Player Core
Chapter 8: Playing The Game
Exploration Mode
Source Player Core pg. 430
While encounters use rounds for combat, exploration is more free-form. The GM determines the flow of time, as you could be traveling by enercycle through a machine megaplex, negotiating with Free Captains, or delving in a magitech dungeon in search of archaic treasures from a lost world. Exploration lacks the immediate danger of encounter mode, but it offers its own challenges.
Much of exploration mode involves movement and roleplaying. You might be traveling from one city to another, chatting with a couple of travelers on the gravtrain along the way, or maybe you have a run-in with a friendly rival when you arrive. Instead of measuring your rate of movement in 5-foot squares every round, you measure it in feet or miles per minute, hour, or day, using your travel speed. Rather than deciding on each action every turn, you'll engage in an exploration activity, and you'll typically spend some time every day resting and making your daily preparations.
Much of exploration mode involves movement and roleplaying. You might be traveling from one city to another, chatting with a couple of travelers on the gravtrain along the way, or maybe you have a run-in with a friendly rival when you arrive. Instead of measuring your rate of movement in 5-foot squares every round, you measure it in feet or miles per minute, hour, or day, using your travel speed. Rather than deciding on each action every turn, you'll engage in an exploration activity, and you'll typically spend some time every day resting and making your daily preparations.
Travel Speed
Source Player Core pg. 430
Depending on how the GM tracks movement, you move in feet or miles based on your character's Speed with the relevant movement type. Typical rates are on the table below.
The rates in the table assume traveling over flat and clear terrain at a determined pace, but one that's not exhausting. Moving through difficult terrain halves the listed movement rate. Greater difficult terrain reduces the distance traveled to one-third the listed amount. If the travel requires a skill check to accomplish, such as mountain climbing or swimming, the GM might call for a check once per hour, using the result and the table above to determine your progress.
The rates in the table assume traveling over flat and clear terrain at a determined pace, but one that's not exhausting. Moving through difficult terrain halves the listed movement rate. Greater difficult terrain reduces the distance traveled to one-third the listed amount. If the travel requires a skill check to accomplish, such as mountain climbing or swimming, the GM might call for a check once per hour, using the result and the table above to determine your progress.
Travel Speed
| Speed | Feet per Minute | Miles per Hour | Miles per Day |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 feet | 100 | 1 | 8 |
| 15 feet | 150 | 1-1/2 | 12 |
| 20 feet | 200 | 2 | 16 |
| 25 feet | 250 | 2-1/2 | 20 |
| 30 feet | 300 | 3 | 24 |
| 35 feet | 350 | 3-1/2 | 28 |
| 40 feet | 400 | 4 | 32 |
| 50 feet | 500 | 5 | 40 |
| 60 feet | 600 | 6 | 48 |
Exploration Activities
Source Player Core pg. 430
While you're traveling and exploring, tell the GM what you'd generally like to do along the way. If you do nothing more than make steady progress toward your goal, you move at the full travel speeds given in the table.
When you want to do something other than simply travel, you describe what you're attempting to do. It isn't necessary to go into extreme detail, such as “Using my prybar from my infiltrator's toolkit, I nudge the door open a couple inches to check for security measures that respond to movement.” Instead, “I'm checking the door for hazards” is sufficient. The GM finds the best exploration activity to match your description and describes the effects of that activity. Some exploration activities limit how fast you can travel and be effective.
These are the most common exploration activities.
When you want to do something other than simply travel, you describe what you're attempting to do. It isn't necessary to go into extreme detail, such as “Using my prybar from my infiltrator's toolkit, I nudge the door open a couple inches to check for security measures that respond to movement.” Instead, “I'm checking the door for hazards” is sufficient. The GM finds the best exploration activity to match your description and describes the effects of that activity. Some exploration activities limit how fast you can travel and be effective.
These are the most common exploration activities.
Rest and Daily Preparations
Source Player Core pg. 432
You're at your best when you take time to rest and prepare. Once every 24 hours, you can take a period of rest (typically 8 hours), during which you heal naturally, regaining Hit Points equal to your Constitution modifier (minimum 1) times your level, and you might recover from or improve certain conditions. Sleeping in armor results in poor rest that leaves you fatigued. If you go more than 16 hours without resting, you become fatigued (you can't recover from this fatigue until you rest at least 8 continuous hours).
After you rest, you make your daily preparations, which takes around 1 hour. You can prepare only if you've rested, and only once per day. During preparations:
After you rest, you make your daily preparations, which takes around 1 hour. You can prepare only if you've rested, and only once per day. During preparations:
- Spellcasters regain spell slots, and prepared spellcasters choose spells to have available that day.
- Focus Points, abilities that refresh during preparations, and abilities that can be used only a certain number of times per day, including magic item uses, are reset.
- You don armor and equip weapons and other gear.
- You invest up to 10 worn magic items to gain their benefits for the day.