Athletics (Str; Armor Penalty)

The Athletics skill covers difficult situations you encounter while climbing, jumping, or swimming or any difficult physical activity that requires strength or endurance.

Climbing

With a successful Climb check, you can advance up, down, or across a slope, a wall, or some other steep incline, or even a ceiling with handholds.

Add the relevant modifiers as given on the Athletics: Climbing table to determine the difficulty class of the skill check. A failure by 5 or less means you can’t move for 1 round. A failure by 6 or more means you fall.

A successful check means you may take you can climb at half your normal land speed; however, if you take damage during your movement, you will need to make another Athletics check to maintain your grip.

While climbing, you are flat-footed, unless your successful check exceeds the DC by 5 or more.

Endurance (Con)

When performing exhausting activities over a period of time, you can make Athletics checks to resist the negative effects. This special check uses your Constitution modifier instead of your Strength modifier.

You make endurance checks to resist nonlethal damage from extended periods of swimming and forced marches, to continue running without resting, and to hold your breath. You can also make endurance checks to resist the damage from starvation and thirst.

Jumping

As part of a move action, you may attempt to jump a distance with an Athletics check. If you take a 10-foot running start just prior to the jump attempt, the DC is equal to the number of feet you are attempting to jump horizontally, or four times the number of feet you are attempting to jump vertically.

If you do not take a running start, the DC of the check is doubled.

A failure by 5 or less means you miss the jump, but you can usually make a DC 15 Reflex save to grab a ledge. A failure by 6 or more means you fall and land prone.

Faster Base Movement

Creatures with a base land speed above 30 feet receive a +4 racial bonus on Athletics checks made to jump for every 10 feet of their speed above 30 feet. Creatures with a base land speed below 30 feet receive a -4 racial penalty on Athletics checks made to jump for every 10 feet of their speed below 30 feet. No jump can allow you to exceed your maximum movement for the round.

Hop Up

You can jump up onto an object as tall as your waist, such as a table or small boulder, with a DC 10 Athletics check. Doing so counts as 10 feet of movement, so if your speed is 30 feet, you could move 20 feet, then hop up onto a counter. You do not need to get a running start to hop up, so the DC is not doubled if you do not get a running start.

If you fail this check, you bump into the object you were attempt to hop up on and stop moving, though you can continue to move if you have any movement remaining. On a successful check, you can choose whether you are standing or prone on top of the object.

Jumping Down/Falling

When you deliberately fall any distance, even as a result of a missed jump, a DC 15 Athletics skill check allows you to ignore the first 10 feet fallen, although you still end up prone if you take damage from a fall. (See Falling Damage for more details.)

Swimming

You can use Athletics to swim. The DC is based on the condition of the water, as shown on the Athletics: Swimming table.

On a successful check, you may move half your land speed as a move action. A failure by 5 or less means you make no progress 1 round. A failure by 6 or more means you flounder and begin to sink.

Because armor makes swimming particularly difficult, double the armor check penalty when making Athletics checks to swim.