Actions in Combat

During your turn, you can choose from a wide variety of actions. Usually, the most important decision you make in combat is what to do with your standard action each turn. Do you use one of your powers? If so, which one? Or does the situation demand a different approach, such as using your standard action to move, try to call a parley and talk to your foes, or perform a skill check of some complexity? This section describes how to perform the most common actions that are available to you on your turn.

The list isn't exhaustive—you can try to do anything you can imagine your character doing in the game world. The rules in this section cover the most common actions, and they can serve as a guide for figuring out what happens when you try something not in the rules.

Action Points

Once per encounter, you can spend an action point. When you spend an action point, it's gone, but you can earn more. You start over with 1 action point after an extended rest.

Most often, you spend an action point to take an extra action during your turn.

Spend an Action Point: Additional Action

• During Your Turn: You can spend an action point only during your turn, but never during a surprise round.
• Gain an Extra Action: You gain an extra action this turn. You decide if the action is a standard action, a move action or a minor action.
• Once per Encounter: After you spend an action point, you must take a short rest [pp] before you can spend another.

Some abilities may let you make other uses of your action point. No matter how you spend it, you can only spend 1 per encounter.

Aid Another

In some situations, you can work together to use a skill or an ability. You can help an ally make a skill check or an ability check by taking the aid another action. Given a choice, your squad should have the character who has the highest skill or ability check modifier take the lead, while the other characters cooperate to provide assistance.

Aid an Ally's Skill or Ability Check

• Action: Same as the skill check.
• DC: Make a skill check or ability check with a DC equal to 10 + one-half your level.
• Success: The target gains a +2 bonus to the next check using the same skill or ability before the end of your next turn.
• Failure: The target takes a -1 penalty to the next check using the same skill or ability before the end of your next turn. This penalty represents the distraction or interference caused by the failed assistance.

You can affect a particular check only once using the aid another action. However, up to four creatures can use aid another to affect a single check, for a maximum bonus of +8 or a maximum penalty of -4. The DM may allow more or fewer to aid, depending on circumstances. Several dozen staff members at a hospital ward might lend a hand in a heal check for a warrior convalescing from wounds. Only one character might lend a hand in adjusting a subspace coil.

Aid Attack

Sometimes, the most you can do to help is make the way clear for the heavy hitters. You can help them hit heavier by using the aid attack action.

Aid an Ally's Attack

• Action: Standard action.
• Grant Bonus Damage: Choose an ally. That ally gains a +2 aid bonus to its next damage roll. This bonus ends if not used by the end of your next turn. Only one such bonus is effective.

Aid Defense

Even without specialized powers for it, you can run interference on your allies to grant them additional defenses.

Aid an Ally's Defenses

• Action: Standard Action.
• Grant Bonus to Defenses: Choose an ally. That ally gains a +2 bonus to all defenses against the next attack against it. This bonus ends if not used by the end of your next turn.

Basic Attack

Sometimes, there's nothing left for the situation you're in but a timely smash. Every character has two basic attacks available, and some powers let you use a basic attack.

Melee Basic Attack, Basic Attack

• At-will . Weapon
• Standard Action Melee weapon
• Target: One creature
• Damage: 1[W] + Strength damage
• Special: This attack has the weapon's damage type. If the weapon doesn't list a damage type, it deals pierce damage.

Ranged Basic Attack, Basic Attack

• At-will . Weapon
• Standard Action Ranged weapon
• Target: One creature
• Damage: 1[W] + Dexterity damage
• Special: Heavy weapons use Strength instead of Dexterity.
• Special: Recons may use R1as1 as a basic attack. Snipers may use S1as1 as a basic attack.

Bull Rush

You try to shove an enemy away. This tactic is useful for forcing an enemy out of a defensive position or into a dangerous one, such as a pool of acid or over a chasm.

Bull Rush: Standard Action

• Target: You can bull rush a target adjacent to you that is smaller than you, the same size category as you, or one category larger than you.
• Melee Basic Attack: This counts as a melee basic attack against the target that deals no damage. In addition, you push the target one square and shift into the vacated space.
• Impossible Push: If there is no square available for the target to be pushed to, the target is not pushed and you do not shift.

Charge

Rushing to close the distance is the nearest path to safety in the line of enemy fire.

Charge: Standard Action

• Move and Attack: Move your speed as part of the charge and make a melee basic attack or a bull rush at the end of your move.
• Additional Damage: You gain a +1 bonus to the damage roll of the attack.
• Movement Requirements: you must move at least 2 squares from your starting position, and you must move directly to the nearest square from which you can attack the enemy. You can't charge if the nearest square is occupied. Moving over difficult terrain costs extra squares of movement as normal.
• Provoke Opportunity Attacks: If you leave a threatened square, the threatening enemy can make an opportunity attack against you.
• End Your Turn: Completing a charge ends your turn. Resolve any end of turn effects and make any saving throws.

Crawl

When you are prone, you can crawl.

Crawl: Move Action

• Prone: You must be prone to crawl.
• Movement: Move up to half your speed. If you have a climb speed, move up to your speed instead.
• Provoke Opportunity Attacks: If you enter a threatened square, the threatening enemy can make an opportunity attack against you.

Escape

You attempt to escape from an enemy that has grabbed you. Other immobilizing effects might let you make escape attempts.

Escape: Move Action

• Acrobatics or Athletics: make the chosen skill check against the creature or effect that immobilized you. The creature will make a check of some kind or the effect will have a DC.
• Check: Resolve your check.
  • Success: You end the grab and can shift as part of this move action.
  • Failure: You're still grabbed.

Grab

You seize a creature bodily and keep it from moving. The creature you grab can attempt to escape on its turn.

Grab: Standard Action

• Target: You can attempt to grab a creature that is smaller than you, the same size category as you, or one category larger than you. The creature must be within your melee reach.
• Athletics Check: Make an athletics skill check opposed by the creature's choice of Athletics or Acrobatics.
  • Success: You grab the creature.
  • Failure: You do not grab the creature.
• Sustaining a Grab: You sustain the grab as a minor action. You can end your grab as a free action.
• Effects that End a Grab: If you are affected by a condition that prevents you from taking opportunity actions, you let go of a grabbed creature. If you move away from the creature you're grabbing, you let go and the grab ends. If a pull, push, or a slide moves you or the creature you're grabbing out of your reach, the grab ends.

To move a grabbed target, you must spend a standard action.

Move a Grabbed Target: Standard Action

• Movement: Move up to half your speed and pull the grabbed target with you.
• Opportunity Attacks: If you pull the target, you and the target do not provoke opportunity attacks from each other, and the target doesn't provoke opportunity attacks from enemies. Other opportunities are as normal.

Opportunity Attack

Combatants constantly watch for their enemies to drop their guard. When you're threatening an enemy, that enemy can't move past your threatened area without putting itself in danger by allowing you to take an opportunity attack against it.

Opportunity Attack: Opportunity Action

• Basic Attack: An opportunity attack is a basic attack.
• Moving Provokes: If an enemy enters a square you threaten, you can make an opportunity attack against that enemy. However, you can't make one if the enemy shifts or teleports or is forced to move.
• One per Round: You can normally use only one opportunity action per round. Some features allow you to use more.
• Able to Attack: You only threaten squares if you could attack them.
• Follows Target's Action: An opportunity action waits for the triggering event to complete, inserts itself after the action that triggered it, then normal turn sequence resumes. If you or the target are no longer combatants by this step in the sequence, you can't make an opportunity attack (for example, if you or the triggering creature are dead).

Run

You can abandon posture and run all-out when you need to cover ground fast. However, this is a dangerous tactic—you have to lower your guard to make your best speed, and you can't attack very well.

Run: Move Action

• Speed +2: Move up to your speed + 2. For example, if your speed is normally 6, you can move up to 8 squares when you run.
• -5 Penalty to Attacks: Your attacks take a -5 penalty to damage, added in before the combat multiplier.
• Helpless: While running, you are helpless.

Second Wind

You can dig into your reserve of endurance to find an extra burst of vitality. In game terms, you spend a healing surge to regain some of your lost hit points, and you focus on defending yourself. This action is only available to player characters.

Second Wind: Standard Action

• Spend a Healing Surge: Spend a healing surge to regain hit points (see "Healing," [pp]).
• +2 Bonus to All Resistances: You gain a +2 bonus to all resistances until the start of your next turn.
• Once per Encounter: You can use your second wind once per encounter and can use it again after you take a short rest or an extended rest. Some powers allow you to spend healing surges without using your second wind.

Shift

Moving through a fierce battle is dangerous; you must be careful to avoid a misstep that gives your foe a chance to strike a telling blow. The way you move safely when enemies are nearby is to shift.

Shift: Move Action

• Movement: Move 1 square.
• Doesn't Provoke: If you shift into a threatened square, you don't provoke an opportunity attack.
• Difficult Terrain: You can't normally shift into difficult terrain, unless you're able to shift multiple squares or use a double move or ignore the terrain.
• Special Movement Modes: You can't shift when using a movement method that requires a skill check. For example if you're using Athletics to climb, you can't shift with that movement.
• Special: Recons using R1p01 shift 2 squares instead of 1.

You might find it useful to shift away and then make other movements.

Squeeze

You can squeeze through an area that isn't as wide as the space you normally take up. Big creatures usually use this move action to fit into narrow corridors, but a Medium or Small creature can use it to fit into a constrained space, such as a locker.

Squeeze: Move Action

• Smaller Space: A Large, Huge, or Gargantuan creature reduces its space by 1. When a Medium or smaller creature squeezes, the DM decides how narrow a space the creature can occupy. If an effect prevents a creature from leaving a square in order to squeeze, the creature cannot squeeze.
• Half Speed: As part of the same move action, move up to half your speed.
• -5 Penalty to Attacks: Your attacks take a -5 penalty to damage, added in before the combat multiplier.
• Helpless: While squeezing, you are helpless.
• Provoke Opportunity Attacks: If you enter a threatened square, the threatening enemy can make an opportunity attack against you.
• Special: If you have a climb speed, you may squeeze as a normal move action and suffer none of the above effects.

Stand Up

If you've been knocked prone, you need to take a move action to get back on your feet.

Stand Up: Move Action

• Unoccupied Space: If your space is not occupied by another creature, you stand up where you are.
• Occupied Space: If your space is occupied by another creature, you can shift 1 square as part of this move action to stand up in an adjacent unoccupied space. If your space and all adjacent squares are occupied, you can't stand up.

Threatening Squares

Opportunity actions always mention threatening squares: spaces which trigger your opportunity action when entered by an enemy. Melee attackers threaten squares within their reach. Ranged attackers threaten squares within their range by their facing.

If you make an attack during your turn, your facing is the nearest semicardinal direction of the attack you made. If you did not make an attack during your turn, you choose your facing at the end of your turn.

Your threatening squares extend from you to your weapon range in a line three squares wide starting from the square in front of you and using two squares adjacent to it on either side.

[diagram of threat]

Total Defense

Sometimes it's more important to stay alive than attack your foes, so you focus your attention on defense.

Total Defense: Standard Action

• +2 Bonus to All Resistances: You gain a +2 bonus to all defenses until the start of your next turn.
• Special: Soldiers using O1p01 gain a +5 bonus instead of +2.

Use a Power

The powers you know are among your most important tools in the game. Because of your at-will powers, you can potentially use a power every round.

Walk

Walking is safe only when there are no enemies nearby. It's dangerous to walk through the middle of a pitched battle, since any enemy can take an opportunity attack as you pass by. The way you move safely when enemies are threatening is to shift instead of walk.

Walk: Move Action

• Movement: Move a number of squares up to your speed.
• Provoke Opportunity Attacks: If you enter a square threatened by an enemy, that enemy can make an opportunity attack against you.