15.15 Stealth

The Stealth skill has a number of specific circumstances that can make it less likely to succeed. In general, players are intended to be able to scout and avoid notice out of combat, but it should be nearly impossible to maintain stealth within an active combat. Keep in mind that special senses like blindsight are powerful anti-Stealth tools, but they are not intended to be a complete defense. High-level characters can have high enough bonuses to overcome those penalties, allowing them to sneak up on creatures with blindsense or even blindsight.