Ferka's page

Not necessarily dead. As Mr Charisma noted, there is probably a save. And the poison may not be automatically lethal even on a failed save. Foe example, Here’s the pit fiend’s poison bite description:

Poison (Ex) Bite—injury; save Fort DC 32; frequency 1/round for 10 rounds; effect 1d6 Con damage; cure 3 consecutive saves. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Have initiatives posted for all to see, and someone responsible for announcing who is on deck to go next.

Have all likely buffs and debuffs preloaded into character sheets if you are using something like Hero Lab, so you can avoid mental math and just turn them on and off with a click.

Have a turn clock - if you can’t declare your action within 15 seconds, then you are delaying or passing on your turn.

Have the DM announce ACs and health status for foes, to save time asking and confirming hits/misses. There are a few cases where this will help players choose whether to use a particular bonus or ability, but the increase in speed is worth it.

tell the players when they seem to have gained the maximum or sufficient information in a social encounter, to avoid wasting time as conversations drag out needlessly.

Similarly, have multiple ways for the PCs to learn key bits of plot info, so that progress is not derailed by a single skill failure or missed clue. Even be ready to have an Npc give them what they need, perhaps at a penalty in terms of treasure or other consequences.

I’m with avr on this one. You speak and understand Billy Bob the Dwarf’s pidgin elvish just fine, and can speak it back. Anyone who only understands real Elvish will probably have no idea what you are talking about.

I think your original inclination is right. The homunculus probably is not living, therefore is not a valid target for the spell. This is not clearly stated in the description, nor in the Construct creature type rules, but is strongly implied in the latter. Constructs share many key traits solely with the only other non-living creature type, undead. No healing, resurrection, CON score, etc. They are destroyed, not killed.

That said, if you are playing in a home game, it sounds fun, and isn’t a gateway to some game-breaking power move, why not?

You are probably remembering the ability to take a 5’ Step as part of a readied attack. That is explicitly allowed in the rule (look in the combat section of the CRB.) I’m not aware of any such provision for AoOs. Btw, AoOs aren’t an immediate action, but rather are their own thing.

Gotta have water walking. Condition removal spells, cure disease, remove curse, create food and water (fishes and loaves). Is there a water to wine spell?

If you are already part of the hunt, there are a million ways to slow them down and derail the hunt. Bad mushrooms in the cook pot; you eat them too, to avoid suspicion. Everyone gets sick and either goes home or delays the hunt. Be clumsy and make a racket as you approach the lair. Volunteer to scout ahead, and cruelly warn the dragon. That sort of thing. Not as extreme as killing the nobles, so less likely to result in you being banished or worse. Just don’t get caught...

You would have to apply the oil to the target creature(s), which would be inefficient at best. It takes a full round to use an oil on a single unconscious target. How would you get it on an unwilling, conscious target?

I apologize if this question has been answered already, but I couldn't find it if it was. I am surprised it isn't, given the plethora of discussion regarding whether or not Bane stacks with itself.

Both the Furious and Bane abilities increase the weapon's enhancement bonus under different circumstances - do these increases stack if both circumstances are met? Such as a raging Barbarian with a +1 Furious Bane(Monstrous Humanoids) Greatsword fighting a Minotaur - would that Greatsword have an effective enhancement bonus of +3 or +5?

Bonuses of the same kind (in this case enhancement bonuses) do not stack. There are a few exceptions, but this isn't one of the them. From the PRD:

Stacking: Stacking refers to the act of adding together bonuses or penalties that apply to one particular check or statistic. Generally speaking, most bonuses of the same type do not stack. Instead, only the highest bonus applies. Most penalties do stack, meaning that their values are added together. Penalties and bonuses generally stack with one another, meaning that the penalties might negate or exceed part or all of the bonuses, and vice versa.

The rules for "flanking" say you only get it when making a "melee attack", not a "full attack"

Peter, in the flanking rules, the "melee attack" is used in the generic "hitting the guy with something you are holding in your hand" sense to make the distinction with ranged weapons (which you can't flank with without some special ability that makes an exception.) Otherwise it would say "attack action" to make clear that it is referring to the standard action. Granted, the language in the rulebooks is regrettably inconsistent, but that it the dominant usage.

For example, an attack of opportunity is not a standard action (attack). Yet it is described this way: "An attack of opportunity is a single melee attack..."

Similarly, consider the Power Attack rules: You can choose to take a –1 penalty on all melee attack rolls and combat maneuver checks to gain a +2 bonus on all melee damage rolls...and its effects last until your next turn. If "melee attack" meant standard action, there would be no need to specify "all rolls" or point out that its effects last beyond the end of the current turn.

Hope that helps!

Finally, a kitten clawing 'cause it's scared is not going to go for blood, it's going to run away.

Unless it is a chaotic good cat, in which case it will claw you to ribbons, then go "oops, I did it again" ;)

What is your AC? Are you sure you aren't stacking bonuses that don't stack? Is the DM playing all monsters as stupid? If they can't hit you, intelligent bad guys should be killing your friends and against you be casting spells, using touch attacks, using ranged attacks from perches you can't reach, turning you against the party, etc., not continuing to swing at the guy they can't hit.