Hyp.

We just play it that as long as you have one hand free when beginning the spell, you can fulfill any material, somatic, and/or focus requirements with that single hand. I think this is the way it was intended and the way 99% of people play it. The only time we even think about spell components that don't have a monetary cost is if the wizard is expressly denied them, generally because he's been imprisoned.

-The Souljourner