Spell Storing Weapons

[kramis]

A couple of questions about spell storing weapons:

1. How is the DC set? Is it dependent on who put the spell in the item in the first place, or does it get the standard magic item DC (based on the minimum ability score for that spell)?

2. When you put a scaled power in a weapon does the caster the set the level when he puts it in, or again does it become the minimum level for that spell?

3. Can you put healing spells in it and "touch yourself" with your weapon to heal yourself, or do you have to do damage to activate the spell?

 

[Greatwyrm]

1. The DC should be the same as it would be if the person casting into the weapon had cast directly on the target.

2. Whatever the caster decides the level is, up to his max level, within the requirements of the spell (e.g. no 4d6 fireball, since you must be at least 5th level to cast it).

3. According to the description, you have to strike and deal damage to a creature to activate the stored spell. If you're going to try this, use a subdual weapon.

 

[Jack Haggerty]

Now, think about this...

4d6 fireball

With regards to this...

According to the description, you have to strike and deal damage to a creature to activate the stored spell.

I hope that fireball is stored in an arrow, and not a shortsword.

 

[pontus]

I hope that fireball is stored in an arrow, and not a shortsword.

I don't think you can store fireballs in a Spell Storing weapon, as fireball isn't a truly "targeted" spell (the spell entry only has Area, not Target).

Anyway, you can't make ranged weapons Spell Storing.

 

[Greatwyrm]

I don't think you can store fireballs in a Spell Storing weapon, as fireball isn't a truly "targeted" spell (the spell entry only has Area, not Target).

Hmmm... probably right.

I probably chose a bad example, but the overall point is you can cast at any level you're capable of, within the requirements of the spell.

As far as being at ground zero for a fireball, half the players I've had couldn't have cared less. Heck, I had one dwarven fighter that bought an item to protect him from fire specifically for the purpose of being able to douse himself in lamp oil and light himself on fire before wading into combat. All to be intimidating, he didn't even grapple.

 

[Caliban]

A couple of questions about spell storing weapons:

1. How is the DC set? Is it dependent on who put the spell in the item in the first place, or does it get the standard magic item DC (based on the minimum ability score for that spell)?

The weapon casts the spell (DMG, page 187, Spell Storing, second sentence). Since it's cast from a device, it's the standard magic item DC.

2. When you put a scaled power in a weapon does the caster the set the level when he puts it in, or again does it become the minimum level for that spell?

This one is ambiguous. Since magic items can store spells at different levels, I think it would keep the original caster's spell level, but it's not 100% clear.

3. Can you put healing spells in it and "touch yourself" with your weapon to heal yourself, or do you have to do damage to activate the spell?

Theoretically, yes. Technically you will have to do least one point of damage to yourself to activate the spell storing ability.

 

[Shin Okada]

1) As written in P.176 "Saving throws against magic item powers", spell or spell-like effects from a magic item always have DC of 10 + the level of the spell effect + the ability bonus of the minimum ability score needed to cast that level of spell.

2) It is not clearly written in the rule. But IMHO, the spell stored in the weapon should have a caster level equal to the minimum level needed to cast that spell, just like spells stored in Ring of Spell Storing. If so, for example, Vampiric Touch stored in the weapon have CL of 5 and thus do 2d6 damage.

3) The weapon can cast the spell "Any time the weapon strikes a creature and the creature takes damage from it". So you have to damage yourself.

 

[kreynolds]

1) As written in P.176 "Saving throws against magic item powers", spell or spell-like effects from a magic item always have DC of 10 + the level of the spell effect + the ability bonus of the minimum ability score needed to cast that level of spell.

I always thought that saving throw DCs from magic items were DC 10 + (1.5 x the spell level). Am I thinking of something else?

Edit: Oh, duh! I forgot! They come out the same! LOL

 

[Don21584]

Not that you can put Fireball in a spell storing weapon, but if the caster had the feat "Hole in the Middle" (netbook of feats), putting it in a melee weapon would work wonders if you were surrounded.

 

[Lord Ben]

Well, a ring of spell storing specifically states that the spells are at the lowest caster level needed to cast the spell... spell storing weapons don't have that specific designator.

Here is how I'd do it - the caster level is the caster that put it in, but the DC is of the lowest needed to cast that spell. For instance a 10th level caster could still do a 1d6+5 ray of enfeeblement, but the DC would be that of a 1st level spell or DC11 instead of whatever the caster has.