Is this a cheese? Draconic feats from Complete Arcane

[Diirk]

-As long as you cast a spell every round, you stay in the air. Some times, if the fight ends and I'm still in the air, I will cast false life just so that I can land.

-With that feat, after the first round of combat, I'm 20 feet in the air and most of the time out of danger. And I did cast an offensive spell on the critter in that first round. My fellow meat shields really appreciate it when the critter has suffered from an empowered ray of enfeeblement before it actually had time to deliver a single attack.

huh? The flight lasts until the end of your turn.. at which point you fall and take 2d6 falling damage if you're still 20' up. On your next turn if you cast another spell, you start to fly again... until the end of your turn. You are always on the ground between turns, so enemies should have no problems at all attacking you...

Not to mention an empowered ray of enfeeblement is techincally a first level spell, so you'd only have a flight speed of 10 feet

 

[Trainz]

huh? The flight lasts until the end of your turn.. at which point you fall and take 2d6 falling damage if you're still 20' up. On your next turn if you cast another spell, you start to fly again... until the end of your turn. You are always on the ground between turns, so enemies should have no problems at all attacking you...

I don't beleive this is so. It might need clarification by WotC, but I feel the intent is that as long as you keep casting each round, you're aloft, or otherwise the feat would be much less of use (considering that it takes TWO feats to get there, one of which MUST be taken at 1st level). I certainly wouldn't take it if it meant taking from 1d6 to 5d6 falling damge and ending prone each round. Since this is quite unreasonable and goofy, it is probably not what WotC meant.

Not to mention an empowered ray of enfeeblement is techincally a first level spell, so you'd only have a flight speed of 10 feet

Again, I beleive that the intent is to move at the speed of the slot you waste that round. Maximised Empowered RoE takes a 6th level slot, thus you would gain a flight speed of 60'.

 

[Diirk]

Its nice that you'd like it to work that way, but thats not what the feat says

I feel the intent of smite evil is a no save instant kill. Its obviously just poorly worded...

 

[Diirk]

Oh actually I noticed I did make one mistake. Sorceror metamagiced spells don't allow you to fly at all. Standard action spells only. No full round, no 1 round, no swift or immediate spells allowed.

And that, to me, does imply they didn't intend you to keep flying as long as you kept casting spells.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Its nice that you'd like it to work that way, but thats not what the feat says

He's not wrong.

The feat gives you flight at a particular maneuverability (does it specify?). Regarding the rules on Flight at an average maneuverability, you need to move 1/2 your fly speed horizontally to prevent stalling. If you stall, you fall at the end of your turn. Note that the sorceror, in this case, has not necessarily stalled.

Note that the rules allow you to jump and hang in midair until your next turn (when you need to use a move action to complete the jump). It is no more a stretch to allow the sorceror to hang in midair at the end of his temporary flight. Of course, on his next turn, he'll fall as per the stalling rules unless he does something to keep himself in the air.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

Could you take the Dragon Heritage feat selecting one type of dragon (say black) and then go Dragon Disciple and select another dragon (say Red)???

For that, I think you need the "my mother was a *****" Feat Or it was a hell of a party

 

[Diirk]

Note that the rules allow you to jump and hang in midair until your next turn (when you need to use a move action to complete the jump). It is no more a stretch to allow the sorceror to hang in midair at the end of his temporary flight. Of course, on his next turn, he'll fall as per the stalling rules unless he does something to keep himself in the air.

Well, jump explicitly has rules that cover this:

Action: None. A Jump check is included in your movement, so it is part of a move action. If you run out of movement mid-jump, your next action (either on this turn or, if necessary, on your next turn) must be a move action to complete the jump.

"I ran out of movement mid fly and I don't have a fly speed anymore, and so I'll just hover midair ! Yeah that makes sense, cause you know... falling is an action and all that.. or something..."

Its anagolous to being bullrushed off a cliff. You fall. You don't hang around midair until your next turn and then decide if you want to fall or not... thats why feather fall can be cast outside your turn... because you can FALL outside your turn.

In either case, what would you suggest ? His next action must be a move action to land somehow ? Even jump won't allow you to cast another spell midjump in place of falling...

Unlike Wile E Coyote, you can't simply hang in place for 3 seconds (standard action) while performing an action.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

"I ran out of movement mid fly and I don't have a fly speed anymore, and so I'll just hover midair ! Yeah that makes sense, cause you know... falling is an action and all that.. or something..."

It makes complete sense when you reread the section in the DMG on simultaneity - specifically, "Given that Tordek steps into a pit trap at the end of his movement, when does he fall? Immediately? At the end of the round?"

Since combat is happening simultaneously, and round only exist so that we can wrap our heads around it, the PC will begin to fall at the beginning of his next action. He's not really hanging in midair so much as he is just reaching the top of his arc - after which, presuming he doesn't quick-cast a featherfall, he'll fall 150' to the ground (as per the rules of stalling).

 

[Diirk]

Getting 150 feet high to fall that far would be impressive without a handy cliff to jump off of

Seriously, I see what you're saying, but I can't bring myself to agree with it.. simply put you can fall outside your turn... thats why featherfall is written the way it is. Regardless, I can see the argument for allowing them to stay in air until their next turn, (if they had intended it that way I'd expect it to say that flight lasts until their next turn tho, rather than the end of their turn). However I can see of no possible argument that lets them, with no fly speed and presumably no method of flying, cast another spell well hanging in place in order to regain it.

An ability that the way its written provides flight half the time (from the end of casting until the end of turn... or even til the start of their next turn if we read it your way) CANNOT provide flight all the time.

 

[Brain]

It makes complete sense when you reread the section in the DMG on simultaneity - specifically, "Given that Tordek steps into a pit trap at the end of his movement, when does he fall? Immediately? At the end of the round?"

Since combat is happening simultaneously, and round only exist so that we can wrap our heads around it, the PC will begin to fall at the beginning of his next action. He's not really hanging in midair so much as he is just reaching the top of his arc - after which, presuming he doesn't quick-cast a featherfall, he'll fall 150' to the ground (as per the rules of stalling).

Then why did they change featherfall so that you can cast it when it isn't your turn?(equivalent to an immediate action)