The Attack Roll
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The Attack Roll (p. 105)

Attack Roll Checklist: All Characters

1.        The attacker looks on the ‘Attack Rolls Table: All Characters’ and finds the armor class of his target. The number given on the table is the number he needs to achieve with his roll and bonuses to hit his target.

  1. Weapon Mastery Option: Because they help determine how often a character can use multiple attacks, weapon mastery attack bonuses are applied to the character’s attack roll. If a character needs to roll an 18 to hit someone but he has a +2 bonus for weapon mastery, he actually needs a 16 for a successful attack (optional).
  2. The victim’s armor class may be modified by partial exposure if the attacker is using a missile weapon and the victim is only exposed for part of a round. See “Cover Adjustments” later in this chapter (optional).

2.        The attacker rolls 1d20.

3.        The attacker adds pertinent bonuses to his 1d20 roll. Pertinent bonuses include:

  1. Strength adjustment, for melee attacks.
  2. Dexterity adjustment, for missile or thrown attacks.
  3. Magic bonuses, either from spells affecting the character or magical weapons being used.

4.        The attacker subtracts pertinent penalties from his 1d20 roll. Pertinent penalties include:

  1. Cover, if missile attack and target is partially concealed (optional).
  2. Magical curses, if the curse affects combat abilities and attack rolls.

5.        If the result of the modified 1d20 roll equals or exceeds the number on the Attack Rolls Table: All Characters, the attacker has hit his target. Important Note: An unadjusted (natural) roll of 1 always misses. An unadjusted (natural) roll of 20 always hits, if it is possible for the attack to hit the target.

6.        If the result was a hit, the attacker now rolls damage. First he rolls the damage listed for the weapon or attack form.

7.        Adjust the roll with any multipliers, such as a thief’s Backstab ability, or a charge bonus.

8.        The attacker adds in any pertinent bonuses to damage. Pertinent bonuses include:

  1. Strength adjustments (added to melee attacks).
  2. Magic bonuses (from magic weapons or magic spells affecting the attacker).
  3. The attacker’s entire Strength score is added to the damage if he performed a smash maneuver.

9.        The sum of the number rolled on the damage dice and the pertinent bonuses is the amount of damage the victim takes.