Calistra and Acrobatics

[h4ppy]

Thought I'd post here to clear up a BGG thread.

Calistra adds two dice to a Dexterity check.

If you are using Merisiel (who has ACROBATICS = DEX + 2) and are facing an Acrobatics check, can you use Calistra to give you two extra dice?

My two cents is that I'm pretty sure that you can, since ACROBATICS is a sub-skill of DEX for this character, but there's some push-back about whether or not it applies since this is not a "Dexterity check" per se, it's an "Acrobatics check".

Over to you for your opinions (and rulings)!

[Tracker1]

I know i have asked this before, and am 99.9% certain that skills like acrobatics for Mersiel will benifit form cards that add to dexterity the base skill.

I'll try and find where i got a reply, but there seems to be no problem with this.

[h4ppy]

The argument on BGG seems to be that Calistra is not adding to your DEX, nor giving a bonus to your DEX skill (unlike a spell like Speed, for example). Rather, it says it gives two dice "to a non-combat Dexterity check" and they're querying whether an Acrobatics check qualifies as a "Dexterity check" in this instance.

If it added to the underlying DEX skill then I'd have no question about it at all - that much is clear! :)

[ryric]

My understanding:

If Acrobatics is printed on your character under Dexterity, any Acrobatics check for you is both Acrobatics and Dexterity, so Calistra adds 2 extra Dex dice. If Acrobatics is not printed, you only have a d4 in it if it is needed and Calistra only adds 1d4 as it is not Dex for you.

So for Merisiel, Calistra adds 2d12 to the check. For basically everyone else, 1d4 is added.

Basically if your character allows you to roll Dex for Acrobatics it makes it also a Dex check.

[Tracker1]

Mikes reply to this type of question from
http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2q3sp?Noncombat-Wisdom-Check#8

A card that says it helps you with a Wisdom check would also help a Divine check, because you're rolling your Wisdom die.
A card that says it helps you with a Divine check would not help with any other Wisdom check.

Mike

I think this applies to the same question, if you replace Mike's phrase with the current question it would read:
A card that helps with a dexterity check will help an acrobatics check.

I don't recall seeing a change to this ruling anywhere.

[Mike Selinker]

Tracker1 wrote:

I think this applies to the same question, if you replace Mike's phrase with the current question it would read:

A card that helps with a dexterity check will help an acrobatics check.

I don't recall seeing a change to this ruling anywhere.

Yup. That's how it works.

[Captain Bulldozer]

So, the ruling is something like, "a check for a sub-skill counts as a check for the skill"... meaning that a melee check is also a strength check, a ranged check is also a dexterity check, etc. Did I get that right?

[RemiBureau]

If the sub-skill is printed on your character card, yes.

If you an untrained sub-skill check(with 1d4), then you can't add die other than d4s, which means in that case that the sub-skill is not based on any of your base skills.

[h4ppy]

Thanks for confirming that, guys.

Was pretty sure I had it right but wanted some feedback before trying to close off the BGG thread!