I plan on being a necromancer and the best way to control more undead is by being a Mystic Theurge. Its a challenging adventure which we are starting for the 3rd time, so I am not interested in going the normal route and taking 3 levels cleric and 3 levels of wizard so at 7th level I can take the first Mystic Theurge. The idea of using Mystic Theurge came from something I read and had not considered before.
So, the requirements are:
Skills: Knowledge (arcana) 3 ranks, Knowledge (religion) 3 ranks.
Spells: Able to cast 2nd-level divine spells and 2nd-level arcane spells.
Under advancing your character, the rules are clear, you must meet the requirements before you can take the prestige class, so I must meet the skill ranks first and spell casting first.
Since I dont know of any way to have 3 points in the skills except being level 3+ I have to be 3rd level.
Now the spell casting is the question.
So magic items are allowed in order to meet the requirement of feats, and those feats can be used to qualify for prestige classes. I wanted a better example of using magic items for prestige classes and found a comment thread where they leaned towards yes.
So, since magic items are allowed, if I took a level in cleric and wizard, and spent the last level somewhere, I would have access to both spell lists. This means that I am able to cast from wands with no check, and scrolls only require a CL check. This assumes no restricted schools and too low ability scores. So as long as I was carrying around scrolls of 2nd level divine and arcane spells, I technically meet the requirement of being able to cast 2nd level spells, because of the weird rule that you are the caster even when its being powered by a magic item. This answer actually has commentary under it based on this exact question.
Racial spells such as he Drow's darkness could also meet the arcane requirement so cleric 3 and wizard 1 for MT at 5th is also possible. Turns out this is not possible.
So, based on this, would I be allowed to take mystic theurge at 4th level?
Best Answer
It’s true that item bonuses count towards prerequisites. It’s the whole reason for the temporary/permanent thing you sometimes see on items (where you have to wear the item for 24 hours in order for it to “count” for prerequisites, basically).
However, I doubt you will ever find a GM that allows wands to count towards “ability to cast \$X\$th-level spells.” Because wands don’t really give you that ability—you can cast the spell from the wand, but it’s a momentary thing, not an ability you gain. Contrast that with, say, a ring of evasion that just gives you the evasion ability.
If an item gave you the ability to cast spells as long as you wore it (and it would have to be spells and not spell-like abilities), that would be a different story. But as far as I know, no such item exists, and no such item will likely ever exist (and if it ever does, everyone should probably ban it).
Now, mystic theurge is a huge trap. It’s a complete waste of time if you need to enter it at 7th level after three levels in each of two base spellcasting classes. You will never, even remotely, make up for the spellcasting levels you missed out on qualifying for it. So there is room to argue for making mystic theurge enterable at a lower level. But that should be discussed as houserule, not because of some shenanigans, but as a conscious choice by the GM because they agree that the class is awful and needs to be improved. Personally, I recommend “the ability to cast 2nd-level arcane or divine spells, and the ability to cast 1st-level spells of the opposite type.” That allows you to enter at 5th, and one of your spellcasting progressions has lost only 1 effective level.