Just what do all those numbers and acronyms mean? This section will explain them in detail.
Armor Class (AC)
Your armor class is how hard it is for your opponent to damage you. You have 3 types of Armor Classes:
Normal AC (AC)
AC = 10 + Dexterity Modifiers + Size modifiers (if any) + Shield + Armor + Deflection Bonuses + Race Bonuses (if any)
Some armor will not allow you to use all of your dexterity bonuses if at all.
Flat-footed AC (FFAC)
You are surprised and are not ready for an attack (No dexterity bonuses apply)
FFAC = 10 + Size + Shield + armor/magic bonuses
Touch attack AC (TAC)
When a person just is attempting to touch you. Some spells only require a touch as do some monsters (ghoul's paralysis attack). (Armor, shield, natural armor do not apply)
TAC = 10 + Dex Mod + Size Mod + Deflection
Example: Gorlotot, the gnome wizard, has a Dexterity of 16. So, he has the following armor classes:
AC = 15 (19 vs Giant-types) Formula = (10 + 2 (Dex) + 1 (small-sized) + 0 (no shield) + 0 (no armor) + 2 (+2 Ring of Protection gives Deflection)) +4 vs Giant-types (Gnome Race)
FFAC = 13 (17 vs Giant-types) (No Dexterity Modifiers)
TAC = 15 (19 vs Giant-types) (He wears no armor)
You can also keep track of your AC when you are buffed with your regular buffs if you are a spell-caster.
Hit Points (HP)
How much damage you can take before going unconscious then eventually dying. Each class gets a Hit Die (HD) + Constitution Modifier to add to their Hit Point total per level.
1+ HP = fully functional
0 HP = disabled. Can take 1 move action OR 1 standard action per round and you take 1 HP damage after doing an action.
-1 to -9 = unconscious and dying. Lose 1 HP per round, but have a 10% before HP loss to becoming stable. Each hour of being stable, 10% of waking up OR lose 1 HP
-10 = death
Example: Gorlotot is a 12th level wizard. A Wizard gets a d4 HD per level. Plus Gorlotot gets +2 for a 16 Constiution modifier. He rolls a d4 twelve times and gets 27 + 24 (Con Mod) for the twelve levels for a total of 51 HP
Attack Rolls:
Depending on your class, strength or dexterity, you have bonuses to hit another character or monster's AC. The higher the roll the better. All characters get multiple attacks per round if they use a Full-round action once they get higher in levels. Each attack after the first however is 5 less than the previous.
Melee Attack Rolls = Base Attack + Strength Modifier + Size modifier (if any) + Race Modifiers (if any) + Magic (if any) + any misc bonuses from classes, etc.
Range Attack Rolls = Base Attack + Dexterity Modifier + Size modifier (if any) + Range Penalty + Race Modifiers (if any) + Magic (if any) + any misc bonuses from classes, etc
Example: Vellum, a 3rd dwarf level fighter, has a strength of 17, a dexterity of 11, a +1 battle axe, a short sword, and a crossbow. He has the following attacks for his weapons:
+1 Battle Axe = +8 (+9 vs. orcs) Formula = (+3 (base) + 3 (strength) + 0 (medium) + 1 vs Orcs (dwarf) +1 (magic axe) + 1(Weapon Focus (battle axe) Feat)
Short Sword = +6 (+7 vs. orcs) Formula = (+3 (base) + 3 (strength) + 0 (medium) + 1 vs Orcs (dwarf) +0 (no magic) + 0 (no miscellaneous)
Crossbow = +3 (+4 vs. orcs) Formula = (+3 (base) + 0 (no dex mod) + 0 (medium) + 1 vs Orcs (dwarf) +0 (no magic) + 0 (no miscellaneous)
It is much easier to keep track of ALL of your weapons instead of trying to do it each time.
Table 8-1: Size Modifiers
Called Shots: Sometimes a character will wish to strike a particular body part in hopes of a specific effect such as hitting the target's knee to cripple or slow then down, hitting the eyes to blind, or hitting a hand to dislodge a weapon or item. This can be certainly done, however, it is very hard to do. Use the following rules for the requirements and possible consequences of attempting a Called Shot.
The following are mandatory rules/requirements to perform a Called Shot:
1) Must announce that you are attempting a Called shot at the beginning of your turn. This is a Standard Action.
2) You must roll a successful Concentration check (DC 13). If you fail, you may not attempt a Called Shot or your normal attacks, however, you can perform a free or move action. Note: If you have the Weapon Focus feat with the weapon in question this negates the need for a Concentration check.
3) You may attempt only one Called Shot each round.
4) The target cannot have moved more than 5ft. in that round before your attempt. If the target does move more than 5ft. in that round before your attempt, you incur a -5 circumstance penalty in addition to all the other accumulated penalties.
5) Delivering a Called Shot provokes Attacks of Opportunity (AOO) from threatening foes (other than your target) because it involves focused concentration and methodical action.
Charts below indicate another penalty for the location of where you wish to attack. Other penalties may be added due to Armor, Magic, etc.
If you Hit with a Called Shot even with all of the penalties, you automatically Critical Hit and cause a Critical Effect (Moderate) on the target area.
If you do not hit the target area with the penalties, but normally would have hit, then you cause a glancing blow and do normal damage.
Hit or Miss:
You cause damage to your target when your d20 + your attack bonus is equal to or exceeds your opponents Armor Class.
Automatic Misses: No matter how high your attack bonus may be, every time you roll a "1" on the d20, it counts as a miss and opens a "Fumble Opportunity."
Fumble Opportunity: To see if you fumble, roll a d20 again and if you roll another "1", you fumbled and must consult the chart below.
Automatic Hits: No matter how low your attack bonus is, every time you roll a "20" on a d20, you automatically score a damaging hit to your opponent and always create a "Critical Opportunity."
Critical Hits Opportunity: A Critical Hit may occur when you roll the "Threat Range" on your weapon and your roll was enough to injure your opponent. Unlike a Fumble Opportunity where fumbles can only occur on a "1", some weapons and skills can allow a critical on a die roll of 17+. To score a Critical Hit, you must roll a d20 again and if you score a "Hit" again against your opponent, you scored a critical hit and do x2 damage. If you do not "hit" after your initial roll, then you just do normal damage. For each additional Crit Threat range you roll after the first, you add +1 to your damage mulitplier. See Critical Effects.
Critical Effects: When an aggressor's attack roll (total score) is high enough to score a critical threat and exceeds the minimum required to hit the target;s AC by a factor of 5 or more, it is possible that the blow will inflict a critical effect along with whatever critical damage she may inflict. A critical effect is a specific wound or injury that has a lasting effect upon the victim, which is sometimes permanent. The severity of the wound depends on the attack roll (including all applicable bonuses) over and above the minimum required to hit the target's AC. This is call the Factor Level. Only the initial attack roll determines the Factor Level, not the roll made to determine the actual critical hit.
Critical Effect Factor Levels
Example: Orville (Ftr 1, BA +1), wielding his longsword, attacks a goblin with AC 14. He rolls a 19 (+1 = 20 total), which is within his weapon's critical threat range. He rolls again to determine if he scored a critical hit. His second roll is a 15 (+1 = 16). He scores critical hit damage (total damage x2), and since his initial attack roll (a 20) was 5 or more over what he needed to hit the goblin's AC, he also inflicts a critical effect. (In this case he has scored a Mild critical effect since 20-14 = 6).
To determine critical effect, roll location and address the page for critical effect.
To heal a Critical Effect, healing must be applied directly to the wound and heal the amount of damage done by the attack. They can also be healed naturally over time. This works for Mild and Moderate effects. Serious Effects are usually permanent and need other than natural healing to heal.
Damage:
Once a hit for damage has been established, a character rolls the damage for the weapon used.
Melee Weapons = Weapon damage die + Strength modifier + Magic
Range Weapons - Weapon damage die + Strength Modifier (If weapon allows) + Magic
Location: To determine where the location of the hit occurs, consult the following table. (Creatures 2 sizes smaller than their opponent cannot hit their opponent's head or wings, unless their opponent was attempting to bite them or are using a ranged or long reach weapon- if one of these areas is rolled, reroll)