Ability Damage

Condition Severity: Special

Effects

• Diseases, poisons, spells, and other abilities can all deal damage directly to your ability scores. This damage does not actually reduce an ability, but it does apply a penalty upon the affected creature, depending on the ability score which is damaged.

For every point of damage you take to a single ability, you suffer the following effects, based on the ability which is damaged:

• Strength: -1 point of damage dealt with all attacks (including spells, ranged, etc), and -2 to current and total hit points.

• Dexterity: -1 to AC (including Touch AC and Flat-footed AC), and -2 to current and total hit points.

• Constitution: -1 to CMB and CMD, and -2 to current and total hit points.

• Intelligence: -1 to all skill checks (including non-INT-based skills), and -2 to current and total hit points.

• Wisdom: -2 from all healing received, and -2 to current and total hit points.

• Charisma: -1 to the save DC of any abilities you use, and -2 to current and total hit points.

The penalties above are cumulative for each full 2 points of ability damage inflicted, though no ability score may ever be reduced below 1. This means that ability damage cannot normally kill a creature, unless the hit point damage caused by the ability damage causes the creature to die.

Ability damage to your ability scores is healed at the rate of 1 per day to each ability score that has been damaged. Ability damage can also be healed through the use of spells, such as lesser restoration.

Ability Drain

Ability drain is a more permanent version of ability damage. Ability drain can only be healed through the use of spells such as restoration. Unlike ability damage, creatures with ability drain never regain drained ability points from a full night's rest. In all other ways, however, ability drain is identical to ability damage.

Ended By

If the ability, trap, or effect description includes specific directions for how the condition is ended, then that is the primary means of ending this condition. In many cases, it is the only way to end the condition. If nothing is specifically listed for ending the condition, then the following methods can be used to end it, instead:

• Ability Damage heals at a rate of 1 point per full night's rest for each ability score that has been damaged.
• Ability Damage can also be healed through the use of spells, such as Restoration, Lesser (Spell).
• Ability Drain will not heal on its own, and can only be healed through the use of spells, such as Restoration, Lesser (Spell).

Array

Ability Damage → Ability Damage → Ability Damage