Aris Kosmopoulos's page

Lets say that someone leaves a square you threaten and provokes an AoO from you. You choose to use the trip CM in order to trip him. BUT YOU DO NOT HAVE THE improved trip feat.

My question is does your action provokes an AoO from the one that provoked your AoO? Is there generally a chain of AoOs or an AoO does not provoke an AoO?

I am tired of reading threads regarding grapple. I have also created some of these threads in the past. IT IS CLEAR that grapple rules are UNCLEAR, they require clarification.

I do not think that the problem is in the designers ideas. I believe that the new Combat maneuver system is a beautiful addition to the game and I love it. The problem IMO is in the way the rules were written regarding grapple. They are fuzzy and they give space for many different interpretations. So what I suggest ? I would like an article from the designers (less than a page) that answers all these questions that appear again and again in almost the 5% of the rules forum:

1) Clarification regarding pinned and grappled condition: What exactly they would like it to do. An answer that is compatible with problems regarding skills like escape artist and grapplers that use agile maneuver.

2) Clarification regarding in what situation special bonuses apply especially at CMD during grappling. Need to explain when +2 at CMD from improved grapple applied at CMD and what the the word resist grapple at traits and feats implies?
a)Does it apply always when you oppose a grapple check?
b)Does it apply only when some tries to grapple you and not when he tries to escape from you.
c)What happens in the grey area when he tries to reverse the grapple? Remember that by RAW you fist roll and the decide whether you want to escape or revere the grapple.

3) Grab!
a) Can you grab more than 1 in a round? (all agree that you can sustain only one grapple one the second round since it is a standard action so the problem is for the first round).

b) If during a full attack you grab one and you conduct the grapple normally do you continue with your other attacks? Can you grapple a second one afterwards? Do you have to leave the first one as a free action first to do that or even to attack?

c) Multiple grapplings. How A grabs B and C grabs A exactly works? It is more or less explained by many players but a clear example from the designers wouldn't hurt.

d) Can you generally reverse a grab? Can you reverse a grab that was made with -20 penalty.

Generally if all those situations had specific keyword names and the rules used special keywords when referring to one another things would be much simpler. This is just a suggestion. For example there could be a different keyword for the grappler and the grappled or for the situation were a monster grabs someone normally and another when it grapples someone with a -20.

Please F.A.Q. this post if you feel the same way and would like an official answer too. The more we F.A.Q. the more likely we will receive an answer (or maybe not :-P). Please fill free to add anything that I have missed and you think that should be added. The purpose of this thread is not start a debate of what is wrong or what is right but to request for an official answer all together as one voice.

In the last sentence of the feat it says:

"You also receive a +2 bonus to your Combat Maneuver Defense whenever an opponent tries to grapple you."

A has improved grapple. A grapples B. B tries to escape with an escape artist check against A's CMD. Is A's CMD increased by 2 from Improved grapple?

I have asked something similar in the past regarding the favorite class options of human fighters in order to resist grapple, but this is a more clear and straight example. By RAW it is not clear but at least I want to know how the majority plays it?

Does it deal full damage?
Does it deal full damage + 50%?
Or
Does it deal splash damage + 50%?

By full damage I do not mean maximized dice.

In each thread there is a button that we sometimes use in order to flag a post as F.A.Q.
Is there a link/place/pdf that all these questions are gathered and answers received. Until now I have only seen the faq section in each product which rarely changes and has more or less 10 question-answers. So were do we expect to see an answer?

At page 196 of the core rule book there is a table about AC modifiers. There it says that if you are being attacked and you are grappling but the attacker is not you loose your Dex bonus to AC. I am pretty sure that this is wrong because of all the discussions that we have done about grappled and pinned.

Example showing why this is an error:

For example if the above statement was true then there would be no reason to say at the pin action that you lose your Dexterity bonus to AC since you would had already lost it:

"Pin: You can give your opponent the pinned condition
(see Appendix 2). Despite pinning your opponent, you
still only have the grappled condition, but you lose your
Dexterity bonus to AC."

Is this an error? Have you discussed it before and if yes can you please inform me about how it was fixed. Do you ignore it or it wanted to say something else?

P.S. To those that would argue that in the above example you loose your Dex to AC against everyone instead of only against the ones attacking you (and not grappling you), remember that there is no point at that. The newly affected person would only be the pinned one which doesn't care if you are flat-footed while he is pinned.

From what I understand by reading the description of bayonet you cannot make any ranged attacks while you have attached it. If that is true and I haven't misunderstood it what's the point of using it? If you lose a move action to attack it and another one to remove it you could instead draw and sheathe a more serious weapon with greater qualities. Am I missing something.

What happens when a creature with 3 natural attack and grab uses a full attack action. If the grab attack hits and the creature decides to grapple its prey do the rest of the attacks happen. Or after you start a grapple in any way you loose the rest of your attacks?

1) When some-one uses Ride-by Attack and continues moving after the charge does he move through the enemy's square or he must charge passing from a square adjacent to his target?

2) Does the mount also attack when you use spirited charge?

If YES
Lets's say that your mount is a tiger with pounce :-)
Will this tiger do all its attacks and the continue moving?
If yes :-) what happens with attacks that have grab?

Is your mount (while you are riding it) considered an adjacent ally? Many actions and feats target an adjacent ally so can the rider target his mount with them or if the mount has them can it target its rider with them?

Lets say that we have a monk PC that has multiclassed into the Druid class. Let's not talk about how serious this is and if this is realistic. My main question is about what happens with the Ex and Supernatural: abilities of the monk like the Add wisdom to your AC when the PC transforms in to a lion for example. Does he receive the wisdom to AC as a lion? In the main book it state clearly that under polymorph you lose all Ex: abilities originating from your race. It also says that you lose class abilities that depend on form.

So do you lose:
1) AC bonus (Ex)?
2) Flurry of Blows (Ex)?
3) Fast Movement (Ex)?

My questions are about the use of spellcraft skill in order to identify a spell being cast and generally notice that someone casts a spell.

If a spell doesn't have any material components and has only Verbal Components but is cast using a silent metamagic feat:

a) Can someone use spellcraft in order to identify the spell?

b) Can someone realize that a spell is being cast at that time? Does he need to have spellcraft or any player can realize that someone casts a spell even if he manages not to have Somatic, verbal and material components?

Lets see the examples below:

1) An NPC appears as a merchant. The merchant is actually a spellcaster and tries to cast charm to a PC. He has the necessary feats in order to do that without using any components. Do the other PCs have any idea that he casted a spell?

2) In the same way the PCs are facing 5 druids and one of them cast entanglement but with metamagic feats in order not to use any components. Do the PCs know which one of them casted the spell?

Some favored class option like that of the human alchemist cannot be applied in the initial levels:

Alchemist: Add one extract formulae from the
alchemist’s list to the character’s formulae book.
This formulae must be at least one level below the
highest formulae level the alchemist can create.

Are these abilities retroactive in some way or they are just lost in the initial levels? For example a human alchemist that chose to have this ability will benefit from it after the 4th level and will have no benefits for the levels 1, 2 and 3.

Abilities like the human fighter favored class option:

"Fighter: Add +1 to the fighter’s CMD when resisting
two combat maneuvers of the character’s choice."

can also be selected for the grapple maneuver. My question is :
"In which of the below situations a character is considered to resisting a grapple Combat manuevre?"

1) When someone tries to initiate a grapple at him. I guess will all agree this is a yes :-)

2) When 1st chraracter is grappling a 2nd one and the 2nd tries to escape. In that situation he must compare his check result (Escape artist or grapple check) with the 1st ones CMD. Is the 1st one here resisting a grapple?

3) Let's say now that the 2nd one is not only trying to escape but also tries to reverse the grapple and become the grappler. Is the 1st one here resisting a grapple?

If 3 is a yes and 2 is a no there is a small problem. According to the rules after rolling the chech you decide wehther to break free or become the grappler

4) In case a pinned character tries to escape, is this bonus added to the grappler's CMD?

Please keep in my mind that if the answer is YES and this bonus is added in all of the above situations then this ability is very strong not only as defensive one but also as an offensive one. Since a grappler with this ability makes it a nightmare for a grappled enemy to escape.

I am starting a new thread regarding the -4 Dex penalty that applies to grappled characters but not to pinned ones. The main problems are:

1) -4 Dex also applies to skill checks so it also applies to escape artist. This leads to higher chance of escaping while being grappled than being pinned.

2) Since the grappled condition is also applied to the grappler, a character using the agile maneuver feat is also affected by the -4 Dex penalty, leading to weaker grappler.

Was this -4 Dex penalty intentional or it was originally made only to reflect a -2 penalty to AC and CMD? If you do not have an answer please at least tell how do you play it in your games?

Many thanks! Hoping for an official answer.

1) In the core rulebook states that you cannot make attack of opportunities while having the grappled condition.

Page 567 : "Grappled creatures cannot make attacks of opportunity."

My question is : Does a grappled creature threaten the squares around it? Threatening is something required in order to perform an attack of opportunity but this doesn't necessary mean the opposite too. So can a grappled ally be used in order to flank an enemy standing between the two of you?

2) In the weapon specialization feat states that :
"Weapon Specialization (Combat)
You are skilled at dealing damage with one weapon. Choose
one type of weapon (including unarmed strike or grapple)
for which you have already selected the Weapon Focus feat.
You deal extra damage when using this weapon."

Since in the path finder rules of grapple you can deal your unarmed damage in the grapple what does weapon specialization in grapple means?
a) If you take weapon specialization in grapple whenever you deal damage with an unarmed strike, light weapon or one handed weapon you deal +2 damage?
b) It only refers to unarmed strikes during grapple, so it is something weaker than taking an unarmed strike specialization feat. (so it shouldn't exist at all)
c) Or you can take both unarmed strike spec and grapple spec and deal +4 damage with unarmed strikes during grapple? (So they stack)

Any suggestions or at least how do you play it?

I know that alignment is an over debated element of d20 but I would like to know your opinions in a few cases.

1) Would you allow an monk to be lawful if he is disciplined, obey to his schools laws but disobeys all the laws of the other societies? For example an evil monk whose school/monastery believes in a certain god who demands to rule all others with any means necessary.

Is this monk considered lawful.

2) My question generally is about the binary meaning of lawfulness. One considering the laws of the societies and the other one considering the personal discipline and code of honor. If someone satisfies only one of these conditions, is he lawful or he must be neutral in the chaos - law axis.

1) Regarding campfire.
What is the size of a campfire? 1 square (5feet * 5feet) or larger. And what is its light radius?
I understand that it is up to you to decide how large your campfire will be but I ask for an average campfire in order to use it as a baseline.

2) Is an alchemist considered a spellcaster? I guess yes, but is he an arcane one or something else like an untyped one (if something like this exists)? Do his extracts return to him after a night sleep or he doesn't need to rest in order to regain them? As for example a divine spell caster only needs to pray to regain his spells.

3) I am generally a bit confused on when exactly the powers of each class are refreshed, concerning spells and abilities that say that can be used X times per day. I would also like to know how does sleep interruption affects each of these cases.

I could not find an rules in the book regarding rest. What happens if you wake up during your sleep by some monsters? Do you have to sleep 8 hours again? Do elves need only 4 hours like in the old rules? How many days can you stay without sleep?