Arcane eye + eldritch spear?

[Joe Eskimo]

can i use the arcane eye spell with the eldritch spear?
situation:
I'm a 5th level warlock. i'm in a sniper's perch. i see a bunch of orcs(Intelligence 6-10) moving 250 ft. away from my position. i don't have spot as a class skill, and even if i invested in spot as a cross-class skill, i still can't use it effectively. so i pull out a scroll of arcane eye and float that eye towards them. The said eye, now 5 ft. above them, gives me a chance to try to spot their officers and gives me a great view of them.

So, can i snipe at them using my eldritch spear 250 ft. away using my arcane eye as a scope of sorts?

can i even use my eldritch spear while concentrating on my arcane eye?

if not, can anyone suggest alternatives as to how i can effectively spot them orcs 250 ft. away with me being a 5th level warlock.

 

[emoplato]

You can use it if you get quicken spell-like ability(eldritch blast) which allows you to use eldritch blast stuff as a swift action 3/day. You can also get extraordinary concentration which allows you to maintain concentration as a move action(25+level of spell) or even a swift if you beat it by 10. You need to be at least level twelve(concentration 15 ranks). If the complete scoundrel is allowed it offers an alternative feat system kind of for skill monkeys(rather than pay a normal feat slot you pay 2 skill points for skill tricks). Swift concetration lets you make a normal concentration check as a swift action and you can get it at level 9 but only usable once per encounter.

 

[Empirate]

Good advice, emoplato, except for the skill trick bit. Yes, it allows you to maintain concentration as a swift action instead of a standard action 1/encounter - however, it does not allow you to cast another spell in this time.

Concentration

The spell lasts as long as you concentrate on it. Concentrating to maintain a spell is a standard action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. Anything that could break your concentration when casting a spell can also break your concentration while you’re maintaining one, causing the spell to end.
You can’t cast a spell while concentrating on another one. Sometimes a spell lasts for a short time after you cease concentrating.

The bolded part isn't adressed in the Swift Concentration description text, so it isn't affected by the skill trick at all. You can use the skill trick to make an attack as a standard action while concentrating on a spell, but you cannot use it to cast another spell.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, Quicken Spell-like Ability wouldn't help for the same reason Swift Concentration doesn't... Hmm. OP, it seems all you could use your spell for would be spotting what target to hit. Then, you'd have to stop concentrating on it and aim at range.

 

[Joe Eskimo]

okay so i guess arcane eye is out. seeing as the concentration part becomes the problem, how about i use a scroll of clairaudience/clairvoyance instead? putting my sensor somewhere around the vicinity of the orcs. this still lets me see them with my rotating stationary sensor. just as good as the arcane eye but without the need to concentrate.

can i now use eldritch spear to snipe them?

 

[Grogg of the North]

As long as you met the requirements for setting up Clairvoyance (place is known to you or obvious) I'd let you do it with a minor spellcraft check since you're "distracted" by the other magic. I'd also give you a cookie for being clever.

 

[Joe Eskimo]

Thanks for all the input people. still waiting for what others may think of this.

 

[emoplato]

Good advice, emoplato, except for the skill trick bit. Yes, it allows you to maintain concentration as a swift action instead of a standard action 1/encounter - however, it does not allow you to cast another spell in this time.




The bolded part isn't adressed in the Swift Concentration description text, so it isn't affected by the skill trick at all. You can use the skill trick to make an attack as a standard action while concentrating on a spell, but you cannot use it to cast another spell.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, Quicken Spell-like Ability wouldn't help for the same reason Swift Concentration doesn't... Hmm. OP, it seems all you could use your spell for would be spotting what target to hit. Then, you'd have to stop concentrating on it and aim at range.

Well that would be the point. He asked if he could use that and strike in the same round. He could send it out, get it there, and blast him immediately. Once he knows where the guy is he doesn't need it anymore(for that purpose). He can just knock off the rest at will from then on.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

Unless the orcs are actually hiding and moving silently, sticking to areas with cover, you don't need to make a DC 25+ spot check just to see them from 250 ft away. The -1 per 10 ft rule is for opposing stealth. No one in real life has spot modifiers nearly high enough to make those kinds of DCs, and yet we can see people hundreds of feet away just fine.

If there is obstructions in the way blocking your sight you also wouldn't be able to see them unaided most likely... but then you also probably couldn't shoot them, either.

 

[Joe Eskimo]

neat. that helps a lot. thanks people.

 

[Hexer]

Good advice, emoplato, except for the skill trick bit. Yes, it allows you to maintain concentration as a swift action instead of a standard action 1/encounter - however, it does not allow you to cast another spell in this time.




The bolded part isn't adressed in the Swift Concentration description text, so it isn't affected by the skill trick at all. You can use the skill trick to make an attack as a standard action while concentrating on a spell, but you cannot use it to cast another spell.

...

Does Eldritch Blast being a spelllike ability (rather than a spell) change this any?