Action Points

In a campaign set in The Kyngdoms, great heroes emerge from the swirling mists to accomplish great deeds and undertake legendary missions. To reflect this, characters in The Kyngdoms have Action Points, which allow them to scale even greater heights and scrape their way out of even tighter corners. Action points give characters the means to affect game play in significant ways, by improving important rolls or unlocking special abilities. Each character has a limited number of action points, and once an action point is spent, it is gone for good.

Acquiring Action Points

A beginning (1st-level) character starts the game with 5 action points. A character above 1st level starts the game with a number of action points equal to 5 + ½ his current character level.

Every time a character advances, he gains a number of action points equal to 5 + ½ his new character level. Unused action points are not carried over to the next level and are dropped.

NPCs and Action Points

Most NPCs won't have action points. However, significant recurring arch-enemies may well be considered worthy of action points and should be awarded them by the GM, who should award them an appropriate number of action points. A number of action points equal to ½ the NPC's level is a good baseline.

Using Action Points

You can spend 1 action point to add to a single d20 roll, to take a special action, or to improve the use of a feat.

You can spend 1 action point in a round. If you spend a point to use a special action (see below), you cannot spend another one in the same round.

Add to a Roll

When you spend 1 action point to improve a d20 roll, you add the result of a 1d6 roll to your d20 roll (including attack rolls, saves, checks or any other roll of a d20) to help you meet or exceed the target number. You can declare the use of 1 action point to alter a d20 roll after the roll is made, but only before the GM reveals the result of that roll. You can't use an action point to alter the result of a d20 roll when you are taking 10 or taking 20.

Depending on character level (see the table below), a character might be able to roll more than one d6 when he spends 1 action point. If so, apply the highest result and disregard the other rolls. A 15th level character, for instance, gets to roll 3d6 and take the best result of the three. So, if he rolled a 1, 2, and 4, he would apply the 4 to his d20 roll.

Special Actions

A character can perform certain tasks by spending an action point that allow a range of skills and tasks to be accomplished that would otherwise be beyond them.

Activate Class Ability: A character can spend 1 action point to gain another use of a class ability that has a limited number of uses per day. For example, a monk might spend an action point to gain another use of her stunning fist ability, or a paladin might spend an action point to make an additional smite attack.

Boost Defense: A character can spend 1 action point as a free action when fighting defensively. This gives him double the normal benefits for fighting defensively for the entire round (+4 dodge bonus to AC; +6 if he has 5 or more ranks in Tumble).

Extra Attack: During any round in which the character takes a full attack action, he may spend 1 action point to make an extra attack at his highest attack bonus. Action points may be used in this way with both melee and ranged attacks.

Spell Boost: A character can spend 1 action point as a free action to increase the effective caster level of one of his spells by 2. He must decide whether or not to spend an action point in this manner before casting the spell.

Stable: Any time a character is dying, he can spend 1 action point to become stable at his current hit point total.

Weapon Proficiency: When wielding a weapon with which that character is not proficient, he may spend 1 action to become proficient with that weapon for the duration of the combat.

Improving Feats

Action points can be applied to feats to extend the range of their abilities and give a potentially much needed boost in a tight situation. Unless otherwise stated, each effect requires a free action to activate and lasts 1 round.

Blind-Fight: You can spend 1 action point to negate your miss chance for a single attack.

Combat Casting: You can spend 1 action point to double the bonus on Concentration checks granted by the feat, from +4 to +8.

Combat Expertise: You can spend 1 action point to double the bonus to Armor Class granted by the feat. For example, if you take a -3 penalty on your attack roll, you gain a +6 dodge bonus to AC.

Dodge: You can spend 1 action point to increase the dodge bonus granted by the feat to +2. The effect lasts for the duration of the combat.

Greater Spell Focus: You can spend 1 action point to increase the save DC, as granted by this feat, by +1, from +2 to +3.

Greater Spell Penetration: You can spend 1 action point to gain a further +2 bonus on caster level checks granted by this feat, from +4 to +6.

Improved Critical: You can spend 1 action point to double your critical threat range. Since two doublings equals a tripling, this benefit increases your threat range from 19-20 to 18-20, from 17-20 to 15-20, or from 15-20 to 12-20, including the effect of your Improved Critical feat. This benefit stacks with the benefit of Improved critical, but not with other effects that increase threat range.

Improved Initiative You can spend 1 action point to double the bonus on initiative checks granted by the feat, from +4 to +8.

Power Attack: You can spend 1 action point to double the bonus on damage rolls granted by the feat. For example, if you take a penalty of -3 on your attack roll, you add +6 to your damage roll. If you are wielding a weapon two-handed, you gain no additional benefit.

Spell Focus: You can spend 1 action point to double the increase to save DCs granted by the feat, from +1 to +2.

Spell Penetration: You can spend 1 action point to double the bonus on caster level checks granted by this feat, from +2 to +4. The effect lasts for the duration of the combat.