Abilities

Overview

Each ability partially describes your character and affects some of his actions.

Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells

Bonus Spells (by Spell Level)
Score Modifier 0 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th
1 –5 Can’t cast spells tied to this ability
2–3 –4 Can’t cast spells tied to this ability
4–5 –3 Can’t cast spells tied to this ability
6–7 –2 Can’t cast spells tied to this ability
8–9 –1 Can’t cast spells tied to this ability
10–11 0
12-13 1 1
14–15 2 1 1
16–17 3 1 1 1
18–19 4 1 1 1 1
20–21 5 2 1 1 1 1
22–23 6 2 2 1 1 1 1
24–25 7 2 2 2 1 1 1 1
26–27 8 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1
28–29 9 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1
30–31 10 3 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 1
32–33 11 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 1 1
34–35 12 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 1
36–37 13 4 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2
38–39 14 4 4 3 3 3 3 2 2 2
40–41 15 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 2 2
42–43 16 4 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 2
44–45 17 5 4 4 4 4 3 3 3 3

Strength (STR)

Strength measures your character’s muscular and physical power. This ability is especially important for those who engage in hand-to-hand (or “melee”) combat, such as fighters, paladins, and some rangers. Strength also determines the maximum amount of equipment your character can carry.

You apply your character’s Strength modifier to:

  • Melee attack rolls.
  • Damage rolls when using a melee weapon or a thrown weapon (including a sling). (Exceptions: Off-hand attacks receive only half the character’s Strength bonus, while two-handed attacks receive one-and-a-half times the Strength bonus. A Strength penalty, but not a bonus, applies to attacks made with a bow that is not a composite bow. If your character has a higher Wisdom modifier than Strength modifier, then apply the Wisdom modifier to damage when using a thrown weapon instead of the Strength modifier.)
  • Offensive Combat Maneuver (OCM) rolls and difficulty class.
  • Fortitude saving throws.
  • Climb and Swim checks. These are the skills that have Strength as their key ability.
  • Strength checks (for breaking down doors and the like).

Dexterity (DEX)

Dexterity measures hand-eye coordination, agility, reflexes, and balance. This ability is the most important one for rogues, but it’s also high on the list for characters who typically wear light or medium armor (rangers and barbarians) or no armor at all (wizards, and sorcerers). This ability is vital for characters seeking to excel at ranged weapons, such as the bow or sling.

You apply your character’s Dexterity modifier to:

  • Melee attack rolls
  • Ranged attack rolls, including those for attacks made with bows, crossbows, throwing axes, and other ranged weapons.
  • Defensive Combat Maneuver (DCM) rolls and difficulty class.
  • Armor Class (AC), provided that the character can react to the attack.
  • Reflex saving throws, for avoiding fireballs and other attacks that you can escape by moving quickly.
  • Initiative rolls.
  • Acrobatics, Disable Device, Escape Artist, Fly, Ride, Sleight of Hand, and Stealth checks. These are the skills that have Dexterity as their key ability.

Constitution (CON)

Constitution represents your character’s health and stamina. A Constitution bonus increases a character’s hit points, so the ability is important for all classes. Some creatures, such as undead and constructs, do not have a Constitution score.

You apply your character’s Constitution modifier to:

  • Each roll of a Hit Die (though a penalty can never drop a result below 1—that is, a character always gains at least 1 hit point each time he advances in level).
  • Fortitude saving throws, for resisting poison, disease, and similar threats.

If a character’s Constitution score changes enough to alter his or her Constitution modifier, the character’s hit points also increase or decrease accordingly.

Intelligence (INT)

Intelligence determines how well your character learns and retains information, and how quickly your character is able to process that information. This ability is important for wizards because it affects how many spells they can cast, how hard their spells are to resist, and how powerful their spells can be. It’s also important for any character who wants to have a wide assortment of skills.

You apply your character’s Intelligence modifier to:

  • The number of languages your character is proficient with at the start of the game.
  • The number of skill points gained each level, though your character always gets at least 1 skill point per level.
  • Reflex saving throws, for avoiding fireballs and other attacks that you can escape by reacting quickly.
  • Initiative rolls.
  • Appraise, Craft, Knowledge, Linguistics, and Spellcraft checks. These are the skills that have Intelligence as their key ability.

A wizard gains bonus spells based on his Intelligence score. The minimum Intelligence score needed to cast a wizard spell is 10 + the spell’s level.
An animal has an Intelligence score of 1 or 2. A creature of humanlike intelligence has a score of at least 3.

Wisdom (WIS)

Wisdom describes a character’s willpower, awareness, intuition, and capability to make good decisions. While Intelligence represents one’s ability to store and process information, Wisdom represents being in tune with and conscious of one’s surroundings. Wisdom is the most important ability for clerics and druids, and it is also important for paladins and rangers. If you want your character to have acute senses, put a high score in Wisdom. Every creature has a Wisdom score.

You apply your character’s Wisdom modifier to:

  • Ranged attack rolls, including those for attacks made with bows, crossbows, throwing axes, and other ranged weapons.
  • Damage rolls when using a ranged weapon or a thrown weapon (including a sling). (Exceptions: If your character has a higher Strength modifier than Wisdom modifier, then apply the Strength modifier to damage when using a thrown weapon instead of the Wisdom modifier.)
  • Will saving throws (for negating the effects of charm person and other spells).
  • Heal, Perception, Profession, Sense Motive, and Survival checks. These are the skills that have Wisdom as their key ability.

Clerics, druids, paladins, and rangers get bonus spells based on their Wisdom scores. The minimum Wisdom score needed to cast a cleric, druid, paladin, or ranger spell is 10 + the spell’s level.

Charisma (CHA)

Charisma measures a character’s force of personality, persuasiveness, personal magnetism, ability to lead, and physical attractiveness. This ability represents actual strength of personality, not merely how one is perceived by others in a social setting. Charisma is the most important ability for paladins, sorcerers, and bards. It is also important for clerics, since it affects their ability to channel energy. Every creature has a Charisma score.

You apply your character’s Charisma modifier to:

  • Will saving throws (for negating the effects of charm person and other spells).
  • Bluff, Diplomacy, Disguise, Handle Animal, Intimidate, Perform, and Use Magic Device checks. These are the skills that have Charisma as their key ability.
  • Checks that represent attempts to influence others.
  • Channel energy difficulty classes (DC) for clerics and paladins attempting to turn zombies, vampires, and other undead.

Sorcerers and bards get bonus spells based on their Charisma scores. The minimum Charisma score needed to cast a sorcerer or bard spell is 10 + the spell’s level.

Ability Score Advancement Bonuses

The rules and language presented below are Open Game Content

This variant rule around ability ability bonuses places more power in the hands of characters while reducing their reliance on items. Further this permits NPCs to be more challenging without drastically increasing their gear carried.

From fourth level onward, every time a character gains an even-numbered level he may increase an inherent bonus to an ability of his choice by 1. This inherent bonus may be increased in this way up to a maximum bonus of plus one-quarter the total character level. Thus, a level 20 character has a limit of a +5 inherent bonus for any given ability score. Only elite characters, such as PCs, garner these bonuses. Characters of races with monstrous classes receive the inherent bonus for each hit die they acquire rather than each character level.

Level Bonus Points Max per ability
1 0 +0
2 0 +0
3 0 +0
4 1 +1
5 1 +1
6 2 +1
7 2 +1
8 3 +2
9 3 +2
10 4 +2
11 4 +2
12 5 +3
13 5 +3
14 6 +3
15 6 +3
16 7 +4
17 7 +4
18 8 +4
19 8 +4
20 9 +5

Categories: General Campaign Rules

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