Use Magic Device

Description

Ability Score Used:	Charisma
Usable Untrained?	No
Armor Check Penalty Applies?	No

You are skilled at activating magic items, even if you are not otherwise trained in their use. You can pick it up and just...make...it...work. This may involve the sheer force of your will, sly flourishes and subtle motions, or plain old just shake the darn thing until it goes off.

You can use this skill to read a spell or to activate a magic item. Use Magic Device lets you use a magic item regardless of any restrictions which the item might normally impose upon you. If the item has some punitive effect when used improperly, a successful UMD check avoids such a result... for this use of the item. You make a Use Magic Device check each time you activate a device such as a wand. If you are using the check to wear an item as part of a disguise, or which has long-term effects, you must make a check once each hour. Failing one of these checks means the item stops working, or imposes the punishment upon you, and you may not roll again for another hour. Note that simply making a Use Magic Device roll to turn a cursed item off does NOT remove the effects of the punishing action! Being evil and carrying a Holy Avenger is going to get painful, fast. You must consciously choose which ability of an item to activate. That is, you must know what you are trying to activate when you make a Use Magic Device check for that purpose. You may also attempt to activate an item 'blind', which is really its own reward. The DCs for various tasks involving Use Magic Device checks are summarized on the table below.
Action Required:	Use Magic Device is generally not an action, but is considered to be taken up as part of the normal activation action of the item in question. The referee may require an Use Magic Device roll as they see fit, of course.
DC of Check:	Table: Use Magic Device Skill DCs Task Use Magic Device DC Activate blindly 15 It's EASY to set off magic items when you don't know what they do... Decipher a written spell 10 + 4x spell level Deceptive, protective, or dangerous writings 10 + 2x caster level of deceptive writings Use a known scroll 5 + 2x caster level of spell on scroll Use a known wand 5 + 2x caster level of wand Use a known rod or other spell-completion item 10 + 2x caster level of item Use a known restricted item (paladin sword, etc) 15 + 2x caster level of item (Epic Only) Raise Caster Level of Item 10 + 5x caster level you wish, must set target before roll Activate Blindly: You can always try Use Magic Device on items, and it is usually pretty simple to get it to do SOMETHING. If that something is a beneficial effect, setting it off once and actually gaining a benefit makes that item known to you for that function. If you set off the item and cannot determine what it did, the item remains unknown and you must continue to use it blindly. In general, trying items 'blind' is painful, embarrassing, and potentially lethal, both for yourself and for those around you. Blindly activating a cursed item always inflicts the curse upon yourself, and quite likely on others nearby, so there's tjhat to think about as well. Perhaps solitude would be best for this activity.... Decipher a Written Spell: This usage works just like deciphering a written spell with the Read Magic cantrip, except that you must make a skill check for each page you wish to read, taking one minute for each. If you fail a check, you may attempt it again, spending another minute per failure. Use a Scroll: Normally, to cast a spell from a scroll, you must have the scroll's spell on your class spell list. Use Magic Device allows you to use a scroll as if you had a particular spell on your class spell list. If you fail this roll, the spell is expended from the scroll to no effect. Ouch. Hope it wasn't expensive.... Use a Wand, Rod, or Other Spell Trigger Item: Normally, to use a spell trigger item, you must have the spell on your class spell list. This use of the skill allows you to use a spell-trigger item as if you had a particular spell on your class spell list. Failing the roll does not expend a charge.
Modifiers to Check	Use Magic Device takes all modifiers that would apply to activating the item without the skill. If you are in extremely dire straits, such that casting a spell would require a caster level check, you must make an equivalent check to use UMD. Since you are usually not a caster, this is likely to be a difficult test.
Take 10? / Take 20?	No.
Allows Assists?	No.
Results of Success	You activate the item and it operates properly, giving the effect it was designed to give.
Consequences of Failure	If you fail to use a wand, rod, etc, failure gains you no effect and you lose the action you spent to activate it. if you fail to activate a scroll, you lose your action and the spell is expended from the scroll to no effect. Ouch. Failing to use or activate most other items wastes the action but has no further ill effects.
Retry Allowed?	You may attempt to use a magic item as long as your courage or its magic persists.
Provokes AOO?	No, but the action required for the item itself may provoke instead.