Sorry if this has been asked before, but if you wear a Belt of Giant Strength, can you increase your strength score further with other temporary bonuses?
I ask because there is a specific difference in wording between the Belts and Gauntlets of Ogre Power:
Gauntlets: "Your Strength score is 19 while you wear these gauntlets. They have no effect on you if your Strength is 19 or higher without them."
vs Belt: "While wearing this belt, your Strength score changes to a score granted by the belt. The item has no effect on you if your Strength without the belt is equal to or greater than the belt’s score."
What I am thinking is that if the Belt sets your strength score to X value, temporary score boosts (such as those from the Order of the Mutant Bloodhunter) could boost it higher. This would justify the otherwise specific synergy with Hammer of Thunderbolts. This would in my opinion also mean that effects that reduce your strength would work on your strength score, though I would say that these could be negated by dis-attuning and re-attuning the Belt.
I’d go with no. I base this on the fact that Feeblemind can not reduce a creature’s INT if they are wearing a Headband of Intellect; it is set to 19 and can not be changed (if they take off the Headband while under the effects of Feeblemind, however...) Similarly, if you have an INT of 14 and wear a Headband and then get a Tome of Clear Thought your INT is still 19.
If you are wearing a belt and you do something to increase your STR past that, the belt no longer functions and you now have your base STR+Buff. Note the item doesn’t care how you come about going equal or past it, just that you do.
Related: Any item that sets an ability score also makes you immune to dying from a minus to that skill; several undead reduce STR when they hit you, as an example.
It depends on whether or not those temporary bonuses increase your no-belt strength to a value higher than that granted by the belt.
For example, let’s say your natural strength is 18, and you’re wearing a STR 19 belt. A temporary +2 bonus will raise your strength to 20; since that’s higher than the belt’s value, the belt stops functioning, allowing you to benefit from the temp boost.
If, on the other hand, your base strength is only 15, the +2 only increases that to 17. Per the belt’s description, your strength changes to 19 and the temp boost has no effect.
Sorry if this has been asked before, but if you wear a Belt of Giant Strength, can you increase your strength score further with other temporary bonuses?
I ask because there is a specific difference in wording between the Belts and Gauntlets of Ogre Power:
Gauntlets: "Your Strength score is 19 while you wear these gauntlets. They have no effect on you if your Strength is 19 or higher without them."
vs Belt: "While wearing this belt, your Strength score changes to a score granted by the belt. The item has no effect on you if your Strength without the belt is equal to or greater than the belt’s score."
What I am thinking is that if the Belt sets your strength score to X value, temporary score boosts (such as those from the Order of the Mutant Bloodhunter) could boost it higher. This would justify the otherwise specific synergy with Hammer of Thunderbolts. This would in my opinion also mean that effects that reduce your strength would work on your strength score, though I would say that these could be negated by dis-attuning and re-attuning the Belt.
Love to hear your thoughts!
There's absolutely no synergy with the Gauntlets of Ogre Power, so don't bother attuning them. If your Belt is Hill, Frost, or Stone, and you're Strength 20, the Hammer will bring you to 24, exceeding the Belt and rendering it redundant, so don't attune it. If your Belt is Fire, Cloud, or Storm, instead the Hammer is the one that can't keep up, so if you attune the Belt, you'll have the Belt's strength value, instead of your base + the hammer.
Note that the hammer will raise your normal Strength cap to 30 and add 4 to current, so by way of an example, if you then read a Manual of Gainful Exercise, the Hammer would take you to 26, and a Belt of Fire Giant Strength would be rendered useless to attune for you.
Sorry if this has been asked before, but if you wear a Belt of Giant Strength, can you increase your strength score further with other temporary bonuses?
I ask because there is a specific difference in wording between the Belts and Gauntlets of Ogre Power:
Gauntlets: "Your Strength score is 19 while you wear these gauntlets. They have no effect on you if your Strength is 19 or higher without them."
vs Belt: "While wearing this belt, your Strength score changes to a score granted by the belt. The item has no effect on you if your Strength without the belt is equal to or greater than the belt’s score."
What I am thinking is that if the Belt sets your strength score to X value, temporary score boosts (such as those from the Order of the Mutant Bloodhunter) could boost it higher. This would justify the otherwise specific synergy with Hammer of Thunderbolts. This would in my opinion also mean that effects that reduce your strength would work on your strength score, though I would say that these could be negated by dis-attuning and re-attuning the Belt.
Love to hear your thoughts!
I’d go with no. I base this on the fact that Feeblemind can not reduce a creature’s INT if they are wearing a Headband of Intellect; it is set to 19 and can not be changed (if they take off the Headband while under the effects of Feeblemind, however...) Similarly, if you have an INT of 14 and wear a Headband and then get a Tome of Clear Thought your INT is still 19.
If you are wearing a belt and you do something to increase your STR past that, the belt no longer functions and you now have your base STR+Buff. Note the item doesn’t care how you come about going equal or past it, just that you do.
Related: Any item that sets an ability score also makes you immune to dying from a minus to that skill; several undead reduce STR when they hit you, as an example.
It depends on whether or not those temporary bonuses increase your no-belt strength to a value higher than that granted by the belt.
For example, let’s say your natural strength is 18, and you’re wearing a STR 19 belt. A temporary +2 bonus will raise your strength to 20; since that’s higher than the belt’s value, the belt stops functioning, allowing you to benefit from the temp boost.
If, on the other hand, your base strength is only 15, the +2 only increases that to 17. Per the belt’s description, your strength changes to 19 and the temp boost has no effect.
Thanks for the clarification!
There's absolutely no synergy with the Gauntlets of Ogre Power, so don't bother attuning them. If your Belt is Hill, Frost, or Stone, and you're Strength 20, the Hammer will bring you to 24, exceeding the Belt and rendering it redundant, so don't attune it. If your Belt is Fire, Cloud, or Storm, instead the Hammer is the one that can't keep up, so if you attune the Belt, you'll have the Belt's strength value, instead of your base + the hammer.
Note that the hammer will raise your normal Strength cap to 30 and add 4 to current, so by way of an example, if you then read a Manual of Gainful Exercise, the Hammer would take you to 26, and a Belt of Fire Giant Strength would be rendered useless to attune for you.
Think of it this way, the belt sets strength to 23, you get a +2 bonus up to 25, the belt resets strength to 23.
It is only worded a little different from the gauntlets, it still works the same.