Does a ranger need to know an enemy is one of his favored enemies in order to get his favored enemy bonuses? What if he incorrectly perceives an enemy to be one of his favored enemies.
So, let's say there are two rangers, Hubert and Otto. Hubert has Favored Enemy (Humanoid [human]), while Otto has Favored Enemy (Humanoid [orc]). They're fighting an orc disguised as a human, and neither ranger sees though the disguise. Which of the rangers gets his favored enemy bonus?
My first instinct is to say that Otto gets his bonus, but Hubert doesn't. However, that seems like it would allow the favored enemy class feature to automatically penetrate a disguise used to disguise yourself as a different race. "I don't trust this guy, I'm going to Sense Motive on him. Wait, I get my favored enemy bonus on the check? That means he's an orc!"
Or should the bonus be applied secretly by the GM? Maybe give the ranger an extra check to see through the disguise after every roll he makes which gets the favored enemy bonus? This could represent the ranger's particular fighting style and social quirks being extra-effective against orcs, and as either combat or a roleplaying encounter progresses, he picks up on subtle orcish quirks the disguised enemy has.
One has special training to fight orcs(and half-orcs), but doesn't realize he's fighting a half-orc and thus doesn't use his special training.
The other thinks it is a human, but would get the bonus because he's using human training against a non-human.
Eventually, they should get a Perception check to figure out what is up.
Edit: This is an opinion.
He would get the bonus, because it's training to react to the tactics/traits/styles of the enemy... even if he doesn't recognize the enemy itself. (Some part of his mind would spot the "an orc would lie that way"... even if it didn't make it to the surface -- or, in combat, see the combat style of the orc and thus know how to get past its defenses).
However, if your players aren't good with the player vs. character knowledge, then you should probably apply the bonus in secret until Otto realizes what's going on [and take it away from Hubert in a similar way]. I would think after a few "near misses" (eg - Hubert would have hit with the bonus and, instead, misses), he might get a perception check to realize that this guy just doesn't fight like a Human.
Thanks for the replies.
How would favored enemy bonuses apply to a disguised creature if the ranger never interacts with that creature?
For instance, a ranger gets his favored enemy bonuses on all Knowledge checks, when applicable. So, a ranger with Favored Enemy (Humanoid [human]) would get that bonus on a Knowledge (nobility) check made about a human noble. This is presumably represented by the ranger studying more about individuals who are his favored enemies.
But how would that work for a disguised creature? If Hubert and Otto make a Knowledge (local or nobility) check to learn about someone who is secretly an orc disguised as a human, who would gain their favored enemy bonus? What about if they were making a Knowledge (history) check about a historical figure who was secretly an orc disguised as a human?
The same way that it works in your first scenario. Otto gets the bonus--preferably applied in secret by the GM. You don't have to interact with the creature to get the bonus. If you want a little fluff to go with the mechanic: your academic knowledge and insight is enough to identify patterns in behavior and lore without actually realizing the ramifications of those patterns. Basically, it's a "gut feeling".