Actions in Combat
Each round represents 6 seconds in the game world. At the table, a round presents an opportunity for each character involved in a combat situation to take an action. Anything a person could reasonably do in 6 seconds, your character can do in 1 round.
When a character’s turn comes up, they take their actions for this round.
Types of Action
An action’s type essentially tells you how long the action takes to perform (within the framework of the 6-second combat round). There are four types of actions: major actions, minor actions, full-round actions, and free actions.
In a normal round, you can perform a major action and a minor action, or you can perform a full-round action. You can also perform as many free actions as your GM allows. You can always take a minor action in place of a major action.
In some situations (such as in a surprise round), you may be limited to taking only a single minor or major action (but see below).
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Major Action: A major action allows you to do something. The most common type of major action is an attack—a single melee or ranged attack. Other common major actions include casting a spell, concentrating to maintain an active spell or using a special ability.
Minor Action: A minor action allows you to move your speed or perform an action that takes a similar amount of time. You can move your speed, climb one-quarter of your speed, draw or stow a weapon or other item, stand up, pick up an object, or perform some equivalent action.
You can take a minor action in place of a major action. For instance, rather than moving your speed and attacking, you could stand up and move your speed (two minor actions), put away a weapon and climb one-quarter of your speed (two minor actions), or pick up an item and stow it in your backpack (two minor actions).
Full-Round Action: A full-round action consumes all your effort during a round. You can still perform free actions (see below) as your GM allows.
Some full-round actions can be taken as major actions, but only in situations when you are limited to performing only a major action during your round (such as in a surprise round). The descriptions of specific actions, below, detail which actions allow this option.
Free Action: Free actions consume a very small amount of time and effort, and over the span of the round, their impact is so minor that they are considered free. You can perform one or more free actions while taking another action normally. However, the DM puts reasonable limits on what you can really do for free. For instance, calling out to your friends for help, dropping an object, and ceasing to concentrate on a spell are all free actions.
Restricted Activity: In some situations (such as during a surprise round), you may be unable to take a full round’s worth of actions. In such cases, you are restricted to taking only a single major action or a single minor action (plus free actions as normal). You can’t take a full-round action (though you can start or complete a full-round action by using a major action).
Major Actions
Most major actions involve making an attack, casting a spell, or activating an item. These are the most common, straightforward actions that a character might take in a combat round. Some more specialized actions are covered in Combat Maneuvers.
Attack
Making an attack is a major action.
Melee Attacks: With a normal melee weapon, you can strike any adjacent opponent. Some melee weapons have reach, as indicated in their descriptions. With a typical reach weapon, you can strike opponents 10 feet away (one square past adjacent), but your attacks against adjacent enemies are at a -4 penalty.
Unarmed Attacks: Striking for damage with punches, kicks, and head butts is much like attacking with a light melee weapon, except for the following:
Reaction Attack: Attacking unarmed provokes reaction attack from the character you attack, provided they are armed. The reaction attack comes before your attack. An unarmed attack does not provoke reaction attacks from other foes, as shooting a bow does. You provoke the reaction attack because you have to bring your body close to your opponent. An unarmed character doesn’t normally threaten squares around them, so they can’t make reaction attacks (but see “Armed” Unarmed Attacks, below).
Damage: Without proper training, you can only deal nonlethal damage with your unarmed attacks, and you do not add your base combat bonus to damage when you hit with an unarmed strike (but see “Armed” Unarmed Attacks, below).
“Armed” Unarmed Attacks: Sometimes a character’s or creature’s unarmed attack counts as an armed attack. A character with the Improved Unarmed Strike feat, a spellcaster delivering a touch attack spell, and a creature with claws, fangs, and similar natural physical weapons all count as being armed. Note that being armed counts for both offense and defense. A creature which counts as “armed” threatens enemies normally and can make reaction attacks.
Ranged Attacks: With a ranged weapon, you can shoot or throw at any target that is within the weapon’s maximum range and in line of sight. The maximum range for a thrown weapon is five range increments. For projectile weapons, it is ten range increments. Some ranged weapons have shorter maximum ranges, as specified in their descriptions.
Attack Rolls: An attack roll represents your attempts to strike your opponent. It does not represent a single swing of the sword, for example. Rather, it indicates whether, over several attempts in the round, you managed to connect solidly. Your attack roll is 1d20 + your attack bonus with the weapon you’re using. If the result is at least as high as the target’s AC, you hit and deal damage.
Rolling a 1 or a 20: A natural 1 (the d20 comes up 1) on the attack roll is always a miss. A natural 20 (the d20 comes up 20) is always a hit (this is called a critical hit).
Damage Rolls: If the attack roll result equals or exceeds the target’s AC, the attack hits and you deal damage. Roll the appropriate damage for your weapon. If the opponent’s accumulated damage equals or exceeds their hp, they’re in bad shape (see Injury and Death, page ???).
Critical Hits: On a critical hit, you deal double damage--roll damage twice, including bonus damage from strength, BCB, and the like. Bonus dice (such as those from a sneak attack or a flaming sword) are still applied only once. If a critical hit wounds a creature, the wound is a nasty wound (link ???).
Spells and Critical Hits: A spell that requires an attack roll, such as shocking grasp or acid arrow, can score a critical hit. A spell attack that requires no attack roll, such as lightning bolt, cannot score a critical hit.
Sneak Attacks: If you can catch an opponent when they are unable to effectively defend themselves, you can try to strike a vital spot. On a successful hit against an off-guard target, you deal an extra 1d6 damage and automatically bloody the target (even if you didn’t deal enough damage to bloody them). They remain bloodied until they recover from at least 1 point of damage.
This damage also applies to ranged attacks against targets up to 30 feet away. You can’t make a sneak attack against a creature with concealment, or while striking the limbs of a creature whose vitals are out of reach.
Rogues can use sneak attacks much more effectively.
Shooting or Throwing into a Melee: If you shoot or throw a ranged weapon at a target engaged in melee with a friendly character, you take a –4 penalty on your attack roll because you have to aim carefully to avoid hitting your friend. Two characters are engaged in melee if they are enemies of each other and either threatens the other. (An unconscious or otherwise immobilized character is not considered engaged unless they are actually being attacked.) If your target (or the part of your target you’re aiming at, if it’s a big target) is at least 10 feet away from the nearest friendly character, you can avoid the –4 penalty, even if the creature you’re aiming at is engaged in melee with a friendly character. If you have the Precise Shot feat, you don’t take this penalty.
Cast a Spell
Most spells require one major action to cast. You can cast such a spell either before or after you take a minor action. See Chapter ???: magic for details on casting spells, their effects, and so on.
Spell Components: To cast a spell with a verbal (V) component, your character must speak in a firm voice. If you’re gagged or in the area of a silence spell, you can’t cast such a spell. A spellcaster who has been deafened has a 20% chance to spoil any spell they try to cast if that spell has a verbal component.
To cast a spell with a somatic (S) component, you must gesture freely with at least one hand. You can’t cast a spell of this type while bound, grappling, or with both your hands full or occupied (swimming, clinging to a cliff, or the like).
To cast a spell with a material (M) component, you have to have the proper materials, as described by the spell. Unless these materials are especially bulky or elaborate, preparing these materials is a free action.
Concentration: You must concentrate to cast a spell. If you start casting a spell but something interferes with your concentration, such as an ogre taking the opportunity to hit you with its club (successfully hitting you with his reaction attack), you must make a Concentration check or lose the spell. The check’s DC depends on what is threatening your concentration (see the Concentration skill, and Concentration, page ???). If you fail, the spell fizzles with no real effect and spell points are wasted.
Concentrating to Maintain a Spell: Some spells require continued concentration to keep them going. Concentrating to maintain a spell is a major action that doesn’t provoke an attack. Anything that could break your concentration when casting a spell can keep you from concentrating to maintain a spell. If your concentration breaks, the spell ends.
Reaction Attacks: Casting a spell provokes reaction attacks from adjacent enemies (unless you have the Combat Casting feat). If you take damage from a reaction attack, you must make a Concentration check (DC 10 + points of damage taken + spell level) or lose the spell. Spells cast as a reaction or free action don’t provoke attacks.
Touch Spells in Combat: Many spells have a range of touch. To use these spells, you cast the spell and then touch the subject, either in the same round or any time later. In the same round that you cast the spell, you may also touch (or attempt to touch) the target. You may take your move before casting the spell, after touching the target, or between casting the spell and touching the target. You can automatically touch one friend or use the spell on yourself, but to
touch an opponent, you must succeed on an attack roll.
Touch Attacks: Since you need only touch your enemy, you make a touch attack instead of a regular attack. Touching an opponent with a touch spell is considered to be an armed attack and therefore does not provoke reaction attacks. However, the act of casting a spell does provoke an attack, so you may want to cast the spell and then move to the target. Touch attacks come in two types: melee touch attacks (for touches made with, say, your hand) and ranged touch attacks (for touches made with magic rays, for example). You can score critical hits with either type of attack. Your opponent’s AC against a touch attack does not include their armor bonus. All other modifiers apply normally.
Holding the Charge: If you don’t discharge the spell in the round when you cast the spell, you can hold the discharge of the spell (hold the charge) indefinitely. You can continue to make touch attacks round after round. You can touch one friend as a major action or up to six friends as a full-round action. If you touch anything or anyone while holding a charge, even unintentionally, the spell discharges. If you cast another spell, the touch spell dissipates. Alternatively, you may make a normal unarmed attack while holding a charge. If the attack hits, you deal normal damage for your unarmed attack or natural weapon and the spell discharges. If the attack misses, you are still holding the charge.
Dismiss a Spell: Dismissing an active spell (such as alter self) is a major action that doesn’t provoke reaction attacks.
Ready an Action
As a major action, you can prepare an action to take later, after your turn is over but before your next one has begun. Readying an action does not provoke a reaction attack (though the action that you ready might do so). You can ready a major action, a minor action, or a free action. To do so, specify the action you will take and the conditions under which you will take it. For example, you might specify that you will shoot an arrow at whatever emerges from a nearby doorway. Then, any time before your next action, you may choose to take the readied action in response to that condition.
You can only take your readied action once. The action occurs just before the action that triggers it. If the triggered action is part of another character’s activities, you interrupt the other character. Assuming they are still capable of doing so, they continue their actions once you complete your readied action.
Total Defense
You can defend yourself as a major action. You get a +4 dodge bonus to your AC for until the start of your next turn. Your AC improves at the start of this action, so it helps you against any reaction attacks you incur during the round. You also gain your shield bonus (if you have one) as a bonus on Reflex saves. You can’t make reaction attacks while using total defense, although if you have other abilities which can be used as reactions, you can use them normally.
Minor Actions
With the exception of specific movement-related skills, most minor actions don’t require a check.
Move
The simplest minor action is moving your speed. Many nonstandard modes of movement are also covered under this category, including climbing (up to one-quarter of your speed) and swimming (up to one-quarter of your speed).
Accelerated Climbing: You can climb one-half your speed as a minor action by accepting a –5 penalty on your Climb check.
Crawling: You can crawl 5 feet as a minor action. Crawling incurs reaction attacks from any attackers who threaten you at any point of your crawl.
Shift 5 feet
As a minor action, you can move 5 ft without provoking any reaction attacks. You can only take this action if your movement isn’t hampered by difficult terrain (see page ???) or darkness.
You may not shift 5 ft using a form of movement for which you do not have a listed speed. For example, if you don’t have a Climb speed listed, you can’t use climbing to shift 5 ft. Similarly, you can’t shift 5 ft when swimming unless you have a listed swim speed.
Prepare a Spell
Mages must spend a minor action to ready a spell before they can cast it. Preparing a spell requires a readily available source of magical notation and provokes reaction attacks.
Swift Attack
If you have this ability, you can make an attack as a minor action, at a -4 BCB penalty. As part of this action, you can also shift 5 ft before or after the attack (resolved as the shift action). Only some classes grant this ability.
Direct or Redirect a Spell
Some spells, such as Create Image, allow you to redirect the effect to new targets or areas after you cast the spell. Redirecting a spell requires a minor action and does not provoke reaction attacks or require concentration.
Draw or Sheathe a Weapon
Drawing a weapon so that you can use it in combat, or putting it away so that you have a free hand, requires a minor action. This action also applies to weapon-like objects carried in easy reach, such as wands. If your weapon or weapon-like object is stored in a pack or otherwise out of easy reach, treat this action as retrieving a stored
Item.
If you have a base attack bonus of +1 or higher, you may draw a weapon as a free action combined with a regular move.
Drawing ammunition for use with a ranged weapon (such as arrows, bolts, or sling bullets) is a free action.
Manipulate an Item
In most cases, moving or manipulating an item is a minor action. This includes retrieving or putting away a stored item, picking up an item, moving a heavy object, and opening a door. If this action is difficult or distracting it provokes reaction attacks.
Mount or Dismount
Mounting or dismounting from a steed requires a minor action.
Fast Mount or Dismount: You can mount or dismount as a free action with a DC 20 Ride check (your armor check penalty, if any, applies to this check). If you fail the check, mounting or dismounting is a minor action instead. (You can’t attempt a fast mount or fast dismount unless you can perform the mount or dismount as a minor action in the current round.)
Ready or Loose a Strapped Shield
Strapping a shield to your arm to gain its shield bonus to your AC, or unstrapping and dropping a shield so you can use your shield hand for another purpose, requires a minor action. If you have a base combat bonus of +1 or higher, you can ready or loose a shield as a free action combined with a regular move.
Dropping a carried (but not worn) shield is a free action.
Stand up from Prone
Standing up from a prone position requires a minor action and provokes reaction attacks.
Full Round Actions
A full-round action requires an entire round to complete. Thus, it can’t be coupled with a standard or a minor action.
Cast a Spell
A spell that takes 1 round to cast is a full-round action. It comes into effect at the beginning of the next round, after characters have declared actions but before any have acted.
A spell that takes 1 minute to cast comes into effect at the same time (that is, the start of next round after you have spent 10 full round actions casting the spell). These actions must be consecutive and uninterrupted, or the spell automatically fails. When you begin a spell that takes 1 round or longer to cast, you must continue the invocations, gestures, and concentration from one round to just before your turn in the next round (at least). If you lose concentration after starting the spell and before it is complete, you lose the spell.
You only provoke reaction attacks when you begin casting a spell, even though you might continue casting for at least one full round. While casting a spell, you don’t threaten any squares around you. This action is otherwise identical to the cast a spell action described under major actions.
Charge
Charging is a special full-round action that allows you to move up to twice your speed and attack during the action. However, it carries tight restrictions on how you can move.
Movement During a Charge: You must move before your attack, not after. You must move at least 10 feet (2 squares) and may move up to double your speed directly toward the designated opponent. You must have a clear path toward the opponent, and nothing can hinder your movement (such as difficult terrain, obstacles or even allies).
If you are able to take only a major action or a minor action on your turn, you can still charge, but you are only allowed to move up to your speed (instead of up to double your speed). You can’t use this option unless you are restricted to taking only a major action or minor action on your turn (such as during a surprise round).
Attacking on a Charge: After moving, you may make a single melee attack. Since you can use the momentum of the charge in your favor, you get a +2 bonus on the attack roll. Since a charge is a bit reckless, you also take a –2 penalty to your AC until the start of your next turn. A charging character gets a +2 bonus on the Strength check made to bull rush an opponent.
Spears and Charge Attacks: A spear deals critical damage if employed by a mounted character in a charge.
Weapons Readied against a Charge: Spears, halberds, and certain other piercing weapons deal critical damage when readied and used against a charging character.
Sprint
You can run as a full-round action. When you sprint, you can move up to four times your speed in a straight line (or three times your speed if you’re in heavy armor). You lose any Dexterity bonus to AC while sprinting.
You can run for a number of rounds equal to your Constitution score, but after that you must make a DC 10 Constitution check to continue running. You must check again each round in which you continue to run, and the DC of this check increases by 1 for each check you have made. When you fail this check, you must stop running. A character who has run to their limit must rest for 1 minute (10 rounds) before running again. During a rest period, a character can move no faster than a normal minor action.
You can’t sprint across difficult terrain (page ???), or if you can’t see where you’re going.
Withdraw
Withdrawing from melee combat is a full-round action. When you withdraw, you can move up to double your speed. The square you start out in is not considered threatened by any opponent you can see, and therefore visible enemies do not get reaction attacks against you when you move from that square. (Invisible enemies still get reaction attacks against you, and you can’t withdraw from combat if you’re blinded.)
If, during the process of withdrawing, you move out of a threatened square (other than the one you started in), enemies get reaction attacks as normal.
You may not withdraw using a form of movement for which you don’t have a listed speed. For example, a monstrous spider has a listed climb speed, so it can withdraw by climbing away. Your character doesn’t normally have a listed climb speed (unless you’re under the effect of a spider climb spell, for example), so you can’t use climbing to withdraw from combat.
Note that despite the name of this action, you don’t actually have to leave combat entirely. For instance, you could use a withdraw action to move away from one enemy and toward another.
Restricted Withdraw: If you are limited to taking only a major action each round (for instance if you are staggered or during a surprise round), you can withdraw as a major action. In this case, you may move up to your speed (rather than up to double your speed).
Free Actions
Free actions don’t take any time at all, though your GM may limit the number of free actions you can perform in a turn. Some common free actions are described below.
Cast a Spell
Some especially simple spells can be cast as free actions. Only one such spell can be cast in any round, and such spells don’t count toward your normal limit of one spell per round. Casting a spell with a casting time of a free action doesn’t incur a reaction attack.
Drop to the ground
Dropping to a prone position in your space is a free action.
Speak
In general, speaking is a free action that you can perform even when it isn’t your turn. Speaking more than few sentences is generally beyond the limit of a free action; to communicate more information than that, your GM may require that you take a minor action or even a full round action.
Reactions
Unlike other actions, reactions aren’t only taken on your turn. You can make a reaction at any time, even interrupting another character’s turn to resolve your reaction. You can only make a reaction when you have a specific opportunity to do so, such as if an enemy turns their back on you to flee, or attacks an ally you are protecting. You can’t react when you are off-guard or unaware of the triggering opportunity.
You can normally only use one reaction per round, but some feats and special abilities can grant the ability to make multiple reactions in a round. You regain your reactions at the beginning of your turn. Even if you can make multiple reactions, you can only make one reaction per opportunity, though an enemy could create multiple different opportunities.
| Reactions | Reaction Attack |
| Reaction Attack | No |
| Cast a Reaction Spell | No |
| Cover an Ally's Retreat | No |
Reaction Attack
Reaction attacks are the most common kind of reaction. In combat, characters are normally active in their own defense, dodging, parrying, and even threatening the enemy to keep them back.
Sometimes, however, a combatant in a melee lets their guard down. In this case, combatants near them can take advantage of their lapse in defense to attack her for free. These free attacks are called reaction attacks.
Threatened Squares: You threaten all squares into which you can make a melee attack, even when it is not your action. Generally, that means everything in all squares adjacent to your space (including diagonally). An enemy that takes certain actions while in a threatened square provokes an attack from you. If you’re unarmed, you don’t normally threaten any squares and thus can’t make reaction attacks (but see Unarmed Attacks).
Reach Weapons: Most creatures of Medium or smaller size have a reach of only 5 feet. This means that they can make melee attacks only against creatures up to 5 feet (1 square) away. However, Medium creatures wielding reach weapons (such as a pike) threaten more squares than a typical creature. For instance, a pike-wielding human threatens all squares 10 feet (2 squares) away, even diagonally. In addition, most creatures larger than Medium have a natural reach of 10 feet or more; see Big and Little Creatures in Combat, page ???.
Provoking a Reaction Attack: Two kinds of actions can provoke attacks: moving out of a threatened square and performing an action within a threatened square.
Moving: Moving out of a threatened square usually provokes an attack from the threatening opponent. There are two
common methods of avoiding such an attack—the shift action and the withdraw action.
Performing a Distracting Act: Some actions, when performed in a threatened square, provoke reaction attacks as you divert your attention from the battle. Casting a spell and attacking with a ranged weapon, for example, are distracting actions.
Remember that even actions that normally provoke reaction attacks may have exceptions to this rule. For instance, a character with the Improved Unarmed Strike feat doesn’t incur a reaction attack for making an unarmed attack.
Making a Reaction Attack: A reaction attack is a single melee attack. You don’t have to make a reaction attack if you don’t want to. You make your reaction attack at your normal attack bonus—even if you’ve already attacked in the round. You can't make a reaction attack against a character who has cover from your attacks.
Cast a Reaction Spell
Some spells, such as counterspell can be cast as reactions to their own specified opportunities (counterspell can be cast in reaction to an enemy casting a spell, for example). Casting a reaction spell does not provoke reaction attacks.
Reaction spells are tricky for mages to use because they must spend an action preparing their spells, and they can only have one spell prepared at a time. For this reason, many mages choose to use their spell mastery ability to keep these spells ready at all times.
Cover an Ally's Retreat
If an enemy makes a reaction attack against an ally moving out of a square they threaten, you can expend a reaction to negate this attack if the enemy is within your reach.
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