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This link:

http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/additionalMonsters/introduction.html#aur a

Leads to a page with text that reads:

"The requested URL was not found on this server, or you do not have permission to access this area."

The sample Skeletal Champion is a Human Warrior 1 Skeletal Champion with a CR of 2. I'm being told that because there is an NPC class involved the CR should be one lower (1), and that even Paizo does it wrong ... I've argued that the Skeletal Champion CR is based on the Skeleton which is based on Hit Dice and not Class Level.

So I'm trying to get clarification on just what CR that sample Champion should be.

I may be way out in left field on this, but to me it looks like the method used hinges on the CR table for the Skeleton (B1, 250), and the CR & HD paragraphs for Skeletal Champion (B1, 253).

The Skeleton's CR table ignores class levels and hit die types. It only counts the total number of HD for its CR.

If the Warrior 1 were turned in a basic Skeleton, it would be at a CR of 1/3. But turning it into a Skeletal Champion adds 2 HD, for a total of 3 HD. On the Skeleton's CR table, 2 or 3 HD equals CR 1, then the +1 CR for Skeletal Champion is added, for the published total CR of 2.

Again - unless I'm way off on how that should work.

This part is not correct, but I can see where the idea comes from in the Pathfinder book.

Overrun can indeed be combined with a charge.

This comes from the errata for the D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook being unevenly applied to the Pathfinder RPG.

Overrun; page 148; It's not possible to overrun as part of a charge. Delete "or as part of a charge" from this paragraph.

The equivalent section in the Pathfinder rulebook—page 193—has the errata applied, as shown below. (This one was also correct in the Beta.)

Overrun: During your movement, you can attempt to move through a square occupied by an opponent[...].

Attacking on a Charge; page 155; It's not possible to overrun as part of a charge. Delete text from the second paragraph so that it reads: "A charging character gets a +2 bonus on the Strength check made to bull rush an opponent[...].

The equivalent entry in the Pathfinder rulebook—page 198—has had the errata applied, as shown below. (This is also correct in the Beta.)

Attacking on a Charge: A charging character gets a +2 bonus on combat maneuver attack rolls made to bull rush an opponent.

Player's Handbook v3.5[/i] errata"]Overrun; page 157; It's not possible to overrun as part of a charge. Delete "or as part of a charge" from the first sentence of the first paragraph. In the 'Step 3" paragraph, delete the sentence that refers to making the overrun as part of a charge.

The error comes from here: The equivalent section in the Pathfinder rulebook—page 201—does not have the errata applied, as shown here. (This was also wrong in the Beta.)

Overrun: As a standard action, taken during your move or as part of a charge, you can attempt to overrun your target, moving through its square.

All three of these items have been corrected in the D&D v3.5 SRD. The corrected items are also included in the Rules Compendium. (Finding that corrections have been made in the SRD was a pleasant surprise.)

References:
• Player's Handbook Revision 3.5, pages 148, 155, and 157.
• Rules Compendium v3.5 pages 27 and 108.
• Player's Handbook v3.5 Errata, downloadable zipped PDF.
• Dungeons & Dragons v3.5 SRD Combat II (Movement, Modifiers, and Special Actions).
• Pathfinder RPG Beta pages 144, 149, and 151.
• Pathfinder RPG pages 193, 198, and 201.
• Pathfinder RPG PRD Combat.

Thank'ee, CBDunkerson, I'd missed that one.

Well, if they intended to get rid of it then they missed it in TWO spots... Elven ability to detect secret doors without searching is mentioned on page 404, in addition to 414.

I have a suspicion that elves (and perhaps half-elves) had the ability in a draft of the final rules, but that the ability was meant to be excised before the book went to print.

Or—it may simply be a casualty of folding Listen, Search, and Spot into Perception—with various references having been changed accordingly.

This brings us from:

Consider making checks involving the following skills for the player where he or she can't see the result: Bluff, Diplomacy, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Use Rope, Search, and Spot.

The only time you should not reveal the results of a die roll to the player character is when knowledge of the roll's result would give the player knowledge he shouldn't have. A good example of this is saving throws against effects that the player shouldn't necessarily realize his character has been exposed to (such as a disease or a subtle, long-acting poison), or a Perception check to spot a secret door that an elven PC might notice just in passing.

References:

What follows is just my opinion, based on what I can find by digging through rulebooks and FAQs. This got a bit lengthy, sorry folks.

Page 35 : "Starting a bardic performance is a standard action, but it can be maintained each round as a free action."

I have got two questions :
- Knowing that a bardic performance is a free action, does it means that if the bard is an actor, singer he can use his bardic performance + move of 30 feet + make an attack?

From what I find, the general answer is a solid "maybe." It depends upon which bardic performance ability is under discussion. This also presumes that the bard does not move so far that the target of a given ability is out of the effect's range.

• Countersong (Su) — Audible components (keyboard, percussion, wind, string, or sing). For this ability, I'd say no. Each round requires a Perform check, which is usually a standard action.
• Distraction (Sp) — Visual components (act, comedy, dance, or oratory). For this one, I'd say yes. It only requires the initial Perform check.
• Fascinate (Su) — Audible and visual components (none specified). This one would probably be no. Since even someone drawing a weapon automatically breaks the effect, the bard attacking anyone will likely do the same.
• Inspire Courage (Su) — Audible or visual components (none specified). This one is easily a yes, when the audible component is chosen. If a visual component is chosen this would be a maybe, depending upon the exact visual component.
• Inspire Comptetence (Su) — Audible components (none specified). This is another one that would be a yes, as it only requires the initial Perform check.
• Suggestion (Sp) — Audible components (none specified). This one is a no. It requires a standard action to use in addition to the free action to maintain the fascinate effect.
• Dirge of Doom (Su) — Audible and visual components (none specified). This is another one I'd put as a maybe, depending upon just which components are used.
• Inspire Greatness (Su) — Audible and visual components (none specified). I'd also put this one as a maybe, depending upon the exact components used.
• Soothing Performance (Su) — Audible and visual components (none specified). This one is a little tricky. I'd probably make it a no, as it requires four (4) rounds of performing for the effect.
• Frightening Tune (Sp) — Audible components (none specified). I would also call this one a yes, as only the initial Perform check is required.
• Inspire Heroics (Su) — Audible and visual components (none specified). This is another one I'd class as a maybe, depending upon which componets are used.
• Mass Suggestion (Sp) — Audible components (none specified). This one would also be a no. Like suggestion, it requires a standard action in addition to the free action used to maintain the fascinate effect.
• Deadly Performance (Su) — Audible and visual components (none specified). I would call this one a no. Based upon the ability's description it would seem to effectively require a full-round action to use.

- What is th DC to maintain a bardic performance ? Because if I well read the rule about Concentration (page 206) to cast a spell you must succeed a concentration check which is equal to D20+Caster level+ability modifier and the DC is different as follows circumstances. But what about the DC to maintain a bardic performance?

There is no DC for maintaining a bardic performance. Only the countersong ability actually states that a Perform skill check is required for each round of use.

All bard songs use to be supernatural in 3.5 but the pathfinder book does not state their effective type.

In D&D 3.5 as in Pathfinder, the abilities are a mix of spell-like and supernatural abilities.

• Countersong, fascinate, inspire courage, inspire competence, dirge of doom, inspire greatness, soothing performance, inspire heroics, and deadly performance are Supernatural (Su) abilities.
• Distraction, suggestion, frightening tune, and mass suggestion are Spell-Like (Sp) abilities.

Where does the book say the bardic performance ends when a standard action is taken? The combat chapter regarding actions appears to be silent on the bardic performance as a free action. It does not appear in table 8-2. They way I read the description of the bardic performance ability, maintaining the performance is a free action that is only disrupted by the inability to take a free action or willfully stopping the performance. There is no text that I see that says the performance stops to take another standard action (like a melee attack).

In the Pathfinder RPG, a standard action does not end a bardic music effect—though as mentioned above a given effect might not permit a bard to take a standard action while performing. Other than stopping the effect or changing to a different one, the conditions that will cancel a bardic performance are as shown:

A bardic performance cannot be disrupted, but it ends immediately if the bard is killed, paralyzed, stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise prevented from taking a free action to maintain it each round.

Four abilities are spell-like. As spell-like abilites usually provoke attacks of opportunity (AoO), the results may create one of the condiitons noted in the PRD quote above.

HOWEVER, it would really help me understand this if there were some text saying the performance ends - it doesn't make any sence for Bard playing a two handed instrument (free action) as their bardic performance to be able to use a shield to get AC bonus while pulling out their rapier (move action) to make an attack (standard action). If this isn't forbidden in the book, how do you explain this?

This would seem to be variable, based upon the exact audible and/or visual components that are being used for any given bardic performance. That means liberal use of 'common sense' along GM rulings on a case-by-case basis.

References:
• Pathfinder RPG, pages 35-38, 102 & 103, 180, and 183.
• Pathfinder RPG PRD, Bard, Perform, and Combat.

So, you're assuming that the beta rule still holds? It doesn't actually say that. The "chance" is undefined in the rulebook.

An alternate explanation is that this text was mistakenly left in after the elvish ability was removed.

This needs to be cleared up in the errata.

I agree. Research into the various rulebooks suggests that the line in the Pathfinder RPG should have been deleted when the 'secret doors' part of the elf & half-elf 'keen senses' racial ability was removed.

• In D&D 3.5, only elves had the ability to detect secret doors without an active search. The DMG entry for secret doors therefore only made mention of elves. The detection chance was listed under the Search skill description.

• The Pathfinder RPG Beta gave half-elves the ability to detect secret doors without actively looking for them. The entry for secret doors in the Additional Rules chapter was not changed to reflect this. The detection chance was listed under the Perception skill description.

• In the Pathfinder RPG it looks like the ability was meant to be removed, as it is no longer part of either the elf or half-elf racial descriptions. The original line from the D&D 3.5 DMG's entry for secret doors remains.

For those who wish to keep the ability for elves and half-elves, the detection chance is listed partly under the Perception skill description, as well as in the entry for secret doors in the Environment chapter.

I think—though an official response will help—that as the line quoted below had never been changed from that found in the 3.5 rules, it was meant to be deleted in the final Pathfinder release.

Elves have a chance to detect a secret door just by casually looking at an area.

References:

I've not had a chance to use this yet, as I'm not DM-ing presently. I came up with what follows after reading a few other posts in the forums.

House Rule — Swimming

As listed in the Swim skill description (Player’s Handbook page 84, Pathfinder RPG Beta page 74), any swimmer failing a skill check by five or more slips beneath the surface (see note 1).

An unfortunate swimmer who fails a swim check sinks five feet below the surface for each failed swim check. [Alternatively, this depth is one foot plus one foot for each point beyond five the swim check is failed by. So a character failing the check by eight sinks three feet underwater.]

A living creature is usually buoyant, so even a non-swimmer can regain the surface as long as he or she can remain calm. Characters moving towards the surface in this way rise at the rate of five feet per round.

A character carrying weight equal to or greater than the ‘firm footing’ weight for its size category (see note 2) will not float towards the surface. Such a character will have to actively swim upwards or shed some weight to avoid sinking deeper beneath the surface.

A character carrying weight greater than his or her Heavy load cannot swim at all and will sink five feet deeper each round. Such a character will either require assistance or must shed enough weight to be at Heavy load or less in order to regain the surface.

Characters who reach the bottom of a body of water—intentionally or not—may walk along the bottom. The movement cost for bottom walkers is as per deep bogs (Dungeon Master’s Guide page 88, Pathfinder RPG Beta page 316).

• Note 1: This rules-tweak works best if the standard doubling of armor check penalties while swimming rule from the Player’s Handbook is used.

• Note 2: ‘Firm Footing’ Weight by Size: Fine 1 lb., Diminutive 2 lb., Tiny 4 lb., Small 8 lb., Medium 16 lb., Large 32 lb., Huge 64 lb., Gargantuan 128 lb., and Colossal 256 lb.

• Sources: Wilderness Survival Guide (AD&D 1st Edition), Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide (AD&D 1st Edition), Player’s Handbook (AD&D 2nd Edition), Player’s Option: Combat & Tactics (AD&D 2nd Edition), Player’s Handbook (D&D 3rd Edition, 3.5 Revision), Dungeon Master’s Guide (D&D 3rd Edition, 3.5 Revision), Player’s Handbook (D&D 4th Edition), “Water, Water Everywhere” Dragon Magazine #291 pages 60-62.

Hey there all,

I was going through the massive spell chapter over the weekend for the Beta and it occured to me that I have never asked you, the playtesters, about spells. So, here I am. What spells do you think need some work?

Perhaps some of the Cleric spells could have the bonus types that they grant changed? For example, changing the moral bonus granted by Bless to a sacred/profane bonus?

Something along these lines could make the spells a little more useful without altering them overmuch.