Combat with 5 1st-level human fighters in Pathfinder 2e (Rules Lawyer)

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

People seem to really like my combat demos, so I made a new playlist of them! kzbin.info/aero/PL5LfnOlAZRY6XtvFwyxvUj2zWwcDjHlpt ERRATA (these always come up in long combat demos don't they): (And sorry for my purralegal reminding me to get back to work. Megan is a full member of the channel though!) 1. At 11:05 Power Attack does NOT require a 2-handed weapon. (Furious Focus, which buffs P.A., requires one though) 2. At 25:00 the homunculus not having reach is supported in the RAW, but CRB p. 474 specifically calls out that GMs "usually" allow you to attack an extending limb of a creature. So the GM (me!) probably should have allowed the homunculus to attack here. (I'm quite happy with this text, actually... another case where I'm thinking to myself 'hey! they thought of X!' when looking for rules support) BUT the homunculus did the right thing in Escaping and getting away anyway. 2. At 26:15 I say something wrong - Fighters can do Attack of Opportunity withOUT a free hand! The "Fist" weapon entry is just a generic term for unarmed strikes, which can be done by other parts of your body (CRB p. 278) 3. At 45:00 - you get the cover bonus to Sneaking only if you benefit from it throughout the length of your Sneak (so it should've failed against Louis!). 4. At 49:59 Release does NOT provoke Attacks of Opportunity! (Even though it is a Manipulate action.) This is stated in the text for Release itself. Also, you can do a "Fist" attack with your feet in this game - Release wasn't necessary! (CRB 278) 5. At 57:04 Another way PF2e prevents "yo yo healing" is that getting knocked out makes you prone AND drop everything. Since picking up an object uses 1 of your actions, standing uses 1 action, AND standing can provoke Attacks of Opportunity, knockouts are more impactful!

[@sirderp2343]

Make sure to pin this comment so people will see it if they look in the comments!

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

@@sirderp2343 I thought I had pinned it! Thanks for catching that.

[@PiFiFo]

Just in case you are still updating this, at 11:06 power attack can actually be used with any strike. You were probably thinking about Furious Focus (Feat 6) which has the two-handed stipulation. Great video, by the way!

[@sirderp2343]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG No problem!!!

[@Oddigan]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG It isn't showing as pinned still. KZbin must be counterspelling it.

[@cristichifan4453]

Billy has more stuff wrote on his char sheet at lvl 1 than my berserk barbarian at lvl 20 in 5e

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

I didn't know that could be true! Do you consider it a good thing or no?

[@cristichifan4453]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG definitely good! I watch your content because I am interested in PF2 but sadly my players don't want to learn another system that is *a bit* more complicated than 5e...

[@huehuecoyotl2]

@@cristichifan4453 I bought the PF beginner's box and ran the included module, Menace under Otari, for my sons. It is very well designed and runs like a immersive tutorial, incorporating different play aspects. My sons, 12 and 15, and TTRPG neophytes, picked it up with no rule studying and with me only roughly conversant in the PF2 rules, coming from a 5e background. I highly recommend it as a intro to PF2 and to TTRPGs in general. PF2 is a very consistent, logical and comprehensive ruleset.

[@erikwilliams1562]

​@@cristichifan4453the oversimplified nature of 5e is really its saving grace. Makes everything else look way too complicated. I'm a 3.5 vet and after 5e I was a bit overwhelmed by what I was seeing in pf2

[@quanion2464]

New Player: "Isn't leaving a hand empty a waste?" Me: "No, a free hand can be super useful in combat!" New Player: "Name one situation!" Me links them this video

[@huehuecoyotl2]

And you can even use a buckler and still benefit from the free hand. Or use the shield cantrip.

[@miraclemaker1418]

@@huehuecoyotl2 but iirc if you raise your buckler then you can't use your free hand

[@josiahhopkins9188]

I love that you can build an entire party of fighters and still fill out all necessary roles (except, arguably, AOE crowd control)

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

I agree! Though there is some battlefield control you can do with Attack of Opportunity, especially if you have reach. (And caster AOE effects that shut down enemies in 5E are VERY toned down in PF2.) Not covered anywhere in this series are items (especially consumables) that let fighters make up for things you lack (darkvision, energy damage, etc., etc.)

[@jasontodd433]

I started playing 3.5 and Pathfinder seems to have derived from that, so I'll assume they have the Cleave feat tree or something similar that after getting a critical hit or dropping a creature to 0hp you get a free attack, sometimes repeatedly. And like he pointed out Tanglefoot Bags, Thunderstones, and Beads of Force are great one use items.

[@yancke]

@@jasontodd433 Pathfinder took a lot from 3.5, however pf 2 has moved on quite a bit. Esp regarding action economy and how the system is tuned.

[@lordcirth]

@@jasontodd433 PF2 is quite different from PF1; but yes, there is both Cleave (attack as a reaction on crit or 0) and Swipe (attack 2 adjacent targets with one roll). However, this is very much a level-1-specific video, and those start at 4.

[@jasontodd433]

@@lordcirth Gotcha, I'm fairly new to Pathfinder. Honestly The Rules Lawyer is what has got me interested in it and I'm playing the Kingmaker video game right now

[@WealthBeyondMeasure]

Just a quick thing to point out at 26:18 - Arthur would not need to have a free hand to do an Attack of Opportunity with their fist, because you always have access to it. Attacks with any other body part use your fist stats, so even if they were holding a two-handed crossbow or something they'd be able to get a kick or headbutt in. Of course the Fist has a pretty crappy statblock so it probably won't do much compared to an AoO with a real weapon, but just something nice to keep in mind!

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

You are right! Adding

[@CCartman69]

I love these class arena style videos, where you show the classes in action. Would love to see one for the Witch or the Monk, see the real variety of options!

[@BharathanRajaram]

Seconded. The remastered witch would be fun. But I haven't seen Ronald's remaster coverage fully as of yet.

[@charmandenator5686]

I just want to compliment these genius fighter names.

[@salvadortirado8746]

First combat I've ever seen and not only I've learned a lot, it was super fun!!! AND WITHOUT ANY MAGIC. I am a big DnD 5e fan, and PF2 seems awesome. I hope to try it with my table soon. Thanks for ur amazing content.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Glad you liked it!! And as you said this was a very limited slice of the game. Things will get wilder in part 4 of this series :D

[@rafaelbacelar1757]

Probably one of your best videos. Very well edited and with dynamic informations. The roleplay moments adds a lot to, you could do more of it.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks!

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

Sorinboar, the sword and board fighter...

[@Oddigan]

This video is brilliantly made. I consider myself to have a solid grasp of the rules in PF2e, yet here I am learning 7+ tidbits of mechanical knowledge that I either skimmed over or eventually forgot about, not to mention some priceless encounter building tips/combat tactics and roleplay.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks!

[@dinkleberg684]

God I wish 2e had its own line of crpgs

[@Llortnerof]

Just something like Solasta for 5E (a very close to rules implementation with a comprehensive campaign editor) would already do a lot. Community will take it from there if you hand them the tools to do so. Until then, i'm just gonna hope Owlcat goes back to Pathfinder after Rogue Trader.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

A 1000 times yes! A turn-based game with this ruleset would be so fun.

[@MaindexOmega]

Divinity Original Sin is the closest i can think of. Variety of builds, multiple action economy...

[@OldWitchDoctor]

One of the first parties I was in in Pathfinder 2e had two fighters who felt and played vastly different. I think D&D has some decent variation here and there, but kinda struggle because certain subclasses just eclipse the others in versatility and power. A larger variety of weapons with more specific roles also benefits the system instead of being mainly just a decider of damage type and damage die, like in D&D the battleaxe and the longsword are basically just a flavour choice for your character, and due to weapon categories and critical specialization even weapons that are basically the same in pathfinder with regards to damage and traits will function slightly differently. Fighters in D&D would probably benefit a lot from simply getting a more in depth weapon system. In some regards what helps the Pathfinder fighter be fun and interesting is the framework and ruleset it exists in as much as the class itself.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Yes, hopefully One D&D delivers on its promise to have special abilities with weapons in one of their UAs coming soon.

[@dalekreject7324]

I'll second this. I joined a party as a opened handed fighter, joining a 2 weapon fighter. We both had fun. Eve with limited options at low level of play, there were always options to keep things fresh and allow us to adapt to situations. Was my first fighter in ages and I had a blast.

[@domblebuilds]

Wow, those are some sweet pop-ups!

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Haha, thanks for making them!

[@jimhoffman2009]

Man, your videos are so damn good! Displaying blocks for actions, feats, character sheets.. a can't imagine how long each video takes to edit

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

This took a LONG time is all I will say lol. Thank you!

[@jimhoffman2009]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG your interesting combats makes me wish you were my dm! :)

[@Jojothejman]

45:00 The sneak action specifies that you only get the cover bonus to your stealth if you have the cover throughout the stride, the homunculus definitely had to move through a space where it didn't have cover from everyone except the two-handed fighter and maybe the two-weapon fighter, who was on the other side of the staircase, and would only get the +2 against their Perception DC. You always have to have cover/concealment at the beginning and end of your sneak (barring feats) or it fails, because you weren't hidden in the first place, or have nothing to hide behind.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

You're right, will add errata, thx

[@mattmcguirk4511]

Farmer rolling a casual Nat20 for religion check may be one of my favorite moments 😆

[@ZombieApocalypse09]

Very interesting! Enjoyed it. I would also enjoy you doing a narration over a perhaps sped up recording of a combat from one of your actual games for one of these demos. I'm about to introduce another new group to PF2e this weekend. Fingers crossed they love it so much they want to swap our 5e campaign over.

[@logancurtis8029]

I enjoy these styles of video (also a fan of the all thaumaturge party and level 20 party videos) because it's really easy to get lost in white room scenarios or just miss something. Your videos really make the rules and abilities feel tangible in a fun, informative way

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks!

[@thenameipicked]

One more point of errata: At 50:10, you say that Release provokes attack of opportunity, but the Release action specifically calls out that that does not happen.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks! Will add. Good rule btw.

[@Shalakor]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG Seeing as how I've never played Pathfinder, I was very confused that a critical success on an attack of opportunity could force someone to not successfully drop an item out of their hand/make it teleport back into their hand. How could that have ever made logical sense? Glad that was an oversight on your part and not the game's.

[@heyfell4301]

@@Shalakor imagine accidentally dropping your weapon, but getting hit by you foe and having it immediately go back into your hand. You just go like "thanks bro, that was nice" before continuing to bonk each other to death. That would be quite a funny scene.

[@KalaamNozalys]

That was a great fight. Varied and deep. I found a module that might help you a tad, called PF2E Target Damage , it allows you to apply damage to the creature(s) targetted, so no need to click back and forth between multiple tokens. Also love how you add some blood stains when characters get very low health, how did you do that ? xD

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks! I'll check it out. It is the Splatter module!

[@KalaamNozalys]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG Oh that's nice ! I was applying the wound effect from token magic manually until then xD that should help !

[@shemetz]

17:00 Even though the longbow has Volley 30ft, the Homunculus is more than 30 feet away! this is because the homunculus is about 20 ft south and about 25 ft up (assuming 45 degree stairs). using the Pythagorean Theorem, this implies the distance to the homunculus is about 32 feet away :)

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Aha! You are right. I will not errata it though, as it's not a rules issue. Thanks tho!

[@Andrew_the_Worthy_Shield]

I haven't even finished watching, and already I am interested in switching from D&D 5e to Pathfinder; I'm probably going to do that once I finish just one campaign... ...as a player and not the DM.

[@abyssion8]

Really good editing. Elixer of life mattered!

[@johnfeatherlin3827]

Your combat videos have been the most influential in convincing me to switch over to Pathfinder from D&D. Thank you for making them!

[@bananabanana484]

I think the coolest part is the way that Tripping and other skill based attacks work. Normally, shoving a big lumbering brute over in 5e would be hard because of its strength score, but since it’s based on its reflexes it is easily tripped. Lovely!

[@huehuecoyotl2]

Damn I love these combat demos. I just started learning Pathfinder 2e rules and this really fills in the gaps of my knowledge and makes that knowledge stick by seeing it in action. Thanks for putting in the hard work on these!

[@coreyhalter8681]

good video the only rule that was wrong here is that releasing something doesn't provoke aoo even tho it has the triat that normally triggers them

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

And there were a few other things wrong, too! =D (I pinned a comment with errata)

[@jakubczeczot8500]

Nice demonstration and explanation of what is happening and tactics! awesome!

[@somecallmetimelderberries432]

Love it, thanks for the video example, very helpful!

[@BronnBlackwater]

Whoooo great content concept

[@falseanteater]

Astonishingly good video; thanks for putting this together.

[@GryphonDes]

Beautifully done Ronald :D Havent had to time to keep up w/your stuff but I am delighted to see you are still making such fun stuff!

[@krinkrin5982]

This is super interesting and really fun to watch. The X-Com style three action economy works very nicely. I would love to see an example combat with a diverse 1st level party, since while we now know what fighters can do, we still haven't seen how it stacks up against casters, both dedicated and mixed ones.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

At the end of the video I mention this: I have a Level 1 fight with a balanced party whose title starts "This Ain't D&D..."!

[@markdewsnup4643]

What an absolute baller video. This got me so excited to play! Thanks for taking the time to do this, great stuff!

[@tolfpeck]

exciting and riveting solo play???? i was so invested lol

[@bokajon]

This is such an enlightening video. You should post this in the DnD-Subreddit. I'm amazed by the variety in level 1 human fighters

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Videos and content creators are generally disfavored in large subreddits like that one, for understandable reasons. What might work though, is sparking a discussion by making a Post with your own thoughts on the overall topic, using the video as something you cite!

[@ewokFTW]

Me: I’ll make an attack of opportunity as it flys over my head! Dm: you have no free hands. Me: So, i kick it.

[@AbramelinnGames]

Just one small thing. Power attack can be used with any weapon, not just 2 handed ones. ;)

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks! I thought I'd already added it to the Errata, and will do so now

[@gunn00r]

That was really interesting and well explained! Thank you, well done!

[@hawktitan7896]

At 50:20 You mention the attack of opportunity. I skimmed the comments and there were several that mentioned that there shouldn't be an AOO because of it. What wasn't mentioned is that she didn't need to drop her weapon at all. Unarmed Strikes can be something like a kick or a headbutt. And I like the idea that they are headbutting the skeleton.

[@maxwellvindman7212]

Why are these basic ass first level fighters more flavorful then a 20th lv fighter in 5e. They have so many background features

[@soldier660]

But this is a Incredible video, thank you ^^ !!! I learned a few things as a new player : ) !!! Like different mechanics and actions, feats and estrategy.

[@lordcirth]

Corrections: * Power attack can be used with one-handed weapons. It's just not as good with a smaller damage die. * A grabbed creature can usually attack the grabber even without reach. * Our shoved fighters could choose to release their grip on a weapon before rolling Grab an Edge.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks. #1 - I assume this is a correction? I will add to a list of corrections. Do you have a timestamp? #2 - Do you have a citation? #3 - I think you're correct and I'll add this to my list. Grab an Edge states "Requirements Your hands are not tied behind your back or otherwise restrained". So it clearly should be available to a person whose hands are occupied. They do need to drop something... I think I ruled this in one of my previous games actually and gave a 50/50 chance it falls into the pit.

[@ghostyuki-kfpinquisitor1038]

Yeah, aside from getting past DR or a high AC, power attack is quite a bit worse on small dice weapons. Even more so if the person has on hit effects.

[@gm9460]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG on #2 - the citation is that the grabbed condition doesn’t state you can’t attack

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

@@gm9460 It could still attack, but as a Tiny creature it doesn't have reach. I can totally see a GM allowing it for in-lore reasons, but in the RAW I don't think there's support for it.

[@9652769]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG there is. But is on the gm interpretation (it says usually) kzbin.info/www/bejne/iXfTmmOPjN-XhJY

[@cheezeofages]

16:22 Actually nothing in the rules say the player picks a skill. To quote the Recall Knowledge action: "The GM determines the DCs for such checks and which skills apply." RAW for RK is the player tries to recall a specific piece of information about the target and GM decides the skill to apply and the DC. On a success you get the info or a clue, crit you get a clear answer in situations a success would give a clue and if a success would have given you a clear piece of info you instead get two pieces. And players can ask for anything lore based or in the creature's stat block, as per an example in the skill description of a success given a part of a stat block. If the player is trying to figure out what the creature is, you use the Creature Identification degrees of success, giving what the creature is and it's most famous trait, usually you'd make that a trait relevant to the situation but that isn't strictly RAW. People call this the common house rule for RK, but it's actually just plain rules as written discerned from reading the rules and applying general rules of how most actions work to it. And nearly every dev that has talked about the action has spoken as if this way were the default.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

The sentence you quote can also be read as simply that the GM chooses whether the skill chosen by a player applies. It is part of the description of the Rule element for R.K. (with the 1 action symbol), where the first sentence is "You attempt a skill check to try to remember a bit of knowledge regarding a topic related to *that skill*." It also says "In some cases, you can get the GM's permission to use a different but related skill, usually against a higher DC than normal. " So it clearly presumes a negotiation to happen between player and GM about which ONE skill to use. Anyway, if you haven't seen it yet check out my R.K. video where I try to come up with good house rules for it.

[@aralornwolf3140]

Recall Knowledge is worded the way it is because it can be used on anything for anything. Whereas, in combat, monster identification specifically, each monster type is associated with a skill, humanoids with Society, undead with Religion, Animals with Nature, etc. Therefore, Zombie and Bonehead are Religion checks, however, as they are fairly often used/created by other magical traditions, I would increase the DC by 2 (for Occult/Arcane) or 5 (Nature/Society) to recall them correctly.

[@cheezeofages]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG I can see the misunderstanding here. However the first line does not conflict with the second line saying the GM picks the skill as you still attempt a skill check with the skill about a topic related to that skill if the GM picks the skill. The first line does not implicitly declare who is picking. In a wide range of situations the player is not going to know what skill applies. Especially in the case of monsters if they can't see a picture of it and are relying on a possibly unreliable GM description. If the player has to blindly pick, they could in theory either auto-fail because the skill isn't the right one or relevant enough, or the GM simply overrides them and makes it with a relevant skill. Or a generous GM could use the clause about basic knowledge not requiring a check to go "You know enough about (skill) to know it doesn't apply here. It would auto-fail would you like to use (other skill) instead or do something else?" Alternatively with GM picking the generous GM can say "You don't have high skills to the skill needed to ID this thing but you could use (other skill) to maybe assess some of its traits related to that through observation." or "You don't have the skill normally used to ID this monster but (other skill) is close enough but it would be harder, do you want to use that or do something else?" The GM picks which skill applies because which applies is often a set specific skill the player won't always know is the right one, the player can suggest another skill, the GM chooses to allow that or not. The player is not "required RAW" to sometimes blindly pick a skill that might be right.

[@BharathanRajaram]

I love your combat demos! Im going to see if you have one thats focussed on casters. Maybe a party of five wizards? I've also been viewing the "How to caster good" videos.

[@Sarinadragon]

First of all, thank you for doing these videos. You are my go to for PF2 content nowadays, I am still new to the system and learning things. I have several years of playing other systems including PF1 and this has been a nice change of pace if not a little bit of rules bloat at times I will say. It is still a challenge knowing that just moving uses an action. That being said seeing combats like this are a nice tactical set up, you showed off the various fighter builds and uses of actions well. I am curious however as to the big benefits of playing as a sword and shield fighter in this case compared to something like a champion. Soren had a very rough fight here with the action economy taxing him in stowing and drawing weapons, and not having access to debuffing skills or the ability to use items or interact actions while his hands were full not to mention the lower damage of swinging a one handed weapon. So what in your opinion is the best option for these types of players that want to do this sort of thing? From what I understand you mostly want to use shield block to stop a lot of smaller hits or a critical that would drop you to 0. Sans that, you can grab stuff like aggressive block and demoralize of course, but that would be at higher levels. I suppose level 1 is just really rough for this particular style compared to everyone else. Thank you :)

[@FaptainCalcon750]

8:17 since Sorinbor was Defending for his Exploration Activity, he actually didn’t have to use an Action to Raise a Shield, as it would of already been raised. Great vid!

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

When your turn starts however, Raise Shield expires

[@FaptainCalcon750]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG oh wow, Defend is a little worse than I thought. My group I GM for has been doing it wrong this whole time lol 😅

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

@@FaptainCalcon750 it's still good at my tables tho. I guarantee a player can do a reaction before their 1st turn, when they Defend or Scout

[@Vallinen92]

30:26 "Whips have other advantages.." *Wiggles eyebrow.*

[@shemetz]

45:15 The Sneak roll should not have benefited from the cover bonus - the cover bonus only applies if the cover is "throughout your Stride". This means it should have failed the DC 18.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

And there were a few other things wrong, too! =D (I pinned a comment with errata)

[@96Logan]

39:42 Do you still stay with DC 20 Aid? I think I remember you lowered it in one of your videos to what the beginner box does with Aid

[@Emboarbof]

Something to note, you CAN attempt to Grab an Edge even without having a Free Hand. Well, you can try, but you need to roll a critical success to make it work, whereas with a Free hand, a success is enough to interrupt the fall.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks! I think I made that point in the video - what prevented Sorinbor from trying here was that he had already used his reaction to Shield Block. Another thing someone raised is that even if his hands were full, he could've Released something as a free action, and I note that in the Errata.

[@Emboarbof]

Yeah I got confused when you said "he would've needed a free hand to do so". But you did specify a few seconds later "or if he had critically succeeded". Attention drop on my part kek

[@justinmichael9043]

I know that I’m going to get hate for this … 😅 I didn’t see anything here that made me excited. This doesn’t convince me that Pathfinder fighters are better. I wouldn’t call this combat interesting; I would definitely call it more tedious. I literally groaned when I heard that you track your Shield health.

[@kallesalo4848]

41:05 Zombie Brute would get +2 bonus to AC from Billy's attack since Bonehead in between would give cover to him, but since trip targets Reflex DC, he doesn't get any bonus from cover? At least that's how I understand rules as written. I would like to hear designer comment about this.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Creatures give lesser cover (+1 to AC), but otherwise yes you're correct, it does not affect Reflex DC. Standard cover gives a bonus to Reflex saves only against damaging area effects.

[@ghostyuki-kfpinquisitor1038]

A little curious why the zombie came all the way down when it couldve hit with reach from the side. One added benefit to athletics-related ways to flat foot like trip, it reduces the need for positioning since dont have to flank and gives an easy way for ranged allies to get it. Useful when the enemy is against the wall, battle lines form, etc Lucky tuweppen didn't go down cause that'd have been a really awkward place to go down. Just how many of those banners (+1, teamwork, 3 action, etc) do you have lol

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

I RP'd the zombie as pursuing Tuweppen who ran that way. Good comment on tripping to set up for ranged allies! These are all my banners. (For now lol)

[@txt5220]

Thank you so much for your videos! I'm getting into pathfinder 2e and your combat demos are teaching me so much! I have a question at 49:20 though, if Tuweppon decided to use double slice with a P and an S weapon, since Bonehead has resistance to both, would each damage roll still suffer a -5 damage penalty?

[@Tarrosion]

What's the virtual tabletop and character sheet you're using? Do you recommend them for someone new to PF2e (but experienced in D&D5e)?

[@Ilandria.]

It sounds like Fleet is nearly a mandatory pick for all melee damage-oriented characters for action economy/positioning purposes. Is this basically just a tax those builds have to pay as a way to encourage non-pure-DPS builds? I see Fleet on almost every melee damage build suggested online, and this party had at least 2 with it (it may have been 3, I forget).

[@justicar5]

Considering that their is not a single feat in the entire game that a fighter can take to do it's job better: as in more damage, these fighters are not worth the name, they are just buffer/debuffers, and hence fall into the trap of being boring.

[@DomEllisTDS]

Just a heads up that Power Attack doesn't actually have a requirement that you use a two handed weapon!

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Thanks, someone had raised this and I include it in my Errata (pinned comment)

[@DomEllisTDS]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG great! Thanks for the video, enjoyed it a lot and finally got me to join the discord!

[@HiImLerazzo]

Hello Ronald. What is your take on the difference between using double dice vs double damage on critical hits? Do you prefer the more volatile damage distribution, or is it just the RAW, or is it just simpler to calculate?

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Starting my GMing with kids, we love double dice! More math rocks = more fun. I also think less swinginess prevents disappointing PC crits and makes the system more stable/helps the players a bit.

[@shanew6738]

Great video, do you happen to have your foundry vtt mod list posted anywhere? Looks like you've got some great ones I'd love to grab lol

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Yep! On my Discord server, under #vtt-advice it's a pinned comment at discord.com/channels/870925179570753616/943926525688954930/1050144004165079081

[@NeverSeenMyself]

Love your tactical videos! Not sure if it was mentioned already, but at 25:20 you grapple Homunculus at 10-ft reach. I don't think that's possible, you could've tripped with Guisarme at that range but not grapple with your free hand.

[@lordcirth]

The homunculus was diagonally adjacent, plus 5ft up; ie the corners of their cubes were touching. That is just within 5ft reach.

[@NeverSeenMyself]

@@lordcirth Ah I thought he was grappled when he was still 10 ft in the air. My bad

[@soldier660]

Ultimate Chess game : ) !!!

[@Luzarioth]

could you please make a video about the VVT Modules that you are using ?

[@tinear4]

@37:54 Louis does battle medicine. Doesn't he need to drop his whip for that? My Core Rulebook says healer's tools take two hands.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

You might have an early printing. It has been errata'd. Here's a reddit post about it: www.reddit.com/r/Pathfinder2e/comments/jtrx89/errata_update_on_attack_rolls_battle_medicine_and/

[@SirGucinnio]

You forgot at one point that Release does not trigger AoO's :P (50:00)

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

And there were a few other things wrong, too! =D (I pinned a comment with errata)

[@20catsRPG]

38:04 Doesn't Louis need to be holding healer's tools to use Battle Medicine? You even say he'll do it with his free hand which means he wasn't holding them.

[@forrestmiles5788]

RAW you can wear the tools so it does not take an action to grab them.

[@jaeger4540]

As an example combat this brakes things down really well, and being familiar with the system you move things along at a snappy pace. But there are a lot of options for players to look at each round... How long to players really take on each turn at the table during actual play?

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

It's slow when learning the system, but I generally find it faster than 3.x/PF1 by a landslide. I don't super plentiful experience with 5e but I do know that frustrating rules look-upsand having to rules-improv doesn't happen nearly as much. I think it also feels like you can do more on your turn with the 3 action economy (e.g., more than 1 roll). From the player POV I think the greater variety helps make it 'drag' less

[@szalhi]

It's kind of annoying that Arthur's aid theoretically (Depending on how you believe RNG) stole Billy's Crit, and also prevented AOO against the Homunculus.

[@JonWaterfall]

Arthur "stealing" the crit is a bit of an after-the-fact fallacy that's impossible to account for when strategizing. Arthur choosing not to save their reaction for an AOO with a Fist is fine, as the potential damage/control gained by helping Billy get a better degree of success helps the group against the bigger threats of the encounter.

[@Oddigan]

There are two types of random number generators. To put it simply, the first kind is like rolling a dice (the results are determined when you roll), the second kind is like flipping a card (the results are predetermined, but get revealed when you flip the card). TTRPG software like this almost certainly uses the first one, if not a combination of both. (Using the dice-rolling RNG to re-shuffle the cards that get flipped periodically) In other words, Arthur's aid didn't affect Billy's roll at all unless Billy was going to roll at the exact same 1,000th of a second Arthur had rolled.

[@rafaelbacelar1757]

To be honest, you can build 5 very different nvl1 vuman 5e fighters. Mostly of the gameplay difference between pf2 and 5e is caused by the 3 action system combined with limitations/costs and benefits that pf2 put in some minor actions. ( the "crunsh rules")

[@rafaelbacelar1757]

Str 16 Con 16 Wis 15 (heavy armor)+ Glaive+Sentinel Feat+Great Weapon Fighting FS Dex 16 Con 16 Wis 15 (Light Armor)+ Two Short Swords+Mobile Feat+Two-Weapon Fighting FS Str 16 Con 16 Dex 15 (Medium Armor)+Sword and Board+Shild Master Feat+Protection FS Dex 16 Int 16 Wis 13 Con 12 (Light Armor)+Bow+Archery FS+SS Feat Dex 16 Con 16 Car 14 (Light Armor)+Whip+Dueling FS+Inspired Leader Feat All of they just using the phb

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Yeah, and also because of Variant Human in 5e. Just capitalizing off the trope of "human fighter is the default 'boring' choice" that does exist in the 5e community.

[@rafaelbacelar1757]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG I think that the "boring human fighter" trope come more from the combination of "why do you want play a human fighter if it is a fantasy world with fantastic possibilities?" + lacking of balance of caster/magic pcs.

[@rafaelbacelar1757]

5e is more a simple/tool kit style system them pf2. And is fine that they are different. But if 5e caster were more like AD&D(really fragile and less versatile at using spell slots) the 5e martial x casters disparity could be more tolerate.

[@SteveRowe]

No hero points given or used in the first 40 minutes?

[@CristianzenV]

45:00 One question. Wouldn't the pillar provide greater cover to the creature, considering it is tiny?

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Generally no - a wall or corner I tend to rule as cover no matter what the creature's size (greater cover is for things that are even more protective imo, like arrow slits and the like). There is the Take Cover action to increase it to greater cover, but the kobold didn't do that here.

[@RaderizDorret]

Can you do the same thing but with monks? Monks don't hit quite as hard, but cost less gold for equipment and have insane movement and battlefield control.

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

It is something I'd like to do someday

[@neovi6424]

Problem is fighters overshadow other martials imo

[@newtpondskipper]

You need to be my neighbor.

[@tinear4]

Good work, Ronald. But I have to ask - for combats with this many participants, is it common for some bit of state information (like Sorinbor’s sword being stowed) to be accidentally overlooked? If true, that might provoke an attack of opportunity from the trolls who think P2E is too complex…

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

It's common, but people get rules all the time in these kinds of games and the okay part is that if the table doesn't catch it, then no one's the worse for it lol. Tbh I think PF2 has more rules to learn but once learned, but I find them to be less confusing and provide more support than 5e does. Anyways the rules support is appreciated by GMs. Also yeah - PF2 is more complex and granular period, and some tables won't like that and that's ok.

[@tinear4]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG I don't find the rules to be overly complex myself, but I think that's because Paizo bases them on a smaller number of core principles -- like 3 actions being simpler than 3 kinds of actions, and the many kinds of bonuses all being variants of the same three basic types. Having the same four levels of proficiency in everything you do? Genius, because I can remember it as a single concept. I do worry about the number of bits of state information (prone? sickened? frightened? persistent damage? what's in each hand?) that you need to track for every individual on the map, but I think it's worthwhile.

[@ErikLevin]

That's where a VTT with good tools, like Foundry PF2 shown here, can help a lot. When playing around a real table, I use index cards as initiative tracker, in the middle of the table so everyone can see. I then either write conditions directly on the cards (wet-erase marker so they can be added and erased), or use small sticky notes. Index cards could be useful for tracking hands too. Have each player write their handheld items on cards. They place the cards for what they're holding in each hand in front of them - left and right hand. Not something I've tried and not sure if it's worth the trouble, but I could see doing it. Doesn't help much with monsters though, I'm not gonna be able to have 10 cards spread out behind my screen for this... Then again, most monsters don't do a ton of inventory management mid-combat.

[@markhill3858]

38.00 ... sooo .. the guy runs over, and produces a medikit with ONE hand, and heals his mate .. one handed .. in one turn .. 2d8 hp?? which given the state of medieval medicine .. possibly involved cleaning the wound with wine or heated metal, actual sewing of wounds and maybe putting a poultice on it before bandaging it up? and they are BOTH engaged in a melee while this is going on? this is NOT a spell you say?

[@naroe2001]

Why couldnt tuweppon have punched skeleton with rapier in hand to avoid AoO. (new to PF2e)

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

Good point - in a different way. She could have kicked the skeleton! (PF2e is pretty definite on handedness so I wouldn't go there, plus this option exists)

[@realdealsd]

I still find it strange that undead are not immune to nonlethal damage.

[@heyfell4301]

I think even undead get to a point where they can't fight anymore, like if you punched a skeleton into separate bones and it had to rebuild itself, or you just bashed a zombie so hard that necromantic magic isn't able to sustain his body and has to regather onto him so it can slowly regain his movements. I dunno.

[@kenkoopa7903]

What's that module that automatically calculates weaknesses and resistances?

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

There isn't one that I'm aware of: I'm manually applying damage with the Token Health module. I probably edit out some moments where I do this.

[@ellenok]

Someone has dedicated themself to making a module for weaknesses, resistances, and immunities for next month because of a charity event. I'm rooting for them.

[@PatriceBoivin]

Things are much more complicated than in AD&D. Instead of just playing, they defined every action and skill in detail. Recall knowledge wasn't a thing either.

[@robertcarter9535]

I just wanted to make sure that when your female fighter attack with her fist and the shield you did not give her the benefit of double slice. Because it says very specifically you have to have a weapon in each hand and using your fist does not count as a weapon in hand

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

She is deciding NOT to use Double Slice in that moment (yeah, she never uses her feat in this combat!)

[@robertcarter9535]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG thank you so much for clarifying that

[@StormRegaliaIV]

Bruh how is the skeleton meta gaming 💀

[@TheRulesLawyerRPG]

It's not meta gaming. It's the mechanics basically expressing a distracting action. Bonehead wants the guy to fall in the pit, so it makes a blow that forces him to focus on one thing while doing another thing.

[@StormRegaliaIV]

@@TheRulesLawyerRPG that makes a lot more sense.

[@reznet2]

This system is bloated - makes a nice video game but having exact rules for EVERYTHING is silly