Ring of Spell Storing ate my caster levels!

[Gromm]

"A ring of spell storing contains up to ten levels of spells that the wearer can cast. Each spell has a caster level equal to the minimum level needed to cast that spell."

Not much room for interpretation. Spells in the ring are at the minimum caster level for the spell.

As far as metamagics, I'm not sure where anyone is going with it. A quickened Magic Missle would be a 5th level spell, which means a minimum caster level of 9- hence 5 missles (as per the spell description).

With spells like Fireball and the like it would also help by raising the DC (which is again minimum as per DMG 178) as well as the minimum caster level.

So if you want your 13d6 cone of cold, make it stilled and silent, or any other +2 spell level meta.

 

[Berk]

This would have to be rule 0'd by the dm. In the campaign I run I would let the caster level of the spells in there be at the caster level of whoever put them in there.

 

[Christian]

Metamagic on a spell usually requires the spell to be prepared in a higher level slot, but it has nothing to do with caster level. A quickened MM cast by a 13th level wizard has the same caster level as a normal MM cast by a 13th level wizard. If you mean spell level, metamagic does not affect that either, except for the Heighten Spell metamagic feat.

So a quickened MM stored in the ring of spell storing would still only do 1d4+1 damage, but it would use up 5 spell levels of space, according to the rules on metamagic and magic items. I am not sure whether the Quicken Spell would work with this ring or not, however. Do you still need the standard action to use the ring?

Weird thought ... a Maximized fireball will always do at least 11*6=66 points of damage (since only an 11th level caster would have the 6th level spell slot needed to cast it), but a Maximized fireball in a ring of spell storing will only do 5*6=30 points of damage. Is that really right?

 

[Dr. Zoom]

The fireball's max is 10d6.

 

[hong]

So if you want your 13d6 cone of cold, make it stilled and silent, or any other +2 spell level meta.

Or just Heighten it.

I think that will be my sorcerer's catchphrase, if I ever play a sorcerer.

 

[Bonedagger]

Or just Heighten it.

I think that will be my sorcerer's catchphrase, if I ever play a sorcerer.

Actually that's the only "corerule" feat that would do the job.

PHB p82
Unlike other metamagic feats, Highten Spell actually increases the effective level of the spell that it modifies.

Also see PHB p 78 under "Effects of Metamagic Feats on a Spell".

(Had the book right next to me )

 

[Jalkain]

Heighten Spell is indeed the only metamagic feat that raises the actual level of the spell (but not the caster level). Other metamagic feats like Empower Spell do not raise spell level or caster level.

Let's take the example of a 10th level wizard putting a fireball spell into the ring, and consider the following three scenarios:

1. The wizard places a normal fireball spell in the ring. When it is cast from the ring, it will have caster level of 5 (minimum for 3rd level spells), and do 5d6 damage.

2. The wizard places a fireball spell in the ring, but now it is Heightened to 5th level. When it is cast from the ring, it will have caster level of 9 (minimum for 5th level spells), and do 9d6 damage.

3. The wizard places a Empowered fireball spell in the ring (takes up a 5th level slot, but not actually a 5th level spell). When it is cast from the ring, it will have caster level of 5, and do 1.5*5d6 damage.


The assumption some people have made is that since you need to be a higher caster level to cast an Empower spell then a normal spell, you can 'fool' a Ring of Spell Storing into thinking that you cast a 5th level spell instead of a 3rd level, for example. I reckon that you'll get a minimum caster level version of whatever you put in. A maximised Magic Missile cast from a Ring of Spell Storing will do 5 points of damage, not 10, and not 2*(d4+1).

Of course, all this assumes that I have correctly understood the description of the Ring of Spell Storing. I might have to put this to the Sage...