Favored Enemy Bluff Bonus: Why?

[DanTheS]

Favored Enemy (Ex): At 1st level, a ranger selects a creature type from the ranger favored enemies table. He gains a +2 bonus on Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival checks against creatures of his selected type. Likewise, he gets a +2 bonus on weapon attack and damage rolls against them. A ranger may make Knowledge skill checks untrained when attempting to identify these creatures.

Maybe I'm colored by 2nd Edition tradition, where a ranger's favored enemy bonus reflected hatred and enmity towards that race, but does anyone know the logic or reasoning behind the bonus to Bluff? Seems like Intimidate would be a better fit...

Release the Ninjas!

[MrSin]

Bonus to feign in combat, spotting lies, and lying to your foes. Sounds good to me.

[Nefreet]

Bluff affects your ability to feint in combat, and also how to tell a lie. Both sound useful enough to me.

[Nefreet]

LOL, apparently MrSin and I are on the exact same page.

[Tim Statler]

Yes, Page 1 of this thread. :)

[DanTheS]

Was this a holdover from 3.5 rules or something new to PFRPG? Would more Rangers take the time to talk to their quarry, or take up arms and scare the daylights out of them (i.e., Intimidate to Demoralize)? No wrong answer, just curious.

[Nefreet]

I'd have no objection to adding Intimidate to the list. I'd be happy to rule it that way in a home game. But keep in mind the versatility of Bluff. Imagine your Ranger is surrounded by orcs, his most hated of foes. He's far outnumbered, and trickery is his only tool for escape. Would you rather a) Intimidate them, and have them laugh as they tear you apart, or b) tell them you're hunting an elf, and that you see his tracks leading in "that" direction, away from you?

[mtg3992]

DanTheS wrote:

Favored Enemy (Ex): At 1st level, a ranger selects a creature type from the ranger favored enemies table. He gains a +2 bonus on Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival checks against creatures of his selected type. Likewise, he gets a +2 bonus on weapon attack and damage rolls against them. A ranger may make Knowledge skill checks untrained when attempting to identify these creatures.

Maybe I'm colored by 2nd Edition tradition, where a ranger's favored enemy bonus reflected hatred and enmity towards that race, but does anyone know the logic or reasoning behind the bonus to Bluff? Seems like Intimidate would be a better fit...

Release the Ninjas!

The battlefield isn't the only place you meet your enemies.

[Cheapy]

Favored Enemy is a misnomer. In PF, it's just something you've studied a lot, not something you hate.

[Landon Winkler]

Your 2e bent is steering you wrong. Favored Enemy doesn't necessarily mean that you hate them, it just means you know a lot about them.

So if you've studied and fought against humans a lot, you can Bluff them more easily. Seems pretty reasonable to me.

Moreover, I'm not really sure why you have problems with Bluff and not Sense Motive. At least Bluff has combat applications.

Knowledge is a little dicey based on hatred too. Who cares about their culture? Kill 'em all!

If you are just wondering why Intimidate isn't on the list, make a positive argument towards that. You don't need to argue against the Bluff bonus.

Cheers!
Landon

[MrSin]

Landon Winkler wrote:

Moreover, I'm not really sure why you have problems with Bluff and not Sense Motive. At least Bluff has combat applications.

Sense motive is the response to bluff. No reason to have a problem with it!

[Zhayne]

"I've studied these creatures. I know how they think."

[Nefreet]

Landon Winkler wrote:

Knowledge is a little dicey based on hatred too. Who cares about their culture? Kill 'em all!

Knowledge checks can be useful in determining any weaknesses or special abilities they may possess in combat. That +2 can be especially crucial if your favored enemies are Undead, or Evil Outsiders, given their varied natures.

[Sean K Reynolds]

DanTheS wrote:

Was this a holdover from 3.5 rules or something new to PFRPG?

D&D 3.5 ranger had the Bluff bonus.