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<blockquote data-quote="drnuncheon" data-source="post: 890512" data-attributes="member: 96">...unless you fail your UMD roll, that is - and like Jay said, you need a pretty good bonus in UMD before it's worthwhile.&nbsp; What do you do for the first 5 or so levels?(And how much faster do you need it to be? An open lock attempt takes 1 round according to the SRD.&nbsp; Is the MEA you save with the wand really worth it?)Then there's this:wand of knock: 4500 gp, 50 usesmagic lockpicks (+10 to open locks): 2000 gp, infinite usesReally, though, you can make the 'rely on magic' argument for any of the rogue skills.&nbsp; Why put points into Hide? Use an elven cloak, shadow armor, or invisibility.&nbsp; Move Silently?&nbsp; Boots of elvenkind.&nbsp; (Cheaper and longer-lasting than the wand of knock!)&nbsp; Search? Just use various detect spells.If you rely on UMD for everything, you are going to a) spend a lot of money and b) be hosed if you are ever caught without your equipment.&quot;OK, the guard is gone, let's get out of this cell! Pick the lock.&quot;&quot;I can't.&nbsp; They took all my stuff.&quot;&quot;Here, I stole this fork from dinner.&nbsp; You can bend it into a makeshift lockpick.&quot;&quot;Oh, I didn't take Open Locks. I just use a wand of knock.&quot;(later)&quot;OK, now all we have to do is get over this wall.&nbsp; Here's the rope we made from the bedsheets - climb up the wall and tie it to something so the rest of us can get up.&quot;&quot;Er...&quot;&quot;What now?&quot;&quot;I didn't take Climb.&nbsp; I always use scrolls of levitate.&quot;J</blockquote>

[QUOTE="drnuncheon, post: 890512, member: 96"] ...unless you fail your UMD roll, that is - and like Jay said, you need a pretty good bonus in UMD before it's worthwhile. What do you do for the first 5 or so levels? (And how much faster do you need it to be? An open lock attempt takes 1 round according to the SRD. Is the MEA you save with the wand really worth it?) Then there's this: wand of [i]knock[/i]: 4500 gp, 50 uses magic lockpicks (+10 to open locks): 2000 gp, infinite uses Really, though, you can make the 'rely on magic' argument for any of the rogue skills. Why put points into Hide? Use an elven cloak, shadow armor, or [i]invisibility[/i]. Move Silently? Boots of elvenkind. (Cheaper and longer-lasting than the wand of [i]knock[/i]!) Search? Just use various detect spells. If you rely on UMD for everything, you are going to a) spend a lot of money and b) be hosed if you are ever caught without your equipment. "OK, the guard is gone, let's get out of this cell! Pick the lock." "I can't. They took all my stuff." "Here, I stole this fork from dinner. You can bend it into a makeshift lockpick." "Oh, I didn't take Open Locks. I just use a wand of [i]knock[/i]." (later) "OK, now all we have to do is get over this wall. Here's the rope we made from the bedsheets - climb up the wall and tie it to something so the rest of us can get up." "Er..." "What now?" "I didn't take Climb. I always use scrolls of [i]levitate[/i]." J [/QUOTE]

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