Considering the RAW, how many Exploration Activities can a PC perform at the same time?
Is there some rules text specifically that you are looking at? Generally a character can only do one exploration activity. Though a GM may allow alternating between two of them or something like that for complex scenarios.
There are also some feats and class features that allow doing more. Ranger gets Trackless Step which lets them do Cover Tracks while doing a second exploration activity. Rogue has a couple of things: Trap Finder lets them essentially search for traps without having to spend their exploration activity on it. Anticipate Ambush similarly lets them gain for free some benefits that would normally take an exploration activity.
Summoner characters that have Act Together both the Summoner and the Eidolon can make separate exploration activities.
And characters that have a minion (an animal companion, familiar, or hireling) it is unclear if both the main character and the minion can do separate exploration activities or not. That has been hotly debated before.
Thank you for the replies. I think the text on Swift Tracker makes it clear that a PC can perform only one activity at a time, unless you have a feature that says otherwise.
On another note, does Trackless Step apply only to that PC's tracks or to the whole group? I wonder if the group would have to Follow The Expert in order to cover everyone's steps.
Yes, only one at a time in most cases, though there is nothing stopping a player from switching back and forth.
For example, a rogue could Avoid Notice while sneaking up to a corner in a corridor, then use Search to check the hall around the corner for adversaries and traps, then resume Avoid Notice down the hall to the door covered in runes, where you then attempt Search for traps followed by Research on the runes themselves.
On another note, does Trackless Step apply only to that PC's tracks or to the whole group? I wonder if the group would have to Follow The Expert in order to cover everyone's steps.
The rules for Cover Tracks don't really say whether the benefit is applied to everyone in the party or just the one character. The rule does say 'you' when it says "anyone tracking you must succeed at a Survival check against your Survival DC". But it is not clear if that is a plural you or a singular you. This is why we need "y'all" to become an official English word.
I would run it as one person using Cover Tracks will apply to the tracks for the entire party. (As long as they stay together...)
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Yes, only one at a time in most cases, though there is nothing stopping a player from switching back and forth.
For example, a rogue could Avoid Notice while sneaking up to a corner in a corridor, then use Search to check the hall around the corner for adversaries and traps, then resume Avoid Notice down the hall to the door covered in runes, where you then attempt Search for traps followed by Research on the runes themselves.
Do GMs generally run Exploration Mode that granularly? I usually encourage my players to spread out the activities so that as many are usefully covered as possible, but I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone change activities between encounters within a dungeon or the like.
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The rules for Cover Tracks don't really say whether the benefit is applied to everyone in the party or just the one character.
It seems like most effects that affect the party say “and your allies” or something to that effect. An argument against Cover Tracks applying to multiple creatures by default is “In some cases, you might Cover Tracks in an encounter. In this case, Cover Tracks is a single action and doesn’t have the exploration trait.” There’s no language indicating that this use applies to more or fewer creatures, and it seems a little strange to think of a single PC covering the tracks of an entire party spread all over a room with a single action.
The fact that there isn’t a series of feats that expand the coverage of Cover Tracks according to training level might argue for “whole party” coverage.
I would run it as one person using Cover Tracks will apply to the tracks for the entire party. (As long as they stay together...)
I don’t know that Cover Tracks has ever come up, and I’ve GMed PF2 since release, but at least in exploration mode, I’m inclined to do exactly that.
Do you think they meant for wary skulker to work with stuff like swift tracker?
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3 activities at the same time ( 4, assuming a summoner and his eidolon ).
I don't see any reason why not.
Let's see how high we can get it.
Catfolk Ranger:
Wary Skulker lets them Scout and Avoid Notice together.
Swift Tracker and legendary survival lets them Track while doing something else.
Hazard Finder lets them detect traps for free.
Trackless Step lets them Cover Tracks for free.
Warden's Step lets everyone else use Avoid Notice for free as long as you are doing so too.
So the player gets: Scout, Avoid Notice, Track, Cover Tracks, and detect traps. Everyone else in the party gets their normal activity and Avoid Notice.
So my score is 5 with +1/ally.
Do you think they meant for wary skulker to work with stuff like swift tracker?
...
3 activities at the same time ( 4, assuming a summoner and his eidolon ).
I don't see any reason why not.
Let's see how high we can get it.
Catfolk Ranger:
Wary Skulker lets them Scout and Avoid Notice together.
Swift Tracker and legendary survival lets them Track while doing something else.
Hazard Finder lets them detect traps for free.
Trackless Step lets them Cover Tracks for free.
Warden's Step lets everyone else use Avoid Notice for free as long as you are doing so too.So the player gets: Scout, Avoid Notice, Track, Cover Tracks, and detect traps. Everyone else in the party gets their normal activity and Avoid Notice.
So my score is 5 with +1/ally.
Hmm, have a human with Adopted Ancestry for the catfolk stuff and you may have actually created Aragorn judging by what he does when introduced in the books.
Was just wondering because a mix of "too good to be true" and "The same result, using different approaches" ( Like the damage die increase, which can just occour once, but you can get it through different feats and class features ).
Yeah, getting it up too high and using them all at the same time does start to stretch credulity.
But at the same time, I can't find any good rules reason or balance reason to forbid it.