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I've always wondered about creating a character who trains to use every spellcasting ability.

The publication of Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants introduces the possibility of using Strength in a ranged spell attack "as the spellcasting ability". The Keenness of the Stone Giant feat can increase Strength by 1, and the Stone Throw feature says:

As a bonus action, you can take a rock and make a magical attack with it. The attack is a ranged spell attack with a range of 60 feet that uses the ability score you increased with this feat as the spellcasting ability.

And with the spells selected with the Aberrant Dragonmark feat (from Eberron):

Constitution is your spellcasting ability for these spells.

This suggests the possibility of combining further feats or multi-class spellcasting to collect all six spellcasting ability scores in one (terrible?) character … if Dexterity can be used in a similar way.

The Way of the Sun Soul Monk has a strangely worded Radiant Sun Bolt ranged spell attack feature which doesn't mention a 'spellcasting ability' but does say:

You gain a new attack option that you can use with the Attack action. The special attack is a ranged spell attack with a range of 30 feet. You are proficient with it, and you add your Dexterity modifier to its attack and damage rolls.

Are there ways of getting Dexterity as a named "spellcasting ability" anywhere?

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    \$\begingroup\$ So your definition of "spellcasting ability" is just "you use it for any special spell attack and it's called a spellcasting ability" whether or not any actual spell is involved? Is there any actual meaning to having it be a "spellcasting ability" vs. just a "spell attack" that happens to use a particular stat modifier? That seems to be the only difference between the monk ability and the others (the latter say "spellcasting ability", the former says "spell attack" without official naming the modifier a "spellcasting ability"), and I can't see why it matters. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Sep 28, 2023 at 23:23
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    \$\begingroup\$ As much as I hate this character idea, I must in good conscience upvote the question =D \$\endgroup\$
    – nitsua60
    Commented Sep 29, 2023 at 1:43
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    \$\begingroup\$ "Is this the last elusive spellcasting ability?" - that's kinda problem with this question. We need precise set of requirements for something to be considered a "spellcasting ability" in this context, and if you are allowing things that are not named as such, without providing any other criteria, you are opening a can of opinions, err worms, and encouraging forum-like discussion we probably do not want here. +1 but at the same time VTC for now, sorry. \$\endgroup\$
    – Mołot
    Commented Sep 29, 2023 at 8:51
  • \$\begingroup\$ If you would provide a working, or useful, definition of what a spell casting ability is (or what your understanding of it is). this might be a better scoped question. (As to the Sun Soul monk ability, you might need to find another example of using dex for a spell, or spell like ability. FWIW, I've played a sun soul monk and it never came up as a spell casting ability at the table. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Sep 29, 2023 at 14:09
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    \$\begingroup\$ @NotArch yes, in order to try and use all six abilities as spellcasting abilities in one character. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Oct 25, 2023 at 12:16

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In Eberron: Rising From the Last War the variant Human with the Mark of Passage gains the innate ability to cast Misty Step with Dexterity as the spellcasting ability.

Magical Passage. You can cast the misty step spell once with this trait, and you regain the ability to cast it when you finish a long rest. Dexterity is your spellcasting ability for this spell.

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    \$\begingroup\$ Weirdly...you don't use an ability for misty step \$\endgroup\$
    – NotArch
    Commented Oct 25, 2023 at 15:12
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    \$\begingroup\$ @NotArch True, but it could be relevant if you're playing with some variant rule (or perhaps an area where magic is disrupted) that requires something like spellcraft checks \$\endgroup\$
    – RisingZan
    Commented Oct 25, 2023 at 18:40

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