Character Creation

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Character Creation

Here is a quick outline of the character creation process:

Choose a Name

The name of your character can really set the tone for the rest of the character creation process. It can also set the tone for the game. The more creative and evocative the name, usually, the more memorable the character. You could have the most interesting backstory, funny quirks and dynamic outside-the-box hijinks with your character, but if his name is "Fandolf", that's all anyone is going to remember.

It's fine to want to make a character like that guy in that movie you like, but try to put a spin on it that makes the character your own, as well.

Remember, a great name leads to a great character.

Choose a Class

A character's class represents a profession, such as fighter or wizard. If this is a new character, he or she starts at 1st level in this chosen class. As the character gains experience points (XP) for defeating monsters, he goes up in level, granting him new powers and abilities

If your character is a spell caster that prepares spells (such as a wizard) you will need to determine the spells your character starts with. Consult your GM to determine this list.

It is usually a good idea to discuss your class selection with the other players in your group, to ensure that your party will have a good mix of abilities. It is strongly recommended that at least one person play a healing class. It is also very helpful to have a tank character who can soak up a lot of attacks that might otherwise land on the more delicate characters. Damage classes will keep the fights shorter, meaning the party will take less damage (dead monsters don't do damage, usually). In the end, though, you should play the class you want to play, and have fun. A party without a healer can get by with potions, scrolls and wands, or just sleep off their damage. Perhaps not optimal, but certainly playable.

Favored Class

Each character begins play with a single favored class of his choosing. Typically, this is the same class as the one he chooses at 1st level. Whenever a character gains a level in his favored class, he receives either + 1 hit point or + 1 skill rank. The choice of favored class cannot be changed once the character is created, and the choice of gaining a hit point or a skill rank each time a character gains a level (including his first level) cannot be changed once made for a particular level. Prestige classes (see Prestige Classes) can never be a favored class.

Additional race- or class-specific favored class bonuses are not available, and may not be selected at level-up. After the classes were rebuilt the need for the favored classes bonuses are greatly reduced, and including them makes maintaining balance much more difficult. Players must suffer through the stifling choice between an extra hit point or an extra skill point if they level up in their favored class.

Multiclassing and Prestige Classes

Because play-testing and class balancing is still ongoing, multi-classing is not allowed at this time. Much work was expended to make all the classes balanced and interesting to play at all levels. Allowing multi-classing makes balance much harder to maintain. Every referee may, of course, allow whatever they wish. If multi-classing IS ruled to be acceptable, it is strongly recommended that players be required to take a minimum of five levels in any selected class. You Have Been Warned.

Class	Primary Role	Potential Role	Important Stat(s)	Ease of design	Ease of play
Alchemist	Damage	Support	INT, DEX or STR	Moderate	Moderate
Barbarian	Damage	Tank	CON, STR	Moderate	Simple
Bard	Support	Healing	CHA, DEX	Moderate	Complex
Brawler	Damage	Tank	STR, CON	Simple	Moderate
Cleric	Healing	Support	WIS, CHA	Moderate	Complex
Druid	Support	Healing	WIS, STR	Complex	Complex
Fighter	Tank	Support	STR, CON	Complex	Moderate
Monk	Damage	Tank	DEX, WIS	Simple	Simple
Paladin	Damage	Tank, Healer	CHA, STR	Moderate	Simple
Prowler	Damage	Support	STR, DEX	Simple	Moderate
Ranger	Damage	Support	STR or DEX, WIS	Moderate	Simple
Rogue	Damage	More Damage	STR or INT, DEX	Moderate	Moderate
Sorcerer	Damage	Support	CHA, DEX	Moderate	Moderate
Warlord	Healing	Support	CHA, STR	Simple	Moderate
Wizard	Support	Damage	INT, DEX	Complex	Complex

Choose a Race

Your character's race, aside from just being a great source of stat bonuses and quirky abilities, helps you add to the character's story. Instead of just "he's an elf", try to come up with ideas for why he left his ancestral home to go adventuring with a bunch of other weirdos. Maybe his ancestral home was destroyed, or maybe he was exiled.

Epic Path has done away with racial bonuses which are fixed to particular stats. The reason for this was to let players choose the race they wanted because it was cool, rather than because it was the only one that gave them both the Charisma bonus and the Wisdom bonus they need to make their stats line up the way they want. All races now allow the player to apply bonuses (and penalties) to the ability scores of their choice. Note, however, that even with racial bonuses to ability scores, no ability score may begin the game higher than a 20 or lower than a 7.

Racial Stat bonus arrays

• The 'standard' racial stat bonus array is the ability to add +2 to any two stats during character creation at the expense of subtracting -2 from one other stat.

• The first 'optional' racial stat bonus array is the ability to add +4 to any one stat during character creation at the expense of subtracting -2 from two other stats.

• The second 'optional' racial stat bonus array is the ability to add +2 to any one stat during character creation and then add a +1 to any three other stats, all at the expense of subtracting a -2 from one other stat.

Each stat may only be modified once, either positively or negatively, by the bonuses in the racial stat arrays. Some referees may choose to use only the 'standard' racial stat bonus array in their campaigns in order to simplify character creation.

Each race begins with one or two traits that are standard to the race, as well as a list of major and minor traits available. At character creation, the player chooses one major racial trait and one minor racial trait when selecting their race. Once selected, these benefits may not be changed.

Core Races

Nearly all campaign settings will allow players to begin play as one of these core races. The core races are iconic fantasy tropes which nearly every D&D party has contained since Gygax decided he wanted a story to go with his wargame. Of course, some GM's may decide that one or more of the core races are rare, or even non-existent in their world. That's okay.

Core Race	Size	Base Speed	Notes
Dwarf	Medium	20 ft.	Mountain folk, renowned for their smiths and craftsmen
Elf	Medium	30 ft.	Graceful immortals from the First World
Gnome	Small	20 ft.	Endlessly curious explorers with manic personalities
Half-Elf	Medium	30 ft.	Mixed-breed people who have trouble fitting in
Halfling	Small	20 ft.	Dauntless hill folk, brave and lucky
Human	Medium	30 ft.	Adaptable people who always yearn for more

Exotic Races

GM's should decide whether or not they want to allow some or all of the exotic races in their games. These races are not unbalancing compared to the core races, but they are odd, and may not fit into every campaign world. Some worlds might not have Gata at all, while others may view them with fear, hatred or bigotry. GM's should let players know ahead of time if their chosen race is going to carry any social stigma with it.

Note that many of the exotic races available in Pathfinder are not present in Epic Path. Most of the ones we left out were monsters which had player character stuff tacked on. Monsters should be monsters, not misunderstood emo pariahs. That's not to say that everything must fit into a bucket of good and evil, man or monster, but we did want to limit the races to species that weren't normally found burning down villages and kidnapping children.

Exotic Race	Size	Base Speed	Notes
Arborian	Medium	30 ft.	A matriarchal society made strong by the forest spirits
Barani	Medium	30 ft.	A bloodline forever altered by celestial interference
Changeling	Medium	30 ft.	Too pretty for their own good, this race blends in like no other
Gata	Medium	30 ft.	An impulsive race of aggresive warriors, aligned with cat spirits
Grippli	Small	20 ft., Climb 20 ft.	Fun, clever, and smiling, these quick folk are aligned with frog spirits
Half-Orc	Medium	30 ft.*	Physically imposing, with one foot in tragedy and the other in nobility
Ifrit	Medium	30 ft.	Fiery of appearance and temperament, a race aligned with fire
Kitsune	Medium	30 ft.	Lovely, clever, and sly, this race is aligned with fox spirits
Mallori	Medium	30 ft.	A race of humanoids touched by the demi-plane of shadow
Nagdyr	Small	20 ft.	A rodent-like people known for fast-talking and guile
Oread	Medium	20 ft.	A race of the stone within, as strong and reliable as bedrock
Sylph	Medium	30 ft.	A race of the air above, as unpredictable and swift as the wind
Tengu	Medium	30 ft.	Hardy, brave, and brilliant, this race is aligned with raven spirits
Tiefling	Medium	30 ft.	A bloodline forever altered by Infernal experimentation
Undine	Medium	30 ft., Swim 30 ft.	Gentle in their strength, a race aligned with flowing water
Vanx	Medium	30 ft., Swim 30 ft.	Amphibian builders of weirs and canals, as loud as they are kind
Vishkanya	Medium	30 ft.	Born of a curse, these serpentfolk make their way in a new world

Determine Ability Scores

These six scores determine your character's most basic attributes and are used to decide a wide variety of details and statistics. Some class selections require you to have better than average scores for some of your abilities.

In Epic Path, stat generation always uses a point buy system. While we acknowledge the 'good old days' of rolling dice for your stats, we're not recommending that system for these rules.

For all rules written here, we are assuming that all games are using the Epic Fantasy power level, which starts the players with 28 stat points.

Note that Epic Path is written and balanced for Epic Fantasy type characters, but we also recognize that such power levels are not everybody's cup of tea. As a result, we have defined several other power levels as detailed on the Campaign Power Level page.

Important Note to Referees: Especially at low levels of play, campaign power levels make a major impact in these rules! If you want to use the Epic Path rules to play a Low Fantasy game, expect it to be a hard, miserable struggle. Which we find appropriate, if a Low Fantasy game is your cup of tea. On the other hand, if you play an Industrial Magic level game, expect the players to be pretty darn amazing. Which is appropriate if you want that sort of a more cinematic, dramatic, style game.

No matter the power level, in all cases stat costs are:

Stat	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18
Cost	-4	-2	-1	0	1	2	3	5	7	10	13	17

No stat may be bought below a 7 even after racial adjustments, and no stat may ever begin higher than a 20 after racial adjustments. For those of you who would like to use a calculator, this web page has a fairly useful one: Point Buy Calculator (use "other" for both starting points and selected race).

Choose an Alignment

Character alignment is a way to abstractly state a character's moral and philosophical outlook on life. It is not a replacement for a character's backstory or personality traits, but it is a useful way to summarize that personality. Many spells, abilities and damage types also use alignment, and have greater or lesser effects against creatures of the opposite alignment.

There are two sets of three alignments, which when combined means there are nine possible alignments. This is most easily viewed as a chart:

Lawful Good	Neutral Good	Chaotic Good
Lawful Neutral	(True) Neutral	Chaotic Neutral
Lawful Evil	Neutral Evil	Chaotic Evil

Each of these alignments has a loose philosophy and moral code attached to it, though every character will have their own nuances within these guidelines. Players should select alignments that are relatively close to the alignments of the other players in the party, since a party of good characters probably won't want to keep company with a chaotic evil character for very long.

Here is a brief summary of what the different alignments mean, and how characters of these alignments might uphold their beliefs in role-playing situations.

Lawful Good

Lawful Good characters

Neutral Good

Chaotic Good

Lawful Neutral

(True) Neutral

Chaotic Neutral

Lawful Evil

Neutral Evil

Chaotic Evil

Again, it's important to note that these are only guidelines, and each player can interpret how they want to role-play their alignment in their own way, as long as their actions don't seem to indicate that a different alignment would be a better fit. Players should choose an alignment they'll find comfortable or interesting to play, and then write their backstory to fit this philosophy.

Changing Alignments

Once you pick your alignment, your character's actions are expected to fall within the guidelines of that alignment. Stray too far outside the guidelines, and your GM may make your character's alignment change to something more appropriate, based on those actions. It is also possible to deliberately change alignment by taking actions contrary to your current alignment. This can have consequences ranging from an interesting development in your character's story, to a crisis of faith, leaving your character distanced from his god, or even the temporary (or permanent) loss of character abilities. Needless to say, changing alignments can be a big deal.

GM's are encouraged to provide lots of warning to players who are in danger of changing alignments, giving them ample opportunity to change their ways before it's too late. This avoids problems caused by a Paladin suddenly becoming powerless because he butchered too many children while serving a Good-aligned god. Of course, such a wretched example of a Paladin should certainly face consequences, even if he doesn't lose his god's favor altogether. Maybe his Paladin order will seek his arrest, or banish him from their temples. Maybe he'll be sent on a quest of redemption, or asked to make sacrifices to atone for his misdeeds.

Character Backstory

The d20pfsrd has a great section on creating a detailed backstory for your character. It can be found here: Character Background

In general, players should come up with as much backstory as they can stand, as backgrounds provide hooks for GM's to use to customize their campaign to the characters. This lets the characters feel more like a part of the story, and makes the story seem more like it couldn't have happened with just anyone who came along.

That said, character backgrounds do not have any sort of game-mechanics effect on the character. Just because your character has a former military career, or used to be a Raver of Puellor, doesn't mean you get bonuses in combat, or start with some scary magic item. The story is there to help you get into the head of your character, and help the other players understand what motivates you.

Be creative, but also remember to tailor your background to your current character level. A first level character probably hasn't had much opportunity to become a famous dragon-slayer, for example.

Allocate Skill Ranks

Determine the number of skill ranks your character gets based on his class and Intelligence modifier (and any other bonuses, such as the bonus received by humans). Then allocate these ranks to desired skills, but remember that you cannot have more ranks than your level in any one skill (for a starting character, this is usually one).

Each level thereafter, your character gains a number of skill ranks dependent upon your class plus your Intelligence modifier. Investing a rank in a skill represents a measure of training in that skill.

Class Skills

Each class has a number of favored skills, called class skills. It is easier for your character to become more proficient in these skills, as they represent part of his professional training and constant practice. You gain a +3 bonus on all class skills that you put ranks into.

Note: Humans gain an additional skill rank at first level and one additional rank whenever they gain a level.

Class	Skill Ranks
Alchemist	3 + Int modifier
Barbarian	6 + Int modifier
Bard	7 + Int modifier
Brawler	6 + Int modifier
Cleric	7 + Int modifier
Druid	6 + Int modifier
Fighter	6 + Int modifier
Monk	6 + Int modifier
Paladin	7 + Int modifier
Partisan	6 + Int modifier
Prowler	6 + Int modifier
Ranger	7 + Int modifier
Rogue	8 + Int modifier
Sorcerer	7 + Int modifier
Warlord	7 + Int modifier
Wizard	3 + Int modifier

Choose Feats

A lot of feats have been modified, removed, or added. Please refer to the Feats section on this wiki, rather than the d20pfsrd. Most of the really commonly-taken feats (like Weapon Focus) have not been changed. Less common feats (like Athletic) have been revised to be more useful. A number of feats (like Vital Strike) have been removed from the game for balance purposes. If the feat isn't listed on this wiki, it is not available. If there is a specific feat you'd like considered, talk to your GM. Bring bribes.

Determine how many feats your character receives, based on his class and level, and select them from those presented in Feats.

• All 1st level characters begin with 1 feat.
• If your character's race is human and you took the "Life Lessons" major racial trait, you get 1 additional feat (for a total of 2).
• Unlike the core Pathfinder rules, Fighters do not gain a feat at 1st level (instead, they get a Fighter Tactic).

Traits - Removed From Game

Traits, as defined in Pathfinder, have been removed from the game, as have Drawbacks. In Epic Path, traits are the benefits provided by a race and are selected during racial selection. Player characters get all of a race's standard racial traits, and may choose one of the race's major racial traits and one of the race's minor racial trait. There is also an epic-level feat which allows players to select a second major racial trait from their race's available major traits.

Determine Starting Hit Points

Level 1 characters get full CON score plus max hit die for hit points at level 1. (Note that this means only CON score + max hit die, not CON score + CON modifier + max hit die.) As a result, all Epic Path classes are considerably more durable at first level than older rules sets would have created. Even the least durable classes like Wizards are no longer at risk of death from a single attack at first level. Don't be afraid to go out and adventure!

To determine hit points for levels beyond 1st, roll the dice indicated by your character class's Hit Dice and add your character's CON score modifier. GM's are encouraged to allow re-rolls of 1's on this roll, because 1's suck. Some house rules even allow characters to take average on the die (rounding down) if the re-roll is also lower than average. After all, we're playing heroes, here, not accountants.

Note that the hit dice for character classes differ here than those in the core Pathfinder rules. This is intentional, as the addition of the character's CON score at 1st level makes low-level characters much stronger than normal Pathfinder characters, while at higher levels, the wider range of hit dice emphasizes the differences between the front-line melee characters and the squishy back-of-the-fight classes.

Class	Hit Die
Alchemist	d4
Barbarian	d12
Bard	d6
Brawler	d8
Cleric	d8
Druid	d6
Fighter	d10
Monk	d8
Paladin	d10
Partisan	d12
Prowler	d6
Ranger	d8
Rogue	d6
Sorcerer	d4
Warlord	d10
Wizard	d4

Get Equipped

Each new character begins the game with an amount of gold, based on his class, that can be spent on a wide range of equipment and gear, from chainmail armor to leather backpacks. This gear helps your character survive while adventuring.

The armor or other protective devices you purchase may affect his starting Armor Class (AC), so once you have purchased armor or other protective devices you can determine your Armor Class (AC).

Normal equipment may be purchased, but masterwork items and magic items are not available. At the GM's discretion, minor alchemical items (e.g. Alchemist's Fire or Tanglefoot bags) and minor potions (e.g. Cure Light Wounds) may be available.

Class	Starting Wealth	Average
Alchemist	3d6 × 10 gp	105 gp
Barbarian	3d6 × 10 gp	105 gp
Bard	3d6 × 10 gp	105 gp
Brawler	3d6 × 10 gp	105 gp
Cleric	4d6 × 10 gp	140 gp
Druid	2d6 × 10 gp	70 gp
Fighter	5d6 × 10 gp	175 gp
Monk	1d6 × 10 gp	35 gp
Paladin	5d6 × 10 gp	175 gp
Prowler	4d6 × 10 gp	140 gp
Ranger	5d6 × 10 gp	175 gp
Rogue	4d6 × 10 gp	140 gp
Sorcerer	2d6 × 10 gp	70 gp
Warlord	5d6 × 10 gp	175 gp
Wizard	2d6 × 10 gp	70 gp

Wealth By Level

Characters beginning at a level other than 1st should refer to the tables on the Character Advancement page to determine starting wealth for characters of their level.

Links to Equipment

Note that weapons and armor should be selected from the Epic Path rules, not the d20pfsrd. There are also a few pieces of equipment listed which are unique to Epic Path which may interest a starting character, such as a portable fire or a waterstone.

• Weapons
• Armor and Shields
• Equipment, Goods and Services

Determine Armor Class Values

Determine your character's Armor Class, Touch AC and Flat-Footed AC. At character creation, this step is fairly straightforward, but as you accumulate magic items, it can grow more complex to keep track of which bonus affects which type of armor class. All of the different bonus types which affect armor class are listed below for your reference.

Armor Class

Your Armor Class (AC) represents how hard it is for opponents to land a solid, damaging blow on you. A to-hit roll made against you that is equal to or greater than your armor class is treated as a hit.

• Armor Class = 10 + Armor bonus + Deflection bonus + Dexterity modifier + Dodge bonus + Martial bonus + Natural Armor bonus + Shield bonus + Size Modifier

Note that armor limits your Dexterity bonus, so if you're wearing armor, you might not be able to apply your whole Dexterity bonus to your AC (see Table: Armor and Shields).

Touch Armor Class

Some spells or creatures are capable of passing straight through shields and armor, or enveloping the space you are in so thoroughly that your shield and armor are meaningless. These effects target your Touch AC instead of your regular AC. Note that such attacks only bypass the native AC granted by armor and shields, not any magical enhancement bonus the armor or shield may have.

• Touch AC = 10 + Deflection bonus + Dexterity modifier + Dodge bonus + Armor Enhancement bonus (but not base Armor) + Shield Enhancement bonus (but not base Shield)

Flat-Footed Armor Class

Sometimes you can't use your Dexterity bonus (if you have one) when defending yourself. If you can't react to a blow, you can't use your Dexterity bonus to AC. This is tracked with the Flat-Footed AC value. If you don't have a Dexterity bonus, your AC does not change.

• Flat-Footed AC = 10 + Armor bonus + Deflection bonus + Martial bonus + Natural Armor bonus + Shield bonus + Size Modifier

Types of Armor Bonuses

All bonuses to AC stack with each other, but not with themselves (with the exception of Dodge bonuses, which do stack with themselves). The types of AC bonuses are:

Bonus	AC?	Flat-Footed AC?	Touch AC?	Stacks With Itself?	Notes
Armor Bonus	Yes	Yes	No	No	An armor bonus to AC comes from the physical armor you are wearing. It can be enchanted to grant additional AC via an Armor Enhancement bonus (see below). If you have multiple items providing an Armor bonus to AC, only the highest Armor bonus applies (i.e. you can't wear two sets of armor).
Armor Enhancement Bonus	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Armor which has been magically enchanted (e.g. +2 leather armor) adds its enhancement bonus to the AC of the wearer. If you have multiple items providing an Armor Enhancement bonus to AC, only the highest Armor Enhancement bonus applies.
Dex Modifier	Yes	No	Yes	No	Your dexterity modifier adds to your AC to represent your ability to actively avoid attacks. If you are surprised, or have not yet acted in the round, you may not apply your Dexterity modifier to your AC. Furthermore, most armor limits the maximum Dexterity modifier you may apply to your AC while wearing that armor. If your Dexterity modifier is greater than the Max Dex listed for the armor you are wearing, you may only add up to the Max Dex number to your AC. The additional benefit from your high dexterity is lost unless you remove the armor (or purchase a masterwork or mithril version of the armor, which raises the Max Dex of the armor). It is not possible to have more than one source for your Dexterity modifier. Even if you somehow could, you could only use the highest value.
Deflection Bonus	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Magical deflection effects ward off attacks and improve your AC. If you have multiple items providing a Deflection bonus to AC, only the highest Deflection bonus applies.
Dodge Bonus	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Dodge bonuses represent actively avoiding blows. Any situation (such as being surprised or being flat-footed) that denies you your Dexterity bonus also denies you dodge bonuses. Unlike all other bonuses to AC, if you have multiple items providing a Dodge bonus to AC, they stack with each other.
Martial Bonus	Yes	Yes	No	No	Warlords can grant a martial bonus to AC to adjacent characters using their Hold the Line stance. This represents the tactical direction and positioning provided by the warlord's leadership. If you have multiple effects providing a Martial bonus to AC, only the highest Martial bonus applies.
Natural Bonus	Yes	Yes	No	No	If your race has a tough hide, scales, or thick skin you receive a natural armor bonus to your AC. If you have multiple effects providing a Natural Armor bonus to AC, only the highest Natural Armor bonus applies.
Shield Bonus	Yes	Yes	No	No	A shield bonus to AC comes from the physical shield you are wearing. If you have multiple items or effects providing a Shield bonus to AC, only the highest Shield bonus applies (i.e. you can't wear two shields at once).
Shield Enhancement Bonus	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	A shield which has been magically enchanted (e.g. a +2 heavy shield) adds its enhancement bonus to the AC of the shield's wearer. If you have multiple items or effects providing a Shield Enhancement bonus to AC, only the highest Shield Enhancement bonus applies.
Size Modifier	Yes	Yes	No	No	You receive a bonus or penalty to your AC based on your size. Size modifiers are not lost when you are flat footed, but do not apply to touch AC. It is not possible to have more than one source for your Size modifier. Even if you somehow could, you could only use the highest value.

Determine Attack Values, Saving Throws and Initiative

Determine all of the character's other mechanical details, such as his or her saving throws, initiative modifier, to-hit bonus and damage for each equipped weapon, CMB and CMD scores, etc. All of these numbers are determined by the decisions made in previous steps, usually determined by your class choice.

Calculating Attack Rolls

To determine a character's normal attack bonus with a weapon, use the formulas below. Note that several other factors can impact this number, such as whether or not the character is proficient with the weapon in question, whether the weapon is appropriately sized for the character, or whether the character is using the weapon with the correct number of hands to properly wield it, as well as temporary modifiers, such as those caused by status conditions. A character may also gain bonuses (or penalties) to their attack roll based on feats, racial traits, class abilities, etc. These should be factored into the formula below, as well.

• Melee weapons: Base attack bonus + Strength modifier
• Thrown weapons: Base attack bonus + Dexterity modifier
• Ranged weapons: Base attack bonus + Dexterity modifier

Calculating Damage Rolls

To determine how much damage a character deals with a weapon, use the formulas below. Note that damage is also modified by a number of elements, such as a character's level, size, feats and class abilities, and the weapon's mundane or magical properties. Temporary modifiers can also affect a character's weapon damage, such as some status conditions, spell effects or monster special abilities. These modifiers should be factored into the formula below as appropriate.

• 1-handed melee weapons: Weapon's base damage + Strength modifier
• 2-handed melee weapons: Weapon's base damage + 1.5x Strength modifier
• Thrown weapons: Weapon's base damage + Strength modifier
• Ranged weapons: Weapon's base damage

Saving Throws

Generally, when you are subject to an unusual or magical attack, you get a saving throw to avoid or reduce the effect. Like an attack roll, a saving throw is a d20 roll plus a bonus based on your class and level (see Classes), and an associated ability score.

• Saving Throw Modifier = Base save bonus + ability modifier

The three different kinds of saving throws are Fortitude, Reflex, and Will:

• Fortitude: These saves measure your ability to stand up to physical punishment or attacks against your vitality and health. Apply your Constitution modifier to your Fortitude saving throws.
• Reflex: These saves test your ability to dodge area attacks and unexpected situations. Apply your Dexterity modifier to your Reflex saving throws.
• Will: These saves reflect your resistance to mental influence as well as many magical effects. Apply your Wisdom modifier to your Will saving throws.

Combat Maneuver Bonus

Each character and creature has a Combat Maneuver Bonus (or CMB) that represents its skill at performing combat maneuvers. A creature's CMB is determined using the following formula:

• CMB = Base attack bonus + Strength modifier + Dexterity modifier + special size modifier

Special Size Modifier

The special size modifier for a creature's Combat Maneuver Bonus is as follows:

Fine -8, Diminutive -4, Tiny -2, Small -1, Medium +0, Large +1, Huge +2, Gargantuan +4, Colossal +8, Titanic +12.

Some feats, items and abilities grant a bonus to your CMB when performing specific maneuvers.

Damage while performing a Combat Maneuver.

If a character performs a combat maneuver while wielding a weapon with which he is proficient, that character may choose to inflict a small amount of damage at the same time as the combat maneuver. Refer to the Combat Maneuvers page for details.

Combat Maneuver Defense

Each character and creature has a Combat Maneuver Defense (or CMD) that represents its ability to resist combat maneuvers. A creature's CMD is determined using the following formula:

• CMD = 10 + Base attack bonus + Strength modifier + Dexterity modifier + special size modifier + miscellaneous modifiers

Special Size Modifier

The special size modifier for a creature's Combat Maneuver Defense is as follows:

Fine -8, Diminutive -4, Tiny -2, Small -1, Medium +0, Large +1, Huge +2, Gargantuan +4, Colossal +8, Titanic +12.

Some feats and abilities grant a bonus to your CMD when resisting specific maneuvers.

Miscellaneous Modifiers

A creature can also add any circumstance, deflection, dodge, insight, luck, morale, profane, and sacred bonuses to AC to its CMD. Any penalties to a creature's AC also apply to its CMD. A flat-footed creature does not add its Dexterity bonus to its CMD.

Concentration Check

If you are a caster, it will be useful to know your Concentration Check, for purposes of combat casting and other situations requiring it.

• Concentration Check = Caster level + the ability score modifier you use to cast spells + d20

Clerics, druids, and rangers add their Wisdom modifier. Bards, paladins, and sorcerers add their Charisma modifier. Finally, alchemists and wizards add their Intelligence modifier.