Opening Doors!


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion

Grand Lodge

Hi folks!

I was unable to find a solid answer for what kind of action/ how much effort it is to open a door and move specifically while moving.

Some ways I have seen GMs rule it...

*Move action
*Move action but can interrupt movement(15ft-open door-15feet)
*Swift action while moving
*During movement opening a door costs 5/10/15ft of movement.

I am personally a fan of losing 5 or 10ft of movement to get a door open. It slows the character down(as it should) and avoids some silly situation where you can get stuck in front of an open door.(Move action approach door. Move action open door. Free Action pray there are no horrible monsters on the other side!)

So I am wondering how do you handle those pesky doors in your games? Do you use one of these options or do you have your own way? Do you require different action depending on the type of door(Wooden, Stone, Iron)? Do different rules apply during chase scenes?

Share your ideas!


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Combat wrote:

Manipulate an Item

Moving or manipulating an item is usually a move action.

This includes retrieving or putting away a stored item, picking up an item, moving a heavy object, and opening a door.

Source

Emphasis mine.

If a character bull rushes down a door with a strength check then they don't have to stop and spend a move action.

I also rule that any kind of door that is very hard to open, like a large-sized stone door, requires more than just a move action to open. However Pathfinder does not have rules for different sizes and kinds of doors.

RPG Superstar 2009 Top 8

For added realism and extra complication.. you can also change it depending on which way the door swings. Pulling one open takes longer than pushing.

I say it's a move action and if it's a push.. it can be done at any point during a move (like drawing a weapon with a BAB of +1)

I like the bullrush idea though too..


It's its own move action. so you have to move to the door as a move action and open it as a move action.

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder Adventure, Rulebook Subscriber
Manipulate an Item wrote:

Moving or manipulating an item is usually a move action.

This includes retrieving or putting away a stored item, picking up an item, moving a heavy object, and opening a door. Examples of this kind of action, along with whether they incur an attack of opportunity, are given in Table: Actions in Combat.


I use the move action as written. Breaching rooms are a very real hazard in my games.

Scars of the Third Crusade:
Had a high stealth knife master rogue playing hide and stab in a two story building. Party was completely flabbergasted when in melee the rogue just shut the door on the warpriest and snuck away. (he died to a crit later, otherwise the fight would have been long and bloody)


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DM Livgin wrote:

I use the move action as written. Breaching rooms are a very real hazard in my games.

** spoiler omitted **

Spoiler for The Skinsaw Murders - RotRL:

We were making our way through the Foxglove house and basically brute-forcing all of the haunts because we wanted to find out more about the place and we generally had saves that could take it. We got to one room, and the cleric, arcanist, and slayer elected to stay outside of the room while our two paladins (including myself) went in.

My husband, playing the cleric, mentioned that, since some of the haunts had made us a bit hazardous to each other, his character was going to stay just outside the door to keep an eye on us, but would keep a hand on the doorknob, just in case. It was the first time he'd done it, but as both of us in the room could present a fair threat if something happened, it was a fair precaution. "You sure?" the GM asked? "Yup," my husband responded.

It was the room where the person affected by the haunt tries to off any women around.

Guess who the two women in the group were? Me and my husband's cleric.

Guess who the haunt affected, and who lost their save? Me.

Guess who won initiative? My husband.

I grab my weapon and start for the door, husband's cleric slams it in my face and holds it just after the arcanist cast Grease into the room. After losing an opposed strength check against her holding it, I then try to off myself, but fall because of Grease. Other paladin kicks away my weapon and tackles me, and that gave enough time for me to snap out of it.

Bless our poor GM - he's had to put up with us throwing those kinds of monkey wrenches into the works this entire game. He'd had to hold back a ROFL-snort that entire encounter, because he knew I was getting the haunt and would be going straight for the cleric if I lost the save. That it got negated so simply was perfect.

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