Attack rolls

[Spacewolf]

So say i was under attack and the enemy used there attack roll and i had 10+7 for half plate+1 for dexterity would that enemy need to score 18 or above just to hit me or does it do damage but reduced if it scores above 11?

[Douglas]

Half-plate has a max dex bonus of 0, so your +1 dexterity would actually have no effect (on AC, anyway; it still counts for initiative and reflex saves). A 17 would hit you. Anything less than that is a miss and does no damage.

[Flickerdart]

If an attack roll does not meet or exceed your AC, it does nothing because it was a miss. The only time that hitting an AC lower than your normal AC can affect you is if the attack was a touch attack (such as for a Scorching Ray spell) which only cares about Touch AC, or if you were flat-footed against the attacker, and thus were using your Flat-footed AC instead. In neither case, though, would the effects of the attack or spell be reduced if it failed to hit your full AC.

[Spacewolf]

So what modifiers does to hit use as otherwise it would be quite simple to create a character that would require natural 20s to hit, at least at low levels and does the flanking bonus of plus 2 get applied to this or the damage roll?

Also what are Flat footed AC and touch AC with regards to rolls and modifiers.

[Flickerdart]

Flanking bonus only applies to attack, not to damage.

Touch attack: "When you are the target of a touch attack, your AC doesn’t include any armor bonus, shield bonus, or natural armor bonus. All other modifiers, such as your size modifier, Dexterity modifier, and deflection bonus (if any) apply normally."

Flat-footed: A flat-footed character loses his Dexterity bonus to AC (if any).

To-hit has a ton of modifiers at early levels. Making your weapon masterwork (for 300 gold) is +1 to-hit, high ground (such as attacking from a mount) is another +1, flanking is +2, Small size is +1, charging is +2, then include feats and spells...even without these things, your basic 1st level Half-Orc Barbarian (+1 BAB, +4 from 18 STR, +1 from +2 racial STR, +2 more from Rage) puts out attacks at a respectable +8. It is not easy to get AC to even 18 at 1st level (A character with 18 Dexterity can do it if she has the cash for a Chain Shirt), meaning the Orc will be hitting more than half the time even without charging, flanking and the rest. And if he hits you even once, you're liable to take 2d6+10 damage (average 17) which is probably all of your hit points for this level and then two more levels, unless you have a high HD and a lot of Constitution.

While it is certainly possible to jack up AC, you generally need spellcasting to do so, and the effort is never worth it. It is much better to get a miss chance (from a Cloak of Displacement or similar) as soon as you can afford it and forget about AC.

[Rubik]

If attacking from a mount is considered higher ground, wouldn't being really big (such as Large or Huge attacking smaller creatures) also give that bonus to you?

[Flickerdart]

Nope! Being really big makes it harder to hit your enemy! But then if you get on an even bigger mount, it makes it easier! Nothing makes sense anymore!

[Spacewolf]

Thanks so far one more thing and i think im pretty much sorted what determines spell resistance checks and other checks such as smoke inhilation?

[Flickerdart]

Thanks so far one more thing and i think im pretty much sorted what determines spell resistance checks and other checks such as smoke inhilation?
Having spell resistance determines spell resistance checks. If you don't have any spell resistance, then you don't get to check. If you do (typically from a powerful race or a class feature), then the ability through which you got SR also lists how much you get. A spellcaster rolls a caster level check (1d20 + his caster level) when using a spell that allows SR on a character with SR.

Smoke inhalation has its own rules: "A character who breathes heavy smoke must make a Fortitude save each round (DC 15, +1 per previous check) or spend that round choking and coughing. A character who chokes for 2 consecutive rounds takes 1d6 points of nonlethal damage."

[JoeYounger]

Flickerdart, I think you're just swell. Taking the time to give such nice, correct, and full answers without even the slightest bit of gtfo noob. The model playgrounder.

[Rubik]

Flickerdart, I think you're just swell. Taking the time to give such nice, correct, and full answers without even the slightest bit of gtfo noob. The model playgrounder.There's nothing wrong with being new. We've all been there. So long as the n00b in question isn't an absolute moron or a troll, I'm sure there are plenty of posters around here willing to give helpful advice.

Still, props to Flickerdart anyway. Nicely done.

[NiteCyper]

If attacking from a mount is considered higher ground, wouldn't being really big (such as Large or Huge attacking smaller creatures) also give that bonus to you?


Nope! Being really big makes it harder to hit your enemy! But then if you get on an even bigger mount, it makes it easier! Nothing makes sense anymore!

O (http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/943928-god-of-war-iii/54215249)h man, I was going to quote but this whole thread (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/archive/index.php/t-311654.html) is hilarious.