The Abilities

Here are descriptions of the six abilities and how they affect your character.

STRENGTH (STR)

Strength measures sheer muscle power and the ability to apply it. Your Strength modifier applies to:
 * Damage dealt by your melee or thrown weapon attacks.


 * Climb and Swim checks.


 * How far you can jump and throw things.

DEXTERITY (DEX)
 * The amount of weight you can lift, carry, and throw.

Dexterity is a measure of coordination, agility, speed, manual dexterity, and balance. It’s particularly useful for heroes relying more on speed and agility than sheer strength and toughness. Your Dexterity modifier applies to:
 * Reflex saving throws, for avoiding danger based on coordination and reaction time.


 * Initiative checks.


 * Acrobatics, Stealth, Sleight of Hand, and other skill checks based on Dexterity.

CONSTITUTION (CON)
 * Dexterity checks for feats of agility and coordination when a specific skill doesn’t apply.

Constitution is endurance, health, and overall physical resilience. Constitution is important because it affects a character’s ability to resist most forms of damage. Your Constitution modifier applies to:
 * Toughness saving throws for resisting damage.


 * Fortitude saving throws, for resisting disease and poison, fatigue, and effects involving the character’s health.

INTELLIGENCE (INT)
 * Constitution checks to recover from damage and injury.

Intelligence covers reasoning ability and learning. Intelligence is important for characters with a lot of skills like Craft and Knowledge. Your Intelligence modifier applies to:
 * Craft, Knowledge, Search, and other skill checks based on Intelligence.

WISDOM (WIS)
 * Intelligence checks to solve problems using sheer brainpower when a specific skill doesn’t apply.

While Intelligence covers reasoning, Wisdom describes awareness, common sense, intuition, and strength of will. A character with a high Intelligence and a low Wisdom may be an “absent-minded professor” type, smart but not always aware of what’s going on. On the other hand, a not so bright (low Intelligence) character may have great common sense (high Wisdom). Your Wisdom modifier applies to:
 * Will saving throws, for resisting attempts to influence your mind.


 * Notice, Sense Motive, and other skill checks based on Wisdom.

CHARISMA (CHA)
 * Wisdom checks to resolve matters of intuition when a specific skill doesn’t apply.

Charisma is force of personality, persuasiveness, leadership ability and (to a lesser degree) physical attractiveness. Charisma is useful for heroes who intend to be leaders as well as those who strike fear into the hearts of criminals with their presence. Your Charisma modifier applies to:
 * Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidation, and other skill checks based on Charisma.


 * Charisma checks to influence others through force of personality when a specific skill doesn’t apply.

ABILITY BENCHMARKS

The Ability Benchmarks table provides some guidelines on where a particular ability score falls in comparison to the general population.

ENHANCED ABILITIES

Some ability scores may be acquired as Enhanced Abilities, as described in Chapter 5. Enhanced Abilities are powers rather than entirely natural. The key differences between Enhanced Abilities and normal ability scores are Enhanced Abilities can be nullified (normal abilities cannot, see Nullify, page 94) and Enhanced Abilities can have power feats and be used for power stunts with extra effort (normal abilities cannot, see Extra Effort, page 120).

Enhanced Abilities and normal abilities have the same cost (1 character point per ability score point). The player decides if a character’s ability score is normal or enhanced and, if it is enhanced, how much of it is enhanced. Enhanced Abilities are noted with the normal ability score in parentheses after them, such as 50 (16), indicating if the character’s Enhanced Ability is nullified, the character still has a score of 16 in that ability.