Talk:Reliable Pinger (3.5e Feat)

I Like It

At first I was worried about it, because most saving throws are 10 + 0.5 ½ HD + stat modifier, but then I noticed that this one doesn't include the stat modifier in the minimum. If you're making a feat for spellcasters specifically though, or even in the general case, I'd be a little more interested in one that made the saves 10 + 0.5 ½ HD + relevant stat modifier (if any). With the feat the way it currently is, there's a bit of book-keeping involved as you have to see whether you're including the stat modifier or not each time you cast your spell (either you are because it's higher than 10 + 2/3rds your HD, or you aren't because it isn't quite that high for some of your spells). Surgo 23:24, March 27, 2010 (UTC)

The book-keeping doesn't increase much, though. You could just write down the minimum save DC provided by this feat, and when you're casting a spell or using some other such ability, you just have to check whether this number is higher or not. You already had to calculate the save DC before.

Bringing the relevant stat modifier back in would mean that you would have to have a relevant stat modifier, which is unlikely when using magic items or Coup de Graces. Also, it would make this feat worse for multiclassed Cleric Wizard Sorcerers, and it's very important to make those good, right? --Foxwarrior 23:46, March 27, 2010 (UTC)

Free Heighten Spell

I can't help but think of this (in conjunction with the improved option) as just a way to heighten all your lower level spells to make them as potent as your higher level spells. Glitterdust can be as debilitating as maw of chaos (maybe not exactly, but just for example) if both status effects go through, but the difference is the 7 in the save DC. This (paired with Very Reliable Ringer) negates that. Now obviously a two feat tax is hardly free, but if the spell DCs of your second levels spells are all of sudden 29 (17th level) instead of 24 (10 base + 12 Intelligence mod + 2 level), that's a noticeable difference, and one that only grows with level and is further magnified in a specialist. This only affects a small portion of the game (one that most don't ever touch), but once that level is reached it seems superior to many of the alternatives (also, heaven forbid I mention it, but it becomes horribly broken once into epic levels). I can see that the design goals are to mitigate multiclassing and MAD issues, but I think the combination might end up benefiting the straight casters much more than their gish counterparts, which I don't see as a particularly desirable end product. -- Jota 00:17, September 28, 2010 (UTC)

In the example you mentioned, the save DCs of your 2nd level spells are only as high as the DC's of your 7th level spells, so it's not going to break the RNG. Plenty of homebrew classes around here use use Save DC's of 10 + half of some measure of level + ability modifier, so using the feat pair in the way you describe just lets the SRD casters catch up.

Also, I would think it would have made more sense to have this conversation on the Very Reliable Pinger page, because Reliable Pinger by itself is nowhere near as dynamic-changing. --Foxwarrior 02:52, September 28, 2010 (UTC)