Enhancement Bonus Stacking

[lordphynix]

I'm having a problem with a player in my game and I cannot find the rules in the 3.5 PHB or the DMG to confirm or deny so I'm asking here:

What is the total number of enhancement bonus that one person can stack for an attribute from magic items? Using Strength as an example I suppose. If one were to have a Ring of Strength+2, a Belt of Giants +6, and Gauntlets that granted a +4, would they get a +12?

And if you're at this maximum do spells like Bull's Strength, Cat's Grace, etc still work to temporarily enhance that particular attribute?

Answers are appreciated, book pages and references are worshiped.

 

[IronWolf]

What is the total number of enhancement bonus that one person can stack for an attribute from magic items? Using Strength as an example I suppose. If one were to have a Ring of Strength+2, a Belt of Giants +6, and Gauntlets that granted a +4, would they get a +12?

Modifiers of the same type generally do not stack (dodge bonuses are an exception). So in this case they would have a +6, since the Belt of Giants +6 is the highest, it trumps the ring or the gauntlets.

You can look at stacking in the SRD:

The Basics :: d20srd.org

(it's in the stacking sub-section)

And if you're at this maximum do spells like Bull's Strength, Cat's Grace, etc still work to temporarily enhance that particular attribute?

No - these do not stack with the magic items as these spells provide the same "type" bonus, which does not stack with the bonus from the magic items.

 

[irdeggman]

PHB pg 171

DMG pg 21

Rules Compendium pg 21

As referenced above bonuses of the same type don't stack, except for dodge and circumstance bonuses.

Rules Compendium pg 21

Bonuses of different types alsways stack. Bonuses that have identical types don't stack, except for dodge bonuses and some circumstance bonuses. Untyped bonuses stack unless the bonuses come from the same effect.

Penalties aren't usually typed, but identical types of penaties don't stack. In this latter case, the worst penalty applies.

 

[Jinete]

What about this scenario: you are wearing a belt of strength +6, and gloves of the titan's grip (MIC, +8 enhancement bonus on grapple checks).

Since the belt of strength gives you a +3 bonus to grapple, does it count as an enhancement bonus, thus not stacking with the gloves?

 

[Herzog]

No.

They stack, because they improve different things.

Similar situation:
A cloak of charisma improves charisma, a circlet of persuation improves charisma based checks.
When you use both, your charisma based checks benefit from both items.

 

[Jinete]

A circlet of persuasion gives a circumstance bonus. In my example both the belt and the gloves give an enhancement bonus.

 

[IronWolf]

A circlet of persuasion gives a circumstance bonus. In my example both the belt and the gloves give an enhancement bonus.

In the case you presented the enhancement bonus goes to two different things though.

The belt gives an enhancement bonus to STR. While that indirectly gives an increase in your grapple bonus due to the increased strength the enhancement was targeted to the STR score.

The gloves give an enhancement directly to the Grapple check, not to your STR score. So while the bonuses are of the same type it appears they target two different things and would likely stack.