The Horizon Walker Terrain Mastery power offers this:
Terrain Mastery: At 2nd level, a horizon walker selects a favored terrain to master. When within this terrain the horizon walker may, as a move action, grant a +2 bonus on Climb, Stealth, Perception and Survival checks made by all allies within 30 feet who can see and hear him. The character masters one additional terrain at 4th, 6th, and 8th levels.
It is interesting that a Favored Terrain gives you bonuses on initiative checks and Knowledge (geography), Perception, Stealth, and Survival checks. But not Climb.
So I wondered, does Terrain Mastery also give you, the Horizon Walker, a +2 on Climb checks? Usually any benefit that helps allies also helps you, the initiator, right?
Then I wondered, Terrain Mastery actually gives unnamed bonuses to these things. Would Terrain Mastery also give a +2 to the HW's own Perception, Stealth, and Survival, stacking with his or her existing Favored Terrain bonuses? All unnamed bonuses stack, right?
The bonus is only for allies who can see and hear you. So if you are deaf or blind, you cannot grant the bonus to yourself? But you can still grant it to your friends who can see and hear you? Kind of a rare case, until you are trying to Climb away from the witch who just deafened you.
And how long does this +2 unnamed Terrain Mastery bonus last? You spend a move action to gain it, and it lasts until when?
Thoughts?
Thanks Imbicatus. Any thought on the duration of the bonus?
Oh, great answer, blackbloodtroll! Great for my horizon walker.
The bonus applies to "Climb, Stealth, Perception and Survival" checks. The Survival skill says "Action: Varies. A single Survival check may represent activity over the course of hours or a full day. A Survival check made to find tracks is at least a full-round action, and it may take even longer."
It makes sense that the bonus lasts long enough for you to take advantage of it. If you are helping your friends Survive for a full day, the bonus should last that long.
But what about a Perception check, which may be a free action? How long would the bonus last for that?
So it seems logical that the bonus lasts a minimum of "the time it takes to make the skill check" ... and reasonable that it lasts until you leave the terrain? But then why require that it be a move action? That sounds like something you do in combat, right? If it lasts while you are in the terrain, you can just switch it on when you arrive and leave it up. The within-30-feet-rule, however, means that you might have to reactivate it as allies come in and out of range.
Hmmm ... I wish there were an actual answer in the RAW.