Diego Rossi: Hey. So, after talking it over for some time with other rulesy Paizo folks, we came to the conclusion that the Surprising Combatant feat in this book—while well-intentioned and not without its merits—doesn't really work as-is. The more we tinkered with it the more convoluted it became, so we decided to rework the feat from the ground up. Here is what the full text of the Surprising Combatant feat should actually look like:
Sorry about the confusion!Surprising Combatant (Combat)
You can get the drop on foes by tricking your opponents into overlooking you as a combatant.
Prerequisites: Improved Initiative, Bluff 3 ranks.
Benefit: At the beginning of a combat in which you would normally be able to act in a surprise round, after initiative is rolled but before the surprise round begins, you can attempt a Bluff check as a free action. The DC of this Bluff check is equal to 15 + the CR of the encounter. If you succeed at this Bluff check, you may treat the result of your Bluff check as your initiative result for the surprise round. If your Bluff check fails, you cannot act during the surprise round. Regardless, you use your normal initiative result to determine initiative for the remainder of the encounter.
I´m aware that this feat was difficult.
I liked a part of it very much though, the "unaware" part of it and it´s consequences for a rogue. Of course a higher initiative means foes would be flat-footed and receive some nice sneak attack eventually, but given the DC and the fact that it is a CHA dependant thing makes me worry there a bit.Will this become official errata? Does initiative result mean "roll for initiative" as in modifiers like DEX and Improved Initiative can be added? Or is the total outcome meant there?
Also not "aware of me" included the possibility to do a stealth check right? Seems like a sad loss.
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Will this become official errata?
Depends on what you mean by "official." It's official in that I (the developer of the book in question) posted a correction on our official company website. If you're asking whether or not it will appear in the errata section of the website, the answer is no, since we don't typically post errata for non-Pathfinder RPG (i.e., non-hardcover) books in that section. If you're asking in regards to PFS play, you'd be better served directing your question to that part of the messageboards.
Does initiative result mean "roll for initiative" as in modifiers like DEX and Improved Initiative can be added? Or is the total outcome meant there?
Initiative result means the total initiative score for that combat. Modifiers that normally apply to your initiative roll do not apply to this ability (though modifiers to your Bluff score help quite a lot here!).
Ah right i was asking for PFS. Will clear that there.
But....
Improved initiative is then a prereq and you don´t get the bonus +4 from the feat when using this feat? That seems a bit off in my eyes. It´s clear that improved initiative has nothing to do with bluff, but why would you then have this feat as a prereq?
Thanks for the answers though! Very appreciated that you are so present here. And i have to say overall i really liked the book. Great flavor and one of the best oracle mysteries!
Only one minor flaw: Weretigerkin skincrawlers should have a constant +2 CHA and +2 STR(or what they get if i´m wrong) because they are cat people after all. And if the internet teaches us one thing, then that they must be cute^^
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Improved initiative is then a prereq and you don´t get the bonus +4 from the feat when using this feat? That seems a bit off in my eyes. It´s clear that improved initiative has nothing to do with bluff, but why would you then have this feat as a prereq?
Yeah, the feat prerequisite is a bit odd in that sense, but I think it's useful as a balancing factor and draws a connection to the idea that a character with the Surprising Combatant feat would have to be quick on their feet during non-surprise rounds as well. So in a sense, Improved Initiative works well for non-surprise rounds, while Surprising Combatant gives you a chance to act much quicker during the surprise round (since it's much easier to increase your Bluff check than it is to increase your initiative check).
Thanks for the answers though! Very appreciated that you are so present here. And i have to say overall i really liked the book. Great flavor and one of the best oracle mysteries!
Thanks! :]
Quick question Patrick, can't you guys post the clarifications in the Golarion FAQ, and they'd be binding for PFS?
Yeah that would make things a lot easier for PFS^^
And be welcome also!
Is it possible to use the rules for skinwalkers to produce a super-powerful skinwalker like the naagloshii of Dresden Files?
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I had a quick question about this:
A skinwalker of a specific heritage has the following racial traits (represented at the top of each skinwalker heritage section), which replace or alter the appropriate default racial traits of the skinwalker:
• A skinwalker gains bonuses and penalties to particular ability scores, but cannot select a different ability score to bolster each time she changes shape.
• A skinwalker gains access to a different spell-like ability based on her heritage.
• A skinwalker replaces bonuses on Handle Animal and wild empathy checks with bonuses on other checks.
• A skinwalker gains access to a different, larger set of features when in bestial form.
I was wondering if the bolded sentence meant that alternate heritage skinwalkers can choose from those available to their own heritage and the base skinwalker Change Shape ability, or does it just mean that they get four options instead of the base three? It seems awkward that some of the options (Werecrocodile-kin, Wereshark-kin, for example) wouldn't get access to the natural armor bonus.
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"While in their bestial form, they gain a +2 racial bonus to either Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution (see Change Shape). They gain +2 Wisdom, –2 Intelligence, +2 to one physical ability score while shapechanged"
"In bestial form, a skinwalker gains a +2 racial bonus to either Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution."
So do they not have any ability score modifiers while nit changed?
I believe they get a +2 Wisdom and -2 Intelligence, regardless of form; it is their floating physical ability bonus that is only applicable when shapechanged to bestial form.
This may have been asked already, but are there any limits that apply to "Swamp's Grasp" , the Witch Hex option offered for the werecrocodile kin ?
Will it work on any sort of ground ? Stone floor ? Ship's deck ? Even on a horizontal wall of force ? The desert or arctic icefields ?
Or is there something missing from the description ?
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selfless *bump* ^^
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This may have been asked already, but are there any limits that apply to "Swamp's Grasp" , the Witch Hex option offered for the werecrocodile kin ?
Will it work on any sort of ground ? Stone floor ? Ship's deck ? Even on a horizontal wall of force ? The desert or arctic icefields ?
Or is there something missing from the description ?
As written, yes, this hex can be used on any sort of terrain. On stone, the floor becomes covered in slippery moss; on a deck, the planks become jagged and sticky; in the desert, the sand becomes wet and sucks on travelers' every footstep. I can see a GM ruling that this wouldn't work on a wall of force, though I can also see a GM ruling that it does (perhaps it disrupts the magic of the wall, causing it to rapidly flicker in and out of existence such that it becomes difficult terrain).
This hex is intended to be similar to the barbarian's ground breaker rage power, which, as written, can also be used on any kind of terrain that qualifies as "the floor." If there is a rules dispute regarding the hex, defer to the wording of the rage power.
As written, yes, this hex can be used on any sort of terrain. On stone, the floor becomes covered in slippery moss; on a deck, the planks become jagged and sticky; in the desert, the sand becomes wet and sucks on travelers' every footstep. I can see a GM ruling that this wouldn't work on a wall of force, though I can also see a GM ruling that it does (perhaps it disrupts the magic of the wall, causing it to rapidly flicker in and out of existence such that it becomes difficult terrain).This hex is intended to be similar to the barbarian's ground breaker rage power, which, as written, can also be used on any kind of terrain that qualifies as "the floor." If there is a rules dispute regarding the hex, defer to the wording of the rage power.
Ouch.... and while similar to the barbarian's power (which can be used only once per rage), it seems slightly more useful for a ranged caster than for a melee-based fighter, and with endless repitition and re-location possibilities. Cue in - battle of Agincourt.
Thanks for the clarification
I have a question regarding the ragebred bestial features. Unlike most PC natural attacks, these are listed as "hoof" and "gore" attacks. Given that it's relatively easy to also attain bite and claw attacks (with say, primal mutagen), how do the attacks interact? Do gore and bite compete for a head slot? There are monsters like the gargoyle that have both of these attacks, but I imagine gore means horns in that situation. Boar tusk gores and biting seem as though they might overlap a bit.
Thanks
I know I'm late to the party, but I just picked up this supplement and am looking forward to making a bat-kin character for an upcoming game. I was just wondering if someone could clarify the intention behind the bat shape feat.
Bats are normally diminutive. Do you become a tiny bat or do you become a diminutive bat, but use the tiny animal ability modifiers from beast shape 2? Does the feat contain a typo, and it should read beast shape 3, which does allow diminutive animals?