Strictly by RAW, do Focus/Material component need a free hand?

[Mistwell]

Are you guys saying that a cleric cannot generally use a shield and mace while casting spells...that you require them to put down either the shield or the mace to "manipulate" their holy symbol for every spell cast?

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Are you guys saying that a cleric cannot generally use a shield and mace while casting spells...that you require them to put down either the shield or the mace to "manipulate" their holy symbol for every spell cast?

Depends on the shield.

Bucklers and light shields leave your hand free enough to hold things, and therefore don't particularly interfere.

Heavy shields and tower shields, on the other hand, don't let you use the hand for anything else.

Buckler: This small metal shield is worn strapped to your forearm.

...

Shield, Heavy, Wooden or Steel: You strap a shield to your forearm and grip it with your hand. A heavy shield is so heavy that you can’t use your shield hand for anything else.

...

Shield, Light, Wooden or Steel: You strap a shield to your forearm and grip it with your hand. A light shield’s weight lets you carry other items in that hand, although you cannot use weapons with it.

...

Shield, Tower: This massive wooden shield is nearly as tall as you are. In most situations, it provides the indicated shield bonus to your AC. However, you can instead use it as total cover, though you must give up your attacks to do so. The shield does not, however, provide cover against targeted spells; a spellcaster can cast a spell on you by targeting the shield you are holding. You cannot bash with a tower shield, nor can you use your shield hand for anything else.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Are you guys saying that a cleric cannot generally use a shield and mace while casting spells...that you require them to put down either the shield or the mace to "manipulate" their holy symbol for every spell cast?

Absolutely.

With the exception for bucklers and light shields Patryn noted.

-Hyp.

 

[werk]

Are you guys saying that a cleric cannot generally use a shield and mace while casting spells...that you require them to put down either the shield or the mace to "manipulate" their holy symbol for every spell cast?

Or work something out with the DM such that their DF is or is on the heavy/tower shield (he would be manipulating the focus).

SRD: The divine focus for a cleric or a paladin is a holy symbol appropriate to the character’s faith.

I'd probably allow a war domain cleric to count his weapon as his holy symbol...

 

[Li Shenron]

Truth is that almost nobody cares about material components and foci, except for the cost if any.

To cast a spell, you must be able to speak (if the spell has a verbal component), gesture (if it has a somatic component), and manipulate the material components or focus (if any). Additionally, you must concentrate to cast a spell.

I think the rules are murky, they should never have used so vague terms such as "gesture" or "manipulate", they should have used univoke terms. Not that in the case of Somatic component, the PHB says clearly that you need "a free hand", an explanation cleverly kept out of the SRD!

Notice for instance the confusion while grappling or pinned. It says you can't cast spells with S component or M component (unless the extremely rare case where the caster has previously - presumably - spent an action to retrieve the material component, action which is normally not necessary because it is included in the casting time). But hey, it doesn't say you have problems with a focus. So can you freely "manipulate" a divine focus in a grapple?

The 3.5 FAQ is however very clear on the issue of M components.

Creatures that have hands indeed need at least one free hand to cast spells with somatic or material components (or both).

Nevertheless, this has been one of the ol' school areas of the rules (the other is Spellbooks) which have caused confusion to us, up to the point that players have often taken the Eschew Material feat just because they are bothered to keep discussing...

 

[Shin Okada]

Nevertheless, this has been one of the ol' school areas of the rules (the other is Spellbooks) which have caused confusion to us, up to the point that players have often taken the Eschew Material feat just because they are bothered to keep discussing...

Yeah. But then the player meets another problem that Eschew Material does not mention about Focus or Divine Focus ....

 

[Li Shenron]

A cute (possible) contradicting 3.0 FAQ:

Quicken Spell makes a spell quick; you still need all the components normally required for a quickened spell. If you want help casting spells while grappled, you need Still Spell.

This quote does in no way mean that the 3.5 FAQ is wrong (and I personally kick your ä$§ if you nitpick on the word "help" ), but it's just to express my feeling that sometimes the authors of the FAQ make confusions or have different opinions on the same thing. Here the author itself likely shows that he never bothered much with material components in a grapple.

edit: bah, what a stupid post There's a good explanation of how to retrieve a M comp in a grapple (full-round action which provokes AoO) later in the same FAQ, but I'm too tired to copy it all

 

[Li Shenron]

(Let's see if I stop posting early or late...)

Q:Can a spellcaster, arcane or divine, cast a spell requiring somatic or material components if he has a weapon in one hand and a buckler in the other? A small shield? A large shield?

A:No in all cases. You must have at least one free hand to use a somatic component (see page 151 in the Player’s Handbook). You could drop the weapon (or the buckler or shield) as a free action and then cast the spell.

Q:Many cleric spells have both a somatic component and a divine focus. With a somatic component you must have a free hand to cast, but what about a spell with a divine
focus? Do you need to have a divine focus in your hand to cast spells? Could a divine focus be worn around you neck? Or do clerics just need both hands to cast spells?

A:Any character needs one free hand to cast a spell with a somatic component, no matter what other components the spell has. In the case of a divine focus, it is sufficient to simply wear the focus (usually a holy symbol). Other kinds of focus components are manipulated during spellcasting along with any material components the spell has, or they are simply carried on the caster’s person.

 

[Infiniti2000]

Not that in the case of Somatic component, the PHB says clearly that you need "a free hand", an explanation cleverly kept out of the SRD!

It's in the SRD, under Components.

 

[radferth]

I had a not-so-BBEG that the party was to parley with. He could get away if the party tried to attack him, but a lucky grapple attempt could mess that up. To get around this, he took Free Action as a still spell. He still needed the material component, but as this was a leather cord he just kept one wrapped around his wrist at all times. Thus M does not equal S, but except for armor failure and planning ahead, it might as well.