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Athletics (Str)

Source Player Core pg. 193
Athletics allows you to perform deeds of physical prowess. Most Athletics actions let you move about the environment (Climb, High Jump, Long Jump, Swim) or control your opponent's movement in combat (Grapple, Reposition, Shove, Trip, and Disarm).
  • Escape: When you use the Escape basic action, you can use your Athletics modifier instead of your unarmed attack modifier.

Athletics Untrained Actions

Escape [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 408
You attempt to escape from being grabbed, immobilized, or restrained. Choose one creature, object, spell effect, hazard, or other impediment imposing any of those conditions on you. Attempt a check using your unarmed attack modifier against the DC of the effect. This is typically the Athletics DC of a creature grabbing you, the Thievery DC of a creature who tied you up, the spell DC for a spell effect, or the listed Escape DC of an object, hazard, or other impediment. You can attempt an Acrobatics or Athletics check instead of using your attack modifier if you choose (but this action still has the attack trait).
Critical SuccessYou get free and remove the grabbed, immobilized, and restrained conditions imposed by your chosen target. You can then Stride up to 5 feet..
SuccessYou get free and remove the grabbed, immobilized, and restrained conditions imposed by your chosen target.
Critical FailureYou don't get free, and you can't attempt to Escape again until your next turn.

Climb [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 193
Requirements You have two hands free.
You attempt an Athletics check to move a maximum distance of 5 feet up, down, or across an incline. You're off-guard while climbing unless you have a climb Speed. The GM determines the DC based on the nature of the incline and environmental circumstances; you might get an automatic critical success on an incline that's trivial to climb. If your land Speed is 40 feet or higher, increase the maximum distance by 5 feet for every 20 feet of Speed above 20 feet.
Critical SuccessYou move along the incline, increasing the maximum distance by 5 feet.
SuccessYou move along the incline.
Critical FailureYou fall. If you began the climb on stable ground, you fall and land prone.

Sample Climb Tasks

Untrained ladder, steep slope, low-branched tree
Trained cable line, typical tree
Expert wall with small handholds and footholds
Master ceiling with handholds and footholds, rock wall
Legendary smooth surface

Force Open [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 193
Using your body, a lever, or some other tool, you attempt to forcefully open a door, window, container, or heavy gate. With a high enough result, you can even smash through walls. Without a crowbar, prying something open takes a –2 item penalty to the Athletics check to Force Open.
Critical SuccessYou open the door, window, container, or gate and can avoid damaging it in the process.
SuccessYou break the door, window, container, or gate open, and it gains the broken condition. If it's especially sturdy, the GM might have it take damage but not be broken.
Critical FailureYour attempt jams the door, window, container, or gate shut, imposing a –2 circumstance penalty on future attempts to Force it Open.

Sample Force Open Tasks

Untrained fabric, flimsy glass
Trained ice, sturdy glass
Expert flimsy wooden door or barricade
Master sturdy wooden door or basic plastic, iron gate, metal bar
Legendary airlock or reinforced metal door

Grapple [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 194
Requirements You have at least one free hand and your target is no more than one size larger than you.
You attempt to grab a creature or object with your free hand. Attempt an Athletics check against the target's Fortitude DC. You can Grapple a target you already have grabbed or restrained without having a hand free.
Critical SuccessYour target is restrained until the end of your next turn unless you move or your target Escapes.
SuccessYour target is grabbed until the end of your next turn unless you move or your target Escapes.
FailureYou fail to grab your target. If you already had the target grabbed or restrained using a Grapple, those conditions on the target end.
Critical FailureIf you already had the target grabbed or restrained, it breaks free. Your target can either grab you, as if it succeeded at using the Grapple action against you, or force you to fall and land prone.

High Jump [two-actions]

Source Player Core pg. 194
You Stride, then attempt a DC 30 Athletics check to jump vertically. If you didn't Stride at least 10 feet, you automatically fail. This DC might be increased or decreased due to the situation, as determined by the GM.
Critical SuccessYou Leap up to 8 feet vertically and 10 feet horizontally.
SuccessYou Leap up to 5 feet vertically and 5 feet horizontally.
FailureYou Leap normally.
Critical FailureYou fall prone in your space.

Long Jump [two-actions]

Source Player Core pg. 194
You Stride, then attempt a DC 15 Athletics check to make a long jump in the direction you were Striding. If you didn't Stride at least 10 feet, you automatically fail your check. The GM might increase or decrease this DC depending on the situation. .
SuccessYou Leap up to a distance equal to your check result rounded down to the nearest 5 feet. You can't jump farther than your land Speed.
FailureYou make a normal horizontal Leap.
Critical FailureYou make a normal horizontal Leap, then fall and land prone.

Reposition [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 194
Requirements You either have at least one hand free, or you’re grabbing or restraining the target. The target can’t be more than one size larger than you.
You muscle a creature or object around. Attempt an Athletics check against the target's Fortitude DC.
Critical SuccessYou move the creature up to 10 feet. It must remain within your reach during this movement, and you can't move it into or through obstacles.
SuccessYou move the target up to 5 feet. It must remain within your reach during this movement, and you can't move it into or through obstacles.
Critical FailureThe target can move you up to 5 feet as though it successfully Repositioned you.

Shove [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 194
Requirements You have at least one hand free. The target can't be more than one size larger than you.
You push a creature away from you. Attempt an Athletics check against your target's Fortitude DC.
Critical SuccessYou push your target up to 10 feet away from you. You can Stride after it, but you must move the same distance and in the same direction.
SuccessYou push your target back 5 feet. You can Stride after it, but you must move the same distance and in the same direction.
Critical FailureYou lose your balance, fall, and land prone.

Swim [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 195
You attempt an Athletics check to move a maximum distance of 10 feet through water. The GM determines the DC based on the turbulence or danger of the water; in most instances of calm water, you get an automatic critical success. If your land Speed is 40 feet or higher, increase the maximum possible distance by 5 feet for every 20 feet of Speed above 20 feet.
If you end your turn in water and haven't succeeded at a Swim action that turn, you sink 10 feet or get moved by the current, as determined by the GM. This doesn't apply if your last action on your turn was to enter the water.
Critical SuccessYou move through the water, increasing the maximum distance by 5 feet.
SuccessYou move through the water.
Critical FailureYou make no progress. If you're holding your breath, you lose 1 round of air.

Trip [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 195
Requirements You have at least one hand free. Your target can’t be more than one size larger than you.
You try to knock a creature to the ground. Attempt an Athletics check against the target's Reflex DC.
Critical SuccessThe target falls, lands prone, and takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage.
SuccessThe target falls and lands prone.
Critical FailureYou lose your balance, fall, and land prone.

Athletics Trained Actions

Disarm [one-action]

Source Player Core pg. 195
Requirements You have at least one hand free. The target can’t be more than one size larger than you.
You try to knock an item out of a creature's grasp. Attempt an Athletics check against the target's Reflex DC.
Critical SuccessYou knock the item out of the target's grasp. It falls to the ground in the target's space.
SuccessYou weaken your target's grasp on the item. Further attempts to Disarm the target of that item gain a +2 circumstance bonus, and the target takes a –2 circumstance penalty to attacks with the item or other checks requiring a firm grasp on the item. The creature can end the effect by Interacting to change its grip on the item; otherwise, it lasts as long as the creature holds the item.
Critical FailureYou lose your balance and become off-guard until the start of your next turn.

Falling

When you fall more than 5 feet, you take falling damage when you land, which is bludgeoning damage equal to half the distance you fell. If you take any damage from a fall, you're knocked prone when you land. You can Grab an Edge as a reaction to reduce or eliminate the damage from some falls. More detailed rules for falling damage appear here.

Multiple Attacks with Athletics

Several Athletics actions have the attack trait, meaning that using them more than once in the same turn makes them less accurate. Since these actions use your free hand, you use the traits for your fist attack to determine the multiple attack penalty, so your fist's agile trait applies. Therefore, you take a –4 penalty if the action is your second attack of the turn, or a –8 if it's the third.
Some weapon traits allow you to take these actions using a weapon, in which case the penalty might be –5 or –10 if the weapon doesn't have the agile trait. Some characters can get unarmed attacks without the agile trait as well. If it's unclear which penalty to use, the GM makes the call.

Athletics in Low Gravity

Various Athletics actions function differently in zero gravity. Leap allows you to move in any direction twice the distance you would move if you had Leaped in normal gravity (up to twice your Speed). Shove and Reposition move targets twice their normal Speed and changes the direction they float. Trip causes the target to change the direction they float on a success and become untethered on a critical success. The grabbed condition removes the untethered condition unless all the creatures in a grab are untethered, and the direction the creatures float in a grab usually follows the direction of the grabbing creature.

Forced Movement

Reposition and Shove force a creature to move. When an effect forces you to move, or if you start falling, the distance you move is defined by the effect that moved you, not by your Speed. Because you're not acting to move, this doesn't trigger reactions triggered by movement. See Forced Movement for full details.