Under the 2024 rules the Magic Action lets you use a spell scroll to cast a spell, assuming the spell has no somatic components do you need a free hand to carry this out?
i.e. If a character has a weapon in each hand can they use a scroll of True Strike?
Similarly, can a character interact with an object if they have something held in each hand?
I'm assuming the answer to both is that they cannot but the rules are not explicit on this as far as I can tell
An item in the Scrollscategory is a roll of paper or parchment, sometimes attached to wooden rods and typically kept safe in a tube of ivory, jade, leather, metal, or wood.. Unleashing the magic in a scroll requires the user to read the scroll so you need to have it unrolled and held somehow to be read.
If you have an object in each hands, you don't have a free hand to pull another.
Is it possible for a Scribe to transfer a spell using the Arcana skill to your blades or weapons instead of to a piece of paper? Then you just read it off the blade or hilt of your weapon, etc.?
Various trinkets, items and rings are mentioned in 2024 PHB as being etched with magical command words.
There's no rules for this, so RAW no you cannot. The Watsonian explanation is "magic doesn't work that way", and the Doylist explanation is "needing to hold the item is specifically to limit how many options you can keep available at a time".
I will run contrary and say that you do not need it in hand, per se. You only need to be able to read it.
Typically, this means using both hands to unfurl it. However, it could also be technically held out by another creature for you to read it or laid out on a surface. As long as you can meet the reading requirement without using your hands, you don't need to use any.
I will run contrary and say that you do not need it in hand, per se. You only need to be able to read it.
Typically, this means using both hands to unfurl it. However, it could also be technically held out by another creature for you to read it or laid out on a surface. As long as you can meet the reading requirement without using your hands, you don't need to use any.
Agreed. There is no specific rule about having to be holding it in your hand. I have seen paladins glue them to the inside of their shields so that they can cast without putting away their weapons.
To the basic question - no, you have to have a hand free to hold the scroll so you can read it. For hightech’s question about scribing it on an item instead of a scroll - Um, isn’t that what an enspelled item is already? Doing so is basically a single use thing.
To the basic question - no, you have to have a hand free to hold the scroll so you can read it. For hightech’s question about scribing it on an item instead of a scroll - Um, isn’t that what an enspelled item is already? Doing so is basically a single use thing.
I already commented on hands. As far as enspelled items, it is more like a wand in your weapon, staff, or pants armor. There used to be (in 3.x) a scroll shield which let you scribe spells as a reusable scroll (once you use it, you can scribe a new spell) which is more like what HighTechG33k was describing.
That was more like just scribing the spell into the shield rather than on paper or parchment. This is something I don’t have a problem with really although it doesn’t officially exist in 5e. As for enspelled I went back and reread it and yes it’s more like a wand ( but a wand able to cast L8 spells 6 times daily - yesh, oh well at least they didn’t include L9 - a sword of 6 wishes? Or a battle axe of 6 meteor swarms? Double yesh)
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Under the 2024 rules the Magic Action lets you use a spell scroll to cast a spell, assuming the spell has no somatic components do you need a free hand to carry this out?
i.e. If a character has a weapon in each hand can they use a scroll of True Strike?
Similarly, can a character interact with an object if they have something held in each hand?
I'm assuming the answer to both is that they cannot but the rules are not explicit on this as far as I can tell
An item in the Scrolls category is a roll of paper or parchment, sometimes attached to wooden rods and typically kept safe in a tube of ivory, jade, leather, metal, or wood.. Unleashing the magic in a scroll requires the user to read the scroll so you need to have it unrolled and held somehow to be read.
If you have an object in each hands, you don't have a free hand to pull another.
In order to use Scroll of True Strike, a dual wielding character would have to first unequip a weapon then pull it out and read it.
Is it possible for a Scribe to transfer a spell using the Arcana skill to your blades or weapons instead of to a piece of paper? Then you just read it off the blade or hilt of your weapon, etc.?
Various trinkets, items and rings are mentioned in 2024 PHB as being etched with magical command words.
There's no rules for this, so RAW no you cannot. The Watsonian explanation is "magic doesn't work that way", and the Doylist explanation is "needing to hold the item is specifically to limit how many options you can keep available at a time".
I will run contrary and say that you do not need it in hand, per se. You only need to be able to read it.
Typically, this means using both hands to unfurl it. However, it could also be technically held out by another creature for you to read it or laid out on a surface. As long as you can meet the reading requirement without using your hands, you don't need to use any.
How to add Tooltips.
Agreed. There is no specific rule about having to be holding it in your hand. I have seen paladins glue them to the inside of their shields so that they can cast without putting away their weapons.
To the basic question - no, you have to have a hand free to hold the scroll so you can read it. For hightech’s question about scribing it on an item instead of a scroll - Um, isn’t that what an enspelled item is already? Doing so is basically a single use thing.
Wisea$$ DM and Player since 1979.
I already commented on hands. As far as enspelled items, it is more like a wand in your weapon, staff, or
pantsarmor. There used to be (in 3.x) a scroll shield which let you scribe spells as a reusable scroll (once you use it, you can scribe a new spell) which is more like what HighTechG33k was describing.How to add Tooltips.
That was more like just scribing the spell into the shield rather than on paper or parchment. This is something I don’t have a problem with really although it doesn’t officially exist in 5e. As for enspelled I went back and reread it and yes it’s more like a wand ( but a wand able to cast L8 spells 6 times daily - yesh, oh well at least they didn’t include L9 - a sword of 6 wishes? Or a battle axe of 6 meteor swarms? Double yesh)
Wisea$$ DM and Player since 1979.