5.8 Universal Abilities
All creatures can use the following abilities.
5.8.1 Strikes
A strike is the most common type of attack. There are three kinds of strikes: melee, projectile, and thrown. Many abilities allow you to make one or more strikes. Whenever you make a strike, you can choose which kind of strike to make.
Your accuracy with a strike adds the accuracy modifier from the weapon you are attacking with. Your damage with a strike is normally equal to your weapon damage with the weapon you hit with (see Weapon Damage).
There are many special rules that can modify how you make strikes. For example, dual strikes allow you to attack with two weapons instead of one. The rules for strikes listed here simply define the normal behavior.
| Basic Strike – Melee |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make an attack vs. Armor using a weapon against anything adjacent to you. You must have line of effect to the target.
Hit: You deal the target weapon damage from the weapo.
| Basic Strike – Projectile |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make an attack vs. Armor using a Projectile weapon against anything that you have line of effect to. If the target is adjacent to you, you take a -4 accuracy penalty. If the target is at long range from you, your accuracy takes a -4 longshot penalty (see Weapon Range Limits).
Hit: You deal the target weapon damage from the weapo.
| Basic Strike – Thrown |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make an attack vs. Armor using a non-Projectile weapon against anything that you have line of effect to. If the weapon has the Thrown weapon tag, use its defined range limits. Otherwise, your range limits are 10/20, and you take a -2 accuracy penalty since you are not proficient with that usage of the weapon (see Weapon Proficiency). If the target is at long range from you, your accuracy takes a -4 longshot penalty (see Weapon Range Limits).
Hit: You deal the target weapon damage from the weapon.
Dual Strikes
If you are wielding two weapons, you can attack with both at the same time whenever you make a strike. This is called a dual strike. You need a Dexterity of at least 1 to make a dual strike. In addition, you cannot use a shield to make dual strikes, even if you are proficient with using it as a weapon.
When you make a dual strike, you make a separate attack with each weapon. Each attack deals its full weapon damage if it hits. You make the attacks sequentially, so you can direct the second attack at a different target depending on the results of the first attack.
Although a dual strike make two attack rolls, it is still considered to be a single attack. Even if you hit a target with both weapons, you still only apply special effects of the attack once. This includes extra damage, any conditions caused by the strike, and so on. Each target hit by either weapon still suffers those full special effects, just like other attacks that can hit multiple targets.
Dual-wielding has three downsides.
- You cannot get a glancing blow with either weapon while attacking with two weapons at once (see Glancing Blows). If you would miss by 1 or 2, it is considered a full miss instead of a glancing blow.
- You take a -2 accuracy penalty with both attacks. If your Dexterity is 4 or higher, this penalty is reduced to -1.
- For each non-Light weapon you dual-wield with, you take an additional -1 accuracy penalty with both attacks. Each Heavy weapon instead imposes a -2 penalty.
Some abilities check if you hit or miss with a strike. While dual-wielding, you can both hit and miss with the same strike if you hit with one weapon and miss with the other.
Secondary Strike Targets
Some abilities allow you to make strikes that affect secondary targets in addition to the primary target or targets. You make the same attack roll and damage roll against all targets of the strike. For example, weapons with the Sweeping weapon tag can make attacks against secondary targets that are close to the primary target. If a strike has multiple primary targets, you must choose a single creature to be treated as the primary target for the purpose of all abilities that reference secondary targets.
Multiple abilities that cause a strike to affect secondary targets stack normally unless noted otherwise.
5.8.2 Special Combat Abilities
This section lists combat abilities that all characters can use. Many of these abilities are Brawling abilities. You use your Strength instead of your Perception to determine your base accuracy with Brawling abilities (see Accuracy).
| Ability | Usage Time | Brief Description | Tags |
| Charge | Standard | Move and make a strike |
— |
| Desperate Exertion | Non-action | Reroll an attack or check with a +2 bonus | — |
| Escape Grapple | Standard | Stop being grappled | Brawling |
| Grapple | Standard | Start grappling with a foe | Brawling, Size-Based |
| Maintain Grapple | Free action | Continue grappling with a foe | Brawling, Swift |
| Overrun | Movement or standard | Move through enemy spaces | Brawling, Size-Based |
| Ready Reaction | Standard | Ready an action | — |
| Recover | Standard | Regain HP and DR, remove conditions | Swift |
| Shove | Movement or standard | Move a foe | Brawling, Size-Based |
| Sprint | Movement or standard | Move at double speed | — |
| Total Defense | Standard | Gain +2 to all defenses | Swift |
| Throw | Standard | Throw a held object | — |
| Trip | Standard | Trip a foe | Brawling, Size-Based |
| Charge |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
After you use this ability, you briefly take a -2 penalty to all defenses. This ability does not have the Swift tag, so it does not affect attacks made against you during the current phase.
Move up to your speed in a single straight line. At the end of your movement, you can make a melee strike from your new location.
| Desperate Exertion |
Usage time: Triggered (see text).
Cost: Two fatigue levels.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
You reroll any attack or check you just made and gain a +2 bonus, keeping the new result if it is higher than your original result. You can decide to use this ability after you learn whether the original roll succeeded or failed. You can even use it after you learn what the effects of a successful attack or check would be, if that is information you could normally learn if it succeeded. However, you must use it before using any other abilities or ending your turn.
You cannot use this to affect rolls that are not attacks or checks, such as vital rolls. You cannot use this ability multiple times to affect the same roll.
| Escape Grapple | Brawling |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make an attack against any number of creatures that you are grappled by. Since this is a Brawling ability, you use your Strength instead of your Perception to determine your accuracy. You can also entirely replace your normal accuracy with the Flexibility skill (see Flexibility).
The defense of each creature is equal to the result of the attack it made with its maintain grapple ability, or 0 if it did not use that ability. For each target, if you hit that target with this attack, it stops being grappled by you and you stop being grappled by it.
| Grapple | Brawling, Size-Based |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make an attack with a free hand against the Fortitude and Reflex defenses of one creature you touch. Since this is a Brawling ability, you use your Strength instead of your Perception to determine your accuracy.
On a hit against both defenses, you and the target are grappled by each other. For details, see Grappling. On a critical hit, you also control the grapple (see Controlling a Grapple).
Usage time: Free action once per round while you are grappling another creature.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make an attack against each creature that you are grappling (see Grappling). Since this is a Brawling ability, you use your Strength instead of your Perception to determine your accuracy. This attack has no immediate effect. The result of this roll determines how difficult it is for a creature to escape the grapple during the current round using the escape grapple ability. If you do not use this ability while you are in a grapple, then creatures can easily escape the grapple with the escape grapple ability.
| Overrun | Brawling, Size-Based |
Usage time: Movement or standard action.
Cost: One fatigue level if used as a movement. No cost when used as a standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Move up to your movement speed in a straight line. You can try to move directly through creatures in your way during this movement. Each creature in your way can choose to avoid you, allowing you to pass through its square unhindered. If a creature does not attempt to avoid you, you make an attack vs. Fortitude against it. Since this is a Brawling ability, you use your Strength instead of your Perception to determine your accuracy.
If you move into a creature’s space with this ability, but you do not move out of it, you and the creature are usually considered squeezing (-2 Armor and Ref) as long as you continue sharing space (see Squeezing).
On a hit, you can move through each target’s space. On a miss, you end your movement immediately.
| Ready Reaction | Swift |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
When you use this ability, you declare another standard action that you intend to take during this phase as soon as it becomes possible. For example, you could declare your intent to make a melee strike against a creature that is not close to you, or cast a targeted spell on an enemy that has total cover.
While your enemies are resolving their actions, if your intended action ever becomes possible, it happens. Otherwise, you do nothing. Any attacks you make in this way are reactive attacks, so you can’t use the desperate exertion ability or similar effects. Your reaction resolves after the enemy has fully completed their action, even if the completion of that action would make your ability impossible again. This means that you can’t use this ability to kill an enemy before their attack hits you, and an enemy can’t invalidate your reaction by briefly moving in range and then moving back out again.
| Recover |
Swift |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
After you use this ability, you increase your fatigue level by two, and you cannot use it again until you finish a short rest.
You remove all conditions affecting you. Then, you regain all of your damage resistance and half of your total hit points. Because this ability has the Swift tag, the removed conditions do not affect you during the current phase.
| Shove | Brawling, Size-Based |
Usage time: Standard action normally, or movement while grappling.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
If you are grappling or being grappled by a creature, this ability affects all creatures grappling with you (see Grappling). Otherwise, choose one creature adjacent to you.
Make an attack with a free hand against the Fortitude defense of each target. Since this is a Brawling ability, you use your Strength instead of your Perception to determine your accuracy. You must be able to touch each target, but unlike normal for touch abilities, you don’t have to beat their Reflex defense. If a target is not able to use any of its movement speeds, such as if it is being carried by a flying creature, its defense is treated as 0.
On a hit, you can move up to half your movement speed. During this movement, you can push each target 5 feet for each 5 feet that you move. If you push a target so it stops being adjacent to you, you stop being able to push it further. On a critical hit, or if the target is at least two size categories smaller than you, your movement speed is not halved.
| Sprint |
Usage time: Movement or standard action.
Cost: One fatigue level if used as a movement. No cost when used as a standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
You cannot use this ability while you are carrying or moving another creature in any way. You can use this ability in the middle of a phase after noticing that your movement is insufficient to keep up with an enemy’s reactive movement (see Movement Abilities).
You can immediately take another movement. For the duration of that movement, you double your speed with all movement modes.
| Throw | Brawling |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
You throw an object or creature you hold in at least one hand. Your normal throwing distance for an arbitrary object is equal to 15 feet plus 5 feet per 2 Strength. If the target’s weight category is equal to the maximum weight category you can lift normally, your throwing distance is halved (see Weight Categories). You cannot throw objects too heavy for you to lift normally, even if you can push or drag them.
In order to throw an unwilling creature, it must already be grappled by you, and you must make an attack against its Fortitude defense. Since this is a Brawling ability, you use your Strength instead of your Perception to determine your accuracy.
Some objects are much easier or harder to throw than others. Weapons with the Thrown weapon tag can be thrown up to their range limits. If an object is particularly easy to throw, such as a small dense sphere, you can throw it up to ten times your normal throwing distance. Likewise, a feather or extremely fragile object may be difficult to throw more than a few feet. The GM can provide guidance about throwing unusual objects.
If you throw the target at a creature or object, you can make an attack roll to hit with it, as the thrown strike ability. That attack roll is rolled separately from the attack roll to throw an unwilling creature, if any.
| Total Defense | Swift |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
You gain a +2 bonus to your defenses this round. Because this ability has the Swift tag, this improves your defenses against attacks made against you during the current round.
| Trip | Brawling, Size-Based |
Usage time: Standard action.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make a melee attack using a free hand or a weapon with the Tripping tag against a creature’s Fortitude and Reflex defenses (see Weapon Tags). If you attack with a weapon, you add the weapon’s accuracy bonus, if any, to the attack. However, this is not a strike, so abilities like the Sweeping weapon tag have no effect on this attack.
On a hit, the target becomes prone (half speed, -2 Armor and Ref). In addition, if you made the attack with a Tripping weapon and the attack also beat the target’s Armor defense, you deal the target weapon damage based on your weapon. You cannot get a glancing blow with this attack, and this damage is not doubled if you get a critical hit. This is not a strike, so abilities that improve your strikes do not affect this ability.
5.8.3 Grappling
A grappling creature is physically struggling with at least one other creature. While grappling, you suffer certain penalties and restrictions, as described below. Other than these restrictions, you can act normally.
- One of your hands cannot be used for any purposes other than grappling. This prevents humanoid creatures from taking any actions which would require having two free hands, such as attacking with Heavy weapons. Monsters without hands must generally use an appropriate appendage, if possible.
- You take a -2 penalty to Armor and Reflex defenses. This penalty is removed if you control the grapple (see below).
- You cannot move unless you push all creatures grappling you, such as with the shove ability (see Shove). In addition, you cannot push a creature grappling with you so it stops being adjacent to you. However, you can use the shove ability to affect creatures you are grappling with as a movement instead of as a standard action.
- You can use the escape grapple and maintain grapple abilities to stop or continue grappling (see Special Combat Abilities).
Controlling a Grapple
Normally, when you use the grapple ability, neither creature controls the grapple. If you get a critical hit against every grapple participant, you control the grapple.
If you control a grapple, you gain two benefits. First, you do not take the normal -2 penalty to Armor and Reflex defenses for being in a grapple. Second, you can escape the grapple as a free action, without having to use the normal escape grapple ability.
To take control of an existing grapple, you can use the grapple ability. If you hit against the controlling creature, no creature has control of the grapple. On a critical hit against each participant, you gain control of the grapple.