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Is there one? I would like to have it. There are references to it, but not everything that is considered precision damage is labeled as such.
Is favored enemy bonus damage precision? It doesn't say. Sneak attack pretty much defines it though.
Is SA the only precision damage?
Favored Enemy bonus damage is not precision damage. Only things that explicitly say they're precision damage are precision damage.
Except for Sneak Attack, which doesn't say it's precision damage, but other rules say it is. They biffed that one.
Off the top of my head, the Precise Strike teamwork feat is precision damage as well.
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Seems to me that the notion of "precision damage" might be in the same category as "iterative attack,"—a useful game term that for whatever reason is never defined. And since it's not defined, you see the word precision pop up as descriptive text.
Precision damage is, basically, extra damage caused by placing a blow in a precise spot where the damage is more damaging than a simple blow. That's basically the same thing that's going on with a sneak attack or a duelist's precise strike, and it's also what's going on with a critical hit.
Weapon Specialization doesn't care about precision; neither do things like Power Attack or even a ranger's favored enemy ability, since these abilities simply increase the damage done by something EVERY TIME you hit. There's no flavor text associated with these attacks that specifically say you're specifically trying to stab someone in a heart. I suppose you could make a case, theme-wise, that the favored enemy damage should count, but in the rules as written it does not.
So basically—as far as I read it, precision damage is a handy way of summarizing "extra damage from critical hits, extra damage from sneak attacks, and extra damage from a duelist's precise strike ability."
Vital Strike's problem isn't really the mention of precision damage, but it's over-explanation of what it does. All it does is let you roll the actual dice you roll for the weapon's value twice. Other dice or modifiers you might add to that base weapon damage is not increased.
In the end, since "precision" is not a specific quantified rules element, whenever it appears you shouldn't attach rules assumptions to it. It's just a word; we could have used any other word in its place that's a synonym, like "preciseness" or "accuracy."
Precision damage is, alas, not defined as a term. It's more a descriptive element, which is probably not the best way to handle things in game. But basically, precision damage is limited to sneak attacks and the duelist's extra damage, as far as I can tell.
Critical hits are not precision damage.
Is there one? I would like to have it. There are references to it, but not everything that is considered precision damage is labeled as such.
Is favored enemy bonus damage precision? It doesn't say. Sneak attack pretty much defines it though.
Is SA the only precision damage?
It is the only damage explicitly noted when being immune to precision damage is called out in the CRB and Bestiary I.
The only time that the favored enemy bonus is equated with sneak attack is under the invisibility rules
Invisibility does not, by itself, make a creature immune to critical hits, but it does make the creature immune to extra damage from being a ranger’s favored enemy and from sneak attacks.
If I recall correctly in 3.5 there were variations on sneak attack such as sudden strike (ninja) and skirmish (scout). To my knowledge this distinction has been removed from sneak attack but the wording for precision damage was not changed.
Up close and deadly dead for pistolero.
So invisibility makes a creature immune to favored enemy and is vaguely associated with sneak attack, but it isn't precision damage?
Is there a petition I can sign somewhere to get this into the glossary? It needs to be defined, because it seems like something that could get some mileage.
Favored enemy damage is only related to sneak attack in that it adds damage, exactly in the same way that hitting something with a sword is related to sneak attack since it too does damage.
I was only commenting on the apparent lack of agreement on what constitutes as precision damage. Sneak attack is precision, hence why invisibility foils it. Favored enemy is not precision damage, so what is the rationale for negating it if something like weapon specialization will still function? It isn't really implying anything, it just feel inconsistent to me.
I don't want the discussion to hinge on favored enemy bonuses and sneak attack; those specific instances are supporting details to my overall concern. Please don't think I'm worried about those things in particular as much as making precision damage more... concise.
Hard to justify favored enemy when you are attacking a square, maybe if you took favored enemy (grid)
Favored enemy is not precision damage, so what is the rationale for negating it if something like weapon specialization will still function?
Weapon Specialization means you're really good at using that type of weapon. It's not related to the target, it's related to what weapon you're using. You're using the same weapon if the target is invisible or not, you still know how to twist the blade or whatever if you hit.
Favored Enemy means you know that enemy well, and you can exploit it's weaknesses. Targeting a goblin's ears works better than their feet, undead have certain vulnerable points, etc. If the target is invisible, you can't do any of that, so it's no different than attacking anything else that might be invisible there.
Grick, you raise good points, however that still sounds like precision damage to me. Striking a goblin's ear, or an elf's frail wrists/ankles, or some other such "weak point" would be the definition of precision, I would think.
Archmagi1, while I think it's a good thing not to weaken the ranger's already situational bonuses for FE, I don't think that mechanical decision helps make this distinction easier.
What if the ranger knows about the enemy before they become invisible. Not all targets have the chance to pop invisibility before combat starts. It should still apply, yes?
The only mechanical difference I can see between sneak attack/precise strike and favored enemy is that favored enemy actually gives a bonus to hit as well, so it's actually granting bonuses to accuracy as well as precision (to use the terms loosely).
Grick, you raise good points, however that still sounds like precision damage to me. Striking a goblin's ear, or an elf's frail wrists/ankles, or some other such "weak point" would be the definition of precision, I would think.
Precision damage in PF most closely means "able to place blows to deal extra damage to creatures with soft underbellies." Favored enemy bonuses apply to anything you have studied. They are similar, but favored enemy bonuses come from study of specific opponents, whereas precision damage comes from an understanding of general anatomy. Not to mention that a ranger gets his favored enemy bonus against creatures that are naturally invisible IIRC.
Foghammer, sorry if I caused some confusion I didn't mean that sneak attack and favored enemy were the same kind of damage (precision). I meant for all the examples of precision damage sneak attack is the only one mentioned and only against an invisible creature for the reason that Grick mentioned is favored enemy also affected.
Another mechanical difference is that favored enemy can be selected for enemy types that are immune to precision damage.
For example Ooze is a valid (if rarely chosen favored enemy) but all Oozes are immune to precision damage.
Not subject to critical hits or flanking. Does not take additional damage from precision-based attacks, such as sneak attack.
If it says it's precision damage, it's precision damage. If something else says it's precision damage, it's precision damage.
That's it.
Favored Enemy is NOT precision damage.
Gosh, I always assumed that Critical Hits were precision damage. I definitely think this ought to be FAQ'd.
Why? Not only does the critical hit section not say it's precision damage, but SKR said so too.
This post is a response to one of Grick's posts about this that was FAQ'd and received the answer "No reply necesssary" Grick linked to it above.
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Well I didn't read that particular thread until just now, did I? Otherwise I'd have known.
The thing is, a critical hit is conceptually damage caused by hitting a particularly weak spot -- that is, it's damage from a precisely-targeted attack. That makes it sound like "precision damage". That's why James Jacobs wrote what he did back in 2009.
I'm glad SKR clarified it -- on a thread about alchemist bombs and vital strike. So I'm sure everybody who plays alchemists with vital strike will know all about it! As for the rest of us...