Six abilities provide a quick description of every creature’s physical and mental characteristics. Is a character muscle-bound and insightful? Brilliant and charming? Nimble and hardy? Abilities define these qualities—a creature’s assets as well as weaknesses.
Table of contents
Abilities
Each of a creature’s abilities has a value that defines the magnitude of that ability. An ability is not just a measure of innate capabilities, but also encompasses a creature’s training and competence in activities related to that ability.
An ability of 0 is the normal human average, but adventurers and many creatures are a cut above average in most abilities. An ability of 4 is the highest that a person usually reaches. Adventurers can have abilities as high as 5, and creatures and divine beings can have abilities as high as 10.
Every task that a character or creature might attempt in the game is covered by one of the six abilities. This section explains in more detail what those abilities mean and the ways they are used in the game.
Strength
Strength measures bodily power, athletic training, and the extent to which you can exert raw physical force.
Attacking and Damaging
You add your Strength to your skill check to attack and to your damage roll when attacking with a melee weapon such as a mace, a battleaxe, or a spear. You use melee weapons to make melee attacks in hand-to-hand combat, and some of them can be thrown to make a ranged attack.
Carrying capacity and ability balance
Carrying capacity is vital for ability balance as it is one of Strength’s main benefits. I encourage all groups to use carrying capacity. Groups don’t need to count every small item, but they should have a general idea of how much someone can carry.
Keep in mind that characters can drop their backpacks when combat starts (at no action cost, assuming they have some kind of quick-release).
Carrying capacity opens up all kinds of realistic issues/opportunities. Examples:
- Using a pack mule to carry survival gear/treasure home. Having that animal around can attract predators
- Carrying enough food and water to survive a few days. 3 days of food and water is 15 kg
- Storing wealth in a bank of some kind
- Using magic to overcome issues such as floating disk to carry treasure home
Lifting and Carrying
Your Strength determines the amount of weight you can bear. The following terms define what you can lift or carry.
Carrying Capacity. Your carrying capacity is 70 + your Strength × 15. This is the weight (in kilos) that you can carry, which is high enough that most characters don’t usually have to worry about it.
Encumbrance. If you carry weight in excess of one-third of your carrying capacity, you are slowed 1. If you carry weight in excess of two-thirds of your carrying capacity, up to your maximum carrying capacity, you are slowed 2 and you have disadvantage on skill checks that use Strength or Dexterity.
Push, Drag, or Lift. You can push, drag, or lift a weight up to twice your carrying capacity. While pushing or dragging weight in excess of your carrying capacity, your speed drops to 1 meter.
Size and Strength. Larger creatures can bear more weight, whereas Tiny creatures can carry less. For each size category above Medium, double the creature’s carrying capacity and the amount it can push, drag, or lift. For a Tiny creature, halve these weighs.
Skills
Dexterity
Dexterity measures agility, reflexes, and balance.
Attacking and Damaging
You add your Dexterity to your skill check to attack and to your damage roll when attacking with a ranged weapon, such as a sling or a longbow. You can also add your Dexterity to your skill check to attack and to your damage roll when attacking with a melee weapon that has the finesse property, such as a dagger or a rapier.
Defense
Depending on the armor you wear, you might add some or all of your Dexterity to your Defense.
Initiative
At the beginning of every combat, you roll initiative by making a Dexterity check. Initiative determines the order of creatures’ turns in combat.
Skills
Constitution
Constitution measures health, stamina, and vital force.
Health
Your Constitution contributes to your health. Typically, you add your Constitution to each Health Die you roll for your health.
If your Constitution changes, your maximum health changes as well, as though you had the new Constitution from 1st level. For example, if you raise your Constitution when you reach 4th level and your Constitution increases from 1 to 2, you adjust your maximum health as though your Constitution had always been 2. So you add 3 health for your first three levels, and then roll your health for 4th level using your new Constitution. Or if you’re 7th level and some effect lowers your Constitution so as to reduce your Constitution by 1, your maximum health is reduced by 7.
Other Constitution checks
The GM might call for a Constitution check when you try to accomplish tasks like the following:
Quaff an entire stein of ale in one go
Intelligence
Intelligence measures mental acuity, accuracy of recall, and the ability to reason.
Alchemical Ability
Alchemists use Intelligence as their ability for concoctions, which helps determine the saving throw difficulty of concoctions they create.
Spellcasting Ability
Mages, Spellthief Rogues, and some Suffused use Intelligence as their ability for spellcasting, which helps determine the saving throw difficulty of spells they cast.
Skills
Other Intelligence checks
The GM might call for an Intelligence check when you try to accomplish tasks like the following:
Communicate with a creature without using words
Estimate the value of a precious item
Recall lore about a craft or trade
Win a game of skill
Wisdom
Wisdom reflects how attuned you are to the world around you and represents perceptiveness and intuition.
Spellcasting Ability
Naturalists, Psionicists, Witchcrafters, and some Acolytes and Suffused use Wisdom as their spellcasting ability, which helps determine the saving throw difficulty of spells they cast.
Skills
Charisma
Charisma measures your ability to interact effectively with others. It includes such factors as confidence and eloquence, and it can represent a charming or commanding personality.
Spellcasting Ability
Some Acolytes and Suffused use Charisma as their spellcasting ability, which helps determine the saving throw difficulty of spells they cast.