Power Attack's bonus damage only applies to effects that deal hit point damage.
I attack a monster that has DR 5. I deal 5 damage.
When is the Power Attack damage applied?
Is the damage applied when damage is calculated?
My attack does 5 + 2 damage, I deal 7 damage and 2 gets through DR.
or
My attack does 5 damage, gets reduced by 5 to zero, and then I do not get Power Attack bonus and deal zero damage to the monster.
Thoughts?
The first. You total your damage with all applicable modifications. Then you apply all the defender's damage reducing effects.
The first one. You swing your weapon with power attack, you tell your GM the total of the damage that's coming towards the monster, the GM takes off the DR from the total.
I don't think anyone would argue that it's supposed to be the second one.
The first. In an attack (unless explicitly told to do otherwise - and I can't off the top of my head recall any instance of this) all damage of a given type is added together. Then dr/resistances are applied to reduce the damage.
E.g, PA with sneak attack is weapon dice + PA bonus + sneak attack dice. From that total then subtract DR.
Sneak attack with a shocking grasp spell is shocking grasp + sneak attack (sneak attack damage type matches the basic damage type of the attack). Then from that total subtract electrical resistance.
With a magus using using spellstrike to use his weapon to deliver a shocking grasp: Damage is weapon damage minus DR. Then additionally shocking grasp damage minus electrical resistance. Even if weapon damage is completely negated by DR, the shocking grasp damage still goes through, and vice versa - or maybe both are negated if the creature has enough DR and resistance.
When it says "Power Attack's bonus damage only applies to effects that deal hit point damage" it means it won't work on ability drain damage etc.
Let's say a Magus uses SPELLSTRIKE to deliver CHILL TOUCH and uses power attack on the attack. Chill Touch deals Strength Damage, which would NOT be affected by Power Attack, but the Magus' weapon attack deals HP damage which would be affected by Power Attack.
That's the reason that sentence was put in.
Now however based on your arguements in the other thread what about a target with Ablative Barrier up? I'm attempting to deal lethal damage do I add power attack or not? Keep in mind that if I don't deal at least 6 damage then I deal no lethal damage.
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toastedamphibian -- Gallant Armor changed his opinion to what he says here.
From another thread discussing lethal/nonlethal:
FYI, I did have the opinion previously, but I have been persuaded by the logic of others that since all of the damage dealt by a nonlethal attack is nonlethal even in the case of overflow damage, Power Attack would never work with nonlethal damage. If you are dealing lethal damage, Power Attack would be added before any other effect to diminish or alter damage.
I was asking to make sure there weren't other common interpretations of Power Attack, where final results were used to determine whether or not Power Attack bonuses should be added, instead of the effect of the attack itself at the time damage is rolled.