Tome of Prowess (3.5e Sourcebook)/Arcana

Arcana

The Arcana skill represents dedicated study into the workings of arcane magic. While that study manifests itself most strongly as the ability to better understand and recognize arcane magics, those who study Arcana also learn the underpinnings of creatures created and maintained with those magics, constructs and the undead. Characters with substantial training in Arcana can even use arcane spell completion items containing spells not normally accessible within their class and ignore attribute requirements on magical items.

Key Attribute: Intelligence

Untrained Uses

None. Sorry, you actually can’t do this stuff without a bit of training.

Rank 1 Uses

Creature Insight

While learning more about how arcane magic functions, you've also learned more about what makes some of the most common arcane creations and allies, constructs and the undead, "tick". Constructs are creatures built of material that have been animated by magic bound to their frames. The undead are the remains of once living creatures, animated to continue walking and working even after their bodies have given out. As an immediate action, you can attempt to identify a creature you are facing. The DC for this check is 15 + the creature’s CR. The creature does not have to be alive for you to try to gather information about it, though deceased creatures need to be largely intact.

Special: The arcana skill only allows you to identify undead and constructs, and there are several other skills that provide similar knowledge for other creature types. If your GM is a nice guy, he’ll just tell you which skill you need to roll to gather information about a creature. As this may reveal more information than they want, they may not tell you which skill you need. In that case, only roll once for all skills; just add your modifier from each skill to your roll and give him all 5 results separately.

Base DC: 15 + the creature’s CR
Check Result

• DC+10 and above: You correctly guess everything in the lower success results, as well as every other special quality and attack that the creature has. In a less serious game, you can just ask the GM for their notes and read up on it while everyone else gets into position.
• DC+5 to DC+9: In addition to the information learned from a basic success, you also correctly guess 3 special attacks or qualities of the creature. These are either determined randomly from those you have not yet witnessed or you may ask for further details on one you have witnessed (type of DR if you have witnessed it, type of breath weapon, etc.).
• DC+0 to DC+4: You correctly guess the creature’s type, subtypes, and any traits that would come as a result of those categories. If the creature is sufficiently common you also know its name, and that may provide other information.
• DC-1 and below: You are unable to reach any conclusion that you are happy with. You can not retry this check until you witness one of its special abilities or qualities first hand; sometimes getting bathed in acid jogs a memory.

Identify Magic

When you run across magic, it’s nice to know if it’s magic that will help you or flay you alive. The Arcana skill primarily deals with the esoteric magic of wizards, though it can be used to identify spells or effects from any source. The various uses of this skill include identifying a spell as it is being cast, identifying a standing magical effect, identifying magical residue after an effect ends, etc. You must have detect magic active or possess an etheliometer to learn anything with this ability. The action required depends on which of these two methods you use.

Special: This ability is specialized for a particular aspect of magic, and may not be the best skill for you to use to learn about a particular effect. If your GM does not specify which skill you need to roll, and they are well within the rules not to, only roll once for all skills; just add your modifier from each skill to your roll and give him all 3 results separately. Your GM is responsible for making sure that you get the largest applicable bonus and applying it to your check to learn about an effect, and you should beat him about the head with this book if he willfully fails in that task (note: do not actually do that, it’s impolite).

Base DC: 15 + twice the effect’s level or 15 + caster level for non-level effects, +2 for each degradation period passed since an effect ended
Check Result:

• DC+5 and above: You learn the same information as on a regular success, but you learn it for divine and natural magic effects as well.
• DC+0 to DC+4: If the magic is arcane you learn its school, subschool (if any), caster level, and spell level (if applicable). You learn the name of the spell for any effect 2 levels lower than the highest you can generate, and for any effect of any level if you would have reason to know of it (stories, commonality, can cast it yourself, etc.).
• DC-1 to DC-5: You recognize the type of magic (arcane, divine, natural), but nothing further. Additional checks may yield more information.
• DC-6 and below: You do not recognize this effect and understand nothing about it. Additional checks may yield more information.

Rank 4 Uses

Ignore Attribute Requirement

Arcane magic is based on tricking the world into doing what you wanted it to do all along, and some of those tricks work to coax magic items into working for you even when you lack the prerequisite attributes. If a magic item requires a certain ability score to function, you can try to ignore that requirement. The DC for this check is 15 + the minimum required ability score. If you succeed on the check, the item functions as if you have the minimum required ability score. If the item requires additional skill checks to activate, both of these checks are made at the same time, so you are bound to the results of this check upon activation.

Base DC: 15 + minimum required ability score, or 15 + caster level
Check Result:

• DC+10 and above: The item functions as if you had an ability score 6 points higher than the minimum required to operate it. Nice job.
• DC+5 to DC+9: The item functions as if you had an ability score 2 points higher than the minimum required to operate it.
• DC+0 to DC+4: The item functions as if you had the minimum required ability score to operate it.
• DC-1 to DC-5: The item fails to function.
• DC-6 and below: The item fails to activate, and you suffer 2 points of attribute damage to whichever attribute you needed to activate the item. The item becomes inoperable for 3d6 minutes.

There’s a Trick to It

A little knowledge about obscure magical theory goes a long way. In this case, it allows you to attempt to utilize arcane spell trigger items. The DC for this check is 15 + the minimum class level required to use the spell stored in the item; for most spell completion items that means the minimum level a class could acquire the spell in question. You cannot use this ability to gain an effective class level, effective caster level, or similar ability of a character higher level than your own.

Note that you may not use this skill to utilize divine or natural spell trigger items at all.

Base DC: 15 + minimum class level required to use the ability provided by the item
Check Result:

• DC+10 and above: The item functions normally for you for 1 hour, during which time you can use charges or receive benefits as appropriate without making further checks.
• DC+5 to DC+9: The item functions normally for you for 1 minute, during which time you can use charges or receive benefits as appropriate without making further checks.
• DC+0 to DC+4: The item functions normally for 1 round, during which time you can use charges or receive the benefits of it as appropriate.
• DC-1 to DC-5: You do not activate the item, and gain no benefit from it.
• DC-6 and below: The object loses 1 charge or use (if it is limited by these) and becomes inoperable for 2d4 minutes. You also suffer the full effect of any traps or curses on the item.

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