Complicated components still take only 1 standard action?

[Jarrod]

Sorry, I thought you were being snippy.

It's honestly never come up. It's a conflict between the worlds of flavor/reality and game balance. We'd probably just gloss over the onyx in the mouth thing... "Rise, my minions!" doesn't really work when you need to run around. Now, if the guy had a chance to prepare, then there'd be a gem in those mouths... but not if he got jumped.

 

[Plane Sailing]

How come spells that require complicated components still only take one action to cast?

I think it is a great question to ask. It looks like there was a bit of a disconnect when the authors were writing the spells up - not just specifying the material components required, but also indicating the manner in which they are used.

I think it makes for a more flavourful game, and it is a shame that the spells were not given a casting time in line with the kind of effort and movement that would intuitively be required to complete the prep actions.

I would guess that most DMs don't notice this issue and just go with the standard casting time, but I can see why it might be interesting to change things around a little

Cheers

 

[Teemu]

So, IYC, how does a 16th level caster animate 32 1HD Human Warriors in one standard action? Can they only animate one corpse? Do they draw AoO if they animate all of them?

Well, the range of an animate dead spell is "touch" and target "one or more corpses touched". You can "use touch spell on up to six friends" as a full-round action that provokes an AoO. Placing the onyx on the corpses' mouths is probably part of the "one or more corpses touched" process, and if you follow the "use touch spell on up to six friends" rule, you could claim that a caster can animate up to six individual skeletons or zombies a round. On the following round, he or she can the proceed to touching more corpses (and placing the onyx).

 

[FEADIN]

Well, the range of an animate dead spell is "touch" and target "one or more corpses touched". You can "use touch spell on up to six friends" as a full-round action that provokes an AoO. Placing the onyx on the corpses' mouths is probably part of the "one or more corpses touched" process, and if you follow the "use touch spell on up to six friends" rule, you could claim that a caster can animate up to six individual skeletons or zombies a round. On the following round, he or she can the proceed to touching more corpses (and placing the onyx).

I think that's a good answer, even if the corpses are not "friends", they are objects and will be "friends" soon

 

[Plane Sailing]

Plus it gives an additional point to that instruction over and above water breathing (which was the only other spell when I'd noticed that it came into play)

 

[Infiniti2000]

Well, the range of an animate dead spell is "touch" and target "one or more corpses touched". You can "use touch spell on up to six friends" as a full-round action that provokes an AoO. Placing the onyx on the corpses' mouths is probably part of the "one or more corpses touched" process, and if you follow the "use touch spell on up to six friends" rule, you could claim that a caster can animate up to six individual skeletons or zombies a round. On the following round, he or she can the proceed to touching more corpses (and placing the onyx).

Keep in mind that you can only touch one target in the round you cast and then you would need to spend a full-round action next round to touch 6 more, etc. This assumes you can hold the charge on such a spell at all, which I'm not sure is supported. Btw, I don't see anything that states that touching your friends provokes an AoO.

 

[werk]

On the following round, he or she can the proceed to touching more corpses (and placing the onyx).

Wouldn't he need to cast animate dead again?

 

[FEADIN]

Keep in mind that you can only touch one target in the round you cast and then you would need to spend a full-round action next round to touch 6 more, etc. This assumes you can hold the charge on such a spell at all, which I'm not sure is supported. Btw, I don't see anything that states that touching your friends provokes an AoO.

No and no....

Touch: You must touch a creature or object to affect it. A touch spell that deals damage can score a critical hit just as a weapon can. A touch spell threatens a critical hit on a natural roll of 20 and deals double damage on a successful critical hit. Some touch spells allow you to touch multiple targets. You can touch as many willing targets as you can reach as part of the casting, but all targets of the spell must be touched in the same round that you finish casting the spell

 

[Teemu]

Wouldn't he need to cast animate dead again?

Yeah, I believe he would actually, judging by what FEADIN just posted. But apparently you can touch more than 6 creatures, as long as they're within your reach. So pile the corpses before you cast the spell.

 

[azhrei_fje]

Well, there's always the option of saying that the casting time is defined as the minimum time required to cast. I don't see any reason why a spellcaster shouldn't be allowed to draw the spell out so that it takes a full round, a full hour, or a full week. (Except that they'd have to eat and sleep at some point. )