Holding a charge and spell conditions

[Faskill]

Hello,

I am currently playing a game that has some real problems... I'm playing a Human 1Monk/4Sorcerer/7 Enlightened Fist and have very low BAB, what's more the GM has decided to enforce a rule that negates base save bonuses so my character is in a pretty bad shape. Last but not least, he won't give me any custom monk items (Monk belt) so I'm pretty much a level 12 nude character.

I've been working on some way to make it better, using the spell Polymorph.

My way of doing normal damage is to use the spell polymorph to turn into a treant, so basically at the beginning of the fight I would cast enlarge on myself (1 wasted turn) so that I can fill the SIZE REQUIREMENTS of the polymorph spell (only +1 size) and then cast polymorph on myself (another wasted turn). Then I cast haste on myself (another wasted turn) to be finally able to do some real damage without risking to die.

My question is : would it be possible to use Enlarge on myself out of combat then cast polymorph on my hand (it's a touch spell). Then I'd like to "hold the charge" as long as possible (after the ending of Enlarge) to be able to "win" effectively 2 rounds in a fight. Do the requirements of the spell are taken into account when the spell is cast or when the "touch" is made?

Thanks in advance

 

[Nebten]

Touch Spells and Holding the Charge

In most cases, if you don’t discharge a touch spell on the round you cast it, you can hold the charge (postpone the discharge of the spell) indefinitely. You can make touch attacks round after round. If you cast another spell, the touch spell dissipates.

Now, I'm confused about the Enlarge Person part.

"Polymorph, and any spell that refers back to it (such as polymorph any object), allows the new form to be of any size of Fine or greater." (per FAQ 2008)

Polymorph size limitations are not based off of Alter Self. Maybe that bit of information can save you some grief.

I'm actually surprised this character got to level 11 with all the restrictions placed upon him. Good luck!

 

[Empirate]

Polymorphing into a different form (large sized, preferably) might be a good alternative, as well. It's not a good idea buffing too much at the beginning of a fight, as you have found out the hard way - but Polymorph AND Enlarge both keep for minutes/level, so you shouldn't have too much trouble buffing up before combat. Are you constantly ambushed or what is the problem? The only in-combat buff you should need to get off is Haste.

 

[PureGoldx58]

Sounds like your DM is terribly petty to me.

 

[Faskill]

First of all, thanks for your answers.

I haven't read the 2008 FAQ (NB : just read it, you're right ! thanks for the tip) , it was my understanding that I couldn't morph into a Treant directly (size Huge) because I couldn't morph in a creature that was 2 "sizes" greater than me. Am i mistaken on this?
It isn't clear to me how far you must use the same effects as the Alter Self spell...

If this is the case, would I be allowed to wander around while holding the polymorph charge (which is a touch spell), and then apply it to myself as a swift action at the beginning of the fight? That would actually solve most of my problems (and make me win 2 precious rounds of usefulness ).

Treant is the only decent form that is allowed to me by my GM as well ... So YES he is a bit petty... I had to explain to him for 1 hour that I was allowed to use the spell Polymorph on myself because it is a "Touch" spell and not a "Personal" one and then he disallowed most of the forms I intended to morph into... He believes that as am I the only person in the group who really considers optimizing his character I should be nerfed so that the group can be "balanced".

I appreciate your support !

 

[Wyvernhand]

Delivering a touch spell in a round OTHER than the round you cast it is ALWAYS a standard action unless you do it was part of another action, like making an unarmed strike against a foe.

Also, multiple magical effects that alter your size do NOT stack. You can't Enlarge yourself to qualify for a huge Polymorph form. Size changing spells and effects only work off your base size, not your altered size. If you aren't large naturally, you can't Polymorph into a huge form. Shapechange would work, but...that's a 9th level spell.

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

Is there any way you can gain access to Divine Power or Tenser's Transformation? Perhaps the Arcane Disciple feat from Complete Divine could give you the War domain to gain Divine Power.

You have designed a very challenging build to play. Good Luck.

 

[Wyvernhand]

Arcane Disciple for the Competition domain would net you both Divine Power and Righteous Might, two of the best personal buffs ever. You probably have the Wisdom to pull it off, assuming you didn't swap your monk abilities to Int with Carmedine Monk or Kung-Fu Genius, which probably would have been smart.

If your DM let's you rebuild your character, you can get almost the exact same feel out of Monk2/PsyWar18 using the Tashalatora feat from Secrets of Sarlona. It's a warrior so Zen that he gains mystical powers. Heck, you can even pick up Metamorphosis with Expanded Learning or the Mantled Warrior ACF to get the same Polymorph rage you currently have.

 

[Greenfield]

There's a trick that was explicitly legal in 1st/2nd edition, and implied legal in 3.*: The "cursed" scroll.

In earlier editions there was a specific price increase that had to be paid to prepare a cursed scroll. 3rd is a bit vague on this, so your Dm may refuse to allow it.

The idea is a scroll whose spell effects go off the moment you read the title. This function is normally used to prematurely trigger a harmful spell on whoever is examining it, but the same mechanism can be used to create what is in effect a "quickened" spell scroll, limited to spells that affect the reader only.

Such as Polymorph. You'd need to designate the form when the scroll was scribed, and pulling a scroll from something like a Handy Haversack uses a Move action, but for this one the activation becomes a Free Action.

It's a bit cheesy, I admit, but it sounds like your DM deserves a bit of cheese.

As for the Haste: Normally you can Haste a number of people in your party. If your only concern is casting it on yourself, cover your nakedness with a pair of Boots of Speed. Activation is a free action, and you get 10 rounds of Hasted action per day, which can be broken up as you see fit.

 

[kitcik]

A naked monk can attack with his junk.

Refluff "Inhuman Reach" and you could have a very impressive unarmed stroke.