[XPH] Astral Construct Question

[gfunk]

Does an Astral Construct manifested by a 1st level Shaper get one or two attacks before it disappears?

Possibility #1:
1. ROUND 1: Psion begins to manifest Astral Construct for one full round.
2. ROUND 2: Astral Construct appears and gets one attack.
3. ROUND 3: Astral Construct attacks once and disappears on Psion's initiative.

Possibility #2:
1. ROUND 1: Psion begins to manifest Astral Construct for one full round.
2. ROUND 2: Astral Construct appears and gets one attack.
3. ROUND 3: Astral Construct disappears on Psion's initiative.

Here's the Power from the 3.5 SRD:

ASTRAL CONSTRUCT

Metacreativity (Creation)
Level: Shaper 1
Display: Visual; see text
Manifesting Time: 1 round
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Effect: One created astral construct
Duration: 1 round/level (D)
Saving Throw: None
Power Resistance: No
Power Points: 1
This power creates one 1st-level astral construct of solidified ectoplasm that attacks your enemies. It appears where you designate and acts immediately, on your turn. It attacks your opponents to the best of its ability. As a free action, you can mentally direct it not to attack, to attack particular enemies, or to perform other actions. The astral construct acts normally on the last round of the power’s duration and dissipates at the end of its turn.

Astral constructs are not summoned; they are created on the plane you inhabit (using ectoplasm drawn from the Astral Plane). Thus, they are not subject to effects that hedge out or otherwise affect outsiders; they are constructs, not outsiders.

Augment: For every 2 additional power points you spend, the level of the astral construct increases by one.

 

[Thanee]

They get 1 round worth of actions (with 1 attack per round, that's 1 attack) for each round the spell duration lasts.

It goes like this...

Round 1: Psion summons the Astral Construct.
Round 2, on Psion's initiative count: Astral Construct appears and acts immediately. Afterwards it vanishes, because this was the (first and) last round. Psion gets to act.
Round 3, right before the Psion's initiative comes up: Spell duration runs out.
Round 3, on Psion's initiative count: Psion gets to act.

Bye
Thanee

 

[lior_shapira]

In my group also the atral construct gets 1 round / duration round in which to act, so a 1st level psion will only squeeze one attack out of his atral construct. But in our game the astral construct appears immediately following the manifestation of the power and acts immediately, dissapearing on round 2.

Round 1: Psion manifests Astral Construct
Round 1: Astral construct appears and may take his action
Round 2: Astral construct dissipates
Round 2: Psion can act again

 

[Thanee]

But in our game the astral construct appears immediately following the manifestation of the power and acts immediately, ...

Then it should work like what I have written above... since the manifestation time is 1 round (takes a full round, not just a full-round action (tho, in terms of actions, it is the same as a full-round action, but the Psion is still manifesting outside of his action and any damage sustained during that time asks for a Concentration check, for example))!

Bye
Thanee

 

[gfunk]

Thank you for your input, but I would like to respectfully disagree. Perhaps you are thinking of the Summon Monster series of spells which functions as you describe. For comparison, here is the entry from the 3.5 SRD:

Summon Monster I

Conjuration (Summoning) [see text]

Level: Brd 1, Clr 1, Sor/Wiz 1 Components: V, S, F/DF Casting Time: 1 round Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels) Effect: One summoned creature Duration: 1 round/level (D) Saving Throw: None Spell Resistance: No This spell summons an extraplanar creature (typically an outsider, elemental, or magical beast native to another plane). It appears where you designate and acts immediately, on your turn. It attacks your opponents to the best of its ability. If you can communicate with the creature, you can direct it not to attack, to attack particular enemies, or to perform other actions.

The spell conjures one of the creatures from the 1st-level list on the accompanying Summon Monster table. You choose which kind of creature to summon, and you can change that choice each time you cast the spell.

A summoned monster cannot summon or otherwise conjure another creature, nor can it use any teleportation or planar travel abilities. Creatures cannot be summoned into an environment that cannot support them.

When you use a summoning spell to summon an air, chaotic, earth, evil, fire, good, lawful, or water creature, it is a spell of that type.

Arcane Focus: A tiny bag and a small (not necessarily lit) candle.

Note that the phrase from XPH's Astral Construct, "The astral construct acts normally on the last round of the power’s duration and dissipates at the end of its turn," is noticeably absent.


For sake of clarity, let's take a 2nd level Shaper manifesting Astral Construct for an example.


Round 1: Begins AC Manifestation
Round 2: AC arrives and attacks
Round 3: AC stays around and attacks
Round 4: AC attacks and vanishes


The duration is still 2 rounds as per the spell description. However, it further satisfies the clause above.


This distinguishes it from the Summon Monster spell.

 

[Thanee]

No, why should that happen?

In round 4, when your action comes up, the spell duration is over.

The "last round" of 2 rounds is the 2nd round, not the 3rd round.

The AC acts once on the 1st round and then once on the 2nd or last round, then it vanishes.

It acts normally in the 2nd round and vanishes afterwards, that's all that part says...

What it means is, that it vanishes after it acted in the 2nd or last round, it does not stay around for the remainder of the spell duration.

Now, that you mention that, I noticed a little mistake in my above listing, tho... going to correct it.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Thanee]

This is, however, a difference to Summon Monster, since the summoned creatures vanish when the spell duration runs out, not before that, like the creations from the Astral Construct power.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Nail]

Note that the phrase from XPH's Astral Construct, "The astral construct acts normally on the last round of the power’s duration and dissipates at the end of its turn," is noticeably absent.

True enough, but all this gains is an additional target for enemy attacks. That is to say: Unlike the Summoned Monster , the Astral Construct does not stay around after its last action (standard + move).

The Astral Construct spell duration is 1 rd/level. It acts as soon as it appears, on the Psion's turn. If the first round is also the last round of the power's duration, the Astral Construct dissapears immediately after its turn.

IOW, a Shaper 1's Astral Construct would appear, attack (and Move, YMMV), and dissappear......and would not be a meat shield for the rest of the round (as a Summoned Monster would).

I see no ambiguity here. Sorry, Gfunk!

 

[Thanee]

True enough, but all this gains is an additional target for enemy attacks. That is to say: Unlike the Astral Construct, the Summoned Monster does not stay around after its last action (standard + move).

You mixed the two spells/powers up here...

Bye
Thanee

 

[Scion]

asking questions on two boards and you got the same answers effectively each time hopefully that should clear it up for you.

The astral construct sticks around for one round of use at level one. It comes into play at the beginning of the psions next turn, has its actions and goes away.