Ask the Stat Monkey!

Does the val’Mehan Bloodline Talent Oath Maker (ARPG p.222) grant any benefit to a character who can already cast the Sarishan Oath spell? As written, it appears not to. If not, it seems a pretty hefty “Talent tax” for trying to maximize Bloodrank. Several other val’Mehan Bloodline Talents have alternatives depending on whether or not the character is a Sarishan Sorcerer-Priest, which is logical since many val’Mehans likely become Sorcerer-Priests.

If nothing else, the Talent could be amended to grant knowledge of an additional Tier I Blood or Wards spell to someone who already knows Sarishan Oath.

Can Sorcerer-Priests of Sarish take (and make use of) the Talents Blessed Devotions (p.73) and Personal Remnant (p.84) from the Codex of Heroes, substituting ASC for DSC and Arcanum (Sorcery) for Arcanum (Cants)?

RAW would be no to both of those questions. But you’re probably right to ask. There are places where DSC was specified in the A:RPG book but it was also meant to include ASC: SP. Those have made it into the errata.

I feel pretty confident that Blessed Devotions are not open to Sorcerer-Priests of Sarish. BD has a feel that fits with Cants, and SPs have access to Adaptation: Arcane Accuracy which covers a lot of the same ground. I am a lot less sure about Personal Remnant. In a home campaign I would definitely allow it…but you need a ruling from the campaign staff for the Legends Campaign.

Is the spell Infuse with Confidence from Codex of Heroes a Tier II spell (as per the spell listing for Infuse with Competence on p.138) or a Tier I spell (as per the spell description for Infuse with Confidence on p.152)?

Normally I would say the spell description takes precedence over the summary table. Given that the spell’s CTN is 20 though I expect it is a Tier II spell per the table. No one official, but that would be my read.

With a sweep of his hat,

Paul

I think this has been answered before, but I don’t remember the verdict. The spellcasting section conflicts itself. Is it 7 ticks where something becomes interruptible, or greater than 7 (8+)?

I’ve always played it as 7+ but I could be wrong…

The spell Sarish’s Price (CoH p.158) is described in a self-contradictory way. Both the summary stats and the detailed description are self-contradictory about whether the spell lasts for the rest of the scene or only while sustained. Please read the spell for details. The spell should either be made into a base spell with scene duration or a sustained spell that lasts while sustained.

To me, the former seems over-powered, while the later seems mildly under-powered.

The description of the spell Runic Ward (ARPG, p.421) says that its only Tradition is Wards [Tier II], but the spell lists (ARPG, p.352) say that it’s also in the Elemental Tradition [Tier III], albeit with a limitation of elemental effect only. Which is correct?

When in doubt defer to the actual spell description over the summary tables. It’s still worth getting an official answer at some point given the discrepancy, but that’s generally the way to resolve it.

With a sweep of his hat,

Paul

In the spirit of the Talent, I suspect that the character should be able to choose whether to use trained ranks +1 or to use Bloodrank.

There are a number of places where there are a couple of different skills to consider. My recollection is use whatever’s better.

With a sweep of his hat,

Paul

Apologies if this has come up before though I have checked the 4.3 FAQ.

About the talent Challenge: assuming it’s applied successfully can the Challenged target take aggressive actions that do not at least partially target the challenger?

Thanks.