Morale Maneuvers

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Social combat maneuvers are used to influence your opponents through trickery or intimidation.

Social Maneuver Mechanics

Moral Maneuver Defense

Each character and creature has a Morale Maneuver Defense (or MMD) that represents its ability to resist morale maneuvers. A creature’s MMD is determined using the following formula:

MMD = 10 + your Hit Dice + your Wisdom modifier + miscellaneous modifiers

If you are trained in Sense Motive, you may calculate your MMD as 10 + your Sense Motive skill bonus if this value is higher.

Performing a Morale Maneuver

When you attempt to perform a morale maneuver, make a skill check with the skill associated with the maneuver. The DC of this maneuver is your target’s Morale Maneuver Defense. Morale maneuvers are skill checks, so rolling a natural 20 does not result in an automatic success, while rolling a natural 1 does not result in automatic failure. Performing a morale maneuver does not provoke any attacks of opportunity.

Multiple Attempts

For each that the same morale maneuver is performed against the same creature, you suffer a -4 penalty. This penalty stacks and lasts for 1 hour.

Creature Types and Morale Maneuvers

You suffer a –4 penalty on morale maneuver attempts made against opponents of a different creature type than you. You also suffer a –4 penalty against opponents that are of animal intelligence (Int 1 or 2). These penalties stack.

It is impossible to perform morale maneuvers against mindless creatures.

The Wild Empathy class feature can be used to antagonize, demoralize and feint creatures of animal intelligence (Int 1 or 2) in place of the usual skill, in which case you don’t receive the -4 penalty.

Morale Maneuvers

Antagonize

Action: standard action
Skill: Bluff
Target: one opponent within 30 feet and able to see and hear you
Feats: Compelling Maneuvers, Lasting Morale Maneuvers

In combat, you can goad a target into focusing his attacks upon you.

If you succeed, your target gains the Antagonized condition for 1 round. The duration of this condition increases by 1 round for every 5 by which you beat your opponent’s MMD.

Antagonizing an opponent is a verbal, mind-affecting ability and is language-dependent.

Demoralize

Action: standard action
Skill: Intimidation
Target: one opponent within 30 feet and able to see and hear you
Feats: Compelling Maneuvers, Greater Demoralize, Lasting Morale Maneuvers

In combat, you can shatter a foe’s resolve with biting words or an intimidating front.

If you succeed, your opponent gains the Shaken condition for 1 round. The duration of this condition increases by 1 round for every 5 by which you beat your opponent’s MMD.

Demoralizing an opponent who is already shaken does not create a stronger fear condition, although demoralizing a previously demoralized opponent extends the duration of the shaken condition.

Demoralizing an opponent is a verbal, mind-affecting ability.

Distract

Action: standard action
Skill: Bluff
Target: one opponent able to see you
Feats: Compelling Maneuvers, Greater Feint

If you succeed, the next time the target would be able to make an attack of opportunity against you, they lose that chance. This condition lasts until the end of your next turn or until triggered.

Feint

Action: standard action
Skill: Bluff
Target: one opponent able to see you
Feats: Compelling Maneuvers, Greater Feint

If you succeed, on the next melee attack you make against the target, the target counts as having a Dexterity modifier of -5 to AC and Reflex saving throws. This attack must be made on or before your next turn.

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