"STAFFS A magic staff is about 5 or 6 feet long. Staffs vary widely in appearance: some are of nearly equal diameter throughout and smooth, others are gnarled and twisted, some are made of wood, and others are composed of polished metal or crystal. Depending on the material, a staff weighs between 2 and 7 pounds. Unless a staff's description says otherwise, a staff can be used as a quarterstaff."
So by RAW - staff = quarterstaff. So using shillelagh with a Staff of the Woodlands is perfectly ok.
P.S. This is right at the beginning of the section on magic items where the categories are described - I am guessing folks have just been reading the item descriptions?
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To the OP - Shillelagh makes the staff do d8 damage and allows you to use your spellcasting stat for the to hit rolls instead of strength. So in this case your to hit would be +5 (stat) +2 (staff) + proficiency
This really sparked an interesting discussion! First thank you all for taking the time to reply! Much appreciated! Although with David's added feedback It still raises some questions, especially after all the interpretations of staff vs quarterstaff, and the ruling on Staffs from DMG 'Unless a staff's description says otherwise, a staff can be used as a quarterstaff.'
So with my Druid I have a +5 in spellcasting. Using Shillelagh would allow me the following, ( For the duration, you can use your spellcasting ability instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of melee attacks using that weapon, and the weapon's damage die becomes a d8. )
So a regular Quarterstaff would be +5 spellcasting from Shillelagh +2 from Quarterstaff proficiency = +7 to hit. If I'm correct. Now here it becomes a little tricky. By all means I'm not trying to min max or anything, I just want to understand when and why some of the effects apply or not.
The following combo Staff of the Woodlands + Shillelagh. As Staff of the Woodlands states, While holding it, you have a +2 bonus to spell attack rolls. So When I hold it and am attuned to the staff my spellcasting becomes +7 on rolls, (5 as regular +2 from wielding the staff). So using Shillelagh put this at +7 which I can roll instead of Strength for attack and damage rolls. Next Staff of the Woodlands states ' This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it' So when Shillelagh is active I can roll my spellcasting, which is 5 + 2 bonus from wielding the staff so +7, I attack with the staff so as stated above the way I read it is that I get a +2 bonus on top of that on my attack and damage rolls which would put it on +9, as I thought originally. However David stated in his feedback it is stats + staff + proficiency. which could mean it gets even more. If the this staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff, and this applies for Quarterstaff proficiency. which would mean +11 Shillelagh allows for the use of spellcasting instead of Strength, so all the other bonuses should still apply, if I'm correct? To sum it up, if I attack while Shillelagh is active: +5 spellcasting from stats + 2 bonus from wielding Staff of the Woodlands to spell attack rolls, +2 bonus for attack and damage rolls when you attack with the Staff of Woodlands, and last +2 from proficiency with the quarterstaff. which would be +11 to hit. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
A spell attack is when you attack with a spell (a la Fire Bolt). Shillelagh does not transform your melee weapon attacks into melee spell attacks, it simply enhances the weapon you are using to make melee weapon attacks.
So no, you don't get the "+2 Bonus to Spell Attack rolls" added onto your melee weapon attacks using the Shillelagh-ed Staff of the Woodlands. You have:
Proficiency Bonus based on level (+2 I believe you are saying, which makes you a 1st-4th level character)
Wisdom bonus instead of Strength, due to Shillelagh (+5 I believe you are saying, which you probably shouldn't have 20 Wisdom as a 1st-4th level character)
+2 to attack rolls "made with" the Staff of the Woodlands. "Made with" here is actually arguably a little more expansive than some other similar wordings like "to weapon attacks made with" or "to melee weapon attacks using," and if you can indeed use the Staff as a Druidic Focus then this poor wording sets you up to actually receive a total +4 bonus to Spell Attacks "made with" the Staff, but.... I'm getting off on a tangent here. Hitting things with the staff as a weapon is +2.
So a total of +9.... but you really shouldn't have this staff, or that Wisdom score, at level 1-4.
@Chicken, I was also wondering about the spell attack but while attuned and wielding the Staff of Woodlands it does update Shillelagh to +7 to hit on dndbeyond, it is all very confusing which is why i made the post :D My Druid is level 4 and has 16 wisdom, so I don't see any problem with the wisdom, it is my highest stat. Spell attack modifier is proficiency +2 and Wisdom +3 = 5 which when not attuned with the Staff of the Woodland is indeed 5 and if i were to get an increase in my proficency (where it becomes +3) or wisdom (becoming 18, getting +4) this updates into Shillelagh, so I assume that it works as intended. The dm rewarded the item, I know i can't cast the spells out of my level, which I don't but I still use it to attack which in combination with Shillelagh raised some questions.
edit: If Shillelagh isn't calculating the wrong stats in dndbeyond and just basing it off spellcasting ability which should be +3 (wisdom) only I believe? (Not the proficiency bonus that get's added for spell attack that is calculated in the Shillelagh to hit. which is +2) The attack would be Shillelagh +3 and a +2 from the staff regular attack roll which is +5 to hit, + 2 from proficiency with quarterstaff if that applies so max 7 in this case. If Shillelagh is indeed using Spell attack modifier = proficiency bonus (+2) + Wisdom (+3) modifier and +4 from the staff it does get to +9, since you can't have 2x proficiency bonus, so it can either be in the spell attack modifier or quarterstaff proficiency. That was my mistake for +11, but it is still very confusing. I mean if Shillelagh uses the spellcasting ability which is wisdom only i believe? Why does it add Spell attack modifier on dndbeyond? Maybe this is a bug? Any of you experts have any thoughts on that?
DnD Beyond lists it as a “spell attack” but it is not. That was just a limitation of the coding. If you enchant anything with Shillelagh and attack with it you are doing a “Melee Weapon Attack” and not a spell attack of any kind.
@Chicken, I was also wondering about the spell attack but while attuned and wielding the Staff of Woodlands it does update Shillelagh to +7 to hit on dndbeyond, it is all very confusing which is why i made the post :D My Druid is level 4 and has 16 wisdom, so I don't see any problem with the wisdom, it is my highest stat. Spell attack modifier is proficiency +2 and Wisdom +3 = 5 which when not attuned with the Staff of the Woodland is indeed 5 and if i were to get an increase in my proficency (where it becomes +3) or wisdom (becoming 18, getting +4) this updates into Shillelagh, so I assume that it works as intended. The dm rewarded the item, I know i can't cast the spells out of my level, which I don't but I still use it to attack which in combination with Shillelagh raised some questions.
edit: If Shillelagh isn't calculating the wrong stats in dndbeyond and just basing it off spellcasting ability which should be +3 (wisdom) only I believe? (Not the proficiency bonus that get's added for spell attack that is calculated in the Shillelagh to hit. which is +2) The attack would be Shillelagh +3 and a +2 from the staff regular attack roll which is +5 to hit, + 2 from proficiency with quarterstaff if that applies so max 7 in this case. If Shillelagh is indeed using Spell attack modifier = proficiency bonus (+2) + Wisdom (+3) modifier and +4 from the staff it does get to +9, since you can't have 2x proficiency bonus, so it can either be in the spell attack modifier or quarterstaff proficiency. That was my mistake for +11, but it is still very confusing. I mean if Shillelagh uses the spellcasting ability which is wisdom only i believe? Why does it add Spell attack modifier on dndbeyond? Maybe this is a bug? Any of you experts have any thoughts on that?
Shillelagh does NOT say to use your spell attack modifier for your attack rolls. It STATES that you can use your Spellcasting Ability in place of strength. Your spellcasting ability is wisdom. It's value is 16. Your spell casting ability modifier is +3 (NOT +5 ... a +5 spell casting ABILITY modifier comes from a wisdom of 20).
The staff states that it is a magical quarterstaff that applies +2 to attack rolls and damage. If you wield it as a magical quarterstaff thus making a melee attack with the staff you add a +2 to hit and damage. A spell attack is not the same thing as wielding the staff to make an attack so you do not add the +2 for wielding the staff to the +2 for spell attacks. Shillelagh is not a spell attack - it transforms a staff into a magical weapon with different properties.
Finally, attack rolls add your proficiency to the roll if you are proficient with the weapon or spell.
So at level 1-4, a Staff of the Woodlands wielded for a melee attack with shillelagh cast on it and a 16 in your spellcasting ability would have a to hit modifier of:
The damage would be modified by: +3 (stat modifier) + 2 (magical weapon bonus) = +5 total
This is how the +7 to hit is calculated and it is correct. (The benefits of using shillelagh on a Staff of the Woodlands are that you use a d8 for damage instead of a d6 and you can use your spellcasting ability (NOT spell attack modifier) for the attack and damage rolls ... this means using wisdom instead of strength for calculating to hit and damage in your case).
P.S. The staff lets you use any of its abilities once you are attuned to it. You can cast ANY of the possible spells from the staff (only using the charges in the staff) once you are attuned to it. The level of your character does NOT matter. Magic items do NOT give you access to spells to cast using your spell slots (unless the magic items description specifically says otherwise) - magic items give you the ability to cast the spells at their lowest level by expending the specified number of charges. So in your case, you do NOT need to be able to cast the spells as your character in order to cast them using the staff.
I didn't know much about the spell attack or spell abilities and the concept was still rather vague to me. (Still learning lots of things!) Since I blindly followed what Dndbeyond showed me, which was a +5 to hit with Shillelagh and when wielding and attuned the Staff of the Woodlands it added a +2 too. I mean if you use the beyondextension and roll Shillelagh into roll 20 it even rolls the D20 + 7 from the spell attack, which I now know isn't correct, if you don't know any better you just assume it works as intended. But I'm glad you guys helped me out on this and it is much clearer, so thank you very much! It is much appreciated!
I didn't know much about the spell attack or spell abilities and the concept was still rather vague to me. (Still learning lots of things!) Since I blindly followed what Dndbeyond showed me, which was a +5 to hit with Shillelagh and when wielding and attuned the Staff of the Woodlands it added a +2 too. I mean if you use the beyondextension and roll Shillelagh into roll 20 it even rolls the D20 + 7 from the spell attack, which I now know isn't correct, if you don't know any better you just assume it works as intended. But I'm glad you guys helped me out on this and it is much clearer, so thank you very much! It is much appreciated!
Attuning the item made the +2 bonus to hit and damage that it has, become active on the character sheet.
I didn't know much about the spell attack or spell abilities and the concept was still rather vague to me. (Still learning lots of things!) Since I blindly followed what Dndbeyond showed me, which was a +5 to hit with Shillelagh and when wielding and attuned the Staff of the Woodlands it added a +2 too. I mean if you use the beyondextension and roll Shillelagh into roll 20 it even rolls the D20 + 7 from the spell attack, which I now know isn't correct, if you don't know any better you just assume it works as intended. But I'm glad you guys helped me out on this and it is much clearer, so thank you very much! It is much appreciated!
No, +7 is correct. You stated that you have a +3 Wis modifier, and a +2 Proficiency bonus, right? Shillelagh lets you use your spellcasting ability scoremodifier (Wisdom for you) instead of Strength, not your spellcasting attack modifier. These are different things.
[magicitem]Staff of the Woodlands[/staff] is a +2 magic weapon. You get to add +2 to your attack rolls made with the weapon, and +2 to your damage rolls made with the weapon. This applies only to melee attacks with the weapon ([edit] and ranged attacks if you decide to throw it at someone, for whatever reason...). It also provides you a +2 to spell attack rolls.
If you are making a melee attack with the weapon, that is not a spell attack. There's no doubling up here; they are different things entirely. +3 Wis modifier (Shillelagh) +2 Proficiency bonus +2 equipment bonus (Magic Staff) = +7 to melee attack rolls. That's the end of the story.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Yes, but it wouldn’t get the additional +2 that the staff grants to spell attacks added on as well since it is a weapon attack. So yes, +3 (Wis mod) +2 (Prof bonus) +2 (Magic weapon) = +7 to hit total.
Yes, that's what I said, but maybe I wasn't perfectly clear. :P Point being the staff is never going to add more than +2 to whatever you're doing with it, whether you're casting a spell or hitting something with it.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Well I disagree on that last bit. The RAI is pretty clear: it's a +2 staff, giving you a +2 bonus whether you attack with it as a weapon or cast spells while holding it. But RAW, it may go beyond that when used as a Focus (which it can almost certainly be used as an Arcane Focus, but only arguably can be used as a Druidic Focus). It all depends on what "made with it" means.
It is clear enough that when I strike someone with the staff, my melee weapon attack is "made with" the staff (and receives a +2 to hit and damage). When I cast Thorn Whip through a Focus, is the melee spell attack "made with" the Focus? I would argue that common sense dictates yes (the Focus was used as one of the essential components of the spell's casting), and I don't see any language which would specifically say no. If that is indeed the case, then the Staff is providing both a +2 to attack and damage rolls for attacks "made with" the Staff, and also seperately a +2 to all spell attack rolls while holding the Staff.
This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. While holding it, you have a +2 bonus to spell attack rolls.
Different game features can affect a target at the same time. But when two or more game features have the same name, only the effects of one of them—the most potent one—apply while the durations of the effects overlap. For example, if a target is ignited by a fire elemental’s Fire Form trait, the ongoing fire damage doesn’t increase if the burning target is subjected to that trait again. Game features include spells, class features, feats, racial traits, monster abilities, and magic items. See the related rule in the “Combining Magical Effects” section of chapter 10 in the Player’s Handbook.
This isn't really worded in a way which directly addresses what's going on... it isn't that we're trying to stack two different Staffs with the same name, or that we're trying to apply one Staff's bonus twice. The Staff provides two different bonuses (+2 to attacks "made with" the Staff; +2 to spell attacks "while holding it"), but these bonuses don't really have a name? The answer can't just be "you only get to apply one bonus provided by the Staff, because other bonuses will have the same name," because that would lead to you only being able to choose from one of an item's several bullet-pointed features instead of having the benefit of all of them.
These are two distinct bonuses, you get both of them. But both bonuses may apply on a single attack roll, when you are making a spell attack "with" the Staff, providing a total +4 bonus to the attack roll instead of the intended +2.
I fully acknowledge that this isn't RAI, but I don't see where to get off the trail to prevent it being RAW, other than by ruling that a spell attack made through a Focus is not "made with" that Focus. And that seems dumb, and would break the utility of +1 Focuses (which I suppose are conspicuously absent from the published magic item lists, hmmm).
["Melee Weapon Attacks"] "Attack" and "Spell Attack" are two mutually exclusive features.
Shillelagh allows you to make a ["Melee Weapon Attack"] "Attack" with your spellcasting modifier, not a "Spell Attack".
The Staff of the Woodlands, does not give a blanket +2 to damage that is magically derived, only those which are explicitly "spell attacks", such as that of Magic Stone, Fire Bolt, and Shocking Grasp
CC, that's a level of pedantry that I know you're better than. :P You know full well that it's a Weapon, +2, which does not ever apply to spellcasting--the melee attack made with SCAG cantrips is not a spell attack--and the +2 to spell attack rolls is a specific bonus which applies only to spells cast while holding the weapon. They do not ever overlap.
There are precious few items that can actually impact your spellcasting attack/DC. This one does, and it's a flat +2.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Not really, both "weapon attack" and "spell attack" are subcategories of "attack." So are "ranged attack" and "melee attack," again subcategories of "attack."
Whether it's a melee weapon attack, a melee spell attack, or some other type of melee ___ attack somehow, Shillelagh allows you to use [Spellcasting Ability] instead of Strength as a modifier, and converts the weapon's damage die to a d8.
Not really, both "weapon attack" and "spell attack" are subcategories of "attack." So are "ranged attack" and "melee attack," again subcategories of "attack."
Whether it's a melee weapon attack, a melee spell attack, or some other type of melee ___ attack somehow, Shillelagh allows you to use [Spellcasting Ability] instead of Strength as a modifier, and converts the weapon's damage die to a d8.
The first part is technically correct, which is the best kind of correct. I made a mistake.
The second part does not make it a "Spell Attack", just changes the nature of the melee weapon attack to use a similar mechanic.
CC, that's a level of pedantry that I know you're better than. :P You know full well that it's a Weapon, +2, which does not ever apply to spellcasting--the melee attack made with SCAG cantrips is not a spell attack--and the +2 to spell attack rolls is a specific bonus which applies only to spells cast while holding the weapon. They do not ever overlap.
There are precious few items that can actually impact your spellcasting attack/DC. This one does, and it's a flat +2.
Other then calling it pedantry, I'm not following where you diverge on the RAW here. I hold the Staff, I use it as a Focus to satisfy the material component of Thorn Whip, and I make a spell attack...
Have I made an attack "with" the Staff? Yes, so +2 to attack rolls and damage rolls
Have I made a spell attack "while holding" the Staff? Yes, so another +2 to attack rolls
Those are two entirely distinct features that the Staff provides. Please explain why they don't stack in a way that quotes some rule text, because I already agree that they shouldn't stack, I'm just not sure why they don't RAW?
Here's the closest thing to a topical Sage Advice I could find (From the Compendium):
What about unusual cases like the green-flame blade spell? The spell, which appears in the Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide, tells you to make a melee attack with a weapon. Look at the table above, and you see that, under normal circumstances, you use your Strength modifier when you make a melee weapon attack. It doesn’t matter that a spell told you to attack. If a spell expects you to make a spell attack, the spell’s description says so. For examples, take a look at fire bolt and ray of frost. Both say it—“spell attack.”
Ergo, if the words "Spell Attack" aren't present, there is no Spell Attack. (Regarding Shillelagh)
Here is the Sage Advice that is applicable to Thorn Whip:
"Hey #DnD scholars... if you have a +1 (etc) weapon and can use weapon as a spell focus, you get that +1 for spells too right?"
"No, you'll notice in the description of magic weapons that grant these sorts of bonuses (usually +1 to +3), it specifies that you add that bonus to attack and damage rolls made using the weapon. That's referring to weapon attacks." ~Dan Dillon
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Umm doesn't the DMG cover this?
DMG p140:
"STAFFS
A magic staff is about 5 or 6 feet long. Staffs vary widely in appearance: some are of nearly equal diameter throughout and smooth, others are gnarled and twisted, some are made of wood, and others are composed of polished metal or crystal. Depending on the material, a staff weighs between 2 and 7 pounds. Unless a staff's description says otherwise, a staff can be used as a quarterstaff."
So by RAW - staff = quarterstaff. So using shillelagh with a Staff of the Woodlands is perfectly ok.
P.S. This is right at the beginning of the section on magic items where the categories are described - I am guessing folks have just been reading the item descriptions?
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To the OP - Shillelagh makes the staff do d8 damage and allows you to use your spellcasting stat for the to hit rolls instead of strength. So in this case your to hit would be +5 (stat) +2 (staff) + proficiency
This really sparked an interesting discussion! First thank you all for taking the time to reply! Much appreciated!
Although with David's added feedback It still raises some questions, especially after all the interpretations of staff vs quarterstaff, and the ruling on Staffs from DMG 'Unless a staff's description says otherwise, a staff can be used as a quarterstaff.'
So with my Druid I have a +5 in spellcasting. Using Shillelagh would allow me the following, ( For the duration, you can use your spellcasting ability instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of melee attacks using that weapon, and the weapon's damage die becomes a d8. )
So a regular Quarterstaff would be +5 spellcasting from Shillelagh +2 from Quarterstaff proficiency = +7 to hit. If I'm correct.
Now here it becomes a little tricky. By all means I'm not trying to min max or anything, I just want to understand when and why some of the effects apply or not.
The following combo Staff of the Woodlands + Shillelagh.
As Staff of the Woodlands states, While holding it, you have a +2 bonus to spell attack rolls. So When I hold it and am attuned to the staff my spellcasting becomes +7 on rolls, (5 as regular +2 from wielding the staff).
So using Shillelagh put this at +7 which I can roll instead of Strength for attack and damage rolls.
Next Staff of the Woodlands states ' This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it'
So when Shillelagh is active I can roll my spellcasting, which is 5 + 2 bonus from wielding the staff so +7, I attack with the staff so as stated above the way I read it is that I get a +2 bonus on top of that on my attack and damage rolls which would put it on +9, as I thought originally.
However David stated in his feedback it is stats + staff + proficiency. which could mean it gets even more. If the this staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff, and this applies for Quarterstaff proficiency. which would mean +11
Shillelagh allows for the use of spellcasting instead of Strength, so all the other bonuses should still apply, if I'm correct?
To sum it up, if I attack while Shillelagh is active:
+5 spellcasting from stats + 2 bonus from wielding Staff of the Woodlands to spell attack rolls, +2 bonus for attack and damage rolls when you attack with the Staff of Woodlands, and last +2 from proficiency with the quarterstaff. which would be +11 to hit.
Please correct me if I'm wrong.
A spell attack is when you attack with a spell (a la Fire Bolt). Shillelagh does not transform your melee weapon attacks into melee spell attacks, it simply enhances the weapon you are using to make melee weapon attacks.
So no, you don't get the "+2 Bonus to Spell Attack rolls" added onto your melee weapon attacks using the Shillelagh-ed Staff of the Woodlands. You have:
So a total of +9.... but you really shouldn't have this staff, or that Wisdom score, at level 1-4.
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I'm going to make this way harder than it needs to be.
@Chicken, I was also wondering about the spell attack but while attuned and wielding the Staff of Woodlands it does update Shillelagh to +7 to hit on dndbeyond, it is all very confusing which is why i made the post :D
My Druid is level 4 and has 16 wisdom, so I don't see any problem with the wisdom, it is my highest stat. Spell attack modifier is proficiency +2 and Wisdom +3 = 5 which when not attuned with the Staff of the Woodland is indeed 5 and if i were to get an increase in my proficency (where it becomes +3) or wisdom (becoming 18, getting +4) this updates into Shillelagh, so I assume that it works as intended.
The dm rewarded the item, I know i can't cast the spells out of my level, which I don't but I still use it to attack which in combination with Shillelagh raised some questions.
edit:
If Shillelagh isn't calculating the wrong stats in dndbeyond and just basing it off spellcasting ability which should be +3 (wisdom) only I believe? (Not the proficiency bonus that get's added for spell attack that is calculated in the Shillelagh to hit. which is +2)
The attack would be Shillelagh +3 and a +2 from the staff regular attack roll which is +5 to hit, + 2 from proficiency with quarterstaff if that applies so max 7 in this case.
If Shillelagh is indeed using Spell attack modifier = proficiency bonus (+2) + Wisdom (+3) modifier and +4 from the staff it does get to +9, since you can't have 2x proficiency bonus, so it can either be in the spell attack modifier or quarterstaff proficiency. That was my mistake for +11, but it is still very confusing. I mean if Shillelagh uses the spellcasting ability which is wisdom only i believe? Why does it add Spell attack modifier on dndbeyond?
Maybe this is a bug? Any of you experts have any thoughts on that?
DnD Beyond lists it as a “spell attack” but it is not. That was just a limitation of the coding. If you enchant anything with Shillelagh and attack with it you are doing a “Melee Weapon Attack” and not a spell attack of any kind.
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Shillelagh does NOT say to use your spell attack modifier for your attack rolls. It STATES that you can use your Spellcasting Ability in place of strength. Your spellcasting ability is wisdom. It's value is 16. Your spell casting ability modifier is +3 (NOT +5 ... a +5 spell casting ABILITY modifier comes from a wisdom of 20).
The staff states that it is a magical quarterstaff that applies +2 to attack rolls and damage. If you wield it as a magical quarterstaff thus making a melee attack with the staff you add a +2 to hit and damage. A spell attack is not the same thing as wielding the staff to make an attack so you do not add the +2 for wielding the staff to the +2 for spell attacks. Shillelagh is not a spell attack - it transforms a staff into a magical weapon with different properties.
Finally, attack rolls add your proficiency to the roll if you are proficient with the weapon or spell.
So at level 1-4, a Staff of the Woodlands wielded for a melee attack with shillelagh cast on it and a 16 in your spellcasting ability would have a to hit modifier of:
+3 (stat modifier) +2 (proficiency modifier) +2 (magical weapon bonus) = +7 total
The damage would be modified by: +3 (stat modifier) + 2 (magical weapon bonus) = +5 total
This is how the +7 to hit is calculated and it is correct. (The benefits of using shillelagh on a Staff of the Woodlands are that you use a d8 for damage instead of a d6 and you can use your spellcasting ability (NOT spell attack modifier) for the attack and damage rolls ... this means using wisdom instead of strength for calculating to hit and damage in your case).
P.S. The staff lets you use any of its abilities once you are attuned to it. You can cast ANY of the possible spells from the staff (only using the charges in the staff) once you are attuned to it. The level of your character does NOT matter. Magic items do NOT give you access to spells to cast using your spell slots (unless the magic items description specifically says otherwise) - magic items give you the ability to cast the spells at their lowest level by expending the specified number of charges. So in your case, you do NOT need to be able to cast the spells as your character in order to cast them using the staff.
I didn't know much about the spell attack or spell abilities and the concept was still rather vague to me. (Still learning lots of things!) Since I blindly followed what Dndbeyond showed me, which was a +5 to hit with Shillelagh and when wielding and attuned the Staff of the Woodlands it added a +2 too. I mean if you use the beyondextension and roll Shillelagh into roll 20 it even rolls the D20 + 7 from the spell attack, which I now know isn't correct, if you don't know any better you just assume it works as intended. But I'm glad you guys helped me out on this and it is much clearer, so thank you very much! It is much appreciated!
Happy to help. Yeah, there are a few things that DDB was unable to map properly and we still have to double check. This is just one of them.
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Attuning the item made the +2 bonus to hit and damage that it has, become active on the character sheet.
No, +7 is correct. You stated that you have a +3 Wis modifier, and a +2 Proficiency bonus, right? Shillelagh lets you use your spellcasting ability score modifier (Wisdom for you) instead of Strength, not your spellcasting attack modifier. These are different things.
[magicitem]Staff of the Woodlands[/staff] is a +2 magic weapon. You get to add +2 to your attack rolls made with the weapon, and +2 to your damage rolls made with the weapon. This applies only to melee attacks with the weapon ([edit] and ranged attacks if you decide to throw it at someone, for whatever reason...). It also provides you a +2 to spell attack rolls.
If you are making a melee attack with the weapon, that is not a spell attack. There's no doubling up here; they are different things entirely. +3 Wis modifier (Shillelagh) +2 Proficiency bonus +2 equipment bonus (Magic Staff) = +7 to melee attack rolls. That's the end of the story.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Yes, but it wouldn’t get the additional +2 that the staff grants to spell attacks added on as well since it is a weapon attack. So yes, +3 (Wis mod) +2 (Prof bonus) +2 (Magic weapon) = +7 to hit total.
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Yes, that's what I said, but maybe I wasn't perfectly clear. :P Point being the staff is never going to add more than +2 to whatever you're doing with it, whether you're casting a spell or hitting something with it.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Well I disagree on that last bit. The RAI is pretty clear: it's a +2 staff, giving you a +2 bonus whether you attack with it as a weapon or cast spells while holding it. But RAW, it may go beyond that when used as a Focus (which it can almost certainly be used as an Arcane Focus, but only arguably can be used as a Druidic Focus). It all depends on what "made with it" means.
It is clear enough that when I strike someone with the staff, my melee weapon attack is "made with" the staff (and receives a +2 to hit and damage). When I cast Thorn Whip through a Focus, is the melee spell attack "made with" the Focus? I would argue that common sense dictates yes (the Focus was used as one of the essential components of the spell's casting), and I don't see any language which would specifically say no. If that is indeed the case, then the Staff is providing both a +2 to attack and damage rolls for attacks "made with" the Staff, and also seperately a +2 to all spell attack rolls while holding the Staff.
One argument against this interpretation would be the prohibition on stacking bonuses with the same name.
This isn't really worded in a way which directly addresses what's going on... it isn't that we're trying to stack two different Staffs with the same name, or that we're trying to apply one Staff's bonus twice. The Staff provides two different bonuses (+2 to attacks "made with" the Staff; +2 to spell attacks "while holding it"), but these bonuses don't really have a name? The answer can't just be "you only get to apply one bonus provided by the Staff, because other bonuses will have the same name," because that would lead to you only being able to choose from one of an item's several bullet-pointed features instead of having the benefit of all of them.
These are two distinct bonuses, you get both of them. But both bonuses may apply on a single attack roll, when you are making a spell attack "with" the Staff, providing a total +4 bonus to the attack roll instead of the intended +2.
I fully acknowledge that this isn't RAI, but I don't see where to get off the trail to prevent it being RAW, other than by ruling that a spell attack made through a Focus is not "made with" that Focus. And that seems dumb, and would break the utility of +1 Focuses (which I suppose are conspicuously absent from the published magic item lists, hmmm).
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["Melee Weapon Attacks"]
"Attack"and "Spell Attack" are two mutually exclusive features.Shillelagh allows you to make a ["Melee Weapon Attack"]
"Attack"with your spellcasting modifier, not a "Spell Attack".The Staff of the Woodlands, does not give a blanket +2 to damage that is magically derived, only those which are explicitly "spell attacks", such as that of Magic Stone, Fire Bolt, and Shocking Grasp
Edited for correctness
CC, that's a level of pedantry that I know you're better than. :P You know full well that it's a Weapon, +2, which does not ever apply to spellcasting--the melee attack made with SCAG cantrips is not a spell attack--and the +2 to spell attack rolls is a specific bonus which applies only to spells cast while holding the weapon. They do not ever overlap.
There are precious few items that can actually impact your spellcasting attack/DC. This one does, and it's a flat +2.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Not really, both "weapon attack" and "spell attack" are subcategories of "attack." So are "ranged attack" and "melee attack," again subcategories of "attack."
Whether it's a melee weapon attack, a melee spell attack, or some other type of melee ___ attack somehow, Shillelagh allows you to use [Spellcasting Ability] instead of Strength as a modifier, and converts the weapon's damage die to a d8.
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The first part is technically correct, which is the best kind of correct. I made a mistake.
The second part does not make it a "Spell Attack", just changes the nature of the melee weapon attack to use a similar mechanic.
Other then calling it pedantry, I'm not following where you diverge on the RAW here. I hold the Staff, I use it as a Focus to satisfy the material component of Thorn Whip, and I make a spell attack...
Those are two entirely distinct features that the Staff provides. Please explain why they don't stack in a way that quotes some rule text, because I already agree that they shouldn't stack, I'm just not sure why they don't RAW?
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Here's the closest thing to a topical Sage Advice I could find (From the Compendium):
Ergo, if the words "Spell Attack" aren't present, there is no Spell Attack. (Regarding Shillelagh)
Here is the Sage Advice that is applicable to Thorn Whip: